July/August 2021

JULY/AUGUST 2021 AFTERMARKET 31 private, we did so but unfortunately it rapidly became toxic via trolls and keyboard warriors, and was neither inspiring nor informative. I closed that group and The SimplyDiag Network was born, membership was trade only, a code of conduct and minimal subscription kept the trolls at bay. We engaged with companies and suppliers that were willing to offer support to our community, mistakes were made and some showed members and sponsors showed their true colours, leading to their removal. The limitations of Facebook as a platform became apparent as numbers and content grew, posts got missed and content previously posted was difficult to find. The SimplyDiag Network had to change, SDN was started as a Limited company with Directors and a powerful, custom web portal has been built at www.simplydiag.net It caters for invested professionals of all levels and promotes a sharing, positive, growth culture. We have a real sense of community. Membership is very modest and ensures that the community remains positive and peaceful. SDN abandoned sponsors, instead partnering with top tier trainers, suppliers and specialists, all with a proven track record of supporting our industry, our community and a common goal of sharing information and inclusiveness. Our goal is simple – to enable every member to be the best they can be, both professionally and personally. SDN, combined with the public, free, Facebook group “SimplyDiag YT” exists to give invested technicians a platform to improve, share and show the world just what it takes to be a technician in today’s ever evolving automotive sector. To that end and to inspire the next generation, all legitimate apprentices can have free membership of our community, as well as accessing all our learning resources and community pages, they have their own closed section away from other members and mentorship from our resident specialists, moderators and Industry Gurus such as Tom Denton. I say this to all apprentices, you can be the best technician if you want it and work hard enough for it. Work hard and be the best you can be. What happened when you came back? Eight years later, I returned to the UK with my 18-month- old son, precariously perched on top of a baggage trolley from home in Rwanda. Looking for a job, I soon realised that the automotive industry had moved on whilst I was overseas, there were things called DLC and a magic box you plugged in that told you what was wrong with the car! I had no knowledge of this aspect and realised that if I was to move back into the trade, I needed to learn once more. There was an article online about some quirky fella from Preston called Frank Massey that was using oscilloscopes of all things to diagnose cars. I made the call, spoke to a lovely woman called Jean and that was it, my new journey for knowledge had begun in earnest. Through further research, I found another unique individual named James Dillon from down south. I discovered forums, then was invited into the back rooms, all the best information was to be had, from some of the best minds in the industry. Let me say right now, I owe another debt of gratitude to Frank, James and all the people in the forums and chatrooms that helped me along the way, many of you will be reading this and even though we may have polar opposite opinions now, I still thank you and credit you with enabling me to become the technician I am today. What happened after you sorted out training? I found a job, did a bit, then realised that working as a mechanic wasn’t enough for me, I started up a mobile diagnostics business and ran around making good money, doing everything I now see as wrong, promoting the tools instead of my skills, keeping the information gained within closed forums. I contributed personally to the publics’ misconception of our industry, in particular ‘diagnostics’ and for that I am truly regretful. I continued with training, soaking up every parcel of information and knowledge I could find, went back to being employed, moved around, eventually returning to being a man in a van, advertising as a Diagnostic Specialist. I was successful and counted many of the industry’s best as my friends. All the while paying little or no attention to the way our trade was going nor the decline in my health. I found myself at a critical juncture yet again, very little challenge and no motivation. What to do next? I turned the camera on, “Good Morning Facebook” was born, I’d decided to share the stuff I'd learned, to try and inspire technicians to better themselves, to build a community, to drive up the publics’ negative impression of our industry (that I’d contributed to) by showing exactly what it took to diagnose faults correctly and efficiently. #StrongerTogether, borrowed from Jean Massey (ADS Ltd & AutoInform), became our community ethos. I’ve a lot about simply diagnostics. Can you tell me more about that? It all started with a YouTube channel ‘Simply Diagnostics’, inspired by my friend Paul ‘Scanner’ Danner, this proved to be popular and I started a Facebook group, SimplyDiag YT for my followers and subscribers to discuss cases and test methods – the primary objective being to inspire and inform. Many members requested we have a group that wasn’t public where they could discuss problem jobs in You can be the best technician if you want it and work hard enough for it... ”