Noregon Adds Simulation, Education Modules to JPRO Maintenance Platform
ATLANTA –Noregon announced updates to its suite of maintenance technology products during a press conference here at the Technology & Maintenance Council annual meeting.
In the first major update this year to its JPRO Professional 2018 in-shop diagnostic and repair platform, Noregon is adding an improved NextStep troubleshooting and repair module, an education portal, a virtual truck for hands-on learning and increased bi-directional tests, the company said. It added that NextStep, “underwent enhancements to provide tighter integration with JPRO Professional.”
That integration, “now allows users to perform many vital functions directly from the application,” said Shane Gilliam, Noregon’s vice president of sales, during a March 6 press conference from the show. That includes faster updates so technicians can work on new vehicles with fewer lapses in coverage, he added. “Rather than storing repair information based on VINs, we use a component-based lookup; meaning new vehicles containing components with existing coverage will immediately be available for the user, Gilliam said.
An education portal in JPRO, “directs users to a centralized location containing all of our self-paced training options, including interactive webinars, training videos, tech tip articles, and the new JPRO certification training course,” Gilliam said. That certification program was created in response to customer interest in a tangible method to measure their technicians’ proficiency, he explained.
“Users who purchase the course have access to training materials and practice quizzes to expand their knowledge of the tool,” Gilliam said. “Once users feel comfortable with the training materials, there is a fifty question final exam. Users who pass the final exam become certified; earning a diploma, and JPRO Certification patches to sew on their work uniforms.” He added, “The ability to empower technicians to do more work goes a long way toward alleviating the pains of the current technician shortage.”
The company has also debuted a “virtual truck” program within JPRO. “This ability to simulate a real-life experience is invaluable for situations where connecting to a truck is often not possible, such as in a training atmosphere or a classroom,” Gilliam said.
Noregon also announced a standalone online portal called NextStep NET, which provides searchable troubleshooting guidance and fault information via computers and tablets, the company said. It is provided at no additional charge to JPRO subscribers with the integrated NextStep platform, and is also available as an a la carte option.
