Core values are the fundamental beliefs and guiding principles that shape a company's culture, behavior, and decision-making processes. They represent the deeply ingrained beliefs and ideals that define how a company operates and interacts with its employees, stakeholders, clients, partners, and the community. ATN's core values are guiding principles that drive our mission and goals.

Mission: To provide the most extensive workforce training, technical assistance, and business solutions designed to empower and strengthen manufacturers in Alabama.

Vision: To be the leading provider of training and technical assistance solutions for Alabama manufacturers to sustain jobs, optimize operations, create efficiencies, and stay competitive.

Quality Policy: ATN is committed to meeting customer requirements and increasing customer satisfaction through continual improvement of training programs, technical assistance services, and the quality management system. ATN is ISO 9001 certified.

Integrity - ATN values and respects the dignity of our team members and strives to empower them through professional development and personal growth.

Innovation - In ATN's pursuit of excellence, we strive to adapt how we do things, from the way we work to how we care for our clients.

Learning - ATN believes that an educated and trained workforce is the foundation for sustained growth and economic prosperity.

Service - ATN strongly values the needs of our teams and clients. We place them at the heart of our work, doing what is best for their success while creating positive impacts in today's workforce.

Teamwork - ATN believes that cooperative networking and collaboration of business, education, and government best serves the needs of our clients and existing industry.

Sharing ATN's values will help strengthen relationships, build trust, and contribute to your business's overall success and sustainability. It creates a solid foundation for collaboration, innovation, and mutual growth.

If you would like to discuss how ATN can assist you with workforce training, technical assistance, and/or business solutions, please contact us at atninfo@atn.org.

In the last few weeks, the “Quality World” has seen a couple of key changes. One was to the ISO 9001:2015 standard, while the other was to one of the traditional automotive core tools.

First, in February the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) published a stand-alone amendment to the ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System standard. To briefly summarize, there is a new requirement (in section 4.1) that the company certified “shall determine whether climate change is a relevant issue”. Then there is a Note in section 4.2 that adds, “Relevant Interested Parties can have requirements related to climate change.” While the “note” in section 4.2 is guidance, not a “shall” statement and therefore not a requirement, the statement in section 4.1 is a requirement. Per ISO, this requirement is immediately active and should be audited by the accreditation bodies. ATN is working with its clients to best determine how to address this new amendment within their QMS, and what the risks and opportunities are relevant to this requirement. Increased maintenance due to exposed infrastructure, calculation of carbon footprints with emissions, and customers asking about a company’s sustainability practices are examples to be considered. 

Second, the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) has recently revised its Advanced Product Quality Planning (APQP) manual to revision 3, with a separate, new manual for completion of a slightly different control plan template to be used. And with GM asking their Tier I suppliers to switch to the new Control plan by October of this year, now is the time to review and change any needed documentation for your company.

Please let the CI team know how we can help.

Contact us at citeam@atn.org.

We are just a few weeks away from entering the official Atlantic Hurricane Season for 2024. It will run from June 1 through the end of November. Currently, we are in the cycle of having spring storms that bring the threat of thunderstorms, flooding, tornadoes, and associated hazards and risks. At any point, our workplaces and homes could face the threat of fires. We constantly have some form of emergency situation that we must be prepared to face and to which we must react and defend.

OSHA regulations require that every employer conduct a hazard analysis for potential emergency situations at each worksite. Those hazards could include fires, hazardous weather, chemical spills or releases, workplace violence, and others. Once identified, the employer must then develop a plan to respond to those emergencies, including hazard abatement or mitigation and risk controls.

With a wide-range of experience and backgrounds, our EHS Team members have worked in various industries, faced with the uniqueness of emergencies within those industries. This knowledge and skill-set development over the years allows our EHS Team to understand that looking at control measures for emergencies in a chemical manufacturer will not be the same as a fabricated metals facility. Looking at response to fires will differ greatly from paper or lumber industries versus a fire in a poultry processing plant. So, knowing the risks associated with the hazards is critical in determining proper responses.

Our EHS Team has the ability to assist you in workforce training, program evaluation and development, and associated areas of need, ensuring you and your company have the tools in place to respond to emergencies. We would love to discuss more with you and support you as needed.

Contact us at ehsteam@atn.org.

Please update your calendars for upcoming important dates and events in the food industry sector. Who: Tuskegee University

What: Seminar: Maximizing the Workforce Potential within the Meat and Poultry Processing Industry

When: 6:00 pm CST, April 23^rd, 2024

Where: Live, Virtual

Cost: NO COST!

