Mike Anderson is the president and owner of Collision Advice, a consulting company for the auto body/collision repair industry. For nearly 25 years, he was the owner of Wagonwork Collision Center, an OEM-certified, full-service auto body repair facility in Alexandria, VA.
Index
In a previous column, I wrote about the critical necessity to perform destructive testing of welds prior to welding on any vehicle---and regardless of whether your shop is being paid for that procedure.
But I also believe you should be paid for this crucial work, and that’s what I hope to address here.
Those of you who have read my articles in the past on better negotiating know I believe the process involves four questions: Is the procedure necessary? Is it included in any other labor operation? Are there pre-determined times? If not, what it is worth?
Looking at any of the OEM repair procedures should convince you that it is necessary. Here is some of the wording I’ve seen:
BMW: “To determine the optimum electrode contact force for spot-welding, carry our spot-weld shear tests on sample sheet metal.”
Ford: “Place the welded sample in a vice and carry out destructive weld tests by peeling the scrap metal apart using large lock-type pliers. Measure the weld nugget to determine the nugget meets Ford weld nugget requirements.”
Hyundai/Kia: “Test welding must be performed before welding vehicle body.”
Toyota: “Welding strength must be validated by tuning the welder and performing destructive testing.”
I could go on and on, but you get the idea: It is a necessary procedure.
The next negotiation question: Is it included in any other labor operation? No matter which estimating system you are using, you should be able to...