BodyShop Business, October 2013

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BODYSHOP BUSINESS (ISSN 0730-7241) (October 2013, Volume 32, Number 10): Publishedmonthly by Babcox Media, Inc., 3550 EmbassyParkway, Akron, OH 44333 U.S.A. Phone (330)670-1234, FAX (330) 670-0874. Copyright 2013Babcox Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Periodicalpostage paid at Akron, OH 44333 and additionalmailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send addresschanges to BODYSHOP BUSINESS, P.O. Box13260, Akron, OH 44334-3912.

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Guess the Car ....................................................................................4Industry Update ..............................................................................12Tech Focus ......................................................................................30NASCAR Performance ......................................................................32Product Showcase..........................................................................115The Shop ......................................................................................120

Training TimeThe days of getting by without ongoing training are over. Sowhat are you going to do?

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FEATURESTECHNICAL

Preparing for WaterborneThere’s no stopping the waterborne train, so here are the stepsyou have to take to prepare yourself for the change.

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SHOP TALK

Editor’s NotesEmpathy: The key to life?

Publisher’s PerspectiveWhy didn’t I think of that?

ViewpointWe must take a stand and take back control of our businesses.

Clark’s CornerWe’ve come a long way with pulling and measuring.

Web Presence ManagementIncrease your visibility with Facebook Offers.

76 Booth PreviewsTake a sneak peek at some of the vendors and their products thatwill be front-and-center at the SEMA and AAPEX shows.

Guessthe Car

4 October 2013 | BodyShop BusinessCircle 4 for Reader Service

What vehicle MODEL does this picture represent? Fax your guess

to (330) 670-0874. Include name, title, shop name, city, state and

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Scott Deming was one of thosemotivators. His talk was focusedon “perceptual reality” and howeveryone’s perception is differentbased on the experiences in theirlives that shaped who they are.One of his points was that yourcustomer’s perception of yourshop or the service they were givenmight be completely different thanyours. Actually, not might, but

probably is.The thing thatreally hit homewith me, how-ever, was hisdeclaration thatempathy is thekey to life.

Wow! That’s

a pretty strong statement. If youwould have asked me what the keyto life was, I probably would havelisted many things. But there itwas, one single, solitary secret tolife: empathy.

I’ve been told by some industryexperts that empathy plays a hugerole in the collision industry. Somehave gone so far as to say that ifshops showed true empathytoward their customers on a dailybasis, they could increase sales sev-eral times over. Is this proven? I’mnot sure, but it makes sense to me.I think most of us would admit wedon’t do a good enough job atbeing empathetic towardcustomers. I don’t know if it’s insome people’s DNA to be that way;if that’s the case, those peopleshouldn’t be your estimators or“care agents.” Isn’t that really whatthey should be called?

I don’t think you can teachsomeone empathy; they either

have it or they don’t. Find oneswho do and put them onyour front lines. Your busi-ness will be better off for it.

Editor’sNotes Publisher

S. Scott Shriber, ext. 229 [email protected]

EditorJason Stahl, ext. 226 [email protected]

Associate EditorGina Kuzmick, ext. 244 [email protected]

Contributing EditorsCharlie Barone, Mitch Becker,Mark Clark, Mark Claypool,Erica Eversman, Tom Ferry,Curt Harler, John D. LymanSr., Hank Nunn, Carl Wilson

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A limited number of complimentary subscrip-tions are available to those who qualify. Call(330) 670-1234, ext. 288, or fax us at (330) 670-5335. Paid subscriptions are available for non-qualified subscribers at: U.S.: $69 for one year.Canada/Mexico: $89 for one year. Canadian ratesinclude GST. Ohio residents add current countysales tax. Other foreign rates/via air mail: $129for one year. Payable in advance in U.S. funds.Mail payment to BodyShop Business, P.O. Box75692, Cleveland, OH 44101-4755. VISA, MasterCard or American Express accepted.

Irecently attended the PPG MVP Conference in beautiful AmeliaIsland, Fla., and what a great experience it was. Many of PPG’s val-ued customers got to take a much-deserved break from the hustle andbustle of their businesses, spend some quality time with their signifi-

cant others, shop some of the latest and greatest products in the industry,and learn from some of the top motivators in the business world. That’sright, motivators, not “speakers” or “presenters” because they did somuch more than just present information.

Empathy Rules

Jason Stahl, Editor

Email comments to [email protected]

Why Didn’t I Think of That?

Earlier this week, I had such a moment.From time to time, people send products inhopes that they’ll spark some interest andwe’ll publish them in our Product Showcasesection. Typically, we run them if appropriatefor your review, and that’s the end of it. Themarket decides quickly if the product hasmerit. That’s the beauty of our free marketsystem. Occasionally, I see something that’sreally clever or useful and grabs my atten-tion. Rarely will I write about it, but there arethose rare instances.

This product pictured to theright is one of them. Last week,

a product called VaccUFlexcame in the mail. Most proba-bly would have thought thatit was fairly mundane, but tome, it was sheer genius. Asmany of you know, I’m anavid car guy and all-aroundtool junkie. You can see from

the picture what this thingdoes. If not, you won’t use

it anyway. Howmany times have

you looked at anarea and said,“I sure wish Icould get myvacuum inthere.”Well, askno more.This thinggets youright un-

der that fridge and cleans those dust bun-nies off the coils. Or, what about betweenthose seats in a console-equipped vehicle? If you work on stuff, your mind already hasmany more uses than I can rattle off here.

Just seeing the product should have beenenough, but I needed to talk to the guy whocame up with this, partly because I was jeal-ous and partly because I’m somewhat entre-preneurial. His name is Joe, and as with mostof these kinds of items, he came upon it outof necessity. Joe’s wife fell in love with a newlight fixture for the front porch and it turnedout to be very difficult to clean. Joe tried touse his vacuum, but it just didn’t get in there.And there you have it! Several iterations lat-er, his problem and ours were solved.

I guess my point here is this: the nexttime you’re faced with a situation that re-quires some ingenuity, stop and ask your-self, “Can I solve this?” If so, do it and thenask, “Does anyone else have this problem?”If so, look into getting it made. What theheck, it might just be the next big thing.

And hurry up! I’m probably strugglingwith the same problem and not cleverenough to solve it.

Publisher’sPerspective

S. Scott Shriber, Publisher

Email comments to [email protected]

Iwish I had a dollar for every time I’ve said that to myself. The other frustrating thing iswhen I see some great idea that I had previously thought of but didn’t do anythingabout. I’m sure you’ve all been in one or both of these situations.

Hundreds of PPG’s valued customers got to frolick in the surf and the sun at the PPG MVP Conference in Amelia Island, Fla., Sept. 8-10. Afun-filled golf outing, the “MVP Randy Dewing Memorial Golf Tournament,” kicked things off, followed by several educational sessionswhere expert speakers from inside and outside the collision repair industry discussed a mix of topics. Prominent keynote speakersincluded Scott Deming, David Horsager and Michael Hoffman. Deming, a customer service and emotional brand building guru, discussed“perceptual reality.” Horsager focused on trust and how it has the ability to accelerate or destroy any business, while Hoffman pumped upthe crowd with his talk on “Igniting Performance in the Tornado of Business.” Breakout sessions covered such topics as successionplanning, paint shop throughput, and paint and materials. Attendees walked away refreshed, rejuvenated and ready to bring new ideas andenthusiasm to their businesses!

Eddie Quintela, owner andpresident of Collision Con-cepts of Delray Beach, Fla.,has once again filed a law-suit against 21st CenturyInsurance on behalf of acustomer who made aclaim under their policywith the carrier.

In 2012, Quintela, on be-half of his customers, filedthree separate lawsuits

against 21st Century,which the company agreedto pay before the trialdates. In addition to thedisputed amounts, the in-surer paid all of Quintela’slegal fees and costs.

The new lawsuit stemsfrom 21st Century claimsrepresentatives electing toagain deny payments forhis posted labor rates,

processes and proceduresdeemed reasonable andnecessary to restore hiscustomer’s vehicle.

“As in the past with thiscompany, they pay us onlyafter we file suit but beforethey go before a judgeand/or jury,” said Quin-tela. “Thereafter, they payin full for every neededmaterial, process and rates

for awhile, then abruptlychange back to their oldways. I’m puzzled, andI’m confident their compa-ny shareholders would beas well since the insurerhas often paid 20 times theamounts in dispute, oftenpaying upwards of $2,500in legal fees and costs for a dispute that may be under $100.”

IndustryUpdate

12 October 2013 | BodyShop Business

21st Century Insurance Sued Again by Florida Repairer for Short-Pays

Attendees of PPG MVP Conference Get Sun, Surf and Inspiration in Amelia Island, Fla.

The Society of Col-lision Repair Spe-cialists (SCRS)has issued a posi-

tion statement regardinginsurer mandates. Itreads as follows:

In representation of col-lision repair businessesacross the United States,The Society of CollisionRepair Specialists (SCRS)takes exception to businessmandates that propertyand casualty insurers im-

pose upon collision repairbusinesses; particularlythose that specify requiredvendors, business plat-forms or internal processesthat must be followed inorder to be included in, oravoid being excluded from,certain lines of work. As anexample, insurer mandatessurrounding parts procure-ment platforms may inhibitindependent collision re-pair businesses from utiliz-ing parts vendors with

whom they have an exist-ing relationship, providinginsurers with greater influ-ence and control over theparts supply chain. SCRSbelieves this control fallsoutside of the scope of theinsurance business. Someinsurers are stipulatingagreement to these terms,as a condition of being rec-ognized in Direct RepairPrograms (DRP). SCRSsupports efforts that right-fully seek to eliminate such

»| Industry Update |«

www.bodyshopbusiness.com 13

SCRS Issues Position Statement on Insurer Mandates

intrusion into the collisionrepair business, and en-forcement of existing laws,regulations and codes thatcurrently prohibit such ac-tions. It is the opinion ofSCRS that voluntaryagreements cannot includestipulations which violateexisting laws, rules andregulations.

SCRS believes that col-lision businesses are capa-ble of establishingsuccessful vendor relation-ships and internal process-es that will bestaccommodate the needs ofthe consumer, and thatservice providers will con-tinue to respond to themarket with increasinglycreative solutions thatdrive performance for theircustomers and the respec-tive market entities. We

Continued on pg. 80

By Jason Stahl

Aat the July Colli-sion Industry Con-ference (CIC), a

panel of collision indus-try professionals wasasked, “Are the laws andregulations governingthe collision industryworking?”

The panel was moder-ated by Steve Regan ofRegan Strategies. Panelmembers included:

� Rick Tuuri, Audatex� Randy Hansen,

Allstate� Darrell Amberson,

Lamettry’s Collision

� Ron Reichen, Preci-sion Auto Body & Paint

� Colette Bruce, TeamSafety

� Janet Chaney, Mon-tana Collision Repair Specialists

The general consensuswas that success in thecollision legislativerealm was a mixed bag.“Yes and no” seemed tobe the most common an-swer, including the one

given by Amberson.“Some of the laws are

working, but conditionscontinue to change andwe need to monitorwhat’s going on,” said

USA Today Puts National Spotlight on Advanced Materials in Vehicles

In an article titled, “Lighter Cars Add Weight to Repair Costs,” USA Today has put a

national spotlight on advanced materials in vehicles, informing consumers about how

their cars may have specific requirements when it comes to repairing them.

The article explains the huge pressure automakers are under to both save weight for

gas mileage and meet stricter crash test standards. It also details the various materials

coming into play: aluminum, carbon fiber and high-strength steel.

It also quotes well-known collision industry professional Darrell Amberson, vice presi-

dent of LaMettry’s Collision, a seven-store operation in greater Minneapolis.

“[Having specialized equipment] is something that’s going to differentiate our indus-

try,” he told USA Today.

Continued on pg. 84

CIC Panel Discusses Effectiveness of Collision Repair Legislation

Panel members (left to right) Colette Bruce; Ron Reichen; Darrell Amberson; Randy Hansen; Rick Tuuri;Janet Chaney; and moderator Steve Regan.

Viewpoint

A Call to Arms

The views expressed in this editorial do not necessarily reflect those of BodyShop Business magazine.

As many in our industry are nowaware, the Mississippi CollisionRepair Association has initiated anattempt to legally block

PartsTrader from entering ourmarket, viewing it as an un-precedented and illegal intrusioninto the collision repair industry.The shop owners who havesigned their names to this cam-paign, or may in the future, areholding themselves up for theworld to see and are taking risksmany have been unwilling totake – not just to benefit them-selves, but for the general welfare of our in-dustry. The road we have before uspromises to be a long one with lots oftwists, turns and obstacles along the way.

Everyone’s a Critic » It has been disap-pointing, to say the least, that news of thiseffort has been met with criticism by somein our industry who hide protected in thecloset of anonymity that screen names pro-vide and hurl insults and unfounded accu-sations through the crack in the door. Thosewho engage in this behavior should con-sider doing one of three things:

1. Take credit for their remarks, using theirreal names, and list all the contributions theyhave made that have benefitted the industryso that we understand the credentials thatqualify them to insult and vilify others.

