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This July I did a presentation at the Collision Industry Conference (CIC) in Salt Lake City on the need for OEM data prior to estimating and repairing today’s cars. I also included some additional discussion and presented examples of bumper reinforcements. I received a letter from a CAPA spokesperson stating that my demonstration “caused members of the collision repair industry to believe, mistakenly, that the part used in your demonstration was CAPA-certified.” I think that it is important that I give readers an accurate account of what really happened. I want to make this clear. I am not against the use of quality aftermarket parts in the collision repair process, but I am very much against being told to use substandard parts and then assuming all of the risks for their use.

To view a PDF of this article please click HERE.

A couple of months ago, a shop in the Midwest received an estimate from a major insurance company calling for a certified front bumper reinforcement for a 2008 Hyundai Sonata. The shop had ordered from the A/M supplier a certified front-bumper reinforcement, but they received a non certified front bumper reinforcement. The shop’s tech did the right thing—he compared the damaged OE part to the A/M part and showed it to the owner. The was a considerable weight difference between the two parts. He ordered an OE part and sent the A/M part to me.     I purchased a new part and compared them. I found that A/M was not like, kind and quality. About the same time, I received a bumper reinforcement made by Diamond Standard for a 2003 to 2008 Toyota Corolla that was certified by NSF.

Dana Cooper, the owner of Brown Auto Body, a busy, modest-size shop located in southwest Iowa, has been in the collision industry for more than three decades. Cooper knows the value of reliable equipment and he’s convinced there’s no more important need in a shop than having a reliable air compressor. Not only is it critical for his painting needs but he depends on it for air tools needed to maintain his cycle times. That’s why Cooper was so pleased when his Keystone rep introduced him to Mattei compressors for the first time late last year.

To view a PDF of this article please click HERE.

“With a machine like an air compressor, I want to be able to buy it and never worry about it ever again. We’re fixing 30-40 cars per month here, and it’s just another thing I don’t want to have to think about. We’ve had this Mattei unit for about seven months now, and they’ve been very good about keeping us on the right maintenance schedule. I know this is important. If my air compressor goes down, we’re dead in the water. Almost everything from buffers to paint guns depends on air. It would be like trying to fix vehicles without paint or techs—that’s how important it is to have a good air compressor that won’t quit or need service all the time.”

Darrin Cook, General Manager for Keystone Automotive Industries Inc. in Omaha, Nebraska has worked for Keystone for more than 22 years, so he’s seen (and heard) his share of air compressors of all brands, sizes and styles. It’s not just a lot of hot air when Cook enthusiastically lauds the quality and performance of Mattei’s rotary vane compressors.

TGIF (To Get It Fixed) Body Shop in Fremont, CA, is a 12,000 square foot, family-owned business that focuses on the customer just as much as the actual vehicle repairs.

To view a PDF of this article please click HERE.

The shop has 17 employees, plus some part-time help, and is able to service about 120 cars per month. Last year the business grossed about $3 million.

The business was founded in 1980 by Richard Mello, who started the business with his own hands and tool box, and was able to grow the shop by word of mouth.

Richard’s wife, Kathy Mello, took over the business and now runs the shop with son Jason Cocco.

“We take the people into consideration as well as the repair of the vehicle,” said Kathy.

TGIF is heavily involved in their local community as well as the collision repair industry. The business supports local little league teams, several high school sports teams in the area, the Fremont Symphony, and several local business groups. Kathy is a Women’s Industry Network (WIN) member, Board member of the East Bay California Autobody Association, SCRS member and CIC member.

A body shop dropped off a 2005 Nissan Titan XE for a trailer light problem. It was hit in the rear and had folded the bumper under the body.

To view a PDF of this article please click HERE.

This particular body shop I have known for years, and they pride themselves on doing a top notch repair on every vehicle that they are associated with. This truck was being a problem though. All the systems were working except for the trailer turn signal lights. To be thorough, they went back through each and every part that they had replaced or disturbed. They found nothing, not a thing—2 days of checking it out led to a dead end.

That’s where I came into the picture. As always, the first thing I want to see is the wiring diagram. You know, I’ve always said change is a good thing, this time, I should rephrase that to—it’s a good thing that “things change”—and I hope this does real soon, because, this was about the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen.

It’s not the first time I have ran across trailer lights going through computer systems but it’s the first time I ran across only the trailer turn signals running thru the BCM (body control module) not the trailer park lights, not trailer brakes—nope, just the turn signals. Right there on the print, plain as day, R-trailer turn and L-trailer turn, oh please—what were you dudes thinking? (Referring to the engineers) What was the reasoning behind this?

The last time I wrote about a dealership it was a California multi-line dealer near Sacramento. This time it is a single franchise dealer in the metro New York area. You would think that they had nothing in common, but you would be mistaken. Both dealers are successful, and both have the same winning philosophy; customer service.

To view a PDF of this article please click HERE.

Acura of Westchester is truly unique. They are an example of the word “commitment”. Since 1986, they have taken good care of their customers, and their customers know it. The dealership is not on Main Street - you have to know where it is in order to find it. Apparently, once found they are never forgotten. In 2010, they were number one in the nation for Acura new car sales.

This dealer is an example of the benefits of stability. Customers see the same people, year after year. They become friends; confident that they will always have the very best service. Their service manager has been there for 17 years, and there has only been one GM in the history of the store! As I said, this dealer is unique.

The parts department follows the same pattern. Jake Dildine is the parts manager, and he has been there for 18 years. His commitment to customer service is amazing. Over and over, he stressed loyalty, relationship, attitude, pride, and dedication, but never price. His crew is just as dedicated; they all pitch in to answer four direct telephone lines; keeping three delivery trucks going full time. In response to increasing business, this dealer is open seven days a week!

