Topic: Academy Talk

Multi-Tech Operators: Can your techs fix these three washers?

Posted on June 12, 2015 by - Academy Talk, Business Talk

If it seems like laundry technology is advancing faster than you and your appliance repair techs can keep up with, fasten your seat belts, because we’re taking a fast ride into a future that is here right now. Here are three examples of innovative laundry systems your team may be called on to service in the not-too-distant future:

Whirlpool Smart Washer/Dyer Combo

Whirlpool's Smart Dryer

Whirlpool’s Smart Dryer

Whirlpool’s Smart Front Load Dryer takes advantage of the Nest Learning Thermostat to integrate a home laundry system into an energy-saving mode that senses when a home’s residents are away and automatically reduces dryer heat and drying time to conserve energy. A sophisticated electronic control panel guides decisions about what materials and colors can be washed together or separately and automatically controls water temperature and volume based on load size and content.

 

LG Twin Wash System

LG Twin Wash System

LG Twin Wash System

Double ovens have been around for a long time, but double washers are a fresh out-of-the-box innovation. LG’s Twin Wash can manage two loads of laundry at once. Imagine the convenience of being able to simultaneously wash delicates in one gentle cycle while a heavier load of towels or jeans gets a thorough cleaning in another — all in a compact, stacked appliance. The dryer unit recirculates heat to save energy, helping keep utility costs under control. If the owner likes to iron clothes right out of the dryer, a steam function within the dryer sprays a fine mist directly on the clothes to keep them at the perfect all-over dampness level for easy ironing.

Samsung activewash

Samsung activewash

Samsung activewash

Samsung’s newest washing machine harkens back to great, great grandma’s washboard — and that’s a good thing. A small sink-like compartment on top of the washer lets users soak or gently hand-scrub fabrics ahead of washing, offering one-stop convenience on laundry day. No more running back and forth to the bathroom to soak delicates in the sink.

Although products like these are so new to the marketplace they probably won’t need service immediately, it’s a good idea to bring your appliance repair techs up to speed before that time comes so they can perform flawlessly when called on. With ahead-of-the-curve training they’ll have the knowledge and confidence to quickly diagnose problems and make needed repairs, keeping customer satisfaction high and company services running smoothly. And having your techs fully trained early in the game will enable them to perform warranty services your less-prepared competitors may have to pass on.

 

Master Samurai Tech specializes in developing custom continuing education programs designed to keep appliance repair technicians on the cutting edge of technology. Beginning with the Master Samurai Tech Fundamentals of Appliance Repair Course and continuing through the Advanced Schematics Analysis and Troubleshooting Course, you can be assured of thorough, comprehensive training on the ins and outs of home appliance repair — customized to your unique needs, if desired. All Master Samurai Tech training courses develop your employees’ knowledge base with the exact information needed to have a handle on modern appliance technology.

 

Best of all, Master Samurai Tech self-paced continuing education programs are available on-demand, so your techs can complete the coursework at a time and a pace most convenient for them — during lunch periods, slack times during a work day, or at home on weekends and evenings.

Please call Scott, the Original Master Samurai Tech, at 603-290-5516, so we can understand your needs and help your techs to be prepared for any new model that comes their way.

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Appliance Tech Training Scholarships For Military Veterans

Posted on May 24, 2015 by - Academy Talk, Career Talk

FlagWithLogoJust in time for Memorial Day, the Samurai Tech Academy and ApplianceZone.com are thrilled to team up to offer a unique scholarship opportunity for free appliance tech training to military veterans. It’s our way of saying “THANKS!” to all military veterans for the sacrifices they’ve made for us by serving in the armed forces.

Learning a skilled trade, like appliance repair, is a great way to ease the transition back into civilian life if you’re just coming off active duty. Skilled appliance techs are in great demand with lots of employment opportunities. It’s also a great way to start your own business and be self-employed.

Scholarship recipients will have ½ of their tuition paid at the start of the Fundamentals of Appliance Repair training course at the Samurai Tech Academy, with the remaining tuition costs being reimbursed to the recipient pending completion of the course. The course must be completed within 90 days to fulfill the scholarship criteria for reimbursement.

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:

Applicant must be retired, honorably discharged, active duty, or a member of the National Guard or Reserve.

Learn more about the veteran’s scholarship program and apply at ApplianceTechScholarship.com

Advance your Career with our Advanced Schematics Online Course!

Posted on May 20, 2015 by - Academy Talk, Tech Talk

8a4525d9-dd7c-437c-8966-8914b466ae2dEnroll Now in the Advanced Schematics Course!

