I-CAR Announces Gold Class For Riviera Panels

I-CAR Australia has awarded Gold Class Collision status to Riviera Panels, located in Bairnsdale, Victoria.

Darryl Webb, Manager at Riviera Panels, says the business started training because it felt I-CAR’s Road to Gold programme provided “much-needed training in an ever-changing automotive repair industry”. However, when the training became compulsory for Suncorp-preferred repairers, the company accelerated its training regime.

“The I-CAR courses we did were relevant to our business. We used virtual classroom courses to upskill older tradespeople on newer vehicle technology. I accrued points from previous Industry Training Alliance (ITA) training and found it easy to sign up for more I-CAR courses. The online delivery options allowed us to work around a busy schedule and get our staff to do the training. Some struggled with the computer side of the online training but have come out of it with more confidence using them,” said Webb.

“The steel welding certification course was very beneficial for our heavy collision expert, and he has stated it was hard but well worth the extra effort. Being regional, the cost to travel into Melbourne for this live, hands-on, skills development workshop was a consideration, but well worth it.

“We also use Axalta and Car-O-Liner in our day-to-day operations, and some one-on-one ITA training provided by these ITA partners was extremely beneficial to our staff. I did a two-day course with Axalta on Pre-Lean and Lean Foundations, and it was very helpful for me. The I-CAR points received towards Gold Class status were a definite bonus.”

I-CAR congratulated Riviera Panels for achieving the accreditation. “It’s worth noting that whilst there was a learning curve for some technicians when completing training via our online course delivery, it’s good to hear that the team’s determination to upskill resulted in this experience benefiting them for more than one aspect,” said Gary Wood, I-CAR Australia Senior Technical Specialist. “This level of dedication is always inspiring, and the results speak for themselves.”