The term “Advanced Basics” may seem like an oxymoron (which it is), but it’s no odder than statements like fully empty, only choice, liquid gas, or even open secret. They all have their meanings, but I like Advanced Basics above the others. Before I get into what it means and future work for ATRA, let’s go back over these past couple of years and get some perspective.
For the past couple of years, ATRA has worked with technical schools and community colleges to help students be more hirable when they graduate. These schools use ATRA’s VTS platform for portions of their training, and it offers practical training in areas the schools may be lacking or that are impractical to teach in a classroom setting. During the Covid crisis, when schools shut down, some students could graduate because of the training they received from ATRA’s virtual training platform. It’s something that we’re proud of. The plan is sound, and it’ll help prepare young people to enter the workforce with better knowledge and talents. The problem is, is that it’s a slow process. Slower than the pressing need for trained technicians. What to do?
So we looked at the other end of the scale, veteran technicians without transmission skills. Here, we discovered an abundance of smart, capable people that know their way around a shop but lack any meaningful transmission understanding. I was reminded of an incident about 20 years ago. ASE invited me to help them with their test questions for their A2 certification. I was stunned at how easy it was. I was surprised to learn that it was the most difficult test for non-transmission techs to pass. The automotive industry has loads of talented people who struggle with automatic transmissions.
But what if we could train these individuals for our industry? Not as rebuilders but for what may be the most needed position in today’s transmission shop, the person that makes the call to remove the transmission. It’s a pressing need, especially with today’s complex transmissions.
This problem is nothing new. I remember years ago, working the Hot Line and getting calls that were something like this, “I’ve got this 5R55E that came in with no third gear. I’ve got it apart on my bench and can’t find anything wrong with it.” Or how about working on something like a 6L80 with some transmission malady? You’ve never been inside one, so you decide to exchange it with a reman unit. You figured that there was still room for a decent profit even with the $3,200 price tag. Two days later, the transmission arrives. You install it, only to find that it’s doing the same thing that it came in for. Oops!
Better training in the fundamentals can help avoid situations like these, which is the essence of “Advanced Basics.” ATRA’s next push toward technical competency aims to target this training. The ATRA Tech team is already developing plans to address this problem. The idea is to find talented people who, with a little training, can become part of the transmission industry and fill a key role. And after all, who wouldn’t want to be a part of this industry? It’s that cool.
We’ll kick off this idea at ATRA’s Powertrain Expo with two programs: “Before You Pull That Trans,” by Scott Shotton, along with a class in Spanish titled ¿Pero, Donde Esta La Falla?, by Pepe Torres.
It’s a great start to an ambitious plan. We have high expectations for this, and I look forward to being a part of it.
