A snapshot of Ratchet+Wrench's 2014 Tech and Tools Survey.
Feb. 24, 2017—I-CAR achieved double-digit growth in shops and technicians trained in 2016.
The not-for-profit organization saw its total numbers of Gold Class recognized shops rise to 4,277, a 16.5 percent increase over 2015. The total number of Gold Class shops increased 22.7 percent over the previous year, and I-CAR trained 70,706 students in total, up 12.8 percent.The new Vehicle and Technology Specific Training curriculum was launched in 2016, with 26 existing courses rebranded to form the initial portfolio at mid-year, and seven additional new courses were recently launched. More model-year specific courses will be released in the fall of 2017 and each year thereafter.
I-CAR’s Repairability Technical Support (RTS) portal continues to grow. RTS puts solutions for technicians, appraisers, shop owners and managers at their fingertips. RTS also rolled out the first-ever OEM Calibration Requirements Search portal at the end of 2016.
I-CAR’s Welding Training and Certification also saw dramatic increases in 2016. The number of welding events increased 71.6 percent and the number of welding students increased 60 percent in 2016.
The I-CAR Professional Development Program: Education Edition (PDP-EE) saw dramatic growth in 2016. The curriculum package provides the latest in training materials for schools and students. Launched in 2012, PDP-EE is now used in 604 schools around the country, up 51.9 percent from 2015.
“None of this happened by chance,” said I-CAR CEO & president John Van Alstyne. “We have listened closely to the industry, our customers and our volunteers and instructors. Five years ago, we built a robust strategy with the objective to improve all we do, to grow, and to increase our relevance. The increasing impact we are having across our industry shows that our strategy is working.”
