The automobile ecosystem is changing dramatically. The history of internal combustion engines over the past 130 years is turning into an eco-friendly vehicle market such as electric vehicles and hydrogen electric vehicles. The problem is that the conversion speed is too fast.
Experts predicted that the transition period from the existing internal combustion engine market to electric vehicles would be about 40 years, but recently it has been reduced to 20 years and now it is expected to be about 15 years. Too fast a change shocks all over society, which are already appearing everywhere.
Last year, Hyundai Motor relocated 30% of its workforce at the production site when it launched an electric vehicle with an electric vehicle platform called Ioniq 5, sparking controversy between labor and management.
This means that the number of existing internal combustion engine personnel should be reduced by about 30% due to the rapidly increasing production of electric vehicles. These disputes began to emerge as important conflict factors between labor and management in the future.
The problem is that in universities, not only curriculum but also practical teaching materials are still centered on internal combustion locomotives.
There are many cases where there is no electric vehicle in the automobile department in universities. Most of the professors are also composed of faculty members who studied internal combustion engines.
Electric cars without engines and transmissions have different structures and completely different principles. Most professors have never learned and practiced electric cars properly. There is a need for professional manpower for various future mobility such as electric vehicles in the field right now, but even educational institutions are not prepared.
One of the most worrisome areas is the ‘automobile maintenance area’. This is because it plays an important role as a professional area where consumers face-to-face on the front line.
There are about 4,500 general and small car maintenance industries called automobile factories nationwide, and about 40,000 small businesses called “car centers.” The number of employees is a large professional area of more than 150,000 people.
However, in the maintenance area, the “red oceanization” is rapidly accelerating, with the durability of internal combustion engines improving, the free after-sales service period increasing, and the position that existing maintenance businesses can play. On top of that, as the transition to electric vehicles is accelerating, a sense of crisis is deepening.
The “engine room and transmission,” which has the most work in the maintenance area, disappears at all, and batteries and motors that replace them are not easily accessible to technicians. The areas that have not changed from the past are only tires, braking devices, suspension devices, and steering devices, which are increasing the number of technicians’ concerns.
The problem is that there is almost no technician training for electric vehicles, and it is currently impossible to maintain electric vehicles. Therefore, it is necessary to provide a period for mechanics to endure through education of electric vehicles and others immediately. Currently, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s program to train future car professionals is almost the only one in Korea.
Therefore, within a few years, training for future cars such as the parts industry as well as training of professional mechanics is essential. In the era of future mobility, it is easier to maintain jobs than create new ones, and that is the most important thing.
In the near future, automobile maintenance areas are expected to be greatly reduced due to the emergence of significantly reduced parts, modularization, and mobility foundations. In the future, the current maintenance industry is likely to decrease by at least 70%.
Therefore, it is necessary to consider increasing the number of items that can revive the maintenance area while increasing diversity such as electric vehicle tuning, used electric vehicle diagnostic evaluation, and electric vehicle parts and supplies.
Even now, thorough preparation for the maintenance area and efforts are needed to reduce the impact on future cars as much as possible. Even industry transformation and transformation education are needed, and various methods such as mergers and acquisitions should be considered. This is the most important time.