On Saturday, May 19 th, Spinweber's Marine Training Center hosted its open house and more than 75 guests visited the 12,000 square foot training facility located in Boynton Beach. Spinweber's Marine Training Center is the only one of its kind in the area and seeks to fill the growing need for qualified marine mechanics in South Florida by offering a one year, comprehensive technical training program beginning on August 20, 2007 and concluding on June 13, 2008.
With more than 27 years experience in the marine industry including 16 years as a service manager and 15 years as a certified vocational instructor at South Tech, guests enjoyed a formal presentation by owner and lead instructor, Barry Spinweber. In a letter of recommendation from the Superintendent for the Palm Beach County School District, Dr. Art Johnson, Mr. Spinweber is described as "one of the finest and most capable educators with whom I have been associated in my 38 years of public education".
The presentation by Mr. Spinweber detailed the course curriculum beginning with basic instruction on engine identification and necessary tools through two and four stroke theory on all major brand name engines including Yamaha, Evinrude/Johnson, Mercury/Mercruiser, and Honda. The center promises a strong educational foundation provided in a classroom setting, progressing to include more intricate and complex theory on all aspects of marine diagnosis, maintenance, and repair while simultaneously incorporating practical hands on experience in a "shop-like" environment.
Multiple hands on demonstrations were also provided to give individuals a sense of the technological capabilities and sophistication that Spinweber's Marine Training Center has to offer and the mechanical skills that would be taught to reinforce classroom learning objectives. These demonstrations included Yamaha diagnostic software on a 225 four stroke Yamaha engine in a 350 gallon test tank, Optimax demonstating the DDT tester, FICHT demonstrating older Johnson/Evinrude software including static spark test and interpreting diagnostic codes, E-Tec demonstrating newest Johnson/Evinrude diagnostic software as well as E-Tec demonstrating diagnostic tests such as cylinder drop and engine monitoring.
Boats on hand ranged in size from 18 feet to 38 feet including a 38 foot PowerQuest high performance offshore deep V hull powered by twin 525 horsepower racing fuel injected Mercruisers. Potential students in attendance consisted of many local residents as well as some who had traveled from as far as Miami-Dade and Okeechobee Counties. One prospective student currently residing in Venezuela also expressed interested in Spinweber's Marine Training Center.
A $2500 discount on tuition is being offered to any students who enroll prior to the June 10 th deadline. Due to the added benefit of small class sizes, this discount is being offered on a first come, first serve basis as there are a limited number of placements available. For more information, please contact Barry Spinweber at (561) 585-0027 or (772) 263-0635.