Chief Automotive Technologies announced that it has bolstered its Chief University instructional staff by adding three instructors with diverse collision repair backgrounds to the in-house Chief University team. The new instructors, Ruben Castorena, Len Gray and Jeff Mathews, will share their expertise at courses held across the country.
“We are continuously enhancing the Chief University curriculum to include advanced techniques for today’s technicians, but even the best content needs the right instructors to make an impact,” says Ken Boylan, global training manager for Chief. “That’s why we brought three instructors on board who have practical knowledge ranging from collision dynamics and estimating to advanced equipment and vehicle specifications. These instructors will lead Chief University courses throughout the year, and course participants will benefit greatly from their insights.”
Ruben Castorena, who has attained I-CAR Platinum status, served in the insurance industry as an automotive damage appraiser before joining Chief’s research and specification team in 2010. At Chief’s Irvine, Calif., measuring and specification center, he developed the vehicle repair data needed to return damaged vehicles to OEM specs. He remains based in Irvine.
Len Gray got his start in the collision repair industry in 1975 as a body technician and painter. Since then, he has held a wide variety of roles, including vehicle insurance appraiser, dealership manager and heavy-duty truck body shop manager. He served as an instructor at Chief’s Dallas training center from 1995 to 2003, and is currently based in Beaumont, Texas.
Jeff Mathews is based at Chief’s headquarters in Madison, Ind., where he previously provided technical support for Chief customers and trained distributors. He has been with Chief parent company Vehicle Service Group (VSG) for more than 10 years, and also formerly served as a product consultant, customer service supervisor and trainer for Chief sister company Rotary Lift. He has extensive knowledge about the Chief product line and how to repair or troubleshoot equipment.
Castorena, Gray, Mathews and the rest of the Chief University training staff will conduct more than 20 courses during the third quarter this year. For a complete, up-to-date schedule and to register, visit www.chiefautomotive.com/Chief-University.
