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AkzoNobel’s Wanda Waterbase® Announces Successful US Launch at 2011 SEMA Show
Written by Staff
Car enthusiasts and collision repair professionals joined AkzoNobel’s Wanda brand in celebrating the recent US launch of the new Wanda Waterbase® basecoat system during the 2011 SEMA show November 1-4, at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Show attendees learned about the new Wanda Waterbase products at the Wanda Refinish booth located in the Racing & Performance area inside the Central Hall. The exhibit featured two Lingenfelter Performance Engineering Camaro concept cars both painted in Wanda with special finishes and styling effects. A live Wanda brand representative was also be on hand to greet visitors and provide valuable information on how the Wanda brand’s simplicity, color and value proposition is shifting performance and compliance into high gear.
“AkzoNobel designed Wanda Waterbase around the brand proposition to meet the needs of the industry’s value segment,” said Mark Rapson, AkzoNobel’s Business Manager of Trade Brands, North America. “We’ve simplified the complexity associated with waterborne systems and coupled it with incredible color match accuracy and application ease all combined to create an unbeatable value.”
The uniquely formulated VOC-compliant system including Low VOC Clear, Low VOC Primer and Waterborne Basecoat, was launched earlier this year in the Canadian collision repair market with great success due to its exceptional ease-of-use, color matching capability, and affordable pricing. With the debut of Wanda Waterbase in the US market this summer, the Wanda brand is ready to celebrate the yearlong achievements in both markets and share those success stories with show goers.
For more information about Wanda Waterbase and the full range of Wanda products and color tools, visit www.wandarefinish.com. Check out Facebook and Twitter for details and activities about Wanda Waterbase at SEMA.
Rotary Lift Hits the Accelerator on Shop Productivity with Shockwave™
Written by Staff
Rotary Lift introduced Shockwave™, a package of patent-pending lift technologies that dramatically accelerate vehicle service speed to provide greater technician productivity and higher shop profitability, at the 2011 AAPEX Show in Las Vegas November 1 through 3.
Shockwave-equipped two-post and SmartLift® inground lifts use DC power to drive the world’s fastest rise/descent times. They also feature an exclusive Spotline™ laser spotting guide to speed up vehicle positioning, and a choice of new superstructures to maximize flexibility.
“When Rotary Lift introduced the Y-Lift™ last year, we promised that it was just the first in a series of faster lifts that would help shops speed up service and make more money,” says Jim Dirksen, vice present of sales and marketing for Rotary Lift’s parent company Vehicle Service Group (VSG). “Shockwave delivers on that promise. We spent two years talking with shop owners, dealers and technicians about their ‘pain points’ with vehicle lifts. Then we created Shockwave to address their common concerns. Recognizing that the lift is a shop’s top money-making tool, we included features that enable Shockwave-equipped lifts to start paying for themselves right away through lower installation and operating costs, and better cycle times.”
Charley Hutton Talks to SCRS's Aaron Schulenberg at the 2011 SEMA Show
Written by Staff/CollisionHubSome speakers are so popular that a spacious venue is required to accommodate the size of the audience. Such was the case at the SEMA Show, when world-renowned custom vehicle refinisher Charley Hutton gave an exclusive interview and fielded audience questions on the "big stage" of the SEMA North Hall. The event was part of the Repairer Driven Education (RDE) series sponsored by the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) and RDE supporter PPG Automotive Refinish, and filled all available seats leaving standing room only.
The session with Hutton, which took place on Wednesday afternoon, November 2, is another example of the fresh content tailored to the needs and interests of collision repairers that SCRS is making available through RDE. A custom auto refinisher who has regularly appeared on television shows such as American Hot Rod, Rides, and Overhaulin', Hutton has also built a large Internet following thanks to a number of informational videos featuring his eye-catching, always spectacular work.
Despite his celebrity, Hutton has clearly retained his humility and gracious personality which came through in the interview. In fact, Hutton's own collision repair background was a foundation for much of his success, a point he emphasized during his conversation with SCRS Executive Director Aaron Schulenburg in front of a large group of custom refinishing enthusiasts.
"My passion is to build show cars and I'm able to do it because I can capitalize on my experience and ability as a collision repairer," Hutton said. "Though my work has gained a high degree of visibility, I'm just a small town Idaho boy at heart. Collision repairers are car people, no matter who they are. It's something special we all share."
Rich Evans Updates SCRS on Rich Evans Designs at 2011 SEMA Show
Written by Staff/CollisionHubThe already dynamic atmosphere pervading the Society of Collision Repair Specialists' (SCRS) booth at the 2011 SEMA Show was kicked up a notch with a very special appearance by custom fabricator and TV personality Rich Evans.
In an exclusive interview with SCRS Executive Director Aaron Schulenburg (below), Evans-owner of Rich Evans Designs and Huntington Beach Bodyworks known nationally for his custom hot-rod designs and automotive builds, distinctive custom painting and airbrush techniques and his work on television shows on the SPEED Channel-held forth on a number of topics relevant to collision repairers.
In front of an attentive audience, Evans spoke about his journey from successful collision shop manager to television personality; what it takes to be a successful collision repairer; and his own beginnings in the business, a subject that kicked off the interview.
A third generation repairer literally born and raised in the industry, it all came together for Evans when Dave Popkins, a friend of his father that ran a collision repair facility in Sacramento, California, took him under his wing.
SEMA, the Specialty Equipment Market Association, announced on November 1 the winners of the New Products Showcase Awards held at the 2011 SEMA Show. The event recognizes the most cutting-edge automotive products either on the market or about to hit the market. This year, nearly 2,000 new products were submitted for consideration.
Criteria that ranked high on the judges' selection for the New Product Showcase Awards included superiority of innovation, technical achievement, quality and workmanship, consumer appeal and marketability.
The 2011 New Product Award Winners include:
Roush Performance, Sherwin-Williams Automotive Unveil New Roush Stage 3 Premier Edition Mustang at 2011 SEMA Show
Written by StaffAutomotive performance and racing legend Jack Roush unveiled the 2012 ROUSH Stage 3 Premier Edition Mustang at the Sherwin-Williams Automotive booth at the SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) annual meeting in Las Vegas on November 2.
Roush was joined by NASCAR Sprint Cup series and Roush Fenway Racing team driver David Ragan as together they uncovered the dazzling orange ‘Mat It Mango’ 2012 Mustang, which also featured highlighted, painted graphics in its exclusive ‘Sin City Silver’ and ‘Performance Pearl’ colors.
A special feature of the 2012 ROUSH Stage 3 Premier Edition is their new color options package, allowing for personal customization of three different aesthetic elements of the car: Twelve proprietary Sherwin-Williams® Planet Color® Custom Color choices for the base vehicle color, graphic colors, and graphic accent colors. The result is an impressive palette of unique color combination possibilities.
“The Premier Edition is all about power, performance and styling,” said Roush, who pointed out that the unique Premier Edition paint colors compliment the aggressive 540HP ROUSHcharged® 5.0L engine and the race-inspired ROUSH suspension. “And, the ROUSH Performance tuned exhaust system lets your neighbors know that you’re driving some high-performance American Muscle!”
Thirteen Las Vegas Families and Family Promise Charity Receiving Gift of Reliable Transportation this Year at SEMA
Written by StaffThe National Auto Body Council (NABC) announced that they will award refurbished vehicles to 13 Las Vegas families this year on Thursday, November 3, at 2:30 p.m. outside of the Las Vegas Convention Center in conjunction with the SEMA Show. Family Promise, the charity who assisted these families, will also receive a vehicle at this event to further help them assist hundreds of families in crisis in the Las Vegas area.
Each of the families will be receiving the gift of a refurbished vehicle from NABC members through the organization’s Recycled Rides® program, a national initiative through which NABC members refurbish donated vehicles and gift them to families in need and organizations dedicated to assisting others. Through their generous support, the following NABC Diamond Members donated vehicles: State Farm, Allstate, and Enterprise-Rent-A-Car. Additional vehicles were donated by GEICO, American Family, AAA of Northern California, Nevada and Utah Insurance Exchange. NABC members Sterling Collision Centers, 911 Collision, Caliber Collision Centers, Gerber Collision & Glass, Collision Authority, Collision Masters CARSTAR East and two area Vo-tech schools, Southeast Career Technical Academy and the College of Southern Nevada, repaired the vehicles.
