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Ongoing training of your employees is crucial to customer satisfaction and safety. To that end, we asked several leading manufacturers what programs they have to offer to make the task of training employees easier. Following are some of the best programs available to rental businesses.

Briggs & Stratton

Briggs & Stratton, manufacturer of air-cooled engines, produced over 12.8 million engines in its last fiscal year. Were did all those engines go? Most people would think they're being used in walk-behind and riding mowers. While this is true, many of the engines are used on pieces of equipment used by the rental industry. Such applications include generators, pressure washers, thatchers, tillers and the like.

To keep this equipment running, a competent technician is necessary. Without performing equipment, the rental house will not have income, but the technician, similar to the equipment, also needs maintenance. The technician must be familiar with the equipment, know how to maintain it and be able to troubleshoot it. The most effective way to learn how to take care of the equipment is through education. This will give the technician the necessary information, and also make them more productive, which means greater profit for the business.

Briggs & Stratton offers educational opportunities through its Central Sales and Service Distributors (CSSD's). Each year, the CSSD's interact with over 15,000 Briggs & Stratton dealers domestically. There are nine CSSD's throughout the United States and Canada with 20 locations. Each location has an educational director who has a classroom and an engine lab so the technician can have a hands-on experience.

The process to sign up for any of these schools is quite easy. If a rental house is already a Briggs & Stratton dealer, they can log on to www.thepowerportal.com with a user name and password. Once in, go to the technical information tab and click on the education link. There is a second link to class schedules. At this point, you can select and register for classes right online. If you are not a Briggs & Stratton dealer, or do not have Internet access, call the Customer Education Department at (414) 479-8043 for more information on how to attend the following courses.