Coach and bus technicians flourish at IRTE Skills Challenge testing week
For five days at the beginning of June, S&B Automotive Academy is the venue for the IRTE Skills Challenge, a competition that tests the ability of coach and bus technicians from across the UK.
This year, a record-breaking 32 teams with 92 contestants took part in the influential competition, as apprentices and qualified technicians in three categories of mechanical, electrical and bodywork battled it out for the top prizes.
Now in its eighth year, the Skills Challenge introduced a ‘Masters’ category for 2018, welcoming back previous winners to compete in more complex practical and theoretical tests.
Chief Operating Officer at SOE, Daniel Moir, says: “We have upped the ante once again this year, bringing in more teams and transforming the testing structure in line with industry requirements, especially for those at apprentice level.”
Making the competition such a success is down, in a large part, to the collaborative effort of sponsors, supporters and partners.
In creating a testing environment that accurately reflects the skills used daily in the workshop, while introducing cutting-edge technology, IRTE has gathered those organisations most closely linked to the sector and used their knowledge and expertise.
Daniel says: “To put on a competition of this size, with so many contributing factors, takes a huge amount of support and guidance from industry. We are now at the point where the status of the Skills Challenge attracts interest from all corners of the industry, and beyond.”
Skills Challenge winners will be announced at the awards ceremony, at Rockingham Motor Speedway in Northamptonshire on 12 July.
