BOWIE, Md. — Starting May 19, the Tire Industry Association (TIA) will host six weeks of 30-minute online video-conference webinars for passenger and light truck tire service technicians.
Using information from TIA's Automotive Tire Service (ATS) and the Advanced Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) training programs, TIA staff instructors will lead the discussion on a different topic each week.
The 30-minute online classes will take place Tuesday through Thursday three times each day, at 10 a.m. (EDT), 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. May 19 to June 25.
A different topic will be covered each week. Week one, for example, will focus on vehicle lifting. This webinar will be offered a total of nine times over the three days to provide ample opportunities for technicians to log in at a time that works best for them, TIA said.
The webinars will be conducted via the Zoom video-conference platform, TIA said, which is accessible with or without video.
A TIA staff instructor will be available for additional questions after class.
"The retail tire business definitely has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, so retailers can take advantage of slow times to train their technicians," TIA President Brian Rigney said.
"These ATS webinars are available to everyone at no charge and can be accessed by computer or mobile device. We want to give every tire retailer the opportunity to get some training for their technicians from the industry leader in tire service training and education."
Technicians can access the registration page directly at tireindustry.org or visit TIA's website and select the training tab and then Automotive Training Service (ATS) Webinars in the drop-down menu.
When on the registration page, students can select the date and time they would like to attend that week and a link to the webinar. An email confirming the registration will be sent to the email address attendees provide during the registration process.
"Safety is the top priority for our technician training programs and the ATS Webinars will focus on protecting the employee and the motoring public," Kevin Rohlwing, TIA senior vice president of training, said.
"The video-conference format creates an environment where the instructor still teaches the class and the students can still get answers to their questions, which has been our strength for the past 23 years.
"Social-distancing guidelines have forced TIA to rethink our overall approach to technician education, and the ATS webinars are the first step toward creating a new training platform for our members and the industry."
The topics for the six weeks of ATS training webinars are:
- Week 1 (May 19-21) — Vehicle Lifting
- Week 2 (May 26-28) — Demounting, Mounting and Inflation
- Week 3 (June 2-4) — Balance
- Week 4 (June 9-11) — Wheel Torque
- Week 5 (June 16-18) — Tire Repair
- Week 6 (June 23-25) — TPMS Service
For more information, contact [email protected].