MEG Corp Conducted Biodiesel Training at 3 SD Tech Schools

Hoon Ge of MEG Corp conducted diesel and biodiesel training at three schools in February 2021. Hoon presented to approximately 164 students and 14 instructors at Mitchel Technical Institute in Mitchell, Lake Area Technical Institute in Watertown and Southeast Technical Institute in Sioux Falls. These workshops cover the following topics: Fuel from Crude Oil, Introduction to Biodiesel, Biodiesel Quality, Diesel Vehicles and OEMs, Common Diesel Issues and Cold Weather Operability. Each student is provided a Basics of Using Biodiesel guide, an Identifying Common Diesel Issues poster and a biodiesel logoed promotional item.

As a part of their support of biodiesel, South Dakota Soybean Research & Promotion Council has been sponsoring diesel and biodiesel education at the state’s technical schools for since 2009 through the Soybean Checkoff. This program was started in response to repeated reports of diesel technicians blaming biodiesel for problems customers were experiencing with their vehicles. Mechanics have quite a bit of influence with their customers, whether it is about where to fuel up, the type of motor oil they should use or frequency of service. Hoon Ge from MEG Corp says, “It was very troubling when we would hear that farmers were being told not to use biodiesel by their local mechanic.” With this training, students receive a better understanding of diesel and biodiesel which will help them to accurately diagnose filter plugging issues, give recommendations to customers about proper handling and use practices, and advance the image of biodiesel by providing the correct information about biodiesel to co-workers and customers.

MEG Corp has been evaluated by the ASE Training Managers Council and accredited by the National Institute for Automotive Service excellence as meeting the industry standards for continuing automotive service education. This accreditation means that MEG Corp can conduct workshops that allow diesel technicians in the workforce to earn continuing education credit that is recognized by ASE.