132

MEETING THE NEEDS OF THE SMALL-MINE OPERATOR 1

by

Thomas H. Savage2 and Nettie Farkas3

ABSTRACT

The Department of the Interior1 s Bureau of Mines, through a contract

awarded to the the Mining Extension Service of West Virginia University are
currently engaged in assessing the needs of the small-mine operators and
developing mechanisms through which these needs can be met. The project will
provide concepts, materials, and vehicles of delivery for miner training not
currently available to the small-mine operator. This paper reports on the
progress of this project. In particular, the method of assessment being used
to identify the needs of the small-mine operator, the types of materials and
delivery systems being developed in response to these needs, and the conclu-
sions and recommendations that are developing from this project will be dis-
cussed.
INTRODUCTION

The Bureau of Mines reports that over 60 percent of the mining operations
in the United States employ less than 50 people. Because such operations do
not contain the support personnel found in the management structure of larger
operations, it may be assumed that this segment of the industry has substan-
tially different training needs than larger operations. To date, though,
there has been little research to identify these needs.

The Bureau of Mines and Mining Extension Service of West Virginia Univer-
sity are currently engaged in assessing the needs of the small underground
coal mine operator, and are developing mechanisms through which these needs
can be met. This project is an attempt to meet the expressed needs of the
industry to design instructional materials and to develop a delivery system
specifically applicable in the small mine setting.

THE SMALL MINE OPERATION--IIHAT CRITERIA

For the purposes of this project, a mine will be categorized as small

mine if (1) it has 50 or less employees and (2) there is a limited management
structure serving the mine. The first criterion for the category, small mine,
is a fairly common one. The second criterion was established in order to
eliminate small mines that are operated by major coal producers. This is not
a common criterion and bears further explanation.

'This work was conducted under Bureau of Mines contract J0188053.

2Associate director.
3Curriculum designer.
Both authors are with Mining Extension Service, West Virginia University,
Morgantown, 1/. Va.
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Several large coal companies (such as Island Creek and Peabody) operate
mines with 50 or fewer employees. Unlike the typical small mine, however,
these mines have at their disposal the management, and safety and training
resources of a major coal company. For this reason, it was decided that they
should be excluded from the small-mine category, and so the second criterion
was established.

APPROACH TO THE PROJECT

This is a I-year project that will culminate in the development of infor-

mation materials to aid small-mine operators in their day-to-day operations.
The work of this project can be divided into two phases: assessment and cur-
riculum development. The assessment phase entails identifying the small -mine
operator's problems and needs and identifying the mechanisms that can be
developed to meet these needs. To accomplish this, the decision was made to
conduct a personal interview with a sampling of small-mine operations. The
curriculum development phase entails developing materials to meet the identi-
fied needs and designing the material to fit the delivery system or systems
most appropriate for the small mine. In addition, the materials that are
developed will be tested in the field.

An important feature of this project is that while there are two separate
functions to perform--assessment and curriculum development--there is total
integration of these functions in terms of conceptualization and personnel.
Often, projects deal with only one of these two areas: research or develop-
ment. Or, if both functions are required, they may be staffed by two separate
sets of personnel. In this project, the people who are designing the needs
assessment and conducting the interviews are also the people who will be
invol ved in designing and developing the curriculum materials.
The benefits of this approach are twofold. The designers of the mate-
rials will have a heightened awareness and sensitivity to the problems of the
small operator due to their exposure to various operators during the assess-
ment phase. And, the designers of the materials will have a solid basis for
dealing with the first problem of any writing assignment: knowing the poten-
tial audience. Because of this integration of functions, the materials bêing
produced should have greater relevancy and acceptance in the field.

THE ASSESSMENT PHASE

Preliminary investigations seemed to indicate that the typical small-mine

operator, although well aware of particular problems and needs, does not have
the resources, the personnel, or the time to properly address and resal ve such
problems. Additionally, in many instances, the programs and materials cur-
rently available do not provide delivery systems appropriate to the small
operator.
The needs assessment has been designed to cover the following three
broad areas:
1. The need for informational materials. What specifically is needed?
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2. The appropriate delivery system for these materials. In terms of the

smaii -mine operator's situation, would instructor guides, self-study guides,
seminars, etc., be most useful?

