The Ballad of the Forgotten Hands
An introduction…
Rudi works as a setup technician on the shop floor of an injection molding company, responsible for preparing and installing molds. His tasks include transporting molds, materials, and peripheral devices to the machine and using a crane runway to mount heavy molds onto the machine’s mounting plate with precision.
However, Rudi never trained for this job—he was once a teacher, but with the rise of smartphones and AI, he found himself in a new career. Coming from Romania, he has worked hard to learn the local language, yet still faces challenges in communication. His employer, focused on cutting costs, offers no proper training, leaving him to learn on the job with the help of colleagues. Despite his best efforts, he lacks a deep understanding of how process settings influence product quality, leading to wasted material, time, and energy as he and his coworkers adjust parameters until a good part is produced.
The constant arrival of new machines complicates matters further. With different brands like Arburg, Battenfeld, Dr. Boy, Engel, and Sumitomo Demag already in use, the recent addition of Haitian machines—purchased solely for their lower cost—has led to weeks of trial and error in programming and setup. What seems like a cost-saving decision to management ultimately results in wasted resources and inefficiency.
Rudi’s frustrations don’t end there. When customers visit to oversee mold setup, they critique his work without understanding the lack of proper guidance. He is forced to follow theories that contradict real-world experience, leaving him unheard and undervalued. Though his job is a standard 9-to-5, he knows that with proper training and support, his work could be more efficient and fulfilling.
Instead, he is met with constant complaints and reminded to be grateful for having a job at all. Meanwhile, his boss, who lacks even the basic knowledge to operate the machines, continues to make decisions that only add to the daily struggles. Rudi’s song reflects his frustration, the absurdity of his situation, and the untapped potential that remains ignored in a system unwilling to invest in its workers.
Be careful – Rudi loves classic music!