ASE Recognizes NAPA Autotech XcceleratoR Program as Valid Route to Meet Work Experience Requirement
The National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence recognized the new NAPA Autotech XcceleratoR program as a pathway toward significantly reducing the ASE standard work experience requirement. A year-long data-gathering and validation period began in April and will help ASE determine how best to integrate immersive XcceleratoR training into its certification framework.
The NAPA Autotech XcceleratoR program is powered by Skillmaker, an AI-driven extended reality workforce development platform, to help address the industry’s urgent skilled-labor shortage. It reduces technician training time from years to weeks by combining immersive first-person simulations and AI-driven feedback.
“We believe the NAPA XcceleratoR program has the potential to substantially shorten the time to certification window without compromising the quality of hands-on skills that have always been the core focus of ASE,” said Dave Johnson, president and CEO of ASE. “This new workplace development initiative is the future of skills-based assessment. We are proud to collaborate with NAPA and Skillmaker as they harness new technologies to address the technician shortage.”
Using innovative XR simulations, AI-guided practice modules, and real-time remote support, the XcceleratoR program will hasten career readiness by assessing technicians’ skill levels through fast-track, first-person XR evaluations and pinpoint exact knowledge gaps without sacrificing hands-on proficiency. It can assist learners on the job with AR-capable smart glasses and real-time AI or live human expert guidance, minimizing downtime and reducing mistakes.
“This is more than just a training upgrade, it is a game-changer for the entire automotive service ecosystem,” Matt Crumpton, director, program development NAPA. “Skillmaker’s proven XR approach has already accelerated learning in other sectors, and we are thrilled to bring that power to NAPA’s extensive network of shops and technicians.”
For more information, visit the NAPA XcceleratorR program website here.