3. Is there a need for an ongoing technology transfer system? Such a

system might provide a means for small operators to receive answers to their
questions on various topics. It could also provide a means to inform the
small operator of new developments in the field.

Personal Interviews
To fulfill the assessment phase of this project, the Mining Extension
Service is conducting interviews with a sampling of smaii-mine operators. The
interview format was chosen because it affords the greatest flexibility. The
interviewer can clarify questions for the benefit of the respondent and can
ask respondents to elaborate on certain answers. Also, it allows for personal
action contact between the developers of the materials and the potential users
of the materials.

A1 though the interviews were meant to be informal in nature, they were

not intended to be unstructured. Thus, a set of questions was devised for
use in the interviews. In the process of developing the set of ques tions, a
few operators were contacted for their reactions to the project. Also, a few
trial-run interviews were conducted to determine if the questions were clear
and would elicit relevant information. The set of questions was refined and
modified after these preliminary interviews.

In the final interview form, 37 questions were used and, as mentioned

before, the interviewer could always solicit extra information when appropri-
ate. The sample consisted of 20 small operators from a three-state area.
These operators represent mines in northern and southern \vest Virginia, Mary-
land and Pennsylvania.

In terview Ques tions

The questions on the interview form can be broken down into the following
5 main areas:
1. Mandatory training.

2. Safety programs.

3. Special problems of foremen, electricians, and maintenance personnel.

4. Special problems of small-mine management.

5. Effectiveness of various delivery systems and the need for the tech-
nology transfer systems.
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First, possible needs relating to mandatory training were examined. From

the study by John Short and Associates4 on manpower and training needs in the
mining industry, it was known that small operators find complying with state
and Federal training regulations more costly than do larger operators. Also,
the study found that to minimize their costs, small operators tend to use
external training sources--for instance, schools, private companies, or
consultants.
Although this information on the small mine and mandatory training was
available, the topic requires further investigation. The authors were inter-
ested in such questions as: who does each type of mandatory training, and how
worthwhile the operators believe the training to be. Furthermore, the answers
to questions to be asked about training plans--who writes them and how fre-
quently are they updated--are not directly available.

In terms of safety programs, the important points of interest are what

programs, either formal or informal, are now in place, and whether or not the
opera tors feel they have a need for information in this area.

In terms of foremen, electricians, and maintenance personnel, the impor-

tant questions to be asked are how satisfied the operators are with perform-
ance in these areas, how are people being trained in these areas, and do the
operators feel there is a need for further information in any of these three
areas.
The fourth category is related to the problems of small-rine management.
Here the operators are asked about their backgrounds and backgrounds of their
management personnel, as well as what needs they might have in terms of mine
management. That is, the operators are asked if they feel they or their man-
agement personnel need information on lahar relations, on supervisory and man-
agement skills, on engineering problems, and so on.

Questions falling into the last category concern delivery systems and the
problem of technology transfer. In this respect, once a particular part or
topic has been identified, how should the training material or information
relating to this need be written and packaged--for instance, as an instruc-
tor's guide for use in class or seminars, or, perhaps, as a self-study guide?
Also, the authors are trying to determine if other nontraditional delivery
formats would have value in the small operator's situation.

4Short, J., J. Harris, J. Waldo, and S. Barber. A Study to Determine the Man-
power and Training Needs of the Coal Mining Industry. BuMines OFR 14-80,
1979, 145 pp.; available for reference at Bureau of Mines facilities in
Tuscaloosa, Ala., Denver, Colo., Avondale, Md., Twin Cities, Minn., Rolla,
Mo., Boulder City and Reno, Nev., Albany, Oreg., Pittsburgh, Pa., Salt Lake
City, Utah and Spokane, Wash.; National Mine Health and Safety Academy,
Beckley, W. Va.; Office of Surface Mining Library and National Library of
Natural Resources, U. S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D. C.; and
from National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Va. 22161,
PB 80-164472.
136

Closely allied to this determination is the issue of technology transfer.