Registration: https://tuskegee.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAkduygrT0rHdW0sNrm40KhgQ4FBIm5EbwY#/registration

Why: Participate with ATN's Food Industry Project Engineer, Amanda Rials, in an engaging webinar that explores strategies for empowering and developing talent in the meat and poultry processing sector. Led by industry experts, participants will gain valuable insights into workforce development initiatives, best practices, and opportunities for growth within the industry. 

Who: Snead State Community College

What: Boiler Training 

When: April 29^th – May 2^nd, 2024

Where: SUSCC (Boaz, AL)

Cost: $1985

Registration: Teresa Walker, Workforce Development Director, 256-840-4211 Teresa.Walker@snead.edu

Why: This course offers training for facilities that operate boilers. The content is not specific to food processing or for facilities that operate ammonia refrigeration. All industries are welcome to attend. 

Who: Alabama Rural Water Association

What: Gulf Coast Technical Training Conference 

When: May 22^nd – 24^th, 2024

Where: Perdido Beach Resort, Gulf Shores, AL

Cost: Varies based on organization

Registration: https://alruralwater.events/event/17

Why: This event offers up to 10 CEH’s of instruction time for Alabama Certified Water and Wastewater Operators subject to ADEM approval. This conference is also beneficial to any company or organization that interacts with the water and wastewater world, regardless of being from a municipality or from private industry.

Who: USDA Jackson, MS District (AL, MS, TN, KY)

What: HACCP Roundtable Call

When: June 6^th, 2024

Where: Onsite & Virtual – Onsite is located at the Auburn University Charles C. Miller, Jr. Poultry Research and Education Center in Auburn, AL

Cost: NO COST

Registration: Dianna V. Bourassa, Ph.D. Email: DVB0006@auburn.edu

Why: The Poultry Roundtable offers processors a collaborative group to converse with to better understand regulations and implementation within the district as well as a learning component with short presentations. This event consists of 2 conference calls: one with industry only and one that includes USDA from the Jackson District who answer pre-submitted questions, provide regulatory updates, and engage in questions and conversation generated during the call.

Who: GaMEP Georgia Manufacturing Extension Partnership

What: Food Entrepreneur Training

When: 9:00am – 4:00pm Eastern (8:00am – 3:00pm CST), August 7^th, 2024

Where: Callaway Conference Center, West Georgia Technical College – 220 Fort Drive, LaGrange, GA 30240

Cost: NO COST!

Registration: https://gamep.org/food-training-program/

Why: This event is intended for new or aspiring food/farmer entrepreneurs who are looking to start their business on the right foot. This no-cost class will feature topics on licensing (concentrate on GA), food safety basics, regulations, business modeling, and customer discovery. 

Who: FDA

What: Food Facility Registration Biennial Renewal

When: October 1^st – December 31^st, 2024

FDA Food Facility Registration User Guide: Biennial Registration Renewal

FDA Food Facility Biennial Registration Renewal Fact Sheet

Webinar on FDA Food Facility Registration (FFR), Biennial Renewal, and Unique Facility Identifiers (UFI)

Contact us at foodsafety@atn.org.

Bearing Selection and Lubrication

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

This one-day class introduces bearings and lubrication. Activities will include identifying bearing types and their applications, bearing installation, and removal. Additional topics include lubrication intervals, bearing life expectancies, and failure mode identification.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

At the end of this course, the student should be able to:

1.    Understand different types of bearings and applications.

2.    Proper bearing installation.

3.    Lubrication types, methods, and frequency. 

COURSE OUTLINE:

1.    Types of loads

2.    Bearings

a.    Plain Bearings

b.    Rolling-Contact Bearings

3.     Proper Bearing Selection

4.    Bearing Installation

5.    Bearing Removal

6.    Lubrication

7.    Bearing Life Expectancy

8.    Bearing Failure Investigation

Contact us at imtteam@atn.org.

To be both an effective and efficient management team, mastering the art of delegation is paramount. This skill enables professionals in leadership to accomplish their strategic objectives by distributing responsibilities and tasks to their subordinates. If used effectively, it helps managers lead their teams to success. Delegation carries many benefits for leaders and organizations, it helps leaders to stay focused and often speeds up the decision-making process by helping team members to gain experience and confidence in key roles while reducing the tendency to micromanage. Strategic delegation boosts the morale and motivation within the team creating a positive atmosphere resulting in less employee turnover while developing a strong bench full of opportunities. A strong company culture of effective delegation will build trust and help that business function at an optimal level. 

During this fast-paced 2-hour session, leaders and future leaders will define and examine best practices to better delegate effectively and efficiently. Topics during this session will cover: What is effective delegation, examining obstacles and fears that drive leaders to avoid delegation, communications, elevating team engagement, self-esteem, confidence, leveraging KSA’s (Knowledge-Skills & Abilities), accountability, and positive company culture.

Contact us at lmdteam@atn.org.