Standard Timing Model AKA Mechanical Minimizer test?

[dustyclark87]

Hi all, new to the site, so sorry if this is posted to the wrong forum. Currently laid off from my press forging job and will hopefully have another interview for another company coming up soon. Was told I'd have to pass a "Minimizer Test" which from the few things I've gathered online is the Standard Timing Model test. Has anyone taken this before? Was trying to get as much info as I could before taking it so I can be as prepared as possible. Couldn't find much online about it other than a picture. Thanks in advance for any info, much appreciated!

 

[moon161]

Looks like someone made a test for 'the knack'

http://scientific-management.com/standard-timing-model.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjOofjAlnBU

You could take stuff apart and put it back together. Start with a zippo lighter and work up to completing russia's incomplete Buran space shuttles.

 

[tbuelna]

Sounds like the test should be no problem for anyone with the mechanical ability to change a light bulb. If your previous employer trusted you to operate a forging press, I'm sure you'll pass this "minimizer test" with flying colors.

 

[arbreen]

I read an article about something like this, I think in Wired magazine. The employer had a slew of engineering knick knacks and the prompt was just "tell me everything you can about this object." There was no way to study for it except to get practical experience in your field. One of the objects was a laser gyroscope out of an ICBM. Most people wouldn't be able to identify it, but someone with The Knack could say it looks high-precision, aerospace-related, and optical in nature. The best candidates might be able to say what it is, how it works, and why they choose Zerodur to make them out of.