“Garages save on coffee as driverless cars negate the need for hiring drivers.”
This headline may seem a little comical, but then 10 years ago so may have headlines revealing that a hacker had controlled a Jeep remotely from a mobile phone. 10 years ago the thought of Hyundai sporting radar was so futuristic it was unbelievable. A decade is a long time in the automotive industry and we are told that within 10 years driverless cars will be on our roads.
Jonathan Sampson, General Manager of AutoMate training is seeing greater acknowledgement within the industry of the challenges that face the modern technician which is simply the quickly widening gap between technology arriving in the garage and the training received by most technicians often years before the technology existed.
“The rapid development of the hybrid vehicle and quickly evolving battery technology are two examples of new realities for automotive technicians. I think technicians are starting to realise that just like many other professions, ongoing training and continual skills development are simply a normal part of being a technician”, says Jonathan.
Jonathan heads up AutoMate Technical Training, an innovative e-learning company dedicated to meeting the specific needs of automotive technicians. Jonathan’s company has invested over a million dollars in developing and refining, not only the training format but the training content.
“After a lot of work we have refined to our training method and content to be systems based and highly effective. We love it when we are told by technicians that they feel like that they are learning but not being taught to. We call this our information sharing philosophy.
“We do all the research and refine it into small consumable bites with amazing graphics that are simply interesting. Most technicians don’t even realise they are learning until they successfully complete one of our knowledge tests.” says Jonathan.
Traditional face-to-face training has dominated the automotive industry since its inception replicating the traditional class room teaching of our childhoods. AutoMate claims that 80% of face-to-face teaching is lost within 80 days, without robust reinforcement.
AutoMate has married the hands-on garage environment with the best of face-to-face training into a small bite sized learning modules that can be accessed anytime anywhere on any internet connected device.
A test drive of AutoMate shows how impressive the training program is. The presenters are clear, concise and supported by some amazing graphics that add clarity to the subject. An optional knowledge test, taken at the end of each module, confirms that the content has been understood. The technician can then print off a certificate and garage managers or owners can access the training history and see which modules employees are currently training on.
The need for training has been a point of discussion in the industry in recent years. This is a product that can help drive profitability and standards for independent repairers. AutoMate’s library currently contains 150 training modules which are delivered to subscribers up to 10 times per month, meaning there is no shortage relevant training content.
You can find AutoMate at www.automatetraining.co.uk where you will be able to get started with a free trial.
