Technical English Program at P.T. Koba Tin
History: The large alluvial mining concession operated by P.T. Koba Tin on Bangka Island relies substantially on indigenous Indonesian staff, directed by a small core of English speaking expatriate engineers and managers. The nature of the operation requires the use of very heavy American and Japanese trucks, bulldozers and other mining equipment. The manuals for this equipment are substantially in English, and give Indonesian mechanics considerable trouble. The English speaking engineers also have some difficulty in communicating their requirements to the mechanics. In February 1996, P.T. Koba Tin management engaged the services of John Batman Institute of TAFE to provide advice and a training framework to overcome the language problem (as they saw it) of their Indonesian staff. JBI seconded Thor May to undertake the consultancy, as an expert in technical language and training.
<> P.T. Koba Tin is a division of Renison Gold Mining (Australia) Ltd.
<> John Batman Institute of TAFE (Technical & Further Education) was an Australian training institution, specializing in automotive engineering, and with a number of ongoing projects in Indonesia. JBI has since been amalgamated with Kangan TAFE.
<> Thor May at the time of this project had over twenty years of experience in language teaching, linguistics, and writing in a wide variety of idioms. He also had a long-standing "hands on" interest in mechanics and technology generally, which made communication with mechanics very direct and natural. He no longer has any relationship with JBI or its successor institutions.
__________________