Customer Success Story:

Pratt & Whitney (A UTC Subsidiary)

Background
When it comes to continuous development of a highly talented workforce, not too
many companies can surpass the record of United Technologies Corporation (UTC). The
company has its own internal University, an established Learning and Development
division, and an online Learning Portal. Additionally, UTC offers certification credits that
motivate employees to complete critical training programs.
Since 2000, iKnowledge Solutions has worked in partnership with UTC to provide
employees with advanced courses in Unigraphics, Teamcenter Engineering, and CATIA.
iKS learning management system, i.get.it, is linked to UTCs Learning Portal, allowing
students to register for self-paced or classroom training programs.
iKS has also assisted UTCs subsidiaries by delivering effective training programs; from
customized, process-based Electrical Workbench training for Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation,
to self-paced training programs in NX (formerly called Unigraphics) for Pratt & Whitney.
Over the past ten years, iKS has developed a partnership with Pratt & Whitneys Engineering
Technical University (ETU) to address their evolving training requirements and business
needs.
Targeted Business Needs
Many of the most talented and experienced engineers of aerospace engine design
work at Pratt & Whitney. For years, these engineers have used complicated statistics
methodologies and sophisticated design software to build aircraft engines that, today,
are found in half of the worlds commercial fleet.
Over the years, iKS has partnered with Pratt & Whitney to provide classroom training in
NX, a PLM design application the company utilizes to create its acclaimed aircraft engines.
The ETU wanted to streamline the delivery of their NX training and also put in place a
solution that would provide for the distribution of proprietary courseware, best practices,
and procedures to approved outside suppliers. Utilizing the combined power of UTCs
Learning Portal and i.get.it, iKS was able to deliver the solution. Today, a blended approach
that incorporates both classroom training and online training ensures the availability of
the material that internal employees and external suppliers need; thus, increasing the
overall productivity of the operation.
The Next Challenge
The ETU was also focused on creating online engineering courseware for important
topics such as Weibull statistics a methodology that plays a critical role in the companys
design process, particularly relating to safety. As its very difficult to find specialists in this
field, Pratt & Whitney needed to transfer the knowledge of their experts into a format that
would teach the same level of expertise to the companys next generation of engineers.

Customer Success Story:

Solution Overview
Pratt & Whitney is a global leader
in commercial and military aircraft
engines, gas turbines, and space
propulsion systems. The company
has pioneered many of the most
technological advances in aviation.

Customer Profile
Headquarters in East Hartford,
Connecticut
Parent company comprised of
210,000 employees
Commercial engines found in
over 150 countries
Aircraft engines used by over
27 armed forcess

Business Requirements
Blend instructor-led training
with online courses
Revamp complex course
material into a more engaging
format
Provide 24/7 access to courses,
best practices, and procedures
to employees and suppliers

i.get.it e-Learning Solution

Supports instructor-led training
with online courses
Anytime and anywhere access
to training

Pratt & Whitney required a vendor that could create engaging, interactive courses out of
the companys existing course materials. This vendor also needed to deliver the courses in
a way that all authorized users could access at any time.

Solution
iKS i.get.it was identified as an ideal method to house and distribute Pratt &
Whitneys content, but the real test remaining was whether iKS could create
custom courseware out of material not easily understood by most people.
iKS leader in Flash technical content, David Francis, impressively rose to this
challenge. David dedicated himself to understanding our business processes. He
sat in on several instructor-led sessions to learn how our experts explained design
procedures and processes, and then put all the information he absorbed into a
creative, interactive format for our engineers, recalled Mary Matyas - Associate
Provost - ETU.
David affirmed that a hands-on approach was needed to create courses that would
engage students and diminish the learning curve for such complex material. What
I ultimately wanted to achieve was to capture the personal gems of wisdom from
Pratt & Whitneys instructors - the kind of teaching that cant be conveyed in flat
PowerPoint slides, he said.
Mary agreed this was an important factor in increasing student interest and
diminishing the learning curve for topics: One of our course topics discusses
Parts Cost, particularly design issues that can drive up costs. David created an
interactive game in the course called The Price is Right that added a bit of fun to
the subject, while at the same time imparting the specific mistakes that can send
costs skyrocketing. And this was just one example of a way he made the courses
more appealing and interactive.
Results

Custom Content Development

Pratt & Whitney has accomplished its ultimate training goal: provide greater
access to both employees and suppliers to course material, best practices, and
procedures.

Interactive, online courses

created out of difficult training
material
Tandem partnership with Pratt
& Whitney to develop custom
curriculum

Its about ease of use. Training must be enabled whenever and wherever the team
needs it. When learners can complete training based on their schedules, it is more
effective in terms of both cost and productivity. With online training, the courses
are available all of the time and not subject to schedules, facility availability, and
resources.

Benefits

Its about people. The development of compelling training courses cannot take
place in a vacuum. iKS David Francis has become part of the ETU team and plays
a critical role in the success of the partnership.

Lower overall business costs

Flexible training schedules
Faster learning curves
Highly trained workforce in a
competitive industry

Admin

Ultimately, the success of this partnership is a result of learning together and

making the right adjustments, Mary concluded. For example, in the course of
creating the online environment and the custom courseware, we realized that
in certain situations the teams wanted and needed classroom training options.
In other words, online courses do not replace classroom training entirely a
balanced blend of offerings is required. By blending online, interactive training
with more traditional classroom training, the teams receive the greater benefit
and a lower overall cost to the business.