On November 6, Auto-jobs attended the most important annual gathering for mechanical instructors. Here’s what happened.
Instructors at vocational training centres spend their days in classrooms and workshops, yet they still make time to update their knowledge, an essential part of supporting their students. That’s why more than 250 instructors in the motorized-equipment field made the trip from all over Quebec to attend the APEEMQ’s annual gathering at the Wilbrod-Bherer Training Centre in Québec City on November 6 and 7.
“Every year, we welcome passionate people from everywhere: Gaspésie, Ottawa, Abitibi, Rivière-du-Loup, Montréal, or Shawinigan,” says Christian Beaulieu, president of the association, who organized the gathering with the eight members of his board.
For Auto-jobs automotive recruitment advisor Sophie Corriveau, who was attending the event for the first time, the experience was both highly relevant and very enjoyable.
“Even though I’m not an instructor, I was warmly welcomed by the organizers,” she explains. Yves Thibert, heavy-truck mechanics instructor and CETEMMM president, along with Jérôme Bolduc, Director of Light-Vehicle Mechanics, and François Daneault, Director of Heavy-Vehicle Mechanics, looked after her throughout the day and helped her discover a great deal.
Training at the core of the event
Learning was indeed central to the APEEMQ conference, with two- to three-hour sessions offered in English and French on a wide range of topics related to automotive mechanics, trucking, and heavy equipment.
Corriveau attended eight of these highly focused and informative sessions delivered by professionals from specialized companies in the sector. Among them were John Deere, Globocam, Bendix, Manulift, Consulab, and Cummins.
At Cummins, a leader in technological solutions, she noted the strong shift toward zero-emission trucking. She was also impressed by how many cameras and audio or visual alerts are now found in truck cabs for health and safety, an increasingly important topic given the risks caused by untrained drivers.
“I also really liked the course from Consulab, which supplies automotive training systems to vocational centres so students can train on fully equipped boards,” she adds. “And I had a real soft spot for the powerful yet intuitive equipment from Manulift, a manufacturer of telescopic construction machines.”
Other highlights of the event
Beyond the training itself, the APEEMQ conference gives instructors an opportunity to reconnect and talk about their work. The lunchtime buffet was lively and full of conversation, according to Corriveau. The same friendly atmosphere carried into the cocktail reception that wrapped up the day from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
“You could tell people were happy to be there. There were lots of discussions and lots of laughter,” she says. She also visited the ten exhibitors at the event, including Peterbilt and CETEMMM, which is a familiar presence at every major automotive gathering in Quebec.
Following her visit, Corriveau said she would definitely recommend the conference. “It’s definitely worth attending,” she says. “You learn so many things and you have fun doing it. And the training fees are very reasonable. For me, it’s a must.”
