Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) recently hosted its inaugural Technician Skills Competition. This unique competition gives DTNA the opportunity to challenge and acknowledge outstanding technician abilities.
"Our service technicians work hard to deliver uptime and keep our customers on the road. The quality of our service technicians is essential to deliver an unsurpassed customer experience and serves as a critical building block for our 24 hour repair turnaround goal," said Stefan Kurschner, senior vice president DTNA Aftermarket.
The hands-on competition tested technicians' ability to diagnose and repair DTNA's range of products, including the Freightliner Cascadia, New Cascadia, Detroit heavy duty engine and DT 12 transmission. Out of hundreds of highly skilled technicians from service locations across the U.S. and Canada, two emerged as the winners - Travis Gannon of Lonestar Truck Group in Waco, Texas in the Vehicle Competition, and Terry Podralski of W.W. Williams Midwest LLC, in Akron, Ohio in the Engine Competition.
"We're proud of Travis and Terry and the level of expertise and commitment they demonstrate to ensuring our customers are back on the road as soon as possible. They're great examples of the highly trained technicians we have throughout our network, who constantly strive to increase their skills and serve our customers," said Kurschner.
Offering the largest service network in the industry, DTNA and its affiliated service locations have invested close to $5 million in technician training and development this calendar year. Some of the programs and initiatives include:
- Get Ahead Program: Get Ahead is a partnership program between DTNA, diesel schools, and DTNA service network locations that offers diesel schools access to web based training free of charge.
- Finish First: Finish First is a 12 week hands-on training program offered at select Universal Technical Institute campuses nationwide. Students earn certifications for Freightliner and Western Star trucks as well as Detroit engines.
- Trucks for Training Program: The Trucks for Training program allows top ranking Get Ahead schools to purchase used Freightliner or Western trucks at a reduced price.
- Master Technician Recognition Program: Launching in November 2018, the Master Technician Recognition Program will recognize and reward technicians that go above and beyond in the pursuit of providing an unsurpassed customer experience. Ten technicians will visit the corporate headquarters and provide feedback on what they see in the field.
"Investing in technician training is one of the best investments we can make as an organization. With our industry-leading products and service network we will continue to provide the best ownership experience possible for our customers," concluded Kurschner.