2. Publicly pledge, once again using theirreal names, to never take advantage of anybenefits to our industry that may be real-ized as a result of the hard work and riskstaken by those joining this effort.

3. Stand down and allow others to try toslay this dragon without helping the drag-

on. The fact that some parties to this lawsuitcurrently participate in DRP programs cer-tainly doesn’t justify the verbal assault

against an issue that so urgentlyneeds to be addressed – and it cer-tainly doesn’t negate the fact thatPartsTrader has to be stopped.

Root of All Evil? » It’s simplisticto believe that the DRPs that havepervaded our industry are theroot of all the evil and that theirabolishment would solve all ourproblems. DRPs are just one of along line of control mechanisms

that have been inflicted upon us by the in-surance industry for decades and are notthe sole cause of all our current problems.Our industry had profound problems longbefore DRP controls were put in place. Re-member the 1963 Consent Decree? Therewere no DRPs then, but insurer intrusionand illegal business practices that had goneon for decades became so egregious that theU.S. attorney general had to step in and re-store order. That didn’t just happen; bravemen and women set that in motion, too.

Many shop owners initially adopted theDRP approach to doing business, not outof greed but as an alternative to the delaysin the repair process due to insurer med-dling and incompetence in establishing astreamlined approach to repairs. It was ashort-sighted way to get insurance compa-nies out of our day-to-day business. With-out having to face delay after delay andwaiting for the insurers to approve the addition of parts or procedures to the seri-ously deficient repair estimates (manytimes prepared by them), cycle times im-proved dramatically and we were able to

By Bill Fowler


process more repairs because wehad more control of the process.

“We don’t pay for that,” “It’s in-cluded” and “You’re the only one”were already facts of life. In retro-spect, we can see that the DRP busi-ness model has morphed by designinto what we now have: just anoth-er way to take us to the edge of the

precipice, where we currently findourselves. There is little questionthat the DRP business modelshould be abandoned, but we’renow facing a much more pressingissue in the form of a mandatedparts procurement program thatthreatens our very existence as in-dependent small businesses.

PartsTrader » To believe thatsimply removing one’s businessfrom a DRP list will result in Parts-Trader withering and dying fromlack of interest is incredibly naïve.

Pay attention to what our friendsin other countries such as Australiaand New Zealand, where Parts-Trader has been in place for severalyears, are saying. Like the cancer itis, PartsTrader will be much easierto stop before it spreads any further.

Pay attention to what the busi-nesses in the “test” markets aretelling us. The program providesnone of the benefits claimed and isan administrative nightmare. Re-ports are already coming in thatother insurance companies areadopting their own parts procure-ment programs and imposing theprices and sources for parts pro-cured through the use of such aprogram on those who have noDRP agreements. In short, it’s com-ing to you, whether you want it ornot. Doing nothing to stop it en-sures that it will eventually be justanother part of the way we’reforced to conduct business.

Take a Stand » Have the courageto stand with those who realizethey must fight back, and at leastmake an attempt to take back con-trol of your business. Insurance executives in boardrooms acrossthe country must be laughing,comforted in what has become anall too predictable reaction fromthe collision repair industry. Whenthey attack us, we respond by at-tacking each other. Think aboutdisappointing them this time bytaking a stand against an industrythat has had their foot on our neckfor far too long. This could be yourlast chance. BSB

Bill Fowler has owned Bill Fowler’sBodyworks in Southaven, Miss., since1997. His collision career began in 1968building funny cars and repairingCorvettes. He can be reached [email protected].

»|Viewpoint |«


Today, we joke about shops thatpulled out collision damage using atree stump and log chains. As a PBEjobber with customers in

rural Iowa in the 1970s, I knewsome of those guys. When carswere built with perimeter framesand conventional steel, a talentedtech could actually get the carsquare enough to line up thefront end (with a box of shims)by using a frame dimensionbook that listed the speci-fications for most Ameri-can cars (in inches)and a tape measure. Agood guy could heatand tug until the rails came close to spec.

Stumped » What were those hardy pio-neers using to tug with? Once the framewas anchored to the tree stump withunhardened log chains (what breakageproblem?), they pulled out the damageusing a come-along, a Porta Power ram orthe shop truck. Really!

In the ’70s, I sold floor pots and 10-tonpulling towers to lots of those shade treeguys. Not only were 18 or 20 pots easier touse than one oak tree, they laid flush to thefloor and didn’t impede other collisionwork when not in use. Without a rigidmount, the first few extensions of the 10-ton ram were just to pull the slack out ofthe anchor chains. Jamming jack stands un-der the chains until they were tighter savedlots of time and moved metal sooner.

Rack ’Em » Anchoring the vehicle framedirectly to rigid clamps on a frame rack waseven faster yet because the first inch of travel

on the ram moved metal. In those early days,only the biggest shops could afford a hugeframe rack built into a floor pit, but boy could

they unwind some hard hit stuff. Usingfloor pots and portable pullingtowers or free standing racks withbuilt-in towers, we pulled andtugged our way to repair andalignment for many years. Andthen…the gas crunch of 1973 hap-

pened. In a country where big-ger was always better, we

became miles-per-gallonconscious overnight. Ittook Detroit until 1979 tomass produce the first ofthe new frame-less cars,

the X-Body General Motors Citation.

Welcome to the New Style » Duringthose intervening years, the first casualty ofexpensive and scarce gasoline was big V8engines. The second was the bridge-girderheavy perimeter frame, and the third wasthe thick, heavy gauge sheet metal. Smallerfour-cylinder engines, the three-boxunicoupe body construction and the hightensile strength thinner metals hit theindustry like a bomb.

Older folks will recall that the Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Re-pair (I-CAR) was formed to teach our techshow to safely repair these new-style autos.You couldn’t heat the metal with a torch be-cause it ruined the strength. You couldn’tpull on the sheet metal box with 20 tons ofhydraulic force because it tore the car apart;and without a perimeter frame, it was diffi-cult to anchor the car rigidly.

In those confusing days of the early ’80s,many shops went shopping for a better


Clark’sCorner By Mark Clark

Faster Than an Oak Tree

method to repair the new unibodyvehicles. The choices to hold theframeless car steady, pull the sheetmetal in several directions at onceand measure the boxes back to exactfactory spec fell into three basicstyles, all costing about $25,000 in1980 – a huge blow in an industrywhere the previous most expensivething was the $10,000 fireproof boxthey painted cars in!

Dedicated Benches » Dedicatedbenches used a jig system similarto the fixtures the bodies were builton at the factory. Each unique bodystyle required a specific set of armsand clamps to locate all the variousmeasuring points. Whileunarguably accurate, they weretime consuming. The suspension,engine and drivetrain often had tocome out of their cradles becausethose same mounting holes were

where the fixture pins went. Somelarge dealership shops could affordto buy the measuring fixtures fortheir own models, but most every-body else rented fixtures from theequipment manufacturers. Manytimes, there was a delay as the fix-tures were already rented toanother shop and they were slowto return them. Also, if the priorshop misused the fixtures, theycould arrive bent and out of spec.

Laser Systems » Laser systemswere desirable because they couldbe used to repair anything, evenfull frame cars and trucks. In 1980,only about 2 percent of the cars onthe road were unicoupes. The shopowned the hanging targets and thelaser, so there was no waiting foranother source to begin repairs.

I sold several laser measuringsystems in the early ’80s and was

impressed with their versatility. Mycustomers who did the best withthem employed smart technicians.I’ve discovered over the years thatnot everyone repairing cars is goodat math. Using an early laser systemrequired that the tech be able to cal-culate distances and angles withouta specific set of directions. As thesystems evolved, the math effortwas significantly reduced by exactdirections on where to hang targetsand where to locate the lasers.

Universal Benches » Universalbenches used a box full of pipesand pins and braces much like Tin-ker Toys, which were stucktogether to build a measuringframework. They had the advan-tage of locating most structuralpoints without removing drivetrain or suspension components;they were all on-hand so there was

»| Clark’s Corner |«


no waiting, and the best ones camewith exact instructions on how tobuild the fixtures for each modelcar. They were quick to use, it waseasy to diagnose the damage andthey could be used by ordinarytechnicians. Clearly I’m still a fan,even though the $25,000 cost ismore like $75,000 these days.

Measure, Pull and Hold » Allthree styles – dedicated, universaland laser measuring systems – havea rigid base with pinchweld clampsto hold the unibody completely stilland multiple pulling arms toreverse the collision damage in sev-eral directions at once. The commonwisdom in those early days wasthat a shop could not repair a hardhit unicoupe car without the threekey elements: measure, pull andhold (MPH). I’ve found thattalented body techs can doanything, and a skilled guy with thefloor pots and a tape measure couldget the three-box car straight again.It just took a really long time. Theyhad to pull, cross measure, pull,measure, pull, measure, etc., untilthey reached spec. Part of the 25grand entrance fee was quicklyrecovered because, with any of thethree styles, once the pin hit thehole or the laser hit the target, youwere done pulling and could moveon. Labor time was and is the mostexpensive thing in collision repair.A rigid hold on the damage, pullingin several directions at once and ago/no go measuring system ismuch faster than an oak tree andlogging chains. Safer, too! BSB

Mark R. Clark isthe owner of Pro-fessional PBE Sys-tems in Waterloo,Iowa; he is a well-known industryspeaker and con-sultant. He is cel-ebrating his 25th

year as a contributing editor toBodyShop Business.

»| Clark’s Corner |«



Web PresenceManagement

Increase Your Visibility With Facebook Offers

If you’re on Facebook a lot, you’ve likelyseen “offers” of discounts, coupons andspecials for certain businesses’ productsand services showing up in your news-

feed. Most of these come from majorbrands, but Facebook Offers are not exclu-sive to these big name brands. You, too, canuse them.

Mmm, Ice Cream » An offer from an icecream shop that I’ve been going to since Iwas a kid (yes, they had ice cream backthen!) recently caught my eye on Facebook.The offer was a free small sundae with thepurchase of any size sundae. Awesome! Icould get my usual large, plus a small too! Iclicked on it. Moments later, Facebookemailed me with two choices: I could printthe offer or show it to them on my phone.

Not known for being patient when itcomes to ice cream, I arranged a trip to theshop that day. I got my sundaes and atethem both up moments later. Life was goodfor both me and the business. I checked inwith Facebook from the shop, mentionedthe offer and at least three friends did thesame thing.

Let’s consider this from a body shop per-spective. While you certainly don’t haveanything as tasty as my favorite ice cream,you do have services I need. How about of-fering a percentage off a detailing job, gascards for a certain amount spent on a re-pair, etc.? Use your imagination! Brain-storm with your staff. These offers willthen show up on your Facebook fans’newsfeeds, potentially reaching a largenumber of them. If they take you up onyour offer, it shows up on the newsfeeds oftheir friends, too.

Why Try It? » Any business with at least100 fans can create a Facebook Offer. SinceFacebook has gone public, they need tocharge for things like this, but fret not, it’svery cheap for the impressions you getcompared to print advertising, radio or TV.

Here are the top three reasons to tryFacebook Offers:

Word of mouth promotion…Facebookstyle. When someone claims your offer, itshows up on their newsfeed. Their friendssee that and there will be a certain amountof monkey see, monkey do.

Performance metrics. Facebook makes iteasy to track the success of your offers. InFacebook’s Insights, you can see all kinds ofanalytics, including how many peopleclaimed your offer and how many times youroffer showed up on someone’s computerscreen (impressions). Have these offers link toa coupon and track the number of claimed of-fers that actually come in the door. All theperson has to do is click on “Get Offer” andfollow the instructions from there.

Online shopping accounted for morethan $200 billion in sales last year. Peopleare clearly comfortable claiming offers andshopping online.

Making an Offer

Step 1: In your status update box, youhave a few options. Click “Offer” and the“In Store Only” option.

By Mark Claypool


Step 2: Upload a simple imagedemonstrating your offer. Yourlogo works if you don’t have any-thing else. Then add the Offer Titleabove the picture. Tip: To gainmore claims, make it feel limited orscarce. Example: “The First 200Claims Get a Free $25 Gas CardWith Repair.”

Step 3: Set up the expirationdate, your Terms and Conditions,and a reminder time. Also, set alimit on how many people canclaim the offer, plus include a re-demption code to be used whenshowing the offer to your recep-tionist/CSR.

Step 4: Set up your budget andtarget audiences. You can set yourtarget options by gender, age andlocation. Narrow it down to reachmore people likely to be interested.Keep it close to your location.

Target your town and a few sur-rounding towns near you. The po-tential reach and price are based onyour target area and your existingfan base. Your fans will have thechance to see your offer without itcosting you anything.

Real-Life Example » As men-tioned above, when describingperformance metrics, Facebookgives a tremendous amount ofinsights on an offer. Let’s take alook at a real life example from

A+ Auto Body in Kentucky.A+ Auto Body’s offer reached

more than 12,000 people! Face-book also allows you to see howmany people were engaged, i.e.how many people actually clickedon the offer and opened it up. Youcan also get a really close look athow many people interacted withyour Offer – the number of peoplewho actually claimed it, liked itand shared it. This is all repre-sented in the graphic above.

