While attending local community college automotive technology certificate programs I realized the instruction was only basic and there is no chance for a graduate to obtain a job in the field they chose. The instruction offered in automotive technology programs is that students work in groups on broken engines. Diagnosis on the engine to see if what repairs are required is not possible. The groups of students, usually five, disassemble the broken engines, most of which have missing parts, then reassemble with the parts still missing. Naturally the engines were not started to see if they ran properly. After researching, I learned this is common with automotive technology schools across the nation. The basic reason for this type of instruction is that it is the most cost effective.

When an engine is disassembled and then reassembled much of the hardware cannot be reused. “Head Bolts” or “Main Bearing Bolts” stretch out when torque is applied so cannot be reused, so the schools just don’t actually repair the engine as it is too costly. This does not give students the real knowledge and hands-on education in automotive instruction. Also too much time is spent in the classroom on textbooks, especially if the procedure is not reinforced in the auto lab.

While I was attending a community college automotive program I purchased a 2002 Isuzu Trooper which had a blown main bearing. Metal particles traveled through the engine components necessitating the engine be remanufactured through a machine shop. After receiving permission from the administration, I was allowed to remanufacture the engine. According to the vehicle manual this repair should take 30 hours, but it took me 32 weeks because of lack of instruction. The car was take home with parts in buckets and the engine was not reassembled or placed back into vehicle. I finished the reassembly and installation at my home. What I am building up to is how I gathered information from the nationally used online mechanic information gathering database used by colleges. Mechanics use this database to understand how certain components are disconnected, auto manufacturers’ torquing specifications, etc. This database proved to have many flaws and unreliable information. The database would be of little use to a non-mechanic and is difficult to use by professional mechanics and class instructors. The way the database is constructed makes it difficult to quickly and easily find the information you are searching.

I decided to begin a database on my own engine. As each component was removed I documented the component, the number of bolts, sizes and pitch of threads, and information other databases do not provide. I took photos of each engine component and the bolts that attached the component to the engine. I documented steps on each job performed. It was to be an example database because it could be nothing more, but the two other students working with me just removed components from the engine and put them on the work bench without any marking or chronological order, so a professional database was impossible. But the idea was forged to develop a revolutionary new Web Auto Repair Database, a professional 3D image component and fastener database which would work in unison with an auto manufacturer service shop manual. It would be built it in way making it understandable for both professional and non-professional mechanics.

As my idea of creating Web Auto Repair Database progressed I learned automotive graduate students could not find a job in their chosen career due to the meager knowledge they had acquired, and they had to work in the most menial positions. The idea for Web Auto Repair Database to create its own automotive school came into being. Tech Craftsman Career Building Trade School's Internship/Apprenticeship programs will be an accredited 4-year university in Missouri offering automotive, engine, and vehicle body design bachelor degrees, construction architecture bachelor degrees, and electrical engineering degrees.

While I was designing (WARD)’s and Tech Craftsman Career Building Trade School's educational plan, I remembered the personal problems I encountered as when I was a high school dropout. There is a gap between the uneducated and educated. The big difference between those two groups is that the group attending college or a career building courses have the ability to read and write leaving the uneducated behind. If you can read, you can do anything or go anywhere. (WARD) and (TCCBTS) will work to develop skills for the students that can read, write, and understand basic math, but we will also work with uneducated, unskilled individuals including high school dropouts and nonviolent felons, teaching them reading, writing, math, and computer skills. These basics are necessary so they can understand how to use computerized equipment, take measurements to see how much components such as cylinders or cam and camshaft elements need to be machined, or complete documents such as work orders.

Part of what causes attitude in an individual is embarrassment of not knowing. Not being able to read the class assignment and have meaningful discussion is frustrating and causes anger or the feeling of defeat which can then be the basis for abandonment of a program or even a job. These obstacles are overcome through reading, writing, math, and computers skills, which will make an individual capable of progressing through an intensive 24 month career building program either in automotive technology, construction, or working with technology in computer firewalls, networking, or web design. This is where Tech Craftsman Career Building Trade School programs build individuals into masters at their trade.