Back when Galpin Motors’ Parts Manager Butch Lemen was 12 years old, he worked with his father in the aircraft parts industry, some time before the advent of personal computers. Computers are now indispensible in parts departments and body shops worldwide. But, although many body shops have embraced the software and the Internet methods, there are still a ton of shops out there that are reluctant to accept what Lemen calls, “the inevitable.”

To view a PDF of this article please click HERE.

Lemen is a strong advocate for CollisionLink, the Internet-based electronic parts ordering system designed by OEConnection for OEM parts dealerships and body shops. By using the system, shops can save time and money while including more original factory parts in their repairs. CollisionLink’s price comparison feature is currently used by shops of all sizes, from little independent facilities all the way to large chains.

Lemen manages a multi-million dollar wholesale parts operation at Galpin Motors in North Hills, Calif. With 75 employees in his department and selling parts for the 10 brands they represent (Ford, Lincoln, Subaru, Mazda, Honda, Volvo, Jaguar, Aston-Martin, Lotus and Spyker), Lemen values the time-saving aspect associated with using CollisionLink.

“CollisionLink makes us more efficient and can save time for the shops that participate,” Lemen explained. “It frees up the shops’ time, because they don’t have to make phone calls searching for a part and/or waiting for a response. All of the correspondence through CollisionLink is handled via e-mails, and our parts people will call once we receive the order. It’s a streamlined process and allows shops to go on with the other multiple tasks that happen every day in your average body shop.”

by Charles Bryant,
Executive Director, AASP/NJ

There is no doubt that ongoing training in the collision industry is a must in order to keep the technicians up to date on proper methods of repair and safety related issues. The questions are Why isn’t the cost of such training being considered by the insurance industry when determining the labor rates that they are willing to pay for repairs? and Why isn’t I-CAR pushing or at least supporting this? Safe repairs equal fewer future claims, both in property damage and personal injury, especially on the type of vehicles on the roads today. Rather than taking the high road and take the cost of training into consideration, the insurance industry appears to be taking the low road by attempting to force shops to maintain I-CAR Gold Class Status in order to get on or stay on Direct Repair Programs without any consideration for the associated cost.

I-CAR too appears to be taking the position that insurer’s should simply force collision shops to maintain I-CAR Gold status, rather than attempting to take steps to help make training more affordable for shops.

Proactive body shops that are embracing the inexorable change to waterborne paint in states where the laws are looming, but not yet a reality, are anticipating an advantage over their feet-dragging competitors over the next few years. One of these forward thinking shops is Old Forge Collision Centers, a 20-year-old company with two locations in Pennsylvania that repair an average of nearly 200 vehicles monthly.

To view a PDF of this article please click HERE.

Old Forge’s General Manager, Bob Scarpello, 54, is a 30-year veteran of the collision industry and a former painter. Three decades ago, his first job out of tech school was as a painter’s helper and by continually learning and improving his skills, Scarpello eventually progressed up the ladder into upper management.
One of the first things Scarpello did when he was hired at Old Forge, was to take a long, serious look at converting both of his locations to waterborne paint, he told Autobody News.

“We were one of the first body shops in Pennsylvania to go with waterborne paint. When I came here in 2003, after reading everything I could get my hands on about waterborne painting systems, I realized that it would eventually be coming here. I mean, Europe has been using it for decades, and so what are we waiting for?”

In a previous column, I offered some of my thoughts on the decision of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) to make the Farmers Insurance “Circle of Dependability” (COD) agreement public, and to question some of the requirements of that direct repair program agreement.

To view a PDF of this article please click HERE.

In doing so, SCRS said that “the industry is often disadvantaged by restriction of communication from participants of these program.”

I am little confused as to where the disadvantage lies? Okay, I am very confused. Explain to me the disadvantage. What would the advantage be if there were no restrictions? Shops should be deciding what is best for their individual business. That decision shouldn’t be predicated upon whether or not your competitor thinks it’s a good idea to participate. While SCRS makes a lot of good points in their press release, this is one it needs to reconsider. Go ahead and publish all of the major insurance carriers direct repair program agreements and see what it changes. Would it really improve the industry or help shops?

That said, here are a few more of my thoughts—some of which may surprise you—from an insurer’s perspective on the COD agreement and SCRS’s concerns about it.

The agreement states that Farmers has the right to inspect a shop’s books to validate and audit files to ensure proper payment and compliance with the program requirements. Why insurers continue to infuse themselves into the body shop’s business in this way is beyond me. It’s wrong and they have no business inspecting your books.

The skittishness among some in the industry about how formalized repair standards may be developed or implemented was evident during discussion at the most recent Collision Industry Conference (CIC).

To view a PDF of this article please click HERE.

At the meeting, the CIC-formed Repair Standards Advisory Committee offered an update on its work, including the hiring of a consultant to build a business case for the development and implementation of formalized standards.

Russ Thrall, publisher of CollisionWeek and a past CIC chairman and who co-chairs the advisory committee, said the goal of the consultant’s work is to present a report by November about what consensus exists within the industry about standards and a possible new organization to oversee the development and implementation of standards.

Thrall said that as of mid-July, the committee had raised $26,600 of the $60,000 it needs in sponsorships for the consultant’s work and the development of an industry forum on the topic in November. More than 50 percent of the 21 sponsors to date are collision repair businesses, 38 percent are suppliers and less than 5 percent are insurers.

Mike Condon, whose consulting firm has been hired by the committee, said he has conducted about 10 of the 40 interviews—about half with repairers and half with those in other segments of the industry—that he anticipates doing to prepare the report for the committee. That report, he said, will examine if there is support for the idea of a standard-setting body, and if so, how that body could be structured and funded. As part of the research, Condon also will examine standard-setting entities in other industries and in the collision repair industry in other countries.