Opinion THOUGHT LEADER
School Bus Technician Training: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
WRITTEN BY MARSHALL CASEY
Technician training was pretty simple when I got started in the school bus industry: Gap all spark plugs at 0.035 inches, dwell all points at 30 degrees and remember that the firing order for a small block Chevy is 1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2.
America’s Best Tech & Inspector events are one way today’s maintenance professionals can get hands- on training.
E
ven if I had a little problem I could usually grab a service manual and find a picture to help me understand how to put things back together. Fortunately for me, things didn’t get
much more complicated over the years. At least, that is, until about a decade ago. Ten, seemingly overnight, technology had caught up with the school bus industry. Suddenly people were talking about multiplexing,
smart switches, networking, computer modules, and communication ports. Were we still talking about school
buses or the Space Shuttle? My test light was replaced by a DVOM and a computer became the preferred method for diagnostics. Even my beloved service manuals had gone digital, and directions moved more toward pa- rameters than simple specifications. Tat simple device we used to call a muffler was now covered in electronic probes and called an after-treatment device, and it cost more than the first bus I repaired. As this wave of change swept over the industry it
forced us all to step back and evaluate the techniques and methods used to train school bus technicians. Tose individuals who were once referred to as ”grease monkeys” would now be spending more time diagnosing computer modules, switch hubs and communication networks than district IT personnel. It quickly became apparent to the school bus manu-
facturers that if these complex systems on their vehicles were to be properly maintained, a two- to three-hour seminar on how to do it would no longer suffice. Each of the manufacturers began developing and offering in- tensive, week-long training programs titled “University,” “Academy” or “Institute.” Te names alone implied that a higher level of training would be provided. Technicians needed to truly understand things like the communi- cation requirements needed for the various computer modules to insure optimal performance of all compo- nents. For example, a switch would no longer complete the circuit to turn on a heater. Instead, the switch would communicate to the computer the operator’s desire to have the heater turned on, so that, the computer could in turn complete the request. Since the manufacturers really assemble parts from many suppliers to complete the vehicle, it also meant that each of these suppliers needed to offer new types of training. Today, we find that many of the component suppliers offer extensive training programs, whether those are found online or presented in the field by local company representatives. Te America’s Best program offers yet another avenue
60 School Transportation News • FEBRUARY 2016
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