Florida Autobody Collision Alliance (FACA) Picks Up the Issues
Fragmentation, frustration and apathy once characterized Florida’s various collision industry associations. Regional groups were created but eventually withered; others started up briefly then stalled. A strong statewide group, fully supporting the individuality of its regional chapters, was unable to get traction.
The Brevard Autobody Association is illustrative. It operated from 1989–2002, with approximately 35 active members. “We were probably the longest running association in the state of Florida at the time that we disbanded,” recalls Steve Long, whose Rockledge-based Long Wholesale Consultants has been serving the state since 1990. The Brevard association spun off from an Orlando association which operated approximately from 1989–1999.
Today, dissolution and distrust in Florida is patiently being replaced by unity and a commitment to longevity. Long is the treasurer of the new Space and Treasure Coast Chapter of the growing Florida Autobody Collision Alliance (FACA).
FACA comprises six state chapters centered by larger cities. Formed in August 2009, Long’s Space and Treasure Coast represents collision-industry members from Titusville south 100 miles or so to Stuart along the Atlantic Coast. The other chapters are FACA of Jacksonville, Mid-State (Lakeland), FACA of Tampa Bay, Central Florida (Orlando) and South Florida (Ft. Lauderdale). Approximately 200 members regularly attend regional meetings statewide.
This year, FACA plans to open chapters in the Miami, Ft. Myers, Pensacola, and other areas. hold a first state convention and hire a full-time executive director, says Dave McBroom, president of FACA and the Jacksonville chapter.
FACA is an affiliate of Prosser, Wa.-based Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) and the National Auto Body Council, headquartered in Princeton Junction, N.J.
McBroom notes that George Avery and Chuck Sulkala at NABC and Barry Dorn and Aaron Schulenburg at SCRS have been particularly helpful during the formative period. “We receive a lot of guidance and assistance from both those organizations,” he says.
