In The News

First Day of SuperTech Kicks Off in Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. — Contestants at 2014 SuperTech at the Technology & Maintenance Council fall meeting Sept. 22 began an intense first day of competition with a 100-question test and identifying maintenance problems at 11 stations intended to test their hands-on skills.

Of the 133 competitors, 112 will advance to the second and final day Sept. 23 and get their hands on the real equipment at 14 stations.

The competition is so sharp that FedEx, which is fielding 12 contestants, staged a two-day boot camp for their technicians on the eve of SuperTech.

“The goal here is not only to recognize technicians for the job that they do, but allow the individuals to look at themselves and understand their strengths and their areas of improvement in a positive fashion through a competition,” contest Chairman George Arrants said.

Though the event is a horse race of sorts to crown the nation’s top diesel technician, it also is a way for fleets to identify deficiencies or “pain areas” in maintenance to shape future training, Arrants said at a media briefing Sept. 21.

After all, if the top competitors at SuperTech are having difficulty with a specific problem and in need of additional training, then “the other 99.5% back at the shop probably need the same thing,” he said.

This year, contest officials are adding a problem on drive belts, TMC Technical Director Robert Braswell said.

“Because of the improved materials in drive belts, you can no longer always necessarily visually identify whether the belt is bad or not,” he said.

But electrical problems continue to challenge maintenance techs more than any other,” Arrants said.

“One of our stations will be electrical, where we’re still struggling,” he said. “And some of our other stations that have electrical components, they’re still struggling also. We’re making some strides, but we’re still struggling.”

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