Lincoln's Industry Standard

GREATER NEW YORK AUTOMOBILE DEALERS ASSOCIATION — Mark Schienberg

It's important for students at Lincoln to know that they are entering into a vibrant and dynamic industry at a fascinating time. In addition to the amazing technological advances being made by huge multi-national automakers whose names we all know and whose cars and trucks we like to drive, we are now seeing a resurgence of small independent companies coming into the market place producing electric and hybrid vehicles, much like at the industry's inception in the early 1900s. We also have countries such as China and India investing billions of dollars in vehicles that they hope to sell here, providing increased competition and new opportunities.

When we built the Center for Automotive Education & Training six years ago our goal was to provide our areas dealers with the mostly highly skilled technicians. Thanks to our relationship with Lincoln I'm proud to say that this goal has been achieved. The students who come through Lincoln are a new generation who have embraced the changes taking place in the industry and it is they who will keep this great industry — literally — moving forward. With the skills provided by Lincoln Tech, these students can look forward to successful careers in the retail automotive industry in the years ahead.

HVAC EXCELLENCE — Renee M. Tomlinson

The HVAC industry will continue to experience innovation in the systems, refrigerants and controls that heat and cool both residential and commercial sectors. As technology continues to grow and change, there will be a continued and growing need for skilled and qualified HVAC technicians to install, service, retrofit and maintain these systems.

HVAC Excellence has a long history of working with Lincoln as a provider of certification and post-secondary student assessment exams for a number of their campuses. Within the last couple of years, as Lincoln continually seeks out ways to enhance and validate their programs and provide additional skills and services to their students, HVAC Excellence has assisted Lincoln in the development of their green course (i.e., the Residential Energy Auditor Course.)

Many Lincoln instructors have earned and/or are currently pursuing the HVAC Excellence Certified Master HVACR Educator (CMHE) credentials; the highest credential that can be conferred by HVAC Excellence upon an HVACR educator. HVACR educators take Certified Subject Matter Educator (CSME) exams to verify the depth of an instructor's knowledge and ability to relate the subject matter effectively.

Our relationship with Lincoln is further enhanced by the administration and educators who are dedicated to providing their students with the knowledge skills and abilities to succeed in their chosen profession.

SNAP-ON INDUSTRIAL — Barrett Crane

The technician of tomorrow will need a solid background in the fundamentals of electricity and electronics to be able to adapt to the pending changes on the horizon. Future technicians will need more technical know-how. More importantly, they will also need a strong academic background to support their ability to acquire new knowledge and to develop new skills throughout their career.

In addition to the growth in technology there will be growing demands to supply an adequate technical workforce. The baby boomer generation will be leaving the workforce over the next 10 years. This will create a huge gap of skilled and experienced technicians, and create additional pressure for employers to find competent employees to replace them. I believe that there will be opportunities for those who are prepared to fill these positions. The industry is also experiencing demand created due to the growing average age of vehicles currently on the road, which is now at an all-time high. The average age of the vehicle traveling down the road is 10.7 years according to Polk, an industry research firm. As the average vehicle age increases so does the requirement for service. More service means that the demand for skilled technicians will be on the rise.

Overall I see a bright future. The industry will continue to evolve, which will create an environment of opportunity. Thinking back over the past two decades our industry has transformed from what once was a place of physical labor with minimal mental skill requirements. During this same 20 year period we have seen this industry become a much more respected profession. However, during this time the industry has relied more on mental skills and less on physical labor. I believe that this trend will continue into the future, and that the future is in the hands of the educated. Those who seek ways to develop their knowledge and mental skills will have an advantage.

MARTIN SENOUR PAINTS — Hermon Ferrell

I would expect to see coatings to continue to be more environmentally friendly by reducing or eliminating VOCs. Products will also continue to require less natural resources to cure. They will continue to improve cycle times at the collision shops, thus allowing larger shops to handle more capacity, making business challenging for smaller shops. MSOs will continue to grow.

Even though the average vehicle age will continue to climb, there will be more totals (thus reducing repairable vehicles).

Vehicles becoming more complex:

  • New material: aluminum, and boron steel
  • ABS
  • Electronic Stability Control (ESC)
  • Hybrids/Electric

New technology will reduce collisions because of ABS, Electronic Stability Control (ESC), as well as other accident avoidance systems.

Technicians will need to be better trained to address these new technologies. The more a technician stays on top of the trends, better service can be provided.

AMERICAN WELDING SOCIETY — Cindy Weihl

The demand for skilled welders is rising and that makes welding an excellent career choice. As technology within the industry advances, students have a unique opportunity to learn a career that can be shaped around a wide variety of interests including robotics, lasers and computer programming.

Lincoln College of Technology's AWS Student Chapter is an active chapter of the American Welding Society. The school works with experienced members of our local AWS Section to promote welding and enhance career opportunities.