Approved Suppliers

As appropriate, GM STC incorporates supplier training into its curriculum. These suppliers develop training that meets the high standards GM requires for dealer service technicians. Currently, training in the Body Structural Repair and Paint and Refinish categories is provided by GM-approved suppliers.

Body Structural Repair

GM STC has partnered with I-CAR to create industry-leading skills-based training that is tailored to GM collision repair information and procedures. I-CAR training as required for a minimum of one technician per repair facility and optional training within the Body Structural Repair portion of STS to ensure that technicians have the skills and knowledge to fix vehicles right the first time and thereby deliver an exceptional customer experience.

Visit https://info.i-car.com/network-programs/oem/GM for Body Structural Repair courses offered by I-CAR.
To check your I-CAR certification status, please visit: https://www.i-car.com/Home/MyICAR/Login

If you’re a Service or Body Shop Manager, you can always check your team’s progress toward Body Structural Repair STS at www.centerlearning.com > Reports and select:

Welding Certification

How do I know if my Welding Certification is current?

I-CAR Welding Training & Certification is valid for five years. I-CAR recommends beginning the registration process to regain the certification at least two months prior to a technician’s expiration date. This provides ample time to ensure that the technician’s certification does not lapse.

Earning GM STC Credit I-CAR Training Programs

You must have an established Profile page in GlobalConnect with a Primary Email address per below to allow certification status from I-CAR to transfer into GM’s training website (www.centerlearning.com).

Each week, I-CAR provides GM STC a report of all applicable completed training. GM STC then uploads the credit into body structural repair technicians’ training records, which display the credit immediately. Dealers’ STS Reports will also display the credit after their regular weekly update.

Note: Body Structural Repair technicians and managers do not need to fax in proof of earned I-CAR credit. All applicable Body Structural Repair credit is submitted to GM STC directly from I-CAR.

Contact

The I-CAR website (www.i-car.com) provides an array of information about their training programs as well as important details regarding Gold Class points for their recognition programs. In addition, Body Structural Repair technicians and managers may contact the I-CAR Customer Care Desk at (800) 422-7872 or by email at CustomerCare@i-car.com.

OEM Affiliation

To manage your OEM Affiliation with I-CAR:

Navigate to www.i-car.com and login to your myI-CAR account, or create one if you haven’t already.
Once logged in, select >My Training. Select >My Affiliations from the options that appear.
Select the New Affiliation button.
Select GM Network from the dropdown and select Next.
Enter your COL PID into the Company ID field. Enter your Dealer BAC number into the Dealer Code field. Enter the date your affiliation began in the Start Date field.

FAQ

How long does it take for I-CAR records to transfer?

Credit for individual courses or ProLevels usually takes 2-3 weeks to transfer to GM depending on when you completed the I-CAR training if the technician has previously Affiliated. If the technician has not Affiliated with the GM_Network (STC) in their I-CAR profile (per the instructions below) or Affiliates after they have completed a ProLevel or the required individual training class, then the technician’s I-CAR training records will be transferred to GM in the first week of each quarter.

Why don’t I see transcripts for each individual course I complete with I-CAR?

GM requires a few individual courses such as VT405E01Understanding High Voltage Safety and these will show in your GM transcripts individually. However, we require the I-CAR ProLevels® in Structural, Non-Structural and Refinish Technician roles. I-CARs ProLevels are comprised of a series of Knowledge and Skills that can be achieved through either I-CAR courses or an I-CAR Alliance Partner course. Credit for the courses completed within a ProLevel will not appear individually within your GM training records. Rather the completed ProLevel will appear 2-3 weeks after you complete the final requirement in the ProLevel.

Does GM recognize I-CAR Knowledge and Skill completions through I-CAR’s Alliance Partners?

Indirectly yes. Completion of Knowledge and Skills via an I-CAR Alliance Partner provides I-CAR credit towards the applicable ProLevel. For a complete list of requirements and Alliance Partner courses that apply towards I-CAR’s ProLevels, visit https://www.i-car.com/knowledge-skill-protocol

Paint and Refinish

The GM Paint and Refinish Training Process

GM and our paint suppliers have developed a strong training relationship since joining forces. Our relationship enables us to implement the strict procedures necessary to consistently restore a vehicle’s appearance to pre-accident or showroom condition after a paint repair. Our process ensures that painters are knowledgeable and skilled, and we work together to establish performance testing standards to ensure competency certification. Paint suppliers train the technicians while GM monitors adherence to the curriculum and performance standards.

Our process offers several benefits to learners:

An expedited method for meeting GM Service Training Standards (STS) and achieving certification
An easy way to evaluate a painter’s knowledge level
Consistency in skills evaluation among peers

The graphic below depicts our Paint and Refinish Training Process. A painter who successfully completes this process will earn credit for GM Certified Paint/Refinish course number 22041.00 on their training record and dealership’s STS Report. Please allow up to four weeks for the credit to appear in the Center of Learning.