The Samurai Tech Academy is thrilled to announce that the long-awaited Advanced Schematic Analysis and Troubleshooting (ASAT) training course is finally open for enrollment! Master the troubleshooting principles taught in the ASAT course and you will be empowered with the skills and knowledge to troubleshoot any appliance!

 

With a dozen new Samurai-original presentations, the ASAT course distills down years of the Samurai’s battle-hardened experience and training into sweet nectar that appliance techs can drink to become Master Samurai Techs! Each screencast presentation has a quiz to help ensure you are mastering the material and to apply what you’ve just learned. Master the skills and principles taught in the ASAT course and you can troubleshoot any appliance.

In the ASAT course, you will delve deeply into sophisticated and esoteric appliance circuit troubleshooting techniques. You’ll learn how to use timing charts together with the schematic to troubleshoot problems; how to use Ohm’s Law as a powerful troubleshooting tool to give you a clear understanding of how a circuit works; how to troubleshoot deceptive and tricky open neutral problems; and how to troubleshoot appliances with control boards, including multiple control boards and microprocessor boards.

But wait– incredibly, there’s more! You will also put your newly-found schematic reading and troubleshooting skills to the test in a challenging series of schematic lab exercises where you’re given a tech sheet and schematic and then asked a series of quiz questions about them. The quiz is graded instantly.

These lab exercises are a powerful component of the ASAT course because you get to apply the principles you’ve learned in the screencasts on different tech sheets and schematics. The lab exercises use the actual tech sheets from real appliances and cover various brands (Frigidaire, GE, Whirlpool, Samsung, and Bosch) and appliance types (washer, stacked laundry, range, dishwasher, and refrigerator). The idea is not to give you monkey training on specific appliances, but rather to give you practice at applying the troubleshooting principles taught in the course.

The ASAT course requires a solid understanding of electricity, circuits, and troubleshooting, which can be learned from the Fundamentals of Appliance Repair course or the Basic Electricity Boot Camp (BEBC). The BEBC course is designed for the experienced appliance tech who wants to take the ASAT course but needs the prerequisite thorough training in basic electricity, circuits, and schematics. It is not offered as a stand-alone course, only bundled with the ASAT course. Read here for more details.

 

Display your Impressive Appliance Repair Training Certification!

Posted on May 20, 2015 by - Academy Talk

You know you want one!

You know you want one!

Graduates of the MST Academy courses are proud of their achievement, and rightly so! They have worked hard, sharpened their skills with our online appliance repair training courses, and their businesses and careers are already profiting from being a certified appliance technician.

If you have completed any of our technical courses and achieved the target scores required for certification, then show your accomplishment off to the world with this fine certificate, signed by the Samurai himself and mailed to you. Simply submit this form to us and we’ll get ‘er done.

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Fill out my online form.

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You must be enrolled in one of our courses to request a certificate. Click here to enroll in a course, or, if you’ve already enrolled, click here to login!

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Big Changes to the Academy’s Appliance Repair Training Courses

Posted on March 1, 2015 by - Academy Talk, Tech Talk

Here at the Samurai Tech Academy, we’re always thinking about our students! (That’s not quite as creepy as it sounds.)

In yet another example of the STA’s devotion to the needs of our students, we have added new Module Exams to most of the modules in the technical courses. Many of you were asking for more challenges along the way to make sure you’re really getting the material. Module Exams are a great way to revisit the info from all of the units you’ve studied and make sure you’ve nailed it before moving on to a new module.

IMPORTANT: if you are currently working through Fundamentals or Refrigerators, you will have to go back and take any exams for modules you’ve already completed before you can move forward. I hope you will see this as an opportunity to review and practice the material from those modules, and know that it will help you when you get to the Final Exam!

If you have already completed either course, you can still go back and take the exams for funsies!

But wait! There’s more!

Another change we made was a three-attempt limit on the quizzes that come after each unit (lesson). We did this because if a student needs to re-do a quiz more than three times, there’s something wrong either with the student’s attention to the material presented in the unit or with the way the material is presented. Either way, we need to troubleshoot that!

So here’s the drill: if a student requires more than three attempts to pass a quiz (and all unit quizzes require a score of 100% to pass and move on to the next unit) then the software sends me an email and the student’s progress is temporarily stopped until we can talk either by phone, email, or the Student Forums.

After I’ve administered the appropriate gray matter massage, the student is re-enabled to re-take the quiz and continue on their merry way. Ultimately, the goal is to encourage more student-Samurai interaction as needed to help the student master the material.