Des Moines, Iowa- -- On May 24, Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) held an open house at the Ankeny campus to get more technicians and shop owners familiar with the school's facilities and to introduce the General Motors Automotive Service Educational Program (GM ASEP). ACDelco participated by holding a continuing training session on emerging technologies.
GM ASEP is a two-year associate-degree program designed to prepare students for careers as GM automotive service technicians. "DMACC is a certified GM ASEP college," said Jerry Burns, an automotive instructor and the school's training and ASEP coordinator. "They have factory support from General Motors, including the access to inside training and vehicle information, ongoing vehicle donations, so new models are always on site--which range from Cadillac Deville's, Chevy Malibu's to Duramax Diesel pickups with Allison transmissions--factory tools, and support from GM engineers and trainers. "DMACC also hosts GM and ACDelco instructor-led hands-on courses, so the technicians that attend also get the benefit of the latest and greatest technology direct from GM," Burns said.
Burns said he teaches four classes a month covering the ACDelco Total Service Support (TSS) requirements and the ASEP program. The ASEP program is designed to produce a GM-Certified Technician in five semesters, he said.
"Half of the time, students are in a classroom setting, and the other half of the time, they are working at a GM dealership or an ACDelco TSS program for independent shops," he said. "The students' time in the shop earns credits and also a wage, so they could potentially complete their studies with an associate degree and lower loan debt because they earned credits and money at the same time."
The ACDelco class on emerging technologies included hydrogen fuel cells, E85 ethanol fuel and the vehicles that run on it, variable valve timing and active fuels management, spark ignition direct injection, and 2007 Duramax engine and diesel fuels, Burns said. "This was the third time this week the class was held in Iowa. Johnston Autostores also sponsored classes in Sioux City at Western Iowa Tech Community College and in Fort Dodge at Iowa Central Community College."
DMACC also helped introduce many attendees to the ACDelco online training method called the Learning Management System (LMS). It allows TSS shops 24-hour, seven-day-a-week access to technical, self-help, management, and technician-assist training," Burns said. "Each shop employee can have his or her own training path managed by the shop manager."
The Midwest training coordinator from GM, Doug Bradley, was on site to help everyone get set up. The process is fairly simple and only takes an e-mail reply, but with Bradley on hand, it was almost instantaneous.
The open house and class was attended by 50 technicians from as far away as Detroit and across Iowa. For more information about DMACC's GM ASEP program and similar programs covering Ford and Chrysler, contact Burns at 515-964-6504.
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