Point S bolsters training programme with ADAS course

• Point S Tyre & Autocare has successfully delivered its first bespoke training course in Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) Calibration

• The new course is the second to be added to Point S’s UK training programme following the Air Conditioning Service and Maintenance Level 3 Award introduced in June

• “This class-leading course enables our members to not only futureproof their businesses, but the people within them” – Jon Taylor, Point S UK and European Training Manager

Point S Tyre & Autocare, the UK’s leading independent tyre dealer and car maintenance network, has successfully delivered its first IMI Level 2 Award in Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) Calibration (610/1338/9) training session.

Exclusive to Point S members, the first session of the brand-new course was delivered to technicians from within the network at the Hella Training Academy in Banbury, Oxfordshire. Providing delegates with knowledge of the operating principles, components, and service requirements for ADAS, the course will continue to be supplied to members in 2024. The course has been designed to enable the network’s technicians to diagnose and calibrate ADAS more accurately and efficiently, incorporating the use of live data from calibration equipment and diagnostic equipment.

Aiming to become the largest qualified and certified European network for Electric Vehicle (EV) maintenance by 2026, Point S is building a portfolio of training courses geared towards futureproofing the skillset of its technicians. In June this year, Point S delivered its inaugural bespoke training course, the Air Conditioning Service and Maintenance Level 3 Award, which proved a popular hit with members. 

Jon Taylor, Point S UK and European Training Manager, said, “Having delivered our very first bespoke training course to our network earlier this year, it was essential that we kept the momentum going. That is exactly what we have achieved with our brand-new ADAS course. 

“As ADAS calibration becomes more frequent in the automotive aftermarket, we are delighted to provide Point S technicians with the skills, knowledge, and confidence to work with these complicated systems. This class-leading course enables our members to not only futureproof their businesses, but the people within them.”

ADAS-qualified technicians skill gap

• Phil Peace, managing director (SVP) International, Repairify Inc on the shortfall in ADAS-qualified technicians

Over the last few years, the number of ADAS systems within vehicles has dramatically increased as this technology now comes as standard on most vehicles that come off the production line. This means that the number of vehicles that will require calibration will continue to increase. But will the industry be able to handle all this work? At this moment in time, according to the latest data from the IMI’s ADAS TechSafe Technician Forecasts, the industry would require 18,000 technicians to meet current ADAS requirements. However, if we look at the actual number of qualified technicians there are currently only around 3,500.

We know this is a huge challenge to overcome but it is where companies such as Repairify are important. Our proprietary technology provides services to diagnose, calibrate and program systems remotely supported by our IMI-trained technicians, who will assist where organisations don’t have such resources locally to do the work. In addition, our growing global solutions include access to the development of AI and machine learning to enhance our data enabling us to ensure information and solutions are available at the right time in the workflow or shop processes, providing customers with the ability to access critical repair information at their fingertips.

Alongside using third parties to do the work, there are ways in which businesses can help bridge the gap. This is done through apprenticeships and training programs that are supported by the apprentices levy and various support schemes that are available. We are also seeing businesses investing in their apprenticeship and training programs. This is a positive step because they understand the benefits it will enable them to reap in the short, medium and long term.  As a business, we are also committed to investing in training programs both internally for our team and externally for our customers. This is because we understand in no uncertain terms that it will assist in providing our team and the industry with the skills that are needed to keep pace with the work hitting the workshop floor and the knowledge to understand the technology within the vehicles that are coming off the production line. 

Overall, we know the ADAS skills gap is real and with the right investment in tools, training and apprenticeships the sector can slowly start to fill the gap, but based on current statistics it will help, but not be enough, to meet the amount of technicians required to handle the amount of work relating to ADAS that is hitting workshop floors in the future.

