TIA Addresses Training Needs With New 2018 CTS and ATS Training Programs

(Bowie, MD-11/1/2017) – The Tire Industry Association (TIA), a leader in tire safety, will release newer versions of the Automotive Tire Service (ATS) and Commercial Tire Service (CTS) programs in 2018. Each program has been redesigned to provide a bridge between the technicians and management/sales personnel from an industry guideline and accepted practices perspective.

For the past few years, the Training and Education Committee has been working to address certain training needs from industry segments, that were previously unmet with TIA training. As a result of TIA’s research and discussion, the consensus agreed that the most pressing need is a program for industry personnel that does not service tire and wheel assemblies.

“After much discussion, it became obvious to the Committee that there are a lot of tire industry employees who could benefit from technical training, specifically one that stops short of the step-by-step procedures for servicing tires and wheels,” said David Martin, TIA President and Category Director of Tools and Supply for American Tire Distributors. “These programs will be perfect for administrative, office and sales personnel that want a deeper understanding of the products they sell and service.”

Since 1997, TIA has been the leader in technician training and certification with more than 125,000 personnel completing a program. Up until now, all of the training has focused on the safe operating procedures for servicing passenger, light truck, medium truck, earthmover, farm and industrial tire and wheel assemblies.

• The New ATS Program will have an emphasis on topics such as basic tire/wheel terminology and construction, vehicle fitment and tire replacement guidelines, tire service procedures including inflation, tire repair guidelines and limitations, wheel installation and torque procedures, and tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS).
• The New CTS Program will cover much of the same information for commercial truck tire assemblies (with the exception of TPMS) in addition to OSHA standard 29 CFR 1910.177, which specifically covers the servicing of single and multi-piece tire/rim assemblies used on large vehicles.

“These programs will be new in the sense that the scope and purpose will be different than our traditional technician training resources, but the message of promoting tire safety in the shop and on the road will not change,” remarked Kevin Rohlwing, TIA Senior Vice President of Training. “We are simply rewriting, re-editing and repackaging our existing training assets to fill the need for technical training outside the shop. These industry employees may not need to know the step-by-step procedures for servicing tire and wheel assemblies, but there is an abundance of useful information related to guidelines and industry recommended practices that will help them improve tire safety.”

The new ATS and CTS training programs will only be available on TIA’s On-line University and are expected to be launched in the first quarter of 2019.

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About Tire Industry Association: The Tire Industry Association (TIA), with a 97-year history representing all segments of the national and international tire industry, is the leading advocate, as well as, instructor in technical training of tire service technicians. For more information, visit www.tireindustry.org or call 800-876-8372