Verisurf Develops Inspection Package for Faster NIMS Certification

Verisurf Software has announced its NIMS Precision Part Inspection (PPI) Solution, a turnkey quality inspection and reporting solution in support of the National Institute of Metalworking Skills (NIMS) certification testing process. The measurement, inspection and reporting product allows instructors to check students’ test parts right in the classroom, lab or shop, and includes all software, hardware and programming needed.

“We feel we have a responsibility to help close the skills cap for advanced manufacturing,” says Ernie Husted, president and CEO of Verisurf. “By developing educational programs, curriculum, and instructor productivity solutions, we are connecting teaching institutions and students with practical technology being used in industry today.”

The new Verisurf solution is the result of a nationwide pilot program conducted in 2018 designed to develop and validate a process and toolset to improve the ability of NIMS-certified instructors to inspect and report on NIMS Level 1 (L1) Mill and Lathe testing parts. The pilot program proved to reduce the time required to verify machined test parts submitted by students as part of their NIMS certification process, in some cases from weeks or months to minutes.

Verisurf NIMS PPI is based on the concept of keeping the quality verification of machined test parts within the classroom and in the control of NIMS-certified instructors, which also supports overall traceability, the company says. Its design also takes into consideration deployment in an education environment, ideal measurement performance matched to the NIMS part tolerances, safety, small footprint and reliability. Single-phase power means no need for compressed air. The Verisurf NIMS PPI solution also includes comprehensive online training hosted by Immerse2Learn, a platform widely used by educators and industrial trainers alike to develop skilled workers in fields such as engineering, manufacturing and automation.

“We realized from the beginning that to achieve practical and consistent implementation, the inspection and reporting solution needed to be comprehensive, easy to learn and easy to use,” says Ray Elledge, Education Program Manager for Verisurf.

Until now, schools offering NIMS Certification training were required to send out all their student’s machined test parts to be inspected and evaluated by a NIMS-sanctioned Met-Tec review committee. The individual Met-Tec reviewers are working professionals and volunteer their time, so depending on workloads the process often takes a month or more, holding up the students’ final NIMS certification.

Lincoln Tech, with 20 campuses across the United States, has NIMS-certified thousands of students using the Verisurf solution, reducing the average time-to-certification per student by 27 days. “The added efficiency and control we realized through the program has truly helped us get students through the program, NIMS-certified, and out into the workforce quicker,” says Clinton Smith, lead instructor.

“The results of the testing and feedback from NIMS-certified instructors has been very positive,” says Montez King, Director of Education at NIMS. “Instructors now have more control over the process of testing and evaluation of student parts while better managing the expectations of students regarding timing to receive NIMS certification.”