CERTUS to enable quicker and safer vehicle automation systems

HORIBA MIRA, partnered by Polestar, IPG Automotive, Connected Places Catapult and Coventry University are collaborating to reduce the testing costs of automated driving systems by 40%

• Backed by CCAV and delivered in partnership with Innovate UK, CERTUS is a project designed to make the UK the leader in enabling new automated driver technologies

• A key objective is to reduce the £8bn spent annually by the industry testing automated driving systems by a target of 40%

• CERTUS will increase the speed of validation so new automated driving technologies can be brought to market sooner

• CERTUS will qualify risk for all concerned with developing, using, validating and insuring new automated driving technologies

• CERTUS will be delivered by a world-class combination of expertise including a design and technology-led vehicle manufacturer, automotive engineering consultants, automotive simulation specialists and technology and academic partners

HORIBA MIRA and four expert project partners have announced an ambitious collaboration to enable the development of better and safer automated driving technologies. Since the advent of basic forms of driver aids in the 1970s, the development of automated driving systems has grown exponentially to encompass increasing functionality from automated emergency braking to comprehensive driverless solutions. But as this growth in automation has increased, the complexity, time and cost of proving these systems has grown at an equivalent rate.

In a 2021 report by McKinsey & Company, analysis shows that a third of the development costs to bring a Level 4 car to market – up to $400m – is spent in the verifying automated systems. For more complex use cases such as a Level 4 robotaxi, equivalent testing could cost $1.6b and account for 50% of the overall vehicle development costs.

CERTUS aims to radically reduce the cost of developing automated driving systems with a new engineering approach

CERTUS, a project funded in part by public monies from CCAV, aims to break this link between the growth in complexity of these systems and the speed and cost of verifying the technology as fit for use on all representative aspects of the public highway.

With limitless potential scenarios that may challenge these new technologies, CERTUS is noteworthy for taking a radically different approach to testing; while traditional methods involve clocking up millions of miles with the aim of validating systems in all circumstances, CERTUS will use AI-driven search space optimisation techniques to deliver a substantial reduction in testing time and resulting engineering verification and validation costs by targeting scenarios most likely to challenge the automated systems operation.

By virtue of clearly defining all parameters in which the new driving systems will be tested, the results can be accurately mapped across the entire UK road network to  define where systems will function. This geo-mapping of where new technologies can be safely used will close an information black hole for users, fleet operators, government agencies and insurers to help accelerate the rollout of automated driving technology.

The project has set an ambitious aim of reducing the cost of testing automated driving systems by 40% and reducing the testing costs per vehicle model by an average of £200m; critical to delivering this benefit is the contribution of HORIBA MIRA-based, Swedish performance EV brand, Polestar, as a leading OEM developing a multiplicity of automated driving technologies. IPG Automotive will provide the virtual CarMaker software platform for the project’s simulation capability; Connected Places Catapult will provide the UK road network data  to contextualise where the automated systems could operate and Coventry University will manage the project’s interface with government and advance academic research of the results from CERTUS.

As the project lead, HORIBA MIRA will take responsibility for the development of the tools and algorithms required to design the most efficient way to evaluate the automated driving system including a mixed reality platform that will combine the physical test and virtual scenario modelling.

The project commenced in Q3 2023 and concludes in March 2025 with the aim of positioning the UK as a key destination for developing connected and increasingly autonomous vehicles across the global automotive industry.

Declan Allen, HORIBA MIRA’s Managing Director said, “CERTUS delivers an approach that will not just save car makers money, but will also accelerate the deployment of automated driving technology, aiding regulators, insurers and consumers with the adoption of these technologies. CERTUS aims to revolutionise how the increasing array of automated driving technologies are tested and validated for the market by vehicle manufacturers, helping to build confidence in the real-world performance of these systems. Through reducing the time taken to validate these systems by 40%, CERTUS will significantly reduce the most risky, timely and costly part of the automotive design process. Project partners will integrate many tools including scenario coverage techniques, statistical sampling and performance analysis across physical and simulated environments to deliver an advanced toolset to match the quickly evolving vehicle technology in this area.”