Online Snow Grooming School

A new initiative from Prinoth is helping its customers get the most out of their snow grooming machines. It’s an online platform that’s part of PRINOTH ACADEMY, the company’s comprehensive education program aimed at giving snow groomer operators and mechanics the tools they need to create superior slopes, snow parks and trails, and keep their grooming vehicles perfectly maintained.

The new e-learning platform, which was unveiled in June 2020, enables participants to expand their professional knowledge and skills using their computers, tablets or smartphones.

Thomas Kirchmair, global head of after-sales for Prinoth, says the response from the industry so far has been remarkable.

“We’ve got great feedback and especially from North America,” he said. “There’s been huge demand from our customers. People are interested and curious to see this.”

The Prinoth Academy program covers a broad spectrum of training modules and subjects and is broken into three parts:

• E-learning for the basics
• Theoretical training in a classroom environment
• Practical training on-site

“E-learning is the first stage, to get everybody to the same level before they start the theoretical training,” said Kirchmair.

According to Kirchmair, the courses have been designed by leading e-learning experts to be intuitive and easy to navigate. New courses will also be added periodically to keep the content fresh.

“The platform is meant to be a living product,” Kirchmair said. “Every six to 12 months, we will introduce new courses to keep it interesting and motivating for people.”

Kirchmair says that Prinoth Academy’s e-learning program is available in six languages: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese and Chinese.

Participants set the pace

Participants can take part either individually or as part of a team, and they can also set their own pace, independent of the other participants.

Kirchmair says because not everyone has the same experience and skills, they can start wherever they want in the program.

“They can skip any training that is not important to them,” he said.

For ski resort operations management, the e-learning platform offers team-based reporting. For example, the status and test results of a resort’s entire team can be viewed online at any time.

The e-learning course material is presented through a three-level progressive system:

1. Basic: Participants get the necessary basic knowledge in relation to technical aspects of snow grooming, slope preparation and handling of Prinoth vehicles.
2. Advanced: Participants deepen their knowledge of the art of snow grooming and broaden this with additional learning elements such as snow park functions, the correct use of electrical and electronic systems and proper cable winch operation and maintenance in Prinoth vehicles.
3. Expert: Participants reach a professional level in snow grooming vehicle operation and servicing.

At the end of each level, participants must pass a test to move on. Those who successfully complete the entire e-learning package receive an official certificate as proof that they received professional training from Prinoth.

After completing the e-learning step, customers moving on to the next levels of Prinoth Academy’s theoretical and practical training can choose to have it delivered at either their own place of business or a Prinoth dealership or office location.

As part of its flexible approach to training, Prinoth will also tailor its professional education programs to meet the specific needs of ski resorts and participants.

“At Prinoth, we want to support our customers with better training for our vehicles,” Kirchmair said. “We want to help them reduce their operating costs, achieve higher efficiencies and create better slopes for the final customer for all of us, which is the skier.”

Those wishing to sign up for the Prinoth Academy e-learning program can register online at www.prinoth.com/academy. Prinoth recommends that companies interested in registering a number of participants for the courses contact them directly at academy@prinoth.com to receive a tailor-made pricing offer.