Tyre Technician Professional Development Scheme
The NTDA Tyre Technician Development Scheme was introduced following the huge success of the REACT working safely at the roadside licensing scheme, the recent changes to the apprenticeship framework and the general interest expressed by NTDA tyre retailers to have a standardised licensing scheme for technicians including retail centre based personnel and specialist tyre repair technicians.
This scheme, effectively, is intended to act as a form of self-regulation for the tyre retail industry and represents a very exciting opportunity for both employers and employees in that it improves the mobility of tyre technicians by providing them with a nationally recognised licence designed to demonstrate their competency. Similar self-regulation schemes have proven highly effective in other industries, such as the Electro-technical Certification Scheme (ECS), which has issued thousands of cards to competent electricians.
The NTDA Tyre Technician Professional Development Scheme is based on the following structure:
- Licensed Retail Tyre Technician (LRTT)
- Responsible Tyre Repair Technician (RTRT)
- Licensed Mobile Tyre Technician (LMTT)
- Licensed Commercial Tyre Technician (LCTT)
The common criteria for a company to apply for any of the above licences is as follows:
Whether applications are submitted by a tyre retailer, manufacturer’s training department, or independent training provider, an individual must have been trained or re-trained, (which could also be refresher training), and assessed as competent against the relevant occupational standards criteria for each of the licences. Evidence of this, (such as certificates, training records, course attendance records etc.), must be retained and made available, when requested, by the NTDA. The NTDA will maintain a database of all licensed personnel as it does, currently, for REACT.
Individual licence criteria:
Licensed Retail Tyre Technician (LRTT)
A licensed retail tyre technician is likely to come from a number of backgrounds, i.e. apprentice, trainee or from another company where they have gained experience, but may not hold relevant qualifications or where qualifications may be old or out of date. For an individual to qualify for the LRTT, they must be assessed as competent practitioners and have the relevant knowledge in the following for Car, Light Van and 4×4:
- Fitting
- Repair
- Balancing
- Four Wheel Alignment
- TPMS
- Manual Handling and Safe Working Practices
- Motorcycle Tyre Fitting and Balancing
Responsible Tyre Repair Technician (RTRT)
This licence is for technicians who regularly repair tyres, including repair specialists, and who have been trained and assessed as fully competent based on the syllabus below and in accordance with the requirements of both BSAU159g and the current IMI National Occupational Standards.
- Introduction to Tyre Construction
- Tyre Inspection and Suitability for Repair
- Tyre Repair Standard BSAU159g
- Repair Materials and Chemicals Used
- Tools, Tool Speeds, Equipment and PPE Requirements
- Methods of Repair
- Practical Session and Competency Assessment
Licensed Mobile Tyre Technician (LMTT)
This licence is ideal for Mobile Tyre Technicians working primarily on Car, Light Van and 4×4 tyres at a client’s premises, but who also occasionally will be required to work at the side of the road. The agreed syllabus for this course, which is based on the National Occupational Standards, is as follows:
- Tyre history and construction
- Sidewall markings and labelling
- Car and light vehicle wheels
- Tubes, valves and Tyre Pressure Monitoring Systems
- Issues affecting tyre life and how to manage them
- Customer care
- Health & Safety at Work including safe working at the customer’s premises
- Mobile tyre fitting and balancing
- Minor tyre repairs in accordance with BS159g
- C&U regs
- Tyre damage and wear including how to inspect a tyre
- Roadside wheel changing procedure in line with REACT recommendations
Licenced Commercial Tyre Technician (LCTT)
The LCTT is category based as follows:
Category 1: Truck
Category 2: Specialist and Multi-wheel
Category 3: Agricultural
Category 4: Earth Mover
Category 5: Industrial
Certificates to accompany all licences will be issued. The certificate issued with the LCTT licence will be issued showing the categories in which an individual has been assessed as a competent practitioner and in which they have demonstrated the relevant working knowledge.
For consistency, licence costs will be the same, across all categories, as the current REACT licence.
INTERESTED?
Companies interested in the Tyre Technician Professional Development Scheme, licensing, costs or finding a training provider should contact the NTDA on telephone: 01296 482128 or email: info@ntda.co.uk