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David McDavid Acura in Plano, Texas, just outside of Dallas, was the first Acura dealership in the United States when it opened in 1986. Now their forward-looking attitude has brought forth a state-of-the-art collision repair center which opened this summer.
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Modern facade announces David McDavid's 47,000 sq ft collision center.
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| A clean, airy waiting area for customer comfort. |
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| Seven quadrants contain submounted Car-O-Liner frame machines, negating the need for ramps. |
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This mega body shop offers the luxury of air-conditioning
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Fixed Operations Manager Bob Wennerstrom, Production Manager Ray Puckett and David McDavid, Jr. comprised the team responsible for the design and development of the new 47,000 sq.ft. David McDavid Collision Center, located across the street from the Acura dealership.
The director of the collision repair center is Mark Riney, a 35-year veteran of the industry, and one who has previously managed large shops. Riney has been a consultant for the last three years, giving him time to take a fresh look at the industry.
What's so special?
In order to build the best possible facility, the team did research and toured numerous other large shops to determine the best layout and equipment possible to make their new collision center stand out from the competition.
So other than its huge size, what makes this collision repair center so special?
For one thing, the metal shop set-up is unique - eight quadrants, with four stalls. Each quadrant has its own electrical supply - a huge power pack with 3-phase 220 and single-phase 220 and 110 volt outlets. Also mounted on the utility post are all the controls for the frame machines. This electrical layout would not be possible unless incorporated into the design of a new building. It could not be done with the type of wiring embedded in an existing facility.
Each quadrant is assigned to one or two metal men or a metal man with a helper. Each contains a flat bay with tie downs and has the ability to do single-phase and 3-phase welding, using the Pro Spot "PR-2000" 3-phase inverter resistance spot welder.
Seven of the quadrants each contain a Car-O-Liner "Mark 6" frame machine submounted in the concrete floor with truck holding. The submounting eliminates the need for ramps so vehicles can be driven directly onto the frame machine. The eighth quadrant has the BenchRack 5500 with truck holding, allowing the facility to service such large vehicles as ambulances and full-size trucks.
Other equipment found in the metal shop includes two Cartronic vision computerized measuring systems, one Hunter 811P alignment system with DSP 600 sensors, one Hunter RX-12 12,000 lb. flush-mounted scissor alignment rack with 6,000 lb. swing air jacks. Four of the mechanic stalls are complemented with three rotary lifts, including one 12,000 lb. capacity lift for frame swaps on trucks. In addition, there are two Curtis model "R/S40" HP rotary screw air compressors and two Curtis model "CDR200" refrigerated air dryers.
The paint shop has updated equipment as well, with three Garmat extended drive-through down draft booths and three full-size mixing rooms fully equipped by Sikkens. There are two Becca gun washers with a recycler, 2 Garmat heated drive-through double prep stations, and one Garmat parts cut-in tunnel. The paint shops breathable air system is provided by Martech.
There are 43 Eurovac drops located in all metal stalls, paint prep stalls and in all four wash bays to keep the environment as dust free as possible.
Car-O-Liner big help in planning
Planning for the venture began in mid-2002, and Wennerstrom gives a lot of the planning credit to Tim Curran of Car-O-Liner. Curran was instrumental in identifying top facilities to visit for the design team to visit.
According to Wennerstrom, "I tried to have as few vendors as possible. I wanted to consolidate who I was buying equipment from. Tim Curran was good at coming in with bids on equipment that we may have had to go elsewhere for. Quantities were no problem. Curran changed his operation to help this project come together. He warehoused and even helped assemble the equipment. Coordination was absolutely flawless. Attention to detail was incredible with Curran always on top of things.
"Car-o-liner's training was unbelievable. One of Curran's team actually became a shop employee who spent a week-and-a-half in the shop with the McDavid technicians. He worked right on the cars, showing how the frame machines operated. He helped move equipment from the previous shop into this new facility, certainly a task above and beyond the call of duty."
Employees love the A/C
Wennerstrom's favorite bragging point is that the 47,000 sq.ft. building is air-conditioned throughout! Beyond the obvious, there are several major advantages to having the whole shop air-conditioned. Air-conditioning takes moisture out of the air and gives a vehicle a better finish, so having the paint shop air-conditioned is a big plus.
Texas summers are very hot and humid, and fully air-conditioned shops are few and far between. The technicians who moved to the new facility from the previous shop are very happy with the new working conditions. And there is no shortage of applicants for positions in the expanded facility.
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