Be Soft » A soft sell works best;people aren’t on Facebook thinkingbody shop offers. Test a few thingsand see what works best. Send alink to your offer to your emaildatabase, too, and share the offeron your personal page. Let usknow how it works for you! BSB

BSB Contributing EditorMark Claypool has morethan 30 years of experi-ence in the fields of workforce development,business/education part-nerships, apprenticeships

and Web presence management. He is theCEO of Optima Automotive (www.optimaautomotive.com), which provideswebsite design, development, search engine optimization (SEO) services andsocial media management services. Clay-pool’s work history includes stints atMetro Paint Supplies, VeriFacts Automo-tive, the National Auto Body Council(NABC), the I-CAR Education Founda-tion and SkillsUSA. He is the founder ofMentors At Work and co-founder of theCollision Industry Foundation. He served,on a volunteer basis, as the SkillsUSAWorld Team Leader for the WorldSkillsChampionships from 2003 to 2011.

»|Web Presence |«



TechnologyFocus


Chief Automotive Technologies’ frameracks like the Chief impulse-E/VHT,Goliath and Titan-360 provide mul-tiple, simultaneous pulls with equal-ized pressure. This technique appliesthe same amount of pressure acrossmultiple points of the damaged areaat the exact same time to preventripping, tearing, bending or rollingof high-strength steel. These pullingsystems also supply 10 tons of pullingpower at the hook. All of Chief’s

laser measuring systems constantly measure multiple points simultaneously,even during pulls, so technicians are less likely to miss damage or to putmore damage into the vehicle while pulling. They’re also far more efficientthan those who have to stop and re-measure after every pull.

Pivoting ActionWedge Clamp Systems offers a 3-Dpivot measuring system designed togive you maximum performance inrestoring total vehicle symmetry inthe fastest possible time. Attached toa Wedge Clamp system or to mostother frame equipment with adapters,the Pivot system measures from underthe front bumper to under the rearbumper. Because of the pivoting action,measuring any point from front toback is much quicker than other sys-tems. Not only does the pivot meas-uring make upper body measuringeasy, points inside the vehicle suchas door latches can be measured, too.So whether it’s for damage analysisor simply to have accurate targets topull to, the system does it all. It workswith any standard 3-D vehicle meas-uring specification. Combine it withthe Wedge Clamp Eclipse electronicmeasuring system #E1000 for full up-per and lower body measuring.

Spanesi’s approach to structural re-pairs is unique because, since 1969,Orazio Spanesi has operated hisown body shop. His insight into thestruggles technicians have makingrepairs has inspired him to designand incorporate features to enhancethe operations of all the equipmentSpanesi designs. The features includea high adjustable lifting heights, removable and adjustabledrive on platforms, and a universal fixturing systemthat was designed more than 20 years ago and stillmaintains the original components with no upgrades orchanges, still working efficiently on today’s vehicle plat-forms and suitable for future models based on whatOEMs have shared. Also, the universal jig has a rack

gear system that, using the fixture,allows you to pull up and downdirectly. Because of the tower de-signs, all systems come with “true”10-ton pulling power. Spanesi man-ufactures benches that are portablein operation to permanent aboveground or flush floor installationswith sizes for unibody and full

frame vehicles. In addition, the popular Multibench 12turns every work area into a highly productive efficientwork environment, again helping to reduce cycle times.It combines lifting and pulling so the system is used for every repair in the shop.

No Towers in the WayBlackjack’s Multiple Vector Pull gives you total access to the bottom of acar without having to push big, bulky pull towers out of the way. Beingable to put multiple pulls close together on one rail makes pulling safer byevenly distributing the pull load.

Frame Machines andMeasuring Systems

Body Shop-Influenced Design

Multipoint Pulling and Measuring

Track Talk

NASCAR racecars require hun-dreds of welds – and every single one of them has to be perfect.

At 200 miles per hour andaround every corner, racecars arepushed to their very limits. Theyhave to be strong for safety, but light for performance.

The cars built at StewartHaas Racing are no exception.

Back at the shop, masterfabricators like Daniel Smithspend hours making sure everyweld is just right.

For Smith, simply put, it’shis passion.

“I’ve always wanted toweld,” said Smith, a native ofConcord, N.C., born and raisedin the heart of motorsportscountry.

After graduating fromNASCAR Technical Institute

and 5 Off 5 On Pit Crew U in2004, 19-year old Smith land-ed a full-time position at whatwas then Haas CNC Racing.Being a typical adventurousteen, Smith quickly earned thenickname “Danger” among hispeers at the shop, but that didn’t stop him from putting inlong hours of hard work andsacrifice to perfect his craft.

“In the beginning, I spenta lot of time in the shop,”Smith reminisced. “I wouldstay after work on my own timeto pick up pointers from otherwelders. I was welding any-thing and everything I couldget my hands on in the shop.”

Smith began his racingcareer in the teardown depart-ment, but soon earned a pro-motion to the fab shop.

Today, the 29-year-old vet-eran juggles bothpit crew and shopduties.

“On Sundays,I go over-the-wallas the rear tire changer on the No. 14,”explained Smith.“On Mondaymornings at 7a.m. sharp, I’mback at the shop,welding andbuilding suspen-sion pieces, uppercontrol arms, oiltanks, spindles,and exhaustpipes.”

Smith’s day job iscritical.

About 95 percent ofNASCAR racecars areTIG-welded by hand.Long before the racecarhits the track, weldingand fabrication consumeroughly 950 man hourson each racecar back atthe shop.

Lincoln Electric,which has provided StewartHaas Racing with weldingmachines, consumables andapparel since 2008, says weld-ing plays an important role inNASCAR keeping drivers safefirst and foremost.

“Critical components suchas the roll cage, seat and chassisneed to withstand forcefulimpacts at speeds of 200+mph,” said Mickey Holmes,sports marketing manager forLincoln Electric. “Quality weldshelp achieve this.”

Most welds join intersect-ing tubes that make up theframe and roll cage. Thesecomponents are fabricatedfrom mild steel, which allowsthe racecar to absorb theforces of a crash in a bend-before-break mode.

When drivers often walkaway from high-speed crashesunhurt, it can be attributed tooverall safety improvementsin the chassis design – andweld quality.

Smith works with a varietyof Lincoln equipment at theshop, including Invertec V311-

T AC/DC, Precision TIG375,Invertec V205-T AC/DC, PowerMIG 350MP, Power MIG 256,and Power MIG 180Cs.

The team’s transports (or“crash carts” as they’re com-monly called) are equippedwith Power MIG 180Cs andInvertec V205s.

“The welding technologyis really amazing,” said Smith.“They’re solid machines. Youcan kind of get spoiled workingwith all the nice equipment atthe shop.”

Smith understands if apart breaks on the track, it can-not break at the weld. Heknows the importance of asound weld, and that a driver'slife is on the line.

“My standards are a littlehigher from working inNASCAR – the welds have tolook nice and be clean andsound,” said Smith. “The steer-ing shaft has to hold up at everyturn. Holding all of the sus-pension components togetheris very vital in racing.”

Double-duty: Daniel Smith is a welder/fabricator at Stewart Haas Racing and rear tire changer

on the No. 14 Mobil 1/Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet. Do you have a passion for welding, too? Start

your project today with help from Lincoln Electric at lincolnelectric.com/moneymatters.

Where There’s a Weld, There’s a Way

By Kimberly Hyde,NASCAR

Follow NASCAR Performance on Twitter and Facebookwww.twitter.com/NASCARauto ■ www.facebook.com/NASCARPerformance

By Curt Harler

If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.Nowhere is that more true than in collisionrepair where change is a near constantand the materials, tools and technolo-

gies are evolving at a lightning pace. Many in the industry claim techs

are vastly under-trained, especiallyconsidering the rocket ships rollingoff assembly lines today. But shop

margins have been severely eroded,and many owners say they can’tafford training.

Two Philosophies » There seemto be two philosophies in thebody shop business when it comesto training. One school of thought

invests a lot of time and money inclasses to keep current. The other schooldownplays continuing education, pre-

ferring to hire techs who alreadyhave certifications.

COVER STORY

The days of getting by without ongoing training areover. So what will you do? Recruit people who arealready trained, or take on the training yourself?


People who are not doing trainingwill fall behind and be left behind,says John Cole, owner of Cole’s Col-lision Centers based in Albany withfour locations in upstate New York.

“Training is a necessary componentof any business, whether you’re fix-ing computers or cars,” Cole says.“How can you call yourself a pro-fessional repairer if you’re not up to date?”

Adds Rob Alexander, body shopmanager for Brown Body & PaintCentre, Toledo, Ohio, “Fixing a carbecomes trial-and-error if you’re notproperly trained. We’re really bigon training.”

While Alexander can’t point toany extra sales as a resultof training certifications,

he does say it’s a dif-

ferentiator with insurance companiesand some customers. He points tothe new steels, processing, welding,bonding, foams and plastics used in

today’s cars and trucks. Restraintsystems seem to change by the modelyear. Admittedly, Alexander is soldon training – for a while, he was alocal I-CAR chairman, and his pro-

duction manager today holds thatposition. Yet even he has problemskeeping the shop up to date.

“We’re in a big time of change.Unfortunately, a lot of our industrydoes not recognize it,” says Jeff Peevy,senior director of field operationsand segment development for I-CAR.

Adds Craig J. Camacho, marketingdirector for Keenan Auto Body Inc.,in Clifton Heights, Pa., an MSO thathas a dozen locations in the greaterPhiladelphia area, “A trained tech isan efficient tech.” They’re a certifiedaluminum repair center and have ap-provals from a host of organizationsand companies including I-CAR, ASE,3M, Cromax Pro, NABC and DuPont.

“We pay for ongoing I-CAR train-ing, ASE training and whatever else

COVER STORY » Training Time


Angelo Campanella, I-CARinstructor, teaches the livedemo class, “BlueprintingProcess and DamageDiscovery.”

“How can you callyourself a

professionalrepairer if you’re not

up to date?”

— John Cole, Cole’s Collision

Centers

may be available in that person’sposition,” Camacho says. Their com-mitment to trained techs goes so farthat they created a non–paid intern-ship called C.R.O.P. (Collision RepairOpportunity Program). C.R.O.P al-lows Keenan to reach out to techni-cians prior to graduating fromtechnical high schools and vocational

schools and provides a nine-month,hands-on training program. The techneeds to fulfill requirements through-out different stages of the course inorder to graduate. Although the stu-dents are not required to work at aKeenan facility post-graduation,Keenan typically offers them full-time employment.

It’s not just the industry giantsthat see the need for training. MattPenney, who runs Penney’s AutoBody at two locations in Garrettsvilleand Ravenna, Ohio, says they alwaysinvest in at least two hours of trainingfor each employee each year.

“We like to spread it around,” Pen-ney says, speaking of both the classsubjects and the people involved.That keeps everyone up to date.

Penney himself has completedmore than 80 hours of training inthe past two decades. “Otherwise,you’d be taking a lot of chanceswhen you put a car back together,”he says.

It starts the moment the vehicleappears at the shop door. “Knowingthe scope of damage and writingproper estimates on vehicles willimpact the bottom line. You need tolook at proper training as an invest-ment in your business. It’s not just abudget item,” says Jon McCreath,president, Vale Training Solutions,Arlington, Texas.

To write good estimates requiresknowledge of new materials andnew systems. “You are never goingto get away from supplemental andhidden damage,” McCreath says.

Says Keenan’s Camacho, “Ouremployees feel empowered by thetraining that is made available to them.”

Keenan requires all shops to attainI-CAR Gold status. “With that, ourtechs have to meet certain educationrequirements individually, includingI-CAR Platinum. Our A.R.C. (Alu-minum Repair Center) techniciansare required to stay current with theUHSS technologies that are constant-ly changing.”

Adds I-CAR’s Peevy, “The daysof getting by without ongoing train-ing are over. Training – and moreimportant, knowledge – is the keyto surviving. I honestly see training,more importantly knowledge, as theway to survive and more impor-tantly thrive. The shops that continueto see training as simply a require-ment for a recognition program or



to be on a DRP will not survive. Re-cent research (see sidebar pg. 40)proves that even if a shop sendstechs to classes but fails to embracethe experience as an opportunity to

learn and apply, they see only smallgains. Shops embracing training asan opportunity to gain knowledge,share it and apply it see amazingresults over their fellow shops.”

Falling Behind » “While there stillare some smaller shops that dependon the certifications that their newhires bring with them as their onlymeans of being certified, the majority



Keenan Auto Body Inc. has created a non-paid internship that offers nine months of hands-on training to technicians prior tothem graduating from technical high schools or vocational schools.

of larger shops with DRP contractsand MSOs have no real choice andend up biting the bullet to provideongoing training for their techs,” Ca-macho says. That’s because the poolof vehicles untrained techs will beable to work on will grow smallereach passing year until they closetheir doors.

“When a shop fails to stay abreastof changes in technology, they fallfurther and further behind,” Peevysays.