*Basic Paint Assessment 22042.00A plus the appropriate Product-Specific Paint Assessment 22044.

Pre-Qualify

A technician must accomplish at least one of the following:

Paint ASE Certification
Completion of previous GM or paint supplier training courses
One year documented automotive paint experience

Online Evaluation

Once a technician pre-qualifies, he/she must complete the online evaluation by logging on to www.centerlearning.com.

Trainees who do not have a log on ID and password may obtain one either by contacting their GM service manager or by calling the GM Center of Learning Help Desk at (888) 748-2687; press 2 then 8. Technicians can locate the online evaluation by clicking Testing > Service Technical > Paint Placement Assessment. The evaluation includes two tests:

Test 1

Basic Training – technicians must pass Test 1 before taking Test 2

Test 2

OE (Original Equipment) Training – this test is paint manufacturer specific

Section B: OE Color test (primarily performance based color tinting/matching) Trainees are given two attempts to pass the two online evaluation tests.
Section A: OE Product test (primarily performance based product training)

Evaluation Scored

Upon completing an online evaluation test at www.centerlearning.com, trainees receive immediate feedback on how they scored. A score of 80% or higher is required to pass Test 1 and sections A and B of Test 2. This information is sent to the paint supplier Central Training Office (CTO).

If a trainee receives a score of 79% or less on any part of the online evaluation (e.g., Test 1 or either section of Test 2), the trainee should contact their paint supplier representative to enroll in the applicable OE Training course(s). For example, if a trainee scores 80% on the Basic Training test and 80% on the OE Product test section and 79% on the OE Color test section, the trainee should enroll in OE Color test.

Attend OE Course(s)

Note: This step is required only if a trainee does not pass the online evaluation tests.

Upon completing an online evaluation test, the trainee receives immediate feedback from www.centerlearning.com, including a note on which course(s) they need to enroll in.

See the GM Paint Manufacturer Course and Contact Information section of the catalog (Section 2) for course names based on supplier used.

Course Contents: Part 1 is primarily performance based product training; Part 2 is primarily performance based color tinting/matching.

For more information pertaining to specific OE courses, call the paint supplier at the number listed in the catalog.

Schedule In-Shop Evaluation

Note: This step is required only if a trainee passes the online evaluation.

Upon successful completion of both online evaluation tests, the trainee should contact either his/her local paint supplier representative or the paint supplier CTO to schedule an in-shop evaluation.

In-Shop Evaluation

Note: This step is required only if a trainee passes the online evaluation.

A paint supplier representative performs an in-shop evaluation.

Step #1

OE Approved paint systems information review

The representative familiarizes the technician with the OE approved paint systems, product, and process information. It is appropriate for the representative to coach the technician on information and interpretation. It is not appropriate to supply answers for the Observed Performance Evaluations.

Step #2

Observed Performance Evaluations

The paint supplier representative fills out all of the requested information on the Observed Performance Evaluation sheets (one set for product application and another set for color tinting).

The representative observes as the technician demonstrates his/her ability to perform all of the evaluation criteria listed.

To pass the course, a technician must achieve a perfect performance score of 100% on both the product application and color tinting evaluations.
The representative observes as the technician demonstrates his/her ability to perform all of the evaluation criteria listed.
To pass the course, a technician must achieve a perfect performance score of 100% on both the product application and color tinting evaluations.

Results Sent to Training Administrator

The paint supplier representative sends the completed Observed Performance Evaluation sheets to their training administrator.

Results Sent to Center of Learning

The paint supplier CTO compiles a list of certified painters and forwards it to GM STC.

GM STC Posts Records to Center of Learning Website

GM STC imports the list of certified painters into www.centerlearning.com. Credit shows in training records immediately and on the STS Report within one week.

OE Certification Timing

Trainees must complete the Paint and Refinish training process within a six-month period once they begin.

GM Paint Manufacturer Course and Contact Information

The following table shows the GM paint suppliers and their contact information. To determine the training requirements for certification, GM body service technicians can discuss them with their paint supplier representative or contact the appropriate GM-approved paint supplier at the number(s) listed below:

Paint Suppliers	Phone Numbers	Website
Azalta/Spies Hecker /Standox/Cromax	(610) 358-5354	www.axaltacoatingsystems.com
AkzoNobel/Sikkens	(800) 656-2332	www.akzonobel.com
BASF	(800) 201-1605	www.BASFrefinish.com
PPG/Nexa	(800) 647-6050	www.ppgrefinish.com
Sherwin-Williams/Martin-Senour	(630) 887-7516	www.sherwin-automtive.com
Valspare/DeBeer	(972) 595-8910	www.valsparautomotive.com