CMPC and DUOC UC initiate the dual teaching program with an investiture ceremony for new tutors

Employee volunteers will be instructed in July in order to become trainers for new professionals at three of the forestry company’s plants, wherein students from the institute will complement their classroom education through field application of the knowledge they’ve acquired.

In a ceremony held at the CMPC corporate building in Los Angeles in the Biobío Region of Chile, the first 31 tutors were appointed to serve as guides to 43 students of the Electricity and Industrial Automation Technician and Electro-mechanical Maintenance Technician degree programs at the CMPC DUOC UC campus in Nacimiento in south-central Chile offering a pioneering system of higher education in the nation.

The dual system originated in Germany and enables students to get an education both inside the classroom and on the company grounds to complement the knowledge gained from classroom instruction. They’ll work directly in the field alongside their tutors who are employees of the CMPC Maintenance Department, all volunteers who will be taught how to carry out the training role in July.

The program includes 72 hours of practical education at the plant and the students will be stationed between three company plants in the Region of Biobío. These include Santa Fe in Nacimiento as well as the Laja and Pacífico Plants in Collipulli, all of which have been prepared with dual training or education rooms, designed and built especially to receive students and set up spaces for research, presentations, study and creation.

CMPC DUOC UC Nacimiento Campus Deputy Director Pablo Briones highlighted the role of the company’s employees. “All of them play a key role since students will go to them to look for answers and gain learning experiences inside the plant,” he said.

The educational authority pointed out that this concept is a historical first. “In Chile, we are pioneering the implementation of the dual higher education system. Along with CMPC, we are making history by taking education directly into the productive world so that students have more hands-on hours and more experience when it comes time to join the work world.”

For her part, CMPC Dual Training and Linkage Head Viviana Valdebenito discussed the investiture of the tutors and said, “We wanted to recognize the key role that the tutors and teacher guides will play when welcoming the dual students by supporting them at the plant. The people in these two principal roles will guide the learners and give them a top-notch educational experience mainly in the technical field in connection with CMPC principles and standards.”

Corporate Affairs Deputy Manager Francisco Reveco stressed that this action speaks to the united efforts of the educational institution and the company. He said, “Having jointly created the center here in Nacimiento, we’ve achieved a significant milestone in sustainability, a concept that we’ve mainly focused on in terms of education, which is a key issue for us. This first-rate campus is not only for Nacimiento, but also for the surrounding districts such as Laja, Negrete, Los Angeles and Collipulli. We know it will be a big change and opportunity for the students.”

The Tutors

The workers and now “master guides and tutors” augur a good opportunity for future generations, speaking from their own experiences. This is the case for Juan Daniel Castro, Head of the Cellulose Mechanical Department at the Santa Fe Plant in Nacimiento, who will act as tutor. He said, “We are going to lead the learning process when the students arrive at our company so they can put their theoretical knowledge into concrete practice at the plant.”

Aliro Gallegos, a mechanical operator at the Collipulli Pacific Plant will also serve as a tutor. He said, “One of the reasons for participating in this program is to share what I have learned in my career at CMPC, from my professional path. What’s better than offering that knowledge I’ve acquired to the new generations? We’ll teach them our values and principles and what the plant has to offer. We’ll show them that they are the ones who will help forge our country in the future.”

Sergio Núñez Flores, Electro-maintenance Operator in the Laja Plant said, “When I heard about this program, what most caught my attention was getting to train people through practice. We’ve had experiences with students in practical internships who came to perform a range of tasks in order to earn their degree, so we’ve realized that with this process they’ll come in having already acquired a better foundation.”

The CMPC and DUOC UC dual education program in Nacimiento will start in the second semester when students will attend their first safety talks and get to know the plants with the new tutors leading the charge.