Info - Transition of Saturn Technical Training to GM Service Technical College (STC) Training Program (U.S. Only)

The purpose of this bulletin is to inform Saturn retailers of the transition of Saturn Technical Training to the GM Service Technical College (STC) Training Program.

Historically, Saturn has maintained a separate and unique technician training program. The training facilities were solely dedicated to Saturn technicians and the training content was specific to Saturn vehicles. With the ongoing expansion of the Saturn product line and the use of common vehicle platforms, the benefits of consolidating Saturn and GM technician training have become evident. Therefore, at the September FOT meeting, Saturn Retailers approved the transition to STC training beginning January 1, 2006.

There are several benefits Saturn retailers will realize from the transition, including:

The Service Technical College offers a performance based curriculum across all divisions. To receive credit for a course, service technicians must demonstrate competency in all applicable course components, which may include: web based training (WBT), interactive distance learning (IDL), hands-on training, GM Service Know-How videos and seminars, and print-based training (PBT).

The goal of the performance based curriculum is to provide a path for service technicians to meet the requirement for Minimum Divisional Service Training Standards (STS). The curriculum is divided into twelve certification areas, including:

Training is available at the retail facility through a variety of media. The Service Technical College represents a move away from traditional instructor-based training techniques to blended learning with more flexible delivery methods while emphasizing performance-based outcomes. This training strategy better supports service technician training by offering the appropriate media mix for the needed training.

The media mix includes, but is not exclusive to, web based training (WBT), interactive distance learning (IDL), video, and print based-training (PBT). This in-retail facility training is supported with facilitated hands-on training offered at various training locations. The shift to increased on-site training allows service technicians to improve their product knowledge and advance their repair and diagnostic skills while spending less time away from the retail facility.

Saturn technicians will continue to receive full credit for any Saturn training previously completed. In other words, a fully training Saturn technician is considered fully trained within the STC program. Those technicians that are partially Saturn trained will receive partial STC credit according to the following table:

Technician training requirements have been changed significantly compared to Saturn’s previous "all technicians must be 100% fully trained" policy. These changes are in accordance with STC policies that encourage technicians to specialize in certain repair areas rather than be "bumper-to-bumper" trained.

The following table displays the number of technicians required to complete each curriculum area based on retail facility size (annual retail sales, minus fleet):

Important: This table represents the minimum level of technician training as agreed upon by the FOT. Facilities can, and are encouraged, to train above the minimum standard if possible.

Beginning January 1, 2006, technical training will change to the GM billing format. Specifically, each facility will be billed monthly based on facility size (determined by annual new vehicle sales, not including fleet sales). This format differs from the previous Saturn technical training billing strategy which was according to the number of technicians at each facility and their training completion.

The following table displays the monthly technical training cost based on facility size:

This bulletin is meant to give a high-level overview of upcoming changes to the Saturn technician training program. There is a significant amount of detailed information that was not covered such as course content, training path requirements, training facility locations, etc. In the near future, the online STC Course Catalog will be updated to include all pertinent Saturn information.