The  procedures  for  training  a  new  person  in engine-room  operations  vary  considerably,  depending upon such factors as the ship’s steaming schedule, the condition of the engine-room machinery, the number of experienced  personnel  available  to  assist  in  the  training, and  the  amount  of  time  that  can  be  devoted  to  the training. In general, however, you will probably begin by training the trainee to act as messenger. Then, before the  trainee  is  assigned  to  any  actual  duty,  he  or  she should be introduced to the engine room and become familiar with the location of all machinery, equipment, piping, and valves. The trainee must also be instructed in certain basic safety precautions and be specifically warned  about  the  dangers  of  turning  valve  wheels  or tampering  with  machinery.  “IF  IN  DOUBT,  ASK QUESTIONS!” is a pretty good rule for any new person in the engine room to follow. A  person  ready  to  be  trained  in  the  duties  of messenger should be shown all the gauges that are in use, told what the gauges indicate, and shown how to take readings. The trainee should understand why the readings are important, exactly how often each gauge must be read, and how to make accurate entries in the engine-room  log.  When  you  are  sure  the  trainee understands everything about gauges, teach the trainee how  to  check  lube-oil  levels  and  how  to  clean  metal edge-type filters and basket strainer-type. For a while you will have to keep a close watch on the  trainee’s  performance  of  these  duties.  When  the trainee becomes proficient in the duties of messenger, start the training in the throttleman’s duties. Fist, let the trainee  observe  the  throttleman  Then,  if  conditions permit, let the trainee start and secure machinery. As   far   as   manual   skills   are   concerned,   the throttleman’s   job   is   probably   easier   than   the messenger’s  job.  But  the  throttle  watch  requires  the utmost vigilance and reliability, and a new person will have  a  lot  to  learn  before  being  trusted  to  stand  the throttle watch alone. Personnel should always start out under the supervision of an experienced throttleman and should  remain  under  this  supervision  until  the  petty officer in charge of the engine room is fully satisfied that the trainee is completely qualified for this duty. In training engine-room personnel who have not had previous  engine-room  experience,  remember  that  an engine room can be a complicated and confusing place to someone who walks into it for the first time. A lot of equipment is crammed into a small space, and a lot of complex actions are going on at the same time. When training  new  personnel,  try  to  think  back  to  the  time when you first went into an engine room. What aspects of engine-room operations were most confusing to you at first? What kind of training would have made your learning easier and faster? By analyzing your own early experience and reactions, you get a bearing on what a new  person  may  experience  and  you  may  be  able  to provide more effective training. When you train new personnel, remember that they vary widely in their methods and rates of learning. Some people will learn most effectively if you give them an overall  view  of  main  engine  operations,  including  a certain amount of theory, before going into the details of the hardware and the manual operations. Others will learn most effectively if they are taught some manual skills  before  getting  too  involved  with  theory.  Some people learn manual skills rapidly but take a long time to absorb the theory; for others, the reverse is true. And, of course, some people learn everything slowly. Some trainees benefit from patient, almost endless repetition of  information;  others  may  become  bored  and  restless  if you  go  over  the  same  point  too  often.  The  important thing to remember is that your training efforts will be most successful if you are able to observe and allow for the  individual  differences  that  are  bound  to  exist. Closely related to this point is another: Don’t make snap judgments  about  people’s  abilities  until  they  have  had  a chance to DEMONSTRATE them. You may turn out to be very wrong if you make snap judgments on the basis of a general impression, such as appearance, or the rate at which they learn when they first come into the engine room. When  training  personnel  who  have  already  had some  engine-room  experience  but  who  have  been  on some  other  type  of  ship,  you  may  find  that  a  certain amount of retraining is needed before the individual can qualify as an engine-room watch stander on your ship. No two engine rooms are precisely alike in all details, and  no  two  main  engines  that  appear  to  be  identical behave in precisely the same way under all conditions. Each  engine  has  its  own  individuality,  and  operating personnel must adjust to the engine to obtain the best results. Practically all Enginemen learn this sooner or later;  you  can  speed  up  the  learning  process  by encouraging  engine-room  personnel  to  notice  and  to discuss differences between engines. SAFETY TRAINING Because  of  the  necessity  for  strict  observance  of safety  precautions,  all  engine-room  operational  training must be rigidly controlled and supervised. On-the-job training is necessary if an individual is to acquire the actual  skills  needed  for  main  engine  operation; 1-21