Besides the risk of a bad repairand increasing liability of the shopand technician, there is the issue ofCSI and cycle time. If a shop focuseson improving cycle time, for example,but then fails to keep up with newtechnology, the cycle time the shopwas once proud of will increase moreand more over time, he says.



Getting the Most ROI for Your Training Bucks

Given the pace of change – 240 industry-wide changes in vehicle construction

between 2010 and 2014, including new composites and electronics – training

is the future of the industry. Just as certain is that training is expensive and get-

ting more so. How can a shop maximize its ROI?

“We must first change the way we as an industry even think about the subject

of training,” says I-CAR’s Jeff Peevy.

First, he says, the industry must stop thinking of training as a requirement but as

a solution to business challenges. “Think of ‘knowledge’ as opposed to just sending

someone to a class, and then work on changing the culture within your operation.”

Look for Peevy to speak at a number of industry events this fall on the concept

of the “Organizational Culture of Learning” and how a collision repair facility can

begin this journey of future success. “The bottom line,” he says, “is a repair facil-

ity needs to think of knowledge as something to go out and harvest and then

bring back and share within the whole operation.”

KPI (key performance indicator) statistics show it works. Shops that simply

sent techs to class saw a 3.6 percent improvement in a vital KPI like cycle time.

The culture-focused shops – those that shared the learning around the shop –

saw a 28.9 percent improvement. That’s a 25 percent return on a simple manage-

ment change.

The key is not to focus on “things,” but on knowledge-sharing.

“It is your responsibility as a busi-ness owner to stay up on technology,”Cole states.

Squeezing Nickels » The economyhas been weak, and insurance com-panies are squeezing nickels. Thatmeans body shops are hard-pressedto keep up with training.

“We’ve had to cut back a littlebit,” Alexander says. The shopachieved I-CAR Gold status for its12 technicians. It also is Blue Shieldcertified and BASF certified. “It wasan achievement to get that manypeople trained for I-CAR. But as thecriteria for Gold Class kept changing,we lapsed a bit.”

Part of the problem was findingclasses close to Toledo. Detroit,about an hour away, has classes,but Columbus and Cleveland area couple of hours drive and thatgets expensive. As a GM shop,they have the advantage of GMrolling its training into I-CAR. Still,it has been tough to keep up, saysAlexander.

In the Budget? » Training atKeenan is a fixed budget item.

“Budgeting includes calculatingeducation requirements for eachshop based on the amount of em-ployees who need the training, andthat amount of money is includedin each shop’s budget for the year,”Camacho explains.

At Brown Body, there also is abudget for training; however, Alexan-der judges each course on its merits.“I do what I need to do. We evaluateeach course to see if it will be worth-while. I want to be sure that we willget some benefit out of it.”

Right now, two dozen I-CARcoupons that Alexander needs toappropriate out to techs who needtraining sit on his desk. They werepaid for at the beginning of the yearand will be used shortly.

As a dealership, the operation isproactive regarding training in allof its departments. For the rightclass, the money is there.

Cole knows some shop ownerswho have cut back on training.“That’s their problem,” he says, dis-missing the idea. “I’m a businessowner. The decisions that steer mybusiness and cause my success aremine alone. Eventually, they’ll losedata for updating their shop andwill fall behind.”

Keenan uses ALLDATA along withVeriFacts and Motor procedures viaCCC One. Cole uses I-CAR but alsoavails the shop of training with job-bers and paint suppliers who teachtechs how to replicate special finishes,for example. “I want everyone onthe same page,” Cole says.

Penney, too, is sold on I-CAR but



would like to see more cross-trainingopportunities versus specialty classes –a good idea in a smaller operation.

Cole is big on ALLDATA repairsheets, especially when it comes towelds.

“You have to be sure you do it perthe manufacturer’s specifications,”he says. He finds that, with such doc-

umentation in hand confirming Fordor Toyota’s specifications, the insur-ance company will pay for the specificrepair 90 percent of the time. “Theother 10 percent, they’ll write whatthey write,” he says.

Keeping Current » One way tokeep up with new auto technologies

is to use new learning technologieslike online courses.

Alexander says he’s looking intocomputer-based training modulesto avoid the need for extensive (andexpensive) travel.

Cole is big on online training, too.He notes that I-CAR has online train-ing, and most OEs offer free modulesfor repair techs.

Online and classroom trainingeach have advantages, Cole says.Some techs learn better in a classroomwith a teacher guiding them, whileothers prefer the computer wherethey can go study a topic over andover until they get it right withoutfeeling embarrassed.

“There is some advantage to beingable to send a seam seal around aclassroom and let the techs feel it,”Cole counters.

On the other hand, it’s convenientfor technicians to work on the com-puter in lulls, at night or at home attheir own speed.

No matter which route is taken,“Progressive training is better thannone at all,” Cole states.

Sharing knowledge around theshop works, too. Shop owners them-selves need to be aware of the latestrepair technologies and trends.

“Once the owner knows, he orshe can then pass it down to hisor her staff fixing the vehicles,”Camacho says. “We find that read-ing trade publications, utilizingthird-party quality audits, attend-ing industry events and commu-nicating with fellow owners/operators is a very effective wayto find the latest information tostay current.”

Adds Dunn, “Independent shopowners are better off to spend theirmoney on training than to whinebecause they don’t have the expertiseto fix a car.”

He says the A shops will continueto invest and profit from training. Bshops will get training when regu-larly confronted with jobs they cannotfix. C shops will syphon off whateverbusiness is left.



To be sure their techs can handlewelding advanced metals like high strength steel and aluminum,Keenan looks to third-party verifying of quality.

“Providers of OE information arealso good sources for up-to-date in-formation,” Camacho says, notingthat shops need to ensure that their

equipment can handle the repairproperly and also must provide theirtechs with the latest informationavailable. “Ultra-high strength steelvehicles require a separate blueprintof repair procedures.”

Including the specified equipmentand an area that’s conducive to alu-minum repair is an additional in-

vestment. Keenan has invested inthese technologies by purchasingthe required equipment and trainingto be both Mercedes-Benz Certifiedand BMW Factory Authorized.

Cole is another shop owner who’sbig on internal training. He flat-outstates, “Most of the people I hirefrom competitors suck. I end upfiring them.” His advice? “Pick theplayer, not the position.”

He says he would rather hire agood person with a great attitudeand invest in training them thanhire someone else’s mistake.

Value » Peevy could be the autoindustry’s equivalent of the Greeks’Cassandra – speaking the truth butnot believed by many. He has pre-dicted a tsunami of change in theindustry ever since the CAFE stan-dards were implemented. That tidalwave now is happening. OEMs, col-lectively, are on a pace to institute80 vehicle changes every modelyear. And it’s not just on high-endexotic vehicles.

“We’re beginning to see sophis-ticated technology in mainstream,high-volume vehicles,” Peevy says.“Ironically, a tech must have soundbasics in order to fully understandmany of the newer concepts in vehicle designs and materials we’re about to see. Without thefoundation of sound basics, thenew stuff can be misunderstoodor just not fully understood and this could lead to less-than-desirable consequences.”

The result is that more shops arebecoming aligned with the idea, and today there are more shops Gold Class or pursuing Gold Classthan in the history of the program, Peevy says.

Penney likes what I-CAR provides.However, he sees OEM classes takingover. “The trend is toward OEM cer-tification,” Penney says. He says hesuspects the manufacturers do notgive the aftermarket schools all ofthe information they might require.“So far, I-CAR has kept up, but cer-



tain lines are becoming too special-ized,” he continues.

Dunn agrees that it seems OEssometimes are slow to share tech-nology. However, he says that per-ception might be due, in part, to thespeed of information change in to-day’s body business. “We are madeaware of changes more quickly. So,it seems like it takes longer,” he says.

Dunn says the unrecognized forcein all of his is the millions of con-sumers. “All of the posturing andchest pounding by so-called leadersin the industry does not mean a lot,”he says. “But those millions of con-sumers have a lot of clout.”

Forgotten in the situation, he adds,is the OE’s obligation to the cus-tomers who buy the vehicles andwho simply expect their vehicles tocome back as good as new.

McCreath says he has not foundOEMs withholding information. All

of Vale’s instructors are I-CAR cer-tified and he feels they get the latestinformation in those classes.

Camacho says he believes OEMscould make it easier on shops byproviding correct repair standardsfree of charge for their vehicles toshops that fix them. The websitewww.oemonestop.com has at least con-solidated a lot of the informationand reduced the time searchingaround.

Training can help you in court,too. There is always the growingrisk of liability.

“There is little doubt increased li-ability will grow as the momentumof change increases. No one wantsto be brought into court to explainhow their ‘professional business’knew how to properly repair thevehicle in question, when they canprovide no evidence of ongoing tech-nician training,” Peevy warns. “No

matter how you look at it, the daysof getting by without ongoing training are over.”

Camacho notes that, without train-ing, it will be increasingly more dif-ficult to compete. “From a safetystandpoint, the shop inherits the riskof being sued. The lack of traininghas always been a liability. This willbe more prevalent as vehicle tech-nologies continue to evolve andshops that are sued will be in jeop-ardy of losing their business licenseor business in general.

“We’re hoping that the insurancecompanies would hold shops to astandard to expect proper repairsrather than assume a proper repairand to compensate the shops thathave made the investment in equip-ment and employee training viahourly rates.”

Welding is a great example of increased risks. Peevy asked two



simple questions during CIC inBoston: Do you believe poor weldson structural repairs compromisestructural integrity? Do you believecompromised structural integrity de-creases occupant safety?

“Can you imagine being a shopowner in a trial being asked thesequestions and having no evidenceyou had made any effort to ensureyour shop’s welds were made cor-rectly?” Peevy asks. “If a shop can’tor won’t invest in the necessary in-frastructure, equipment and training,then the amount of work they’requalified to work on will continueto decrease rapidly.”

Everyone needs training. “A tech’stenure has no real bearing on theirtraining,” Camacho says.

“The only thing worse than toinvest in your people and havethem leave is not to invest in yourpeople and have them stay,” quips

Dunn. Masters School emphasizesleadership and management, andDunn says it is important for a shop owner to be proactive ratherthan reactive when it comes to new technologies.

At his own shop, Dunn empha-sizes its own training programs.

Where to Start » “Ultimately, oldervehicles won’t be fixed…they willbe totaled out,” McCreath says. Withthem will go a shop’s future.

“You can’t ignore the new tech-nology. Investing in training even-tually will help the bottom line anddrive business your way in the DRPmarket,” McCreath says. Noting thesqueeze on shops, he adds, “Youmay get beaten up, but it is steadybusiness.”

How can a shop owner ensurethat techs can handle welding high-strength steel and aluminum? Peevy

says he would start with gettingeveryone in an operation that weldsto participate in and successfullypass something like the I-CAR Weld-ing Qualification Tests. The in-shopevents have a shop’s techs weldingon the shop’s own equipment, drivenby the shop’s electrical infrastructure.Pass the test, and an owner can havea level of confidence in the shopand its equipment…and securitythat the techs have what it takes tomake proper welds.

Those tests will now have to beupdated, at a minimum every threeto five years, just to stay relevant.Yes, it will cost money. However,ignorance will prove to be even morecostly. BSB

Curt Harler is a Cleveland-based free-lancer specializing in the auto, technologyand environmental areas. He can bereached at [email protected].



By Carl Wilson

Waterborne/low-VOCpaint technology is here.In fact, it’s been here forawhile. Maybe not in

your state, maybe not in your shop,maybe not in your face. But it willbe, I assure you, no maybe about it.

Oh sure, you’ve also heard of low-VOC solvent, but waterborne is morecommon. It may exist, but as I un-derstand it, the lion’s share of everymanufacturer’s color developmentgoes to waterborne. So while theremay be a niche market for low-VOCsolvent, the major effort is for water-

borne, and for the purpose of this ar-ticle, that is what we will deal with.

The Mental Change » There are anumber of fundamental proceduresand principles that apply to solventcoatings which transfer over to waterborne/low-VOC. In addition,there are a few procedures and tech-niques that may be new to you. Be-fore we close the gap on that, weneed to saddle and break the mostdifficult bronco in the corral. Youknow what I’m talking about: re-sistance. The mindset of the painters.

I’m talking about preparing yourselfmentally for the change. That’s thelogical first step in this sequence.

In many ways, I believe the tran-sition is easier for some of us olddogs, as we’ve already been throughmany changes. Many of us “cut ourteeth” on lacquer. Acrylic enamelpromised increased production dueto not having to buff a shine on it,but it did take longer to dry. Fur-thermore, single-stage enamelmetallics benefitted from an orien-tation/dropcoat technique similarto what some of the waterborne sys-tems require. Remember when“basecoat” showed up? Until then,we could clear or not, our choice.Basecoat demands it always.

Basecoat/clearcoat urethane is afantastic product, which I supposemost of us have embraced and most

TECHNICAL

Haven’t switched to waterborne/low-VOC coatings yet?Here are some steps you have to take to prepareyourself…because there’s no stopping this train.


young painters have always used. Ican appreciate any reluctance andresistance to switch, as we humansall tend to try to avoid change, butthere is no stopping this train. The

tracks are laid. We all must get onboard, or be left behind.