A number of questions are aimed at determining what vehicles now exist for the
transfer of informatiollt such as information on new regulations, technical
developments, and mining techniques. In addition to determining the technol-
ogy transfer systems currently in place, operators are being asked if they
feel these systems are adequate, and if they have need for other systems.
Specifically, operators are asked if a newsletter focusing on current informa-
tion pertinent to the small-mine operator would be helpful. Also, operators
are being asked if a toll-free telephone source that small-mine operators
could use to ask specific questions and receive answers on lists of resource
materials would be helpful.

Mining Extension Service Survey

Independently, the Mining Extension Service is also conducting a formal

survey of smaii~ine operators. This survey is directed toward the same main
areas of i.nvestigation as the personal interviews. The survey instrument, in
fact, incorporates early findings from the personal interviews for further
validation, but it also builds on these findings to further probe the problems
and needs of the small opera tor.
The Mining Extension Service survey is being mailed to approximately
600 smaii-mine operators throughout a seven-state area. As a mail survey,
this instrument will reach a broader spectrum of small coal mines than was
possible in the personal interviews. Findings from this survey will be
included in the final report of this project.

PRELIMINARY FINDINGS OF THE ASSESSMENT PHASE AND

THE DEVELOPMENT OF CURRICULUM MATERIALS

It is becoming clear that small mines do have specific needs. These

needs can be linked, to a great extent, to the fact that the small mine oper-
ates with limited management personnel, and many of these people tend to have
very general mining backgrounds. The small mine often does not have people
trained in such areas as safety, training, or maintenance. Also, the small
mine probably does not assign people to devote their full attention to these
areas.
At the time this paper was prepared, not all the data from the interviews
had been completely analyzed. Early findings, however, have clearly identi-
fied certain areas of need, and curriculum development work has begun. One of
these areas relates to evaluating training--for instance, what the operator
should expect from training, and how operators can update and alter training
plans. A second topic relates to human-relations skills, more specifically,
improving the communication and human-relations skills of mine supervisors.

As the content of the curriculum materials is being determined, decisions

are being made about format and delivery. It was found during the early
interviews that most operators would be reluctant to release personnel for
classes or multiple-day training sessions, such as workshops. With this in
mind, curriculum materials are being developed and targeted directly to the
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mine personnel needing the information. Rather than instructor materials,

these materials will be designed and written as booklets for self-use. For
instance, one booklet may be directed to section foremen; another may be
directed to the person who is responsible for setting up a safety program. If
they are to gain acceptance, such materials must be highly relevant to the
need. The information must be delivered in small increments and in an easy-
to-use format.

To validate the curriculum materials being produced, a representative

group of small-mine operators is currently being selected to field test the
materials. Comments and alterations from these people wiii be incorporated in
the final drafts of the materials.

The Mining Extension Service is also investigating a second information

delivery system: informal organizations of small-mine operators. These would
provide a chance for operators within a particular region to discuss issues
and problems of mutual interest. Preliminary data from the interviews suggest
that for every problem a particular operator has, another operator has devel-
oped a successful solution.

Currently, plans are being made for the Service to set up and serve as
f acili tator for a number of trial small-mine operator's roundtahles, where
operators can meet to discuss one or two particular issues or problems.
Although one solution may not transfer directly to another mine, a meaningful
dialogue and sharing of problems and solutions among operators could prove
very valuable. What is learned from these initial roundtables could later be
used in facilitating roundtables in other areas.

CONCLUSIONS

From the work that has been completed so far, several preliminary find-
ings about the needs of the small-mine operator are beginning to crystalize.
For one thing, it is being discovered that the traditional delivery systems
for information and materials are not appropriate. If small-mine operators
are going to do more than the mandatory training, then there is a need to
develop materials that are especially relevant to the small operator's situa-
tion. In particular, the materials must be learner directed. Also, the
information must be delivered in snaIl increments and in easy-to-use formats.
Also being investigated is the usefulness of mine operator's roundtables as a
delivery system for information on particular problems.

In addition to specific needs that can be addressed in booklets and

guides, the authors have found that there is a need for a technology transfer
system for the small operator. Toward this end, an investigation of the
value of a specialized newsletter and toll-free information source is being
explored.
These, however, are only the preliminary findings. Final conclusions
and recommendations will be presented in the final report of this project.