Service training in the agriculture equipment industry

Abstract

The demand for service training continues to increase in the agriculture equipment industry as technology is adopted and advancements continue to be made on equipment. Service technicians need to be prepared when servicing customer's equipment. In this study I investigated the structure of service training and components of service training. The survey provided feedback on service training from service managers at dealerships. This information will allow service training to be effective and efficient. The population surveyed consisted of service managers from AGCO, Case IH, John Deere and New Holland dealerships. For the first part of the study I sent out a survey to the service managers that asked questions related to the structure, location, and cost of service training. Then I conducted phone interviews with service managers about the structure and components of service training, while receiving feedback on instructor and web based training. This study showed that there is a similar structure in service training among the four major North American equipment manufacturers surveyed. There were similarities in materials used during instructor based courses, along with advantages and disadvantages of web based learning courses among the manufactures. I believe there will continue to be a mixture of instructor and web based service training courses because the research showed that hands on activities are an important part of learning.