These days, most repairs start by plugging in a computer and running some software. That's not diagnostics, contends Carl Dibble, Knorr-Bremse sales executive, who also trains technicians to use its Neo diagnostics software. "There's a difference between getting through the diagnostics process, and understanding what the system is telling you," Dibble observes. What doesn't help technicians is that the definition of 'system' keeps changing - vehicle systems now span both electrical and mechanical elements. "The crossover is so much that you can't say, 'that's a mechanic's job and that's an electrician's job'. It is now one person's job to do both sides, or you can't fix the vehicle properly," Dibble points out. This integration is driving the increasing popularity of the Mechelec qualification, which has been a recognised category within the IRTE Skills Challenge for years.
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