Schaeffler’s first live online Zoom REPXPERT training event has been received with great enthusiasm and gratitude by technicians and garage owners keen to carry on learning during lockdown. The success of the pilot has led to the company announcing a program of concise ‘Tea-Break Training’ sessions to be rolled out early next year.

“Although we only invited people to register just a few days before the event, the response was overwhelmingly positive,” said Technical Manager, Alistair Mason. “Over 100 technicians, many of whom had never previously used Zoom, watched the four events live, which is nothing short of remarkable and shows that the appetite for our training initiatives remains as strong as ever.”

Not only were the sessions well supported, but the content was also extremely well received. Hosted by Schaeffler’s LuK Product Specialist, Simon Cooper, each session began with Tim Adams informing the audience of the reasons why vehicle manufacturers (VMs) are using belt-in-oil technology to drive components such as fuel and oil pumps, as well as the timing systems on the wet side of the engine. Tim pointed out the main challenges facing technicians, particularly concerning scheduled service intervals and the need to be proactive with vehicles that are ‘worked hard’, as well as emphasising the necessity of always using the correct specification oil.

Second up was James Mainwaring, who introduced Schaeffler’s new steering and suspension range, which offers installers a fresh take on premium quality chassis components. The program has been created by the chassis experts at FAG and features many advanced technical benefits, with every single component engineered and manufactured to meet Schaeffler’s stringent OE quality standards.

Alistair Mason then showcased Schaeffler’s market leading REPXPERT portal, focusing mainly on the REPXPERT app, which has been recently updated to provide even more access to the library of invaluable technical content directly from a smartphone. This includes a new speak-to-find Siri type option, so users no longer have to touch the screen with oily fingers.

Each session concluded with an open Q&A forum, with questions varying from whether the sessions count toward IMI CPD credits, which they did, to whether there will be any future sessions covering thermal management systems.

Alistair commented, “The feedback at the end of the sessions was amazing, with so many appreciating the time and effort put in by the REPXPERT team. Everybody was keen to learn about future events, so we hope that our ‘Tea-Break Training’ will be welcome news. Each bite-sized session will be packed full of interesting information about new, upcoming or troublesome applications and we promise not to take up more than 20 minutes of your time, including the Q&A.”

Information on Schaeffler products and systems, fitting instructions, labour times and much more can be found on the REPXPERT workshop portal at www.repxpert.co.uk or by using the REPXPERT app, which is available free for all iOS and Android devices from the relevant app store. More details about the range of online ‘Tea-Break Training’ sessions will be announced soon, including training topics, dates and times.