Yamaha Marine’s Technical School Partnership Program reaches 100 members
The Yamaha Marine Technical School Partnership program (TSP) reached its 100th member milestone with the addition of Prince William Sound College in Valdez, Alaska.
Developed in 2015, Yamaha’s TSP program aims to develop a stronger marine technician workforce through a certified curriculum, Yamaha systems access and product donations used in the classroom for hands-on training.
“We know dealers need to recruit and retain qualified technicians. We also know there’s still a shortage of qualified marine technicians in the marketplace,” said Joe Maniscalco, Service Division Manager, Yamaha U.S. Marine Business Unit. “Yamaha’s TSP program creates a student-to-technician pipeline for Yamaha dealers and provides technical schools with state-of-the-art, instructor-led courses and tools. Students graduate and start successful careers as marine technicians, and Yamaha dealers get exclusive access to recruit the best new talent in the industry. It’s a win-win program we will continue to expand and enhance.”
The facilitation and growth of Yamaha Marine’s technical school relationships led to the development of Yamaha-sponsored curricula available to technical schools for use in the classroom. The first curriculum, titled “Introduction to Outboard Systems,” (ITOS) includes textbook materials and hands-on learning experiences for students who wish to start a career as a marine industry technician.
Students who successfully complete the course receive Yamaha Marine’s Introduction to Outboard Systems Certification. ITOS is a pre-requisite for Yamaha’s new Maintenance Certification Program (MCP), which is based on the 20, 100, 300, 500 and 1,000 maintenance procedures for Yamaha Outboards.
MCP students will leave the Yamaha Technical School Partner with certified maintenance competencies that prepare them to be immediately profitable in Yamaha dealership service departments. Yamaha dealerships can take them on as apprentices or full-time technicians to help them continue to develop their skills.
In addition, Yamaha’s Government Relations team actively coordinates with state agencies to help ensure schools in the Technical School Partnership program have the accreditation they need to receive possible federal funding.
“As a representative of the first Yamaha Technical School Partner, I can say with certainty our students and the dealerships in our area have benefited greatly from the ITOS curriculum and hands-on training opportunities,” said Glen Bucholz, Marine and PowerSports Instructor, Minnesota State Community and Technical College. “Yamaha’s efforts through the Technical School Partnership program are certainly outstanding in the industry. I am a firm believer in the effectiveness of the Introduction to Outboard Systems book. The company’s commitment to continued training and marine technician workforce development is strong, and the effort to bring qualified technicians to dealerships through this program works.”
