An evaluation of a fault‐finding training course for refinery process operators*

The development of a training course on fault finding in a crude distillation unit is described and its contents illustrated. The criterion problem for this and similar industrial problem‐solving tasks is discussed. ‘Operational’, or product measures, namely, first shot successes (FSS), wrong diagnoses (WD) and diagnosis time (T), are reported and compared with five measures of the problem‐solving process . Training substantially increased FSS, substantially reduced T and reduced WD by an order of magnitude. Post‐training scores were superior to those of men with refinery operating experience, although the difference in T was not statistically significant. Large and significant improvements were also found with the majority of the process measures. The training course only required five sessions of 2½ hours including pre‐ and post‐tests.