So while visiting the 10th annual Rush Truck Centers (RTC) Technician Skills Rodeo this week in San Antonio, TX, I got a chance to look over one of three customized vans component supplier Meritor uses to provide a wide variety of mobile training services to fleets and dealerships.
Meritor operates two of these “Mobile Training Unit” vans in the U.S. and one in Canada, makThe Meritor team accompanying this particular van explained to me that it carriers specialized “demonstration stands” equipped with complete component units such as a foundation or disc brake assembly, driveline parts, etc. The goal is to provide fleet and dealership technicians with “hands on” training at their shops, minimizing time away from work.
The van is even equipped with a wireless microphone system, speakers and large=screen television so a big training class can be conducted for a large crowd if needed, Brad Boelling told me.
“We offer a lot of online training – 120 different classes actually – via our Meritor ‘Bull Pen’ service, but actually seeing it live with a hands-on option makes more of an impact,” he explained. “It’s about being able to take the training directly to the customer, especially specialized training when it’s called for.”