The course load was very well organized. Day one involved a plant tour followed by four days of theory and hands-on technical training, which consisted of engines, followed by bus maintenance, electrical and finally Allison Transmissions. Back at the Hotel where all 67 of us stayed there were nightly two-hour seminars on Ricon lifts, air conditioning and hydraulic brake systems. During our one-hour lunch breaks enjoying the down home southern cooking there was a presentation on bus paint as well as one by the stop arm manufacturers.

The mechanics from all over North America were split into three groups. It was interesting to find out how other shops operated and what some of their mechanical issues were. I found it humorous when one of the guys from Texas told me I talked funny.

It was nice to be able to experience hands-on training and out of our chairs for a few hours each day. We did some rework on engines, disassembled turbos and worked with the online ISIS program, Service Max and Diamond Logic software. My personal favorite was the Diamond Logic software with graphic images of electrical components, connectors and wiring. This software allows you to work with the specific VIN and avoid the time consuming task of physically tracing wires and digging into harnesses.

As part of the training, IC had a test bus set up with all the components exposed, which gave us the ability to troubleshoot a fault set up by the instructor. I had a hunch that the IC people were listening to feedback. Sitting for hours on end viewing Power Point presentations is very tiring, and the retention level is much lower than working hands-on with the tools and software. It made total sense to get tools in our hands and get some practical experience. We had a room full of mechanics, so what better way to get them motivated.

In the end I was very happy with the week long course and got the same feelings from other participants. We were informed this course is a basic primer to a more advanced version which I would not hesitate to sign up for. I would recommend to anyone with IC school buses to head on down to Tulsa for some great hospitality and training.

Do you have similar experiences attending training provided by any of the school bus manufacturers? Share your story.

Whelan has worked as a school bus and truck mechanic for the past 34 years and is currently shop foreman for the School District No. 73 transportation department in Kamloops, British Columbia. In addition to being a regular contributor to School Transportation News, he shares his shop experiences at his personal blog site, "School Bus Mechanic."

The Bureau of Transportation Statistics with the U.S. DOT's Research and Innovative Technology Administration published findings last month that indicates that the lower level of imports, which also include air and maritime imports and high-end electronics, may be a result of damaged equipment and reduced shipping capacity originating from Japanese ports. And the result is that supply chains in the U.S. are hurting.

Sean Jahanmir, the author of the report, pointed to a March 21 announcement by GM regarding a shortage of electronic parts that resulted in temporarily shuttering the company's pick-up truck plants in Louisiana and New York. And obviously Japanese automakers are struggling. Jahanmir reported that Toyota, Nissan and Honda all have seen supply problems and "shortages of essential parts."

Hino Trucks is a subsidiary of Toyota and a partner with Starcraft Bus on the new Type C conventional school bus that was expected to go into production by year's end. There was no comment as of yet from Starcraft on how supply is affecting this development.

Jahanmire also said Japan is America's number two trade partner for both maritime and air modes of freight transport over the past five years. The country saw $173 billion of total imports and exports traded in 2010 and is the top export and import partner for the Chicago air freight gateway.

School bus operators have been purchasing bits of wireless technology for years, systems or software for bus routing, maintenance scheduling, parts management, driver payroll, and student management. The problem is having many different systems for all types of information gathered independent of other systems, commonly referred to as operating in a silos, requiring costly human resources to gather all the relevant data and communicate it within the transportation and administrative network.

Recently we have seen an increase by vehicle manufacturers in the development of technology that will capture information from on-board vehicle sensors and computers to analyze the potential for vehicle system or component problems providing early indication of potential component failure, and with the ability to pre-set operating parameters for engine idle time, speed, and deceleration. The technology, when used with effective network communications, will provide event and alert notification to desktop, laptop, tablets and, handheld mobile devices. It won’t be long before we will see the OEM working to provide an in-dash GPS system that would provide route and traffic information.

As vehicle, maintenance, driver, and student management technology evolves, users should prevent systems from being developed into silos of independent management information.

A relatively new technology called “Cloud Computing” can prevent the excessive cost of poor communication and managing in silos. Cloud computing is a general term for anything that involves delivering hosted services over the Internet. These services are broadly divided into three categories: Infrastructure-as-a-Service, Platform-as-a-Service and Software-as-a-Service. The name cloud computing was inspired by the cloud symbol that's often used to represent the Internet in flowcharts and diagrams.

A cloud service has three distinct characteristics that differentiate it from traditional hosting. It is sold on demand, typically by the minute or the hour. A user can have as much or as little of a service as they want at any given time, and the service is fully managed by the provider (the consumer needs nothing but a personal computer and Internet access). Significant innovations in virtualization and distributed computing, as well as improved access to high-speed Internet and a weak economy, have accelerated interest in cloud computing, its use reduces the capital cost of equipment and keeps system operating expenses under control by being predictable.

Make sure when communicating with OEM telematics representatives, routing and, fleet management system providers, you discuss the option of integrating those services thru the advance technology of cloud computing services.

Pudlewski is the maintenance and technology contributing editor to School Transportation News and is the retired vice president of fleet operations for Laidlaw Education Services and First Student.

John Whelan, school bus shop foreman and STN blogger.

Experience is not something you can buy; you have to get into the trenches and carry out a job until it’s done. Once you find the solution, it’s locked in your memory permanently.

It’s really nice to search your memory banks and remember the exact same problem you had in the past. You then focus on it and fix it.

I remember when I was an apprentice hearing about a mechanic who was working on a diesel engine that would not run. He changed the injection pump and later found out the fuel tank was empty. He was immediately given his walking papers.

I never forgot that story and always made sure to “check the source” of the problem. It’s such an easy step but at times, overlooked. I’ve done it and learned from it over the years. It becomes a humbling experience and checking the source is my first step with any diagnostic procedure.

Checking the batteries and grounds, for instance, has solved more problems than I can remember and continues to be the first plan of attack when confronted with an electrical problem. If there is no flow of electrons nothing is going to happen. Wiring resistance, shorts and bad grounds have caused a lot grief for many mechanics over the years.

Here’s a memorable story I have to share. I worked at a truck stop for a year and worked on anything that came through the door. One time, an older Chevy pickup came in with no power. At full throttle there was no engine miss with a top speed of 30 mph.

After a couple of days scratching my head not finding a reasonable cause I had a hunch that I needed to chop the exhaust pipe before the muffler and find the plate from the heat riser. It had broken away and made its way down to the muffler inlet, blocking it off and causing major back pressure, just enough so the engine would still run.

From that day forward I always check exhaust back pressure when there is a diesel or gas engine power complaint. You just never know!

If you have your own oddball mechanic story or an issue you're having trouble with, please share it with us in the Tech Net group on STNSOCiAL. It's a free, useful, online tool being used by hundreds of student transporters across North America. We would love to hear from you, too!

Whelan has worked as a school bus and truck mechanic for the past 34 years and is currently shop foreman for the School District No. 73 transportation department in Kamloops, British Columbia. Read more about Whelan's shop experiences at his personal blog site.

As the Institute of Physics reported, the scientists tested three charging scenarios of PHEVs at four locations across Texas, granted to gauge the air quality impacts of replacing approximately 20 percent of the gasoline-powered light duty vehicle miles traveled (VMT) with electric VMT by the year 2018 and not a diesel-electric power train. And the new 2010 diesel engines are already very clean.

But re-charging PHEVs at non-peak hours is widely recognized as being more cost-effective and reliable. The practice apparently can also lower pollution.

Researchers first charged vehicles at off-peak times in the night. Then, they charged to maximize battery life, or just before use and only enough to complete a trip. The third scenario involved charging the battery when it was a convenient time for the driver, such as right after using the vehicle. They found that charging at night resulted in higher levels nitrogen oxides, but there is less sunlight at night for the emissions to react with. As a result, the overall levels of pollution were lower than those associated with 20 percent of gasoline VMT.

STN contributing editor Robert Pudlewski recommended that operators of PHEV school buses utilize timers when charging to measure the amount of electricity being consumed and to ensure charging is limited to off-peak hours.