Sometimes feels good to be a company man...

[drewtam]

I hope you don't mind me sharing this bit of corporate rah-rah I received. But this seemed genuinely cool.

WORKING FOR WOUNDED WARRIORS


Recently a group of Caterpillar employees toured the PolyTraumatic Rehabilitation Center at Hunter Holmes Mcguire VA Medical Center in Richmond, Virginia. While touring the facility, they met with Dr. Shane McNamee, chief of physical medicine and rehabilitation at the Department of Veterans Affairs, who is leading a program designed to accelerate rehabilitation and job placement for wounded veterans. One idea that came up was the opportunity for some of these warriors to find employment operating heavy equipment. Enter Cat® Simulators.

Simulator training provides a way for operators to gain familiarization and understanding of machine controls and applications; and learn proper operating procedures before training on actual machines. The simulated environment affords a safe place to learn and make mistakes without harm to people, machines or the job site. Simulation training seemed the right first step for the program.

Calls to key leaders at Caterpillar and Simformotionâ„¢ LLC, the licensee for Cat Simulators, resulted in immediate action. “The opportunity to give back to the veterans who protect and serve our country is an honor. Our ability to design and manufacture training simulators is a freedom we might not have someplace else,” said Simformation CEO Ken Pflederer.
Along with a Cat hydraulic excavator simulator, a Simformotion instructor arrived at the PolyTraumatic Rehab Center. More than 10 occupational, physical, kinesthetic and speech therapists were trained on the simulator. They’ll soon begin instructing interested polytrauma veterans on a 50-100 hour training program on the excavator simulator. As the vets get ready for work on real iron, the rehab center will turn to Cat® dealer Carter Machinery for access to machines.

Working together, teams at Caterpillar, Simformotion and the rehab center are helping create new opportunities for training and enabling wounded veterans to find satisfying careers in heavy equipment.

Here is an example simulator:
https://www.catsimulators.com/p-905-m-series-motor-grader-simulator-system.aspx

[birdman]

I hope you don't mind me sharing this bit of corporate rah-rah I received. But this seemed genuinely cool.

Here is an example simulator:
https://www.catsimulators.com/p-905-m-series-motor-grader-simulator-system.aspx

For vets with arm or leg amputations, rather than use the myoelectric sensors to control a prosthetic, why don't they make an interface that allows direct control...switch artificial arm to "backhoe" mode, plug USB cable into arm, and simply think the machine through its range of motion...

Of course, have to find a way to deal with the "my nose itches" instinctive response in software before someone accidentally trashes a building...

[vaskidmark]

The only thing wrong is that it took them so long to think of doing it.  That's not a knock against them, just a comment on how long the need has been there.  Kudos to CAT.

Have any of you ever looked at the Targeted Jobs Tax Credit programs?  There is a mountain of money to be made giving certain folks full-time jobs with standard benefits.  Plus it puts money out there for the tax collectors to get their hands on.  (It's such a deal that I've gotten jobs for ex-cons by selling how much money the employer gets back.  That, plus the built-in monitoring of a Parole Officer overcomes the fear/stigma of hiring them.

stay safe.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

i got a thousand dollar bonus from my company for every tjtc employee i hired. i had 19 cooks 15 came from jail. great crew a trifle rough and loyal. but they wouldn't let us play in the mall flag football league.