Technology placing new demands on technicians’ time: research

The rapid pace of changing technology has put automotive technicians in time crunch, according to a new study by IMR Inc.

The Illinois-based research company says the core challenge is simply to keep up with system changes and diagnostic procedures.

The three biggest demands on technician time were identified by survey takers as

• Finding time for hands-on training (42.6%)
• Staying up to date on advances in diagnostics (31.6)
• Keeping up with advances in vehicle technology (31.1%)

Shop owners also identified the challenge of finding good, knowledgeable, and motivated staff (29.2%).

The emphasis on keeping up with diagnostic technology was especially noted by larger shops. Only 18.0% of shops with one to three bays prioritized that concern, compared to 37.1% of shops with four to seven bays and 38.3% of shops with eight or more bays.

In addition, while automotive shops mentioned keeping up with advances in vehicle technology (31.1%) as a challenge, they also believe their technicians will be specifically challenged with having broad enough skills to be able to repair all types of vehicles (17.5%) including older, newer, foreign and electric vehicles.

The IMR study also looked a what advice technicians and shop owners would give to young people considering a career as a technician. By far the biggest guidance offered was to focus on education and training.

See more automotive insights from IMR Inc. HERE.