TESDA & Petron provide automotive servicing training to empower more Filipinos

PHOTO: (from left) TESDA-NCR Regional Director Florencio Sunico Jr.; TESDA Deputy Director General for TESD Operations Lina Sarmiento; TESDA Secretary Isidro Lapeña; Petron Vice President for Industrial Sales Virgilio Centeno; Petron AVP for Commercial Sales Leo Pausing II; and Petron Lube Trade National Manager Leojun Gonzales

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Petron Corporation has partnered with TESDA (Technical Education and Skills Development Authority) to offer free technical-vocational training in automotive servicing, addressing our country’s need for more skilled personnel.

Petron will help enhance TESDA’s existing Automotive Service Training Program, catering specifically to NCR residents, by providing them with a full car care center set-up patterned after the Petron Car Care Center (CCC).

The partnership was formalized during the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on March 4 led by TESDA Secretary Isidro Lapeña and Petron Corporation Vice President for Industrial Sales Virgilio Centeno at the TESDA Complex in Taguig.

Known as the automotive fluids specialist, Petron Car Care Center, the company’s automotive care brand, serves as a one-stop shop carrying Petron’s full range of technologically advanced and internationally accredited mineral and fully synthetic automotive lubricants.

Located inside Petron service stations and also as standalone service shops, the standard Petron Car Care Center offers a complete line of professional automotive care services from light to heavy repairs, as well as tire services such as wheel balancing and alignment. They provide affordable yet casa-quality preventive maintenance services by well-trained mechanics. Currently, there are 47 Petron Car Care Center and its scaled down version, Car Care Center Express branches nationwide.

“Petron recognizes the power of education and proper training in building up a society. We welcome this opportunity with TESDA to use one of our strengths as an industry leader to empower our less fortunate countrymen so they can lead better lives. This can also address our country’s need for more skilled personnel while increasing our productivity as a nation especially with the pandemic still ongoing,” said Centeno.

To ensure the quality of the service, the TESDA-Petron CCC will exclusively use Petron’s world-class automotive oils. The homegrown oil company will also work hand in hand with TESDA to develop training modules customized for the company’s needs for possible employment opportunities.

“We are optimistic that this venture will create a better, more comprehensive learning experience for the Filipino workforce, preparing them for the challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and the constantly evolving world of work,” Secretary Lapeña said.

Petron, through its CSR arm Petron Foundation, has always been at the forefront of fueling hope through education. It has over 18,000 scholars all over the country under its flagship education program Tulong Aral ng Petron (TAP), which is now on its 20th year.

Given the high incidence of out of school youth, Petron developed the Petron Automotive Care Education or Petron ACE in 2015 where qualified members of Petron’s fenceline communities are trained to become licensed mechanics in TESD-accredited partner institutions. Those who graduate and secure their Automotive Servicing National Certificate (NC) II license from TESDA are given at least 2 years of employment as mechanics at Petron CCCs and Lube Bays.

This new partnership with TESDA greatly complements Petron ACE by adding value to more Filipinos in need of support and empowerment. It is also in line with San Miguel Corporation’s commitment to ensure that its stakeholders thrive alongside its continued growth as an organization.

The new facility is set to be operational by June 2022 and can accommodate about 250 students per year. (30)