Following a hiatus due to the pandemic, STIHL has has announced the launch of a new Master Technician training programme for their Approved dealers, with a series of face-to-face courses available throughout February, March and April. 

Available via the STIHL Academy, the manufacturer says the programme offers a blended learning approach for dealers, who will be asked to initially complete online modules for each of the foundation, intermediate and advanced servicing courses, before the respective face-to-face sessions can be booked. For those who are successful, the final element of the path is unlocked - the Master Technician course, which runs solely face-to-face.

The first series of face-to-face Foundation Servicing courses are available to the company's Approved dealers at the following locations:

• Merrist Wood College, Guildford - 28th February and 1st March 2023
• Myerscough, Preston - 22nd and 23rd March 2023
• Riseholme College, Lincoln - 21st and 22nd March 2023
• Bicton College, East Budleigh - 21st and 22nd March 2023
• Pavillions of Harrogate, Harrogate - 12th April 2023
• Writtle College, Essex – 25th April 2023
• Royal Agricultural University, Cirencester, 27th April 2023

In a statement, the company said, "The announcement of this new training programme follows a huge drive to enhance the learning and development available to STIHL dealers. Just last year, STIHL launched a new podcast series that offers its dealer network an alternative way of learning useful product and technical information about the STIHL range."