A2LA WorkPlace Training has had many opportunities over the years to support the US government and armed forces through many different forms of specialized training, both online and in person. Although our custom and public training options are a great opportunity for us to deliver more specialized training material, the courses that have had by far the most extensive use in this field are e-learning courses. Our virtual training on metrology, calibration, and international standards like ISO/IEC 17025 are broadly applicable in these fields, which contributes to their widespread use. Even more so than in many other large organizations, consistency and technical expertise are crucial within the laboratories that support government and defense. For these organizations, AWPT e-learning is often used as a supplement to the more specialized courses developed within each organization. These e-learning courses have been utilized in different ways across different branches of the government, providing some insight on their diverse applications. 

AWPT has supplied the US Army TMDE (Test, Measurement, and Diagnostic Equipment) Activity laboratories with e-learning courses for nearly two decades, totaling over 12,000 hours of active user time spent on the course materials. The US Army has its own instrument-specific training and uses AWPT virtual e-learning courses to provide foundational knowledge on scientific principles, relevant mathematical principles, measurement units, error sources, and more in addition to coursework provided by the Army. AWPT e-learning is especially useful as cross-training and refresher training for field personnel who have been out of school for years and may need to re-familiarize themselves with training on calibration and metrology principles. Additionally, many civil service technicians employed by the US Army TMDE Activity have learned on the job rather than by attending formal calibration or metrology training. Access to AWPT courses helps these personnel fill any gaps in their knowledge and give them a more complete foundation for their job activities. 

AWPT also supplies e-learning for the Navy and Marine Corps, although their approach to the courses was initially quite different. For many years, AWPT supplied individual Navy and Marine Corps metrology labs with calibration training on an as-needed basis. Local labs would independently purchase site licenses for the specific courses they wanted. As more and more labs began using the courses, however, officials from the Marines and the major Navy Commands began to take notice, and realized that AWPT courses could fill a need for supplementary post-schoolhouse training more effectively if applied on a larger scale. Ultimately, an enterprise license was arranged for both the Navy and the Marine Corps, allowing all of their calibration technicians access to the entire library of AWPT courses from anywhere in the world (even on ships). 

AWPT provides training to several other government and government-adjacent organizations, including the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) and NASA, through a combination of e-learning, contract training, and public training courses. Our diversity of course offerings and our ability to update our web-based course materials to keep them relevant makes these long-term professional partnerships possible. For more information in AWPT e-learning, visit A2LAWPT.org/e-learning.