Each recipient family is a graduate of Family Promise of Las Vegas, a non-profit interfaith network that provides support to families in crisis. The NABC has made it a point to give away Recycled Rides vehicles at Las Vegas industry events each year of the program’s existence.
“We’re happy to be back in Las Vegas to give these families the reliable transportation that can help provide them a fresh start,” states Recycled Rides Co-Chairman Michael Quinn Vice President Industry and Community Relations of 911 Collision Centers, a Caliber Company. “We’re also very pleased to be able to say that the Las Vegas gifting represents only a small fraction of the 150 families that will be receiving vehicles this year through Recycled Rides. I am grateful to be part of a project that clearly illustrates the giving nature of NABC members and the collision repair industry at large.”
Please visit www.autobodycouncil.org for more information.
PPG's upcoming SEMA exhibit features a collision shop theme, car world superstars, radical rods and bikes, new products, and more.
Celebrities, show cars and motorcycles, custom-painted auto hoods, new paint products, and more will be featured at the PPG booth at the 2011 SEMA show November 1-4, at the LasVegas Convention Center.
The PPG booth, 24501, is designed as a retro body shop—Johnny O’s Collision & Customs. At the booth, show visitors will be able to meet custom car world superstars and PPG devotees including Charley Hutton, Bobby Alloway, and Tom and Mitch Kelly. Painters Hutton (Charley Hutton’s Color Studio) and the Kellys (Kelly & Son the Crazy Painters) are well-known masters of their craft and highly respected for their distinctive paint designs and applications. Custom rod builder Alloway (Alloway’s Hot Rod Shop) is the 2011 Autorama Builder of the Year. Hutton will also lead two seminars about cool painting techniques with Vibrance Collection® waterborne products.
The Automotive Training Managers Council (ATMC) will present the National Excellence in Training Award to five industry firms at the ATMC Industry Reception on November 2nd during AAPEX in Las Vegas, NV.
These prestigious awards are given annually to recognize outstanding training programs. “The awards are designed to emphasize the importance of training to the success of the automobile and truck industry,” said Dave Milne, ATMC President. The recipients include: Bridgestone Retail Operations, LLC for their program On Track to Safety; Delmar Cengage Learning for their program Technician Test Preparation; Delphi Product & Service Solutions for their program CAN Data Multiplexing; Jiffy Lube International for their program Jiffy Lube University; and Volvo Cars North America for their program Precision Measurement. Judged by a panel of ATMC training professionals, these programs were selected from among numerous submissions for their ability to meet training objectives in a highly effective and innovative manner. “Congratulations to these deserving companies and the personnel who contributed to the development of these outstanding programs,” Milne said. “They are shining examples of the ingenuity being applied to solve the problems associated with training in the transportation industry.”
ASRW 2011: Attendance Up 18%; Space Selling Quickly for 2012
Written by StaffAutomotive Service & Repair Week (ASRW) 2011 was held recently in Orlando, Fla., and conclusive results released by ASA deemed this year’s event the most successful in recent years--largely attributed to an 18 percent increase in overall attendance and strong initial sales for the 2012 event. ASRW 2012 is scheduled for Oct. 11-13 at the Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, La. (Educational sessions will begin Oct. 10, 2012.)
Ron Pyle, ASA president, commented on the event’s outcome saying, “Since we’ve returned from the show, we’ve been inundated with an outpouring of positive feedback, success stories and personal testimonies of the impact of this year’s event. It’s evident a tremendous amount of business was transacted in Orlando last week, and we could not be happier with the upswing of ASRW 2011.”
Total attendance for the 2011 event was 19,221, of which a third of the participants were from the east coast and another third were new attendees.
“By far the best NACE in our 11 year history. We expected we would have a good number of new shops stop at the booth and that was for sure what happened. We gathered twice as many leads as last year, and we closed 3 times as many sales on the floor as last year. Overall a fantastic NACE, and we can't wait for New Orleans,” said Dave Henderson, AutoWatch.
“Congratulations to NACE. Great turnout. Manufacturers are jumping at the bit about New Orleans. Been a fabulous surprise,” commented Bruce Mather, Dir. of Marketing HMS Warehouse (ChemSpec).
