D & D Collision Centers and Callaway Collision Specialists are building a legacy of success in today's collision repair business. Partners Tim Gill and David Niccum spoke candidly about the growth of their company. They started their professional relationship over twenty-five years ago when they both worked at the same dealership in Houston. Niccum was the service manager and Gill, the parts manager. 

Cars as far as the eye can see line up for repairs at D & D Collision Center's massive shop.

Vehicles of all sizes are welcome at D & D Collision Centers Humble and Spring, Texas.

Niccum left the dealership and went into the body shop business. Over the course of the next twenty-five years, Niccum stayed in collision repair and Gill stayed in the dealership - each honing skills and gaining more industry insight. Health issues forced the early retirement of Niccum's long-time partner in D & D, David Griffith. When Gill purchased Griffith's portion of D & D Collision, Gill and Niccum were professionally reunited.

They manage from shared values showing a strong mutual respect for one another and their employees. "We are not absentee owners," said Gill. "We are very grateful for everything that we have."

From their past history, they knew exactly who did what best. Niccum handles production and Gill specializes in administration. The three Texas facilities, D & D Collision, Humble, Calloway Collision Specialists, Humble, and the showcase D & D Collision in Spring represent 150,000 sq. ft., 13 acres of land and business of over $1.5 million a month. All three shops are equipped to repair light hits to major collision repair.

Trusted employees

The dedication to business and respect for one another rings throughout the company. All employees have keys. Tech-nicians are expected to work regular business hours, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., however are trusted to have keys to the shop so they can work evenings and weekends as need be. The practice of the entire staff having keys to the shop is not as common as it used to be. Niccum explained that "if we can trust our employees when we are here, how can we not trust them when we are not here."

Niccum is responsible for hiring the technicians. "We have a three-day rule. After that short introductory period, we both know whether it is going to work out or not." The newest store, D & D Collision, Spring, Texas, was called the "Garage Majal" in PPG's Reporter magazine. With capacity for 90 bays, in 75,000 sq. ft. of production space, the repair side has five Shark electronic measuring machines, seven rotary lifts, six Compu-Spot Welders, ten Kansas Jack Floor systems.

The refinish department has four down-draft BlowTherm paint booths and four double prep stations. Mechanical repairs are kept in house. They have two four-wheel alignment machines.

They have good working DRP relationships with many insurance companies. Gill stated, "We pride ourselves on our proven track record, which has helped us gain the trust and business of our insurance partners."

Technician performs a panel repair at D & D Collision Center.

Continued Niccum, "We will do business with any insurance company that will pay to do the work properly." They also do work for Enterprise Rental Cars. Enterprise tells them they have the best cycle time in Houston and cars repaired at D & D bring more money at auction. D & D offers a life-time warranty on their repairs.

Gill and Niccum handle their own CSI, with Gill doing the monitoring. "If a re- check comes back into the shop, everything stops to take care of this job." Niccum laughed: "We're not perfect." However, their CSI from two insurance partners say they consistently have the highest marks in Houston.

Aggressive marketing

Marketing efforts are consistent and aggressive. At least three people represent D&D and Callaway's at all Chamber of Commerce meetings and every other civic group and activity in the community. Herman Caldwell, a 75-year-old retired Houston ISO principal, Belinda Gill, Tim's wife, and David's wife, Lisa Niccum, keep D & D and Callaway Collision household names in the community. They belong to five Chambers of Commerce in the area.

The commitment to customer equals the commitment to employees at D & D. "We take our decisions very seriously," said Gill. "With 100 employees, we are responsible for over 300 people." The company pays 100% medical benefits and bonuses.

Christmas is a big deal at D & D. Niccum is a captain at three volunteer fire departments. He pulls rank at Christmas and, dressed in his Santa Claus suit, drives the fire truck full of presents to the shop Christmas Party, where he distributes gifts for children seventeen and under.

"Our business is made of employees," stated Niccum.

"Good employees put out good quality work," added Gill. "We tell our people to fix the car as if your were giving it to your mother."

Niccum and Gill finally got together after 25 years. Their motto is "Don't lie, don't cheat, don't steal, and everything else will take care of itself."

Janet Chaney has served in many facets of the collision repair industry. She is now looking after the best interests of her clients from Desert Hills, Arizona. E-mail her at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it