Educate Yourself » My recommen-dation is to start with education. Get

your jobber and paint manufacturerreps – you know, the pros – to startthe process. In many areas, this is al-ready being done. I suspect the vari-ous personalities will dictate thestrategies employed; some will appealto, “You’ll like it better once youchange; no one ever wants to go backto solvent,” while other painters willneed to hear, “You have no choice.”Regardless, ensuring their success inthe transition will get everyone onboard. Once the learning curve hasbeen conquered and new habits es-tablished, everyone will be back tobusiness as usual. Of course, somewill pine for the good ol’ days, andsome will champion the new kid intown, waterborne/low-VOC. Doesn’tmatter. Like it or not, that’s the desti-

TECHNICAL » Preparing for Waterborne


When it comes to block sanding or anyother kind of sanding, don’t cheat theprocess because it will only cheat the endproduct.

nation we’ll all arrive at. Let’s getthe discussion going.

Shop Environment » So, with theproper mindset being formulated,we need to address the shop envi-ronment to assure as pain-free atransition as possible. Do not blindlybumble into predictable failure byignoring facts.

Waterborne/low-VOC paintmakes a few non-negotiable de-mands. Clean, dry compressed airis one. This can be achieved througha nice, new compressor or by a state-of-the-art air filtration system – or acombination of the two. If you havean old rig that’s been blowing oilpast the rings for years, your airlinesare contaminated and in bad shape.A new compressor on the front endalone will not solve your challenges.

Here again, get the pros fromyour local support system to analyzeyour situation and come up withoptions for you. There are unrealizedyet predictable benefits of air that’sclean and dry enough for water-borne/low-VOC, besides the obviousbenefit of fewer headache-causingcontaminants. With the proper per-sonal protective equipment or PPE,you can breathe this air. In addition,an increased level of awareness will,by default, result in better attentionto detail.

Spraybooth » Another piece of thepuzzle essential to the success ofwaterborne/low-VOC in your shopis a spraybooth designed for it. Ofcourse, retrofitting is also an option.Also, with a refinishing professionalwith the proper mindset, armed with


A brand-new panel should also be cleaned.

Who knows how many “greasy porkchop sandwich hands” have handled it?


a proper understanding of the nu-ances of waterborne and a minimalamount of equipment, many boothsare adequate as-is.

Depending what part of the coun-try you live in, you may need aheated booth. The water must evap-orate into the air. If it’s too cold ortoo humid, the process will takelonger than you want. Also facili-tating the evaporation process is adisruption of the surface tension ofthe waterborne/low-VOC paint. Inother words, air blowing across thesurface. This is typically done with

a fan of some sort or an air amplifier.Again, there are booths designedfrom the ground up for this, after-market retrofit kits and a host ofequipment manufacturers whoseproducts can help achieve victory.

There are some fantastic sprayguns out there that make applicationa breeze. You may get by with yourold stuff and your experience andexpertise, but just recognize thatthere are new spray guns designedspecifically for waterborne. May aswell make it easy on yourself. Be-sides, who doesn’t want another

spray gun? Or a whole new fleet ofspray guns?

Changing Habits » On to the thirdstep, which dovetails with the firststep, and may be the most challeng-ing for the painter: changing habits.No, I’m not suggesting that all habitsmust be changed; just the ones thatneed to be changed. I will outlinesome fundamentals and principlesthat have generic applications, buthere again, you need to get the prosinvolved to ensure specific proce-dures and techniques relating to



Waterborne is only a harsh mistressif you fail to give her what she wants

and shortchange her with poor prep.

their product are learned and observed. Let’s face it: there are someflat-out bad habits out there, someof which aren’t disastrous due tothe forgiving nature of solvent. Wa-terborne is only harsh mistress ifyou fail to give her what she wantsand shortchange her with poor prep.But treat her properly and you’llhave a blissful union.

There are some fantastic paintersin the field, some who came fromformal schooling with accomplishedinstructors, some who apprenticedunder geniuses and some who wereastute enough to figure out the coursewith a map and compass on theirown. But with some guys you wonder,“Where did he come from? The Cam-brian Explosion?” There is no evidencein the fossil record that demonstratestheir ancestry or lineage. It’s as if theysimply appeared with their habits,

and we’re left scratching our heads,trying to figure out the logic to them.However, I would suggest that moreimportant than the history of whereyou’ve been is an open mind as towhere you’re going. My point is,under almost all circumstances forpainters of all skill levels, you needto get the pros involved for the specifictutorial required by whatever paintline you’re using. There’s no need toreinvent the wheel here – the proshave already figured out how to makeyou successful with their product.

Fundamentals » Here are somegeneral fundamentals.

Cleaning the panel. You can cleanthe car first if you want; some carsneed it, some do not. But clean thepanel regardless. By clean, I meanclean it with purpose. Don’t just gothrough the motions. Clean it, either

with soap and water or low-VOCwaterborne cleaner. Spray on, wipeoff. This will take care of most ofthe organic contaminants such asdirt and bird poop. You may alsohave moss to deal with dependingon which part of the country youlive in.

Follow up with a wax and greaseremover to clean road tar and otherpetroleum contaminants. Spray on,wipe off. At this point, you mayneed to come back with one of thecleaners and a mildly abrasive scuffpad and gently scrub the panel. Sim-ilar to washing dishes, you aren’ttrying to “scrub and scratch” thepanel, just clean it.

“Why should I waste my time,Carl?” you ask. “That seems like alot of cleaning.” Because water-borne/low-VOC paint is less for-giving of surface contaminants that



are ground into the panel by thesanding operation.

And by the way, a brand-newpanel should also be cleaned. Whoknows how many “greasy pork chopsandwich hands” have handled thepart before you got it? It’s not awaste of time. You’ll need to cleaneverything again after sanding andprior to painting, so let’s be in thehabit of having both cleaners in somesort of a pressurized sprayer. Ifthey’re handy, then you’ll use them.

Also, keep in mind that not allpaper towels are created equally;some rapidly break down and depositmicro fibers on your panel whenusing a low-VOC waterborne cleaner,while others fail to absorb well andleave a film behind. Get the propertowels for the job. They aren’t moreexpensive, just different. Those trustypros can help make a choice here.

Sanding. Assuming you’re notfrom the Cambrian Explosion, youprobably have a grasp of the fun-damentals of grit selection for thevarious operations. Featheredging,block sanding, final prep for sealing,final prep for blending, etc. Sufficeit to say, don’t cheat the processwhich the pros have dictated. Theyare vested in your success and arenot attempting to sell you on un-necessary procedures. The edgescan possibly be trimmed for econo-my of motion later, but for now, getthose habits ingrained.

If you’re still wet sanding, I wouldask, “Why?” Of course it works quitefine, but it certainly isn’t necessary.There are those of you who havebeen dry sanding since you started,and when you sand with 800 or 1000grit dry paper, well, you alreadyknow why the panel needs to be

clean. Bear in mind, there is a varyingdegree of scratch severity betweendry sanding, wet sanding, handsanding and orbital sanding evenwhen you’re using 400 grit paper ineach of those operations.

In addition, there are products weuse that can be applied over “prop-erly cleaned E-coats” or “properlycleaned plastic.” So obviously thereare instances where we do not needto sand, but “no sanding” is notsynonymous with “no prepping.”Properly cleaning a panel is a pro-cedure in prepping. Whether wemake paint stick through mechanicalmeans such as sanding or through achemical adhesion promoter, weneed to be certain the panel is cleanand dust-free.

One more thing regarding low-VOC cleaners: they defeat static elec-tricity, which isn’t much of a problemin high humidity areas but is elec-trifying in low humidity areas.

You may have noticed a reoc-curring theme here: the pros. Thepros here and the pros there, well,they’re the experts with their prod-ucts and you need to tap into theirexpertise. Do they know every-thing? Are they infallible? Ofcourse not. This is the real world.But by getting their assistanceahead of time, you’ll be virtuallyguaranteed their attention. Waituntil the last moment when thetsunami is about to strike, and youmay find you have to “take a num-ber and get in line.” I can assureyou it’s an easier transition to wa-terborne at your leisure now ratherthan after the train has left thestation. And finally, get preparedfor increased productivity. BSB

Carl Wilson has been painting fornearly 30 years, with formal trainingfrom the GM Training Center, ASE,I-CAR and multiple product and colorcourses. He currently works as a painterat RPMS Auto Body & Paint in Kailua,Hawaii. He can be reached at [email protected].



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By Jason Stahl and Gina Kuzmick

Just when the leaves havefallen in other parts of thecountry and Old Man Winteris bracing to give everyone

a butt whuppin’, the sun shinesbright, the dice roll and the carssparkle at the SEMA Show. If theamazing custom showpiecesweren’t enough, everyone enjoysescaping the frigid temperaturesand their normal work routines fora little vehicle love.

But let us not get too sucked intothe dream of climbing into one ofthese beauties and tearing off theshow floor and into the sunset witha stylish squeal of rubber. No, folks,there’s work to be done and learningto be had!

The learning comes in the form ofthe fourth annual Repairer DrivenEducation (RDE) track of seminarsoffered by the Society of CollisionRepair Specialists (SCRS). This year,the classes have been organized intotracks so collision repairers can moreclearly identify what courses are

most aligned with their businessneeds.

“Each year, we wipe the slate cleanand ask what seemed to get goodfeedback and what didn’t,” saysSCRS Executive Director Aaron Schu-lenburg. “We treat each year like anew learning experience for the de-velopment of the programs. The factthat we have three delineated tracksthis year stems especially from at-tendee feedback. There is so muchgreat content, it’s hard to pick. Oneattendee told us there were differentbusinesses there for different reasons,

It’s SEMA Show timeagain, and you know whatthat means: dreaming of the big win in Vegas. Buteven if you lose at the table,you can still walk awayflush by taking in the greateducation, networking andcutting-edge equipment.


SHOW PREVIEW

Place Your Bets!

and he wished we would spell itout for attendees and say, ‘If you’rehere for this reason, these are thetracks you need to go to.’ Anybodycan pick whatever they want – it’sall a la carte – but if someone wantsto follow the track we think willhelp them given the parameters ofwhy they’re there, let’s line that out.”

Those three tracks are “Understand-ing Your Business,” “Enhancing YourBusiness” and “Positioning Your Busi-ness” (see schedule below).

There will also be a slate of freesessions, one per day, including“Accessing OEM Repair Informa-tion” by Toby Chess; “DispellingCollision Repair Technical Myths”by Mark Algie, Shawn Collins andDennis Keicher, 3M; “How Did TheyDo That? Secrets of the RefinishMasters” by Dr. Jane Valenta andDr. Gareth Hughes, PPG Refinish;

and “Equipping Yourself forIndustry Certifications” by JoeBlanton, Car-O-Liner.

Other Activities » Let’s notforget the Collision IndustryConference (CIC) will also behappening 8 a.m. to noon onWednesday, Nov. 6 and Thurs-day, Nov. 7. This event regularlyfeatures 200 to 300 collision industrypeople discussing and debating thelatest issues and controversial topics.There will also be a reception Wednes-day at 6:30 p.m.

SCRS will also be holding an openboard meeting Nov. 5 from 5:30 to 7p.m. at the Collision Repair & Re-finish Stage in the North Hall. Therewill also be an RDE after-party onThursday, Nov. 7 from 8 p.m. tomidnight for those who bought aRDE Full Series Pass. BSB

Show Floor R&I DemosMembers of the SCRS Education

Committee worked with the United

Application Standards Group

(UASG), which represents hundreds

of professional graphic installers

across the U.S., to present show-

floor demonstrations on proper

ways to approach R&I of vehicle

components for the application of

wraps and graphics. The presenta-

tions will be held in the UASG booth

on Wednesday from 3:30-4:15 p.m.

and Thursday from 12-12:45 p.m.

Collision repair experts will high-

light how repair technicians properly

remove and reinstall items on a

Dodge Challenger. This workshop

will demonstrate the necessary

tools and the proper processes for

removing items such as mirrors,

moldings, door handles, emblems,

etc. If you’re able to remove obsta-

cles from the vehicle, installers can

eliminate additional cuts and

patches to your wrap, ensuring your

finished product looks like paint.

This is a great opportunity to inter-

act with technical professionals who

can help you enhance your reputa-

tion as one who goes the extra mile

to make your wraps look great!

UASG members will design differ-

ent wraps and compete to see which

four designs will be chosen. This

year, rock ’n roll will be the theme of

the designs. The winner’s designs

will then be produced and installed

on the Dodge Challenger during the

installation demonstrations that go

on in their booth each day.

SHOW PREVIEW » Place Your Bets


Repairer Driven Education Schedule

Tuesday - 10:00-noon

RD1F FREE Session: Presented by the SCRS Education CommitteeToby Chess, SCRS

Accessing OEM Repair Information

Tuesday - 12:30-2:30

RD1U: Damage Report Writing Case Study Larry Montanez, P&L Consultants LLC

Designed for the beginning damage assessor or the seasoned veteran and

technicians, this seminar will ask attendees to follow along with three case

studies on a quarter panel replacement, bumper fascia replacement and cos-

metic damage to the body side components of a vehicle. All required proce-

dures, additional procedures, materials, included, non-included and

additional items will be covered. All three cases are from actual repair claims

(all personal info is removed).

RD1E: Learn 6 Keys to Developing an Effective Marketing Program Bill Park & Dr. Byron Bissell, MpowerU

This workshop is for those owners/managers and those in the auto colli-

sion industry who see the “writing on the wall” that financial success in the

auto collision repair industry is increasingly going to depend on capturing

more of the market share, but feel they lack the core knowledge and skills

required to create and implement an effective marketing program.

RD1P: The Future of Cars – Self-Driving Cars, Fact orFiction? Tim Ronak, AkzoNobel Performance Coatings

This is a presentation of the impact and future potential

of technology on the overall automotive industry ecosys-

tem. All facets of the industry may be transformed as a

result of technology ranging from passive accident avoid-

ance to active accident avoidance to complete autonomous

vehicle operation. Three states currently have started to

investigate the licensing potential of this technology, which

has the potential to transform the industry and create sig-

nificant new business opportunities.

Tuesday - 3:00-5:00

RD2U: Cycle Time Reduction Workshop Lee Rush, Sherwin-Williams

This workshop is designed to help collision facilities

take advantage of 10 cycle time absolutes, and strategi-

cally formulate them into a sustainable program to drive

cycle time improvements through the reduction of waste.

By providing the participant with the operational tools nec-

essary to implement these absolutes, they will be armed

with the tools needed to change the way their companies

operate.

RD2E: Modern Bonding and Riveting, Today and Tomorrow Dave Gruskos, RAE

Understand the future of changing materials in auto

industry construction. Learn why, where and how this will

affect collision repair processes. Understand the modern

applications of gluing and different riveting processes used

in the modern fleet of vehicles.

RD2P: Strength Building for Being a Successful BusinesspersonBill Park & Dr. Byron Bissell, MpowerU

This workshop is for those collision repair specialist

business owners/managers who understand that being a

successful businessperson is a great deal more than own-

ing or managing a shop or shops and who desire to

strengthen their businessperson skills. Participants will

be introduced to a unique perspective of what a

businessperson is, which has been derived by the presen-

ters from schema theory.

Wednesday - 10:00-noon

RD2F FREE Session: Presented by the SCRS EducationCommitteeMark Algie, Shawn Collins and Dennis Keicher, 3M

Dispelling Collision Repair Technical Myths

Wednesday - 12:30-2:30

RD3U: Reputation Matters: How Your Online ReputationCan Help or Hurt Your Business David Tulkin, Demandforce

You know intuitively that your online reputation is impor-

tant, but how do you manage it? Which third-party sites are

most important? How does social media and mobile play a

part? David Tulkin, an automotive marketing expert, will

give you a practical guide on how to build your best possible

reputation and teach you how to leverage your shop’s most

important asset: its reputation.

RD3E: X-Ray Estimating, An Ace Up Your Sleeve for Performance Improvement Mark Mueller, PPG Refinish

Fifty percent of the average shop’s business has very lit-

tle margin for error and can be a significant drag on cycle

time performance. X-Ray Estimating is an approach that

changes the estimating paradigm and can take repairs that

spend days at the shop and, in some instances, allow them

to be completed in a few hours. Shops that have been

exploring this approach have experienced significant per-

formance gains. The approach is similar to X-Ray Repair

Planning with its objective of identifying all damage prior to

production, but X-Ray Estimating is completed on vehicles

that can be returned to the road while parts are acquired

(and in many cases paint operations completed), allowing

the customer to wait while repairs are completed.

RD3P: Insurer Scorecard Improvement Tactics Steve Trapp, Axalta Performance Coatings, and Mike Ander-

son, Collision Advice

With many insurers and fleets relying on performance-

based scorecards, this session provides repairers insights

as to how to improve repair center performance so as to

optimize the score achieved while balancing the need to

make a profit.

Wednesday - 3:00-5:00

RD4U: Parts Procurement Best Practices Mike Anderson, CollisionAdvice

In the average collision repair shop, parts are typically 38

to 40 percent of the average repair cost. In this seminar,

Mike Anderson addresses every aspect of parts manage-

ment, from accounting for parts on a profit and loss state-

ment, how to make adjustments for work in process (WIP),

and the best reports for managing parts from your man-

agement system. The seminar discusses how to utilize

technology to get the right part the first time and includes

an overview of free websites that allow you to see all of the

same parts diagrams as the OEM dealers. Have you been



looking for a proven method for getting the right part every

time? In this seminar, you’ll learn not only what mirror

matching means, but who should be responsible for it and

exactly how to mirror match parts correctly. You’ll learn

everything you need to know in order to implement these

procedures in your repair center.

RD4E: Marketing to Consumers — Supporting CustomerPay Sales Efforts Steve Trapp, Axalta Performance Coatings, and Robert Rick,

RR Custom Solutions

With 35 to 40 percent of customers asking repairers to

write customer-paid estimates and a historical 50 percent

closing ratio on these estimates, improving sales skills for

these more price sensitive customers is key. This course

will review and practice the advisory sales process and

how it uniquely applies to this segment of prospective cus-

tomers. We will then discuss sales support tools that

would be useful to help reinforce your unique value propo-

sition to close more sales. Finally, we will reinforce follow-

up strategies to help optimize performance. At the end of

the course, we will create a personal improvement plan

per attendee.

RD4P: Competing in a Consolidated Marketplace Tim Ronak, AkzoNobel Performance Coatings

This session will focus on the details of the current con-

solidation activity within the collision industry. Publicly

available information will be shared regarding the pace and

growth of consolidation within the U.S. market. Individual

organizations need to look at how other industries have

reacted to consolidation. A discussion on some industry

trends regarding vehicle construction techniques,

integrated technology and CAFÉ mile per gallon rules are

creating an environment where some niche business

opportunities may exist to not only survive but thrive in the

consolidating world.

Thursday - 10:00-12:00

RDE3F FREE Session: Presented by the SCRS EducationCommitteeDr. Jane Valenta and Dr. Gareth Hughes, PPG Refinish

How Did They Do That?! Secrets of the Refinish Masters

Thursday - 12:30-2:30

RD5U: Social Media Strategies for Your Business Mark Claypool, Optima Worldwide

This in-depth workshop will cover why effective social

media participation is a crucial component to your overall

Web presence. Which platforms should you be participating

in: Google+? Facebook? Twitter? LinkedIn? YouTube? Yes to

all of these, and each is different from the others and

requires an understanding of how to make the most of your

time and efforts in managing your corporate social media.



What’s Happening

SantanaCheck out guitar great Carlos Santana and

his host of talented accompanists as they

play an intimate selection of their most

popular hits. Rumor has it that this is the

first time the classic lineup of Woodstock

fame has been reunited since the ’70s – so

watch as history is made!

Nov. 6-8 at the House of Blues Mandalay Bay

Rod StewartThough he’s approaching 70, Rod Stewart’s

proving that he’s still got it with the recent

release of his new album, “Time” – and he still

has that fantastic hair. Catch one of the great-

est classic artists of the ’80s belt out hits such

as “Maggie May” and “Forever Young.”

Nov. 6 at Caesars Palace

Evil Dead The MusicalIf happy-go-lucky musicals

aren’t exactly your cup of

tea, then perhaps watching

singing demons dance on stage is more your style. The show combines ele-

ments from Evil Dead, Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness to tell a hilarious,

quirky tale that even the biggest horror film buff can sing along to.

Nov. 8 and 9 at the V Theater Miracle Mile Planet Hollywood

In two quick hours you’ll be well-versed in what it takes to

build your brand online, get people to “join the conversa-

tion” and differentiate your business from the competition.

RD5E: Maximizing Efforts Through Blueprinting andShop LayoutTim Morgan, Spanesi Americas

This training session will offer attendees a look into the

changing design of today’s repair strategies through

implementation of blueprinting, shop layout and flow.

Focusing on damage detection up-front helps dictate the

needs the vehicle will have throughout the complete repair

process. We will analyze the impact of shop layout and flow

to adjust the current movement of vehicles in the facility,

along with the equipment and process evaluations to make

the facility meet more efficient demands.

RD5P: Succession Planning: Is Your Shop Ready for theNext Generation? Erica Eversman, J.D., Vehicle Information Services

This presentation is designed to ensure that shop own-

ers consider issues for legacy and estate planning

purposes. Shop owners need to consider how to best tran-

sition from direct responsibility for shop management to a

behind-the-scenes or non-existent role. The session iden-

tifies considerations such as moving forward after the

unexpected death of an owner, tax planning, and succes-

sion planning for least disruptive and financially advanta-

geous transitions.

Thursday - 3:00-5:00

RD6U: Collision Center Parts Management Tim Ronak and Scott Wheeler, AkzoNobel Performance Coatings

This is a detailed review of the overall impact the organi-

zation of parts management has on the collision repair busi-

ness. The focus is on minimization of cycle time-related

delays due to incomplete or poorly processed parts orders

causing interruption in the workflow. The seminar features

proven ways to minimize cash tied up in parts inventory

through more effective ordering and return strategies, along

with management of payable invoicing. Effective parts stor-

age strategies are also illustrated, including newer lean-

based strategies utilizing mobile part storage solutions,

many of which can be found at the SEMA Show. Attendees

will receive a sound overall parts management strategy, and

will be provided with several takeaway forms and tools that

can aid in implementing the program.

RD6E: Elevating the Customer Experience James Berkey and Dave Mitchum, PPG Refinish

In a perfect world, you believe that your employees are the

best in the business. You’re confident that your customers

are receiving “best in class” customer service. But are they?

Are they being greeted promptly…respectfully…with a smile?

And that’s just the beginning! How would they rate the experi-

ence of the entire process? Was it so great that they would

never consider another shop? Or, would they just say, “I’m

satisfied?” What would you say if you were told that “just sat-

isfying” your customer is worthless? Satisfied means you did

your job – nothing more, nothing less. Merely satisfying your

customer is not going to bring them, or their family and

friends, back. The reality is that many owners and managers

assume that their shops are the best when, in fact, they are

just another “me, too.” Our research has shown that as much

as 50 percent of customers have had a negative experience at

the first point of contact. Fortunately, Elevating the Customer

Experience provides a practical approach to customer satis-

faction that will “rock” your customers, as well as your com-

petition. Discover how creating “memorable experiences” can

provide a true competitive advantage by making extraordinary

customer service the centerpiece of your marketing strategy.

RD6P Panel: If I Knew Then What I Know Now – Lessons Learned Selling My Body Shop

Friday - 10:00-12:00

RDE4F FREE Session: Presented by the SCRS EducationCommitteeJoe Blanton, Car-O-Liner

Equipping Yourself for Industry Certifications

Friday - 12:30-2:30

RD7U: Protect Your Business – Understanding That Insurance Coverage Is Not One-Size-Fits-All Paul Hulsebusch, Sonora Insurance

Insurance can mean different things to different people;

there are so many variables to consider when trying to

determine the correct path for your corporate insurance

program. Insurance is not a one-size-fits-all product. You

have to consider buying decisions, internal exposures, risk

appetite, loss experience, business changes, state laws,

federal laws, case law, economic trends, catastrophic

insurance losses, employee changes, costs and other fac-

tors. You have a collision repair business to run; how can

you find the time to make sure you are selecting the insur-

ance programs that are right for you and not just getting

the coverage someone else thinks is right for your

business?

RD7E: Want Higher Rates? Obtain Payment For Necessary Repair Procedures Erica Eversman, J.D., Vehicle Information Services

This presentation will aid collision repairers in

understanding that working collectively with others in the

repair industry is beneficial. This program is designed to






highlight repairers’ successes in

increasing rates received for labor and

materials and obtaining payment for

necessary repair procedures. Partici-

pants will be provided with information

and materials to understand how work-

ing together with other repairers can be

done in a legal manner that reduces

costs and creates a network of knowl-

edgeable resources.

RD7P: Creating a Parallel Universe:Reinventing the Collision Repair Industry Scott Biggs, Assured Performance

Network

Forewarned is to be forearmed. This

program will give you both good news

and bad. It will allow you to better

understand profit, prosperity and busi-

ness survival in the decades

ahead. This presentation will take a

futuristic look at the industry and take a

deep-dive exploration of trends that are

shaping the collision repair industry

now and in the future. You will see

alternative versions of the future based

upon the secret, and not so secret,

plans and agendas of insurers, MSOs

and OEMs. The program will compare

alternative futures for the industry

based upon totally different realities.

The contrast will allow you to see how

the tactics and strategies of various

organizations will set the industry on a

course toward one reality or another.

The choice is yours, and you choose the

road forward.

Become part of the BodyShop Business Readersgroup and participate in lively conversations

with industry professionals on hot topics in thecollision repair industry!

Visit: http://linkd.in/18aL71K


Booth PreviewsWith SEMA and AAPEX just around the corner, you’re probably getting the itch tostart spending money on equipment and products. Let the fun begin! The BodyShop BusinessSEMA/AAPEX Booth Previews 2013 is packed full of potential purchases.

If something in this paid-for sampling of products and services catches your attention, youcan get more information by visiting the company’s booth at SEMA (Nov. 5-8) or AAPEX(Nov. 5-7). If you won’t be attending any of these shows, fill out the Reader Service card foundin this issue between pages 60 and 61 and drop it in the mail.

GFS To Unveil New Ringbrothers Car At SEMA 2013GFS is excited to unveil the latest Ringbrothers muscle car at SEMA 2013.

Painted inside the Ringbrothers’ GFS PERFORMER paint booth, the never-

before-seen “BLIZZARD” ’65 Mustang Fastback will be revealed at:

Global Finishing Solutions – Booth #11239North Hall, Collision Repair/Refinish Section

1:00 p.m. – Tuesday, Nov 5, 2013

GFS is also offering a Limited Edition Ringbrothers PERFORMER paint booth

package at a special price, and limited-time deals on new accessories like paint

booth parts hanging racks and GFS’ new paint booth sound system!

Visit www.globalfinishing.com or contact [email protected]

for more information.

Kaeser Compressors, Inc. will have the AirCenter on display

at the upcoming SEMA Show in Las Vegas. The AirCenter is a

packaged compressed air system with a Sigma rotary screw

compressor, refrigerated air dryer and optional filter – all

compactly mounted on a receiver tank. The small footprint

and super-quiet operation lets you place the system almost

anywhere, while the energy efficiency, easy maintenance and

Kaeser durability offer the lowest possible life cycle cost.

Simply connect the power and air-line, and you have a fully

operational compressed air system. AirCenters are available

in simplex or duplex compressor configurations with size

ranges from 3 to 30 hp and working pressures available from

80 to 217 psig. The duplex configuration offers added energy

efficiency by running only the compressor(s) needed to meet

the current demand.

All Kaeser Compressors come with the support from our

factory-trained technicians and compressed air system

experts. Whether your concern is air

quality, reducing shop noise or reducing

time spent on maintenance, Kaeser

products help increase quality,

efficiency and productivity. Kaeser

knows that today’s automotive facilities

have high standards and, with the rising

cost of labor, tools, paints and other

materials, re-work is expensive. Dry,

clean compressed air at a stable system

pressure is essential for high-quality

results, and with a Kaeser, that’s what

you get.

For more information on the Kaeser

AirCenter, visit www.kaeser.com/aircenter or visit us in Booth

#20133 in the Central Hall or Booth #10264 in the North

Hall to see and hear the AirCenter running!

Kaeser To Showcase AirCenter At SEMA 2013


Booth Previews

Magnetic Fixtures And Hand LiftersTacking your welds just got easier. Use Lincoln Electric’s

magnetic angle fixtures to accurately position and hold

steel for tacking. Use the company’s new hand lifting

devices to handle steel safely at the workplace by minimiz-

ing hand contact with hot or sharp-edged steel.

Booth #23527

The UniCure Zapper 3006 is a downdraft side-exhaust

spraybooth that comes standard with a full paint and

curing system, tri-fold product doors with large windows,

a personnel door with a large window and (14) four-tube

light fixtures. This booth is constructed of 3” Rockwool insu-

lated double panels and is powder-coated white inside and

out. UniCure can also custom build to meet your specific

needs. With premium quality, superior features and more

than 32 years in business, UniCure has the products and

support that your business expects.

For more information about our complete product line,

visit www.spraybooths.com or call (800) 868-3033.

UniCure ZAPPER 3006

Booth Previews

Transtar has provided a wide variety of products and serv-

ices focused on the automotive paint and body aftermarket

and specialty coatings for more than 30 years.

We focus on the needs of our customers to provide the

right mix of products, services, support, price points and

information. We believe the resolution of our customers’

pain is what constitutes a true solution.

Why We Do What We doWe believe cars are more than just metal. They’re a carrier

of precious cargo, an expression of who we are and some-

times a personal statement and work of art. We value cars

and the people who refinish them.

We are dedicated to helping our customers fix, finish and

restore cars – successfully. For consumers and enthusiasts,

we want to help make their cars look better than new. And

for our business customers, we help them deliver excellent

customer satisfaction and generate a profit.

Ultimately, when cars look great and our customer suc-

ceeds, we succeed.

What We Do

Professional Series Truck BedLiner – Now In 2-Gallon Kits!


Scorpion Protective Coatings, Inc. now offers its Professional

Series Truck Bed Liner in 2 Gallon Kits. The Scorpion 2 Gallon

Kit Program is a perfect fit for automotive collision and repair

shops because it comes pre-measured and ready to mix. This

will eliminate the chance of off-ratio mixing. Another benefit

is the reduced inventory for the applicator. Scorpion continues

to provide a lucrative and proven bed liner system to its cus-

tomers. This tough, durable polyurethane spray is easy to

apply and attaches to nearly any surface. Scorpion offers

many color options or it can be custom colored.

www.scorpioncoatings.com

believe that solutions withtangible value propositionswill be utilized and sup-ported by the marketplacewithout the undue influ-ence of insurer mandate.

The encouragement toembrace open platforms toenhance performance,rather than rely on exclu-sionary program agree-ments influenced by one ormore of the participants,follows an acknowledge-ment from State Farm In-surance that the nation’slargest carrier is transi-tioning from “piloting” therequirement to use thePartsTrader online partsourcing and ordering pro-gram, in select market-places, to a tiered national

rollout. State Farm hadpreviously included a pro-vision in its Select ServiceAgreement requiring par-ticipating repairers to agreeto utilize automated re-placement parts locatingservices or applications, asspecified by the insurer, forordering and/or sourcingreplacement parts.

According to SCRS, asthe program rollout de-veloped, so did the rulesof engagement sur-rounding it. The organi-zation provided a briefrundown of the historyof the program:

� In May of 2012, StateFarm issued a video on itsB2B website where AutoEstimatics ConsultantGeorge Avery expressed:

“...repairers are in con-trol of who providesyour parts, regardless ofthe part type. We haveworked with PartsTraderon a process that [en-ables] you to maintainyour relationships andnegotiated deals withyour vendors. We under-stand that relationshipswith your suppliers areimportant in managingyour business, much inthe same way we valueour relationship withyou.”

� In an email distrib-uted within the samemonth, PartsTrader com-municated to supplierswho had declined the of-fer to participate in thequoting process that:

“State Farm SelectService repairers will beplacing all parts ordersrelated to State Farmclaims via the PartsTrad-er application from[date]. During our dis-cussion you indicatedthat this was not in yourinterest to register onlinewith PartsTrader to par-ticipate in the intendedparts procurementprocess. We respect yourchoice and want to makesure you are still able toreceive those State Farmorders. With that stated,it is not our intent tocome between the rela-tionships you have builtwith the shops. Thisemail is to confirm thatwe have now modified



SCRS continued from pg. 13

your company’s configu-ration to be a ‘Fax OnlySupplier.’ This meansthat a repairer can placean order to your compa-ny in PartsTrader, andwe will send that orderto you at the fax num-ber...Note: This processmeans you will not par-ticipate in the quotingprocess, and repairersmay order from suppli-ers that have quotedfirst, then direct orderany remaining parts toyou via the ‘direct only’option.”

� Just over a year later,the option to not be afully active participatingsupplier was revoked. In

an email communicationissued in July of 2013,PartsTrader advised Se-lect Service repair facili-ties in certain marketsthat:

“As you were notifiedin a previous email,PartsTrader is discontin-uing the fax only optionfor suppliers who choosenot to utilize the Parts-Trader platform as a ful-ly active participatingsupplier... When you usePartsTrader after July 31,suppliers which youhave nominated to usePartsTrader but have notyet begun to use thePartsTrader applicationto provide quotes or ac-

cept orders, will nolonger appear on yoursystem as an availablevendor, and thereforewill no longer be able toreceive orders placed inPartsTrader via fax.... Wewould of course like youto encourage these sup-pliers to participate, butyou should also identifysuppliers for thosemakes who are partici-pating to avoid any pur-chasing issues onAugust 1 or later. We canassure you that we dohave participating deal-ers covering every majorvehicle make in the[market] area.”

According to SCRS,

“The rules of the gameare changing and it is ap-parent that maintainingthe relationships and ne-gotiated deals of partici-pating repair facilities isonly a priority, so long asall involved submit to dobusiness in the mannerprescribed by State FarmInsurance, and other car-riers with similar pro-grams. Today thesemandates address partssourcing and ordering,but there is valid concernthat they open the doorto future market manipu-lation and influence overother similarly criticalcollision businesses pur-chasing habits as well.”



Amberson. “We have anumber of laws thatfrankly aren’t enforced.I’ve had the opportunityto visit Washington,D.C., through ASA’sWashington representa-tive Bob Redding, and Ifound it very education-al to meet with represen-tatives of Congress andsenators and to see thatsome days, there is aconstant parade ofgroups going in and outof their offices represent-ing their desires. And itreinforces the messagehow important it is forus to maintain our ownrepresentation there.”

Reichen of PrecisionAuto Body & Paint’s

comments were morefrank, addressing thegamesmanship that goeson in Washington to getlaws passed.

“There are laws andregulations out therethat seem to be pick andchoose,” he said. “Oneof the biggest issues wehave is that some ofthese laws are outdated,some should be sunset-ted and others just needto be enforced. It’s un-fortunate that certainlobby groups have theability to put pressure onsome laws, and it seemslike those laws are theones where a blind eye isturned. It depends whatindustry has the biggestportion of the ear at that

point. So it’s a mixedbag. On the environmen-tal side, a lot of the lawsmight be over the top,but other laws should beenforced that aren’t.”

Allstate’s Hansen saidit’s hard to bring what’stalked about at CIC tolegislators in an under-standable format.

“It’s difficult to haveconversations aroundlegislative support whenyou’re trying to articu-late to someone who isfurther away from the is-sue than anyone in thisroom what that is andhow it can be best be at-tacked. That’s where Ithink we have a lot ofwork to do,” Hansensaid.

Hansen had a littledifferent take on the ef-fectiveness of currentlaws.

“Does regulationwork? It absolutely does.Once you get regulation,it works, and people willbe monitoring those regulations.”

Janet Chaney broughtup the importance ofkeeping up with legisla-tive efforts regularly.

“It’s not easy, but theword that comes to mymind is vigilance. We allneed to stay vigilantwith what’s going onand pay attention be-cause things will be hap-pening to your businessthat you need to knowabout.”



CIC panel continued from pg. 13

As an advocate of the ItCan Wait movement, theNational Auto Body Coun-cil (NABC) issued a call forits members and others inthe collision industry tojoin the nationwide effortto curb texting and drivingon Drive 4 Pledges Day,Sept. 19.

Drive 4 Pledges Day is anational day of action thataims to have every drivermake a personal commit-ment to never text anddrive and to also recruit

others to do the same.The NABC is urging

drivers to make the pledgeonline at www.go-att.us/NABC, a dedicatedlink created by AT&Tspecifically for the NABC’sefforts. The campaign is acollaborative effort be-tween major wireless carri-ers AT&T, Verizon, Sprintand T-Mobile.

As part of the nation-wide Drive 4 Pledges Day,NABC member companiesimplemented a variety of

promotional events in theirlocal communities to edu-cate employees and thegeneral public – particular-ly teens – about the dan-gers of texting whiledriving.

“This is one of the mostimportant issues facing ourcommunities today,” saidNABC Executive DirectorChuck Sulkala. “Our colli-sion industry knows fartoo well the impact of tex-ting and driving. We cansalvage vehicles, but wecannot salvage a life. Weurge our friends and col-leagues in our industry totake a leadership role andjoin us to help save lives.”

While texting is by farthe biggest distraction onthe road right now, the

NABC notes that anydriving distraction is dan-gerous, including phonecalls, reading emails, eat-ing behind the wheel,changing CDs and apply-ing makeup.

“We need to educate andreinforce this messagewithin our own companies,our employees, and thosewho drive fleet vehiclesand company cars aboutthe potential dangers oftexting and other distracteddriving habits,” said MarkLovell, chair of the NABC’sDistracted Driving Com-mittee. “We encourage alldrivers to ensure safety forall by taking the It CanWait pledge not to text anddrive or engage in any dis-tracted driving behaviors.”



NationalNABC Asks Collision Industry to JoinEffort to Curb Texting and Driving

The Indiana AutobodyAssociation (IABA) hasannounced its full sup-port of the Society of Col-lision Repair Specialists’(SCRS) recent positionstatement on insurermandates.

The IABA believes thatall repair decisions, ven-dor selections and busi-ness processes should beleft to the collision repairprofessionals who workon vehicles and havebeen entrusted by vehicleowners to make correctrepair decisions.

The IABA also believesthat the intent of these

mandated programs isnot to improve efficiencyin any current businessprocess, or for the benefitof the vehicle owner. Itbelieves these attemptsare solely driven by in-

surers and other thirdparties seeking to makeadditional profits andgain control of the colli-sion repair businessthrough practices thatcan be considered extor-

tion and tortious interfer-ence, as previously iden-tified in the 1963 ConsentDecree, and the IABAsays it will deter these ac-tions using the fullest ex-tent of the law.



The Iowa Collision Repair Association (ICRA),

an affiliate of the Society of Collision Repair

Specialists (SCRS), has announced that it has

joined SCRS and other collision industry

associations in condemning third-party man-

dates upon collision repair businesses.

ICRA says it supports and endorses the

position SCRS stated in early September

regarding mandates that the insurance indus-

try imposes on the collision repair industry. In

particular, the statement addressed State

Farm’s rollout of the PartsTrader electronic

parts procurement program.

“The rules of the game are changing, and it

is apparent that maintaining the relationships

and negotiated deals of participating repair

facilities is only a priority, so long as all

involved submit to do business in the manner

prescribed by State Farm Insurance and other

carriers with similar programs,” SCRS stated.

Indiana Autobody Association Announces Support of SCRS Position on Insurer Mandates

Iowa Collision Repair Association Backs SCRS Position on Insurer Mandates

The Alliance of Automotive ServiceProviders of New Jersey(AASP/NJ) has announced its sup-port of the Mississippi CollisionRepair Association’s recently filedsuit against PartsTrader and State

Farm that aims to prevent the twoentities from bringing the programto Mississippi.

“What part of ‘no’ doesn’t StateFarm understand?” says AASP/NJExecutive Director Charles Bryant.

“The collision industry has clearlyrejected the concept of PartsTrader,yet State Farm is taking the posi-tion that they are going to forcePartsTrader on the collision indus-try – like it or not. This lawsuitshould be a wake-up call for StateFarm. State Farm’s attempt to cre-ate the appearance that they aretrying to help the collision industrysolve a problem has clearly failed.

“It has become blatantly clearthat State Farm is really attempt-ing to further line their pockets onthe backs of the collision industryby transferring part of the profitderived from parts from the colli-sion industry to the insurance in-dustry. If PartsTrader was goodfor the collision industry, StateFarm would have been able toconvince the industry to acceptthe concept by now. Instead, thecollision industry has spoken –not ‘No,’ but ‘Hell no!’ If StateFarm doesn’t wake up and backoff now, I predict that this lawsuitis only a taste of what is to come.”



AASP-NJ Issues Statement of Support for MCRA Suit Against PartsTrader

AMI and Babcox Media Announce2013 Tom B. Babcox MemorialScholarship Recipient

The Automotive Management In-stitute (AMI), in conjunction withBabcox Media, has announcedMyles Dahlgren, direc-tor of mechanical oper-ations for Lamettry’sCollision in Lakeville,Minn., as the recipientof the Tom B. BabcoxMemorial Scholarship.

The scholarship rec-ognizes a management-oriented member of theAutomotive Service Association(ASA). The recipient receives $1,000to be applied toward expenses to at-tend educational sessions and view

Myles Dahlgren

the latest repair technolo-gies and equipment dur-ing the Congress ofAutomotive Repair andService (CARS), Oct. 16-18in Las Vegas.

Dahlgren has workedin the automotive serviceindustry for 13 years. Heholds several industrycertifications and is cur-rently completing thenecessary requirementsto earn his AccreditedAutomotive Manager(AAM) designation.

“I’m grateful to be se-lected as the recipient ofthe Tom B. Babcox Schol-arship and to be giventhis opportunity to im-prove my managementskills and share thatknowledge with those I

work with,” saidDahlgren. “I also lookforward to meeting withowners, operators, techs

and instructors who arethe driving force in ourindustry. Building rela-tionships with these key

people will help keep meand those around me rel-evant in a constantlyevolving industry.”



AMI and ASA Announce 2013 Emil Stanley Merit Award Recipient

The Automotive Management In-stitute (AMI) and the AutomotiveService Association (ASA) haveannounced that Mark Steinke, pro-duction manager for Rydell Colli-sion Center, Grand Forks, N.D., isthe recipient of this year’s EmilStanley Merit Award.

Steinke has worked in the colli-sion repair industry for more than nineyears. He is currently completing the nec-essary requirements to earn his AccreditedAutomotive Manager (AAM) designation.When not working in the shop, he con-tributes his time to various communityand industry organizations.

As the scholarship recipient,Steinke will receive $1,000 towardexpenses to attend educationalsessions and view the latest repairtechnologies and equipment dur-ing the 2013 International Auto-body Congress & Exposition(NACE), Oct. 16-18 in Las Vegas.

“I am honored to be selected asthe recipient of this scholarship.,” saidSteinke. “I’m looking forward to the train-ing and networking opportunities thatthis scholarship makes possible. This op-portunity will provide me with newknowledge acquired from many of thebest instructors in the industry.”

Mark Steinke

The Automotive Man-agement Institute (AMI)and Babcox Media Inc.have jointly announcedthat Mindy Johnson, of-fice manager, ClassicAuto Collision, Escana-ba, Mich., is the recipientof this year’s BodyShopBusiness Magazine Scholarship.

AMI and Babcox pres-ent the scholarship annu-ally to recognizemanagement-orientedmembers of the Automo-tive Service Association’s(ASA) collision division.

The recipient receives$1,000 to be applied to-ward expenses to attendeducational sessions andview the latest repairtechnologies and equip-ment during the 2013 In-ternational AutobodyCongress & Exposition(NACE), Oct. 16-18 in Las Vegas.

Johnson has worked inthe collision industry for11 years. She holds an as-sociate’s degree in ac-counting and is currentlycompleting the necessaryrequirements to earn her

Accredited AutomotiveManager (AAM) designa-tion. When not workingin the shop, she con-tributes her time to vari-ous communityorganizations.

“I’m honored andgrateful to be selected forthis great opportunity tocontinue my educationand look forward to ex-panding my knowledgeof the industry throughthe educational sessionsand networking eventsoffered at NACE,” saidJohnson.



AMI and Babcox Media Announce

2013 BodyShop Business MagazineScholarship Recipient

Mindy Johnson

The Huron B10 AirSystem® is a 10-HP variable-speed drive (VSD) rotary screw compressor thatoperates at an extremely low maximum 55 ampdraw, enabling installation in locations where the

use of 10-HP air compressors was previously uneconomicalor impossible.

The Huron B10’s variable-speed drive technology andpressure tracking controls ensure energy efficiency. TheVSD constantly aligns energy use with air-demand, adjustingmotor speed to provide optimum performance and reliability,resulting in an air compressor that is extremely economicaland efficient, providing energy-savings of up to 25%.

The Huron B10’s advanced CSC 300 control solution effectively manages, monitors and main-tains optimal operational parameters to ensurestable system pressure and reliable operation. TheCSC300 features the option of sequencing up to 8compressors, remote start/stop operation, real-

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The Huron B10 AirSystem’sextremely low maximum 55-amp draw enablesinstallation in single-phaselocations where previouslyuneconomical or impossible.

The Automotive Man-agement Institute(AMI) and the Auto-

motive Service Association(ASA) jointly announcethat Shellie Andrews, oper-ations manager for Dana’sCollision Center, Frederic-

ton, New Brunswick,Canada, is the recipient ofthis year’s Richard Cos-sette/Gale Westerlund Me-morial Scholarship.

Andrews has worked inthe collision industry formore than 23 years and iscurrently completing thenecessary requirements toearn the institute’s Accred-ited Automotive Manager(AAM) designation. Whennot working in the shop,she contributes her time tovarious community andindustry organizations.

Richard Cossette ownedLehman’s Garage in Min-neapolis, Minn., and was acharter founder of AMI

and a $50,000 CharterCounselor contributor toAMI’s resource develop-ment effort EXCEL. Hewas the first chairman ofEXCEL and was a recipientof AMI’s Annual Recogni-tion Award in 1994. Hewas awarded an honoraryAccredited AutomotiveManager (AAM) designa-tion in 1997 to further rec-ognize his commitmentand dedication to AMI. Healso held numerous leader-ship positions on the ASAboard of directors and wasactive in several industryorganizations until hisdeath in 2002.

Westerlund owned and

operated Gale’s Auto Cen-ter in Blaine Minn., andwas a $25,000 Guarantorcontributor to EXCEL. Heearned the Institute’s AAMdesignation in 1993, andalso served on the ASAboard of directors formany years. He was an ac-tive member of ASA andother collision industry or-ganizations until his deathin 2005.

As the scholarship recip-ient, Andrews receives$1,000 to help cover ex-penses during the 2013 In-ternational AutobodyCongress & Exposition(NACE), Oct. 16-18 in Las Vegas.



AMI Announces 2013 Richard Cossette/Gale WesterlundMemorial Scholarship Recipient

Shelly Andrews

The CertifiedAuto Parts Asso-ciation (CAPA)has announced

the election of Ben Kel-ley, Center for AutoSafety (CAS), to itsboard. CAS, one of theoriginal founders ofCAPA more than 25years ago, has been a

longstanding supporterof the association.

Kelley has worked inthe field of injury controlfor more than 40 years asan educator, researcher,author, policy expert andhistorian. A former offi-cial of the U.S. Depart-ment of Transportation,he was a principal archi-

tect of the vehicle safetyresearch and communica-tions program of the In-surance Institute forHighway Safety, wherehe served as a senior vicepresident for 15 years. Hehas frequently offeredcongressional and publictestimony concerning in-jury prevention.

Kelley currently di-vides his time betweenteaching, consulting andwriting about injury pre-vention. He also is direc-tor, injury control policyof the Trauma Founda-tion and a board memberof the Public Health Ad-vocacy Institute at North-eastern University. In thepast, he has served as a

visiting faculty memberand guest lecturer atTufts University Schoolof Medicine, Johns Hop-kins University School ofPublic Health, Yale Med-ical School, WisconsinMedical School and theUniversity of Californiaat Davis.

“Ben brings an extraor-dinary amount of con-sumer knowledge andsafety expertise toCAPA’s board,” said JackGillis, CAPA’s executivedirector. “We are excitedto have Ben join CAPA’sefforts as we enter oursecond quarter-century ofprotecting both the mar-ket and consumers frompoor quality parts.”



PersonnelCAPA Elects Center for

for Auto Safety’s Ben Kelley to Board

The Quality PartsCoalition (QPC)has appointed EdSalamy as its new

executive director, effec-tive immediately. In addi-tion to serving as anactive member of theQPC, Salamy is the presi-dent of ETS ManagementGroup Inc. and the execu-tive director of the Auto-motive Body PartsAssociation (ABPA).Salamy brings 15 years ofexperience in the alterna-tive parts supply channel,

particularly when itcomes to understandinghow policy decisions canimpact the broader colli-sion repair parts industry.

“This is a momentoustime for the QPC, and it isessential that the Coali-tion continue to havededicated leadership,”said outgoing interim Ex-ecutive Director DanMorrissey. “I am confi-dent that with Ed’s expe-rience and enthusiasm,the QPC will remain well-positioned to achieve its

goal of finding a legisla-tive solution to the designpatent challenge.”

The QPC supports thePromoting AutomotiveRepair, Trade and Sales(PARTS) Act (S. 780 andH.R. 1663), bipartisanand bicameral federallegislation that was in-troduced in April 2013.The PARTS Act wouldamend Title 35 of currentU.S. design patent law,reducing the period dur-ing which car companiescan enforce their design

patents on collision re-pair parts against alter-native suppliers from 14years to 2.5 years.

“I would like to thankDan for his efforts andcommitment on behalf ofthe QPC,” said Salamy.“I look forward to work-ing with him and ourmembers to fight forconsumers’ right to ac-cess more affordableauto repair optionswhen the need arises, es-pecially when every dol-lar counts these days.”



Ed Salamy Appointed Executive Director of Quality Parts Coalition

The Team PRP na-tionwide networkof independentautomotive recy-

clers has announced theappointment of MikeHickman as the organi-zation’s logistics director.

“We are excited tohave hired Mike Hick-man for our new posi-tion of logistics director,”said Stacy Bartnik, TeamPRP’s executive director.“His experience will certainly help supportthe rapid growth withinthe Team PRP networkand expand our already

vast partner-to-partnertransportation system,which in turn allows usto provide better serviceand quality to the enduser, the professional repairer.”

Sean Garber, a boardmember for Team PRPwho has been instru-mental in developing thefreight system, added,“Mike’s addition toTeam PRP is yet anotherimportant step that wehave taken to assemblethe very best profession-al team to manage ourorganization into the fu-

ture. Mike’s wealth ofknowledge and experi-ence in logistics will behugely beneficial as wecontinue to grow our ro-bust, industry-leadingfreight system.”

Hickman brings anabundance of hands-onand executive experiencein transportation anddistribution manage-ment to Team PRP.Along with his reputa-tion of excellence in pre-vious logisticsapplications, Hickman’sachievements further in-clude a number of in-

dustry awards pertain-ing to top financial, safe-ty and customer servicesuccesses.

“I’m extremelypleased to join withthese partners and playa part in expanding theirburgeoning network,”Hickman said. “It is ap-parent that Team PRP isdedicated to being theleader in providing thehighest quality parts andservice to customers na-tionwide, and I’m trulylooking forward toworking with them inthis capacity.”




Team PