Robert Ball of Maudlin International Trucks Inc. of Orlando, Fla., took top honors at the third annual Navistar Service Technician Rodeo, where he beat out seven other commercial truck service technicians to be crowned “Top Service Technician.”
The rodeo, held at Universal Technical Institute in Glendale Heights, Ill., featured the top eight service technicians from International dealerships across North America in a competition designed to test their skills in key areas of commercial truck servicing. Competition stations simulate service areas for air conditioning, brakes, drivetrain and electrical, as well as MaxxForce engines.
“Robert Ball demonstrated the highest skills and abilities among the top eight Diamond-certified technicians competing in the event,” says Vaughn Allen, Navistar vice president of product and customer support.
Each of the technicians went head-to-head in a hands-on test of their technical skill and speed. Throughout the day, their training was put to the test as they navigated their way through vehicle issues at eight stations where they diagnosed and fixed problems.
Technicians involved in the competition are either Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) certified or Canadian-provincial certified in addition to Diamond-certified, Navistar’s official certification program for its service technicians. Participants were selected from an overall group of the top 370 technicians at International dealerships. From there, the group was narrowed through online testing with the highest-scoring technicians in each region of the United States and Canada being selected for the rodeo.
“Those participating in this competition have completed all the required and optional training and are at the top of their game,” says John Pfennig, Navistar service education manager. “They represent more than 10,000 service technicians from International dealerships, the highest number of any medium/heavy commercial-truck manufacturer.”
Technicians from the following dealerships competed in the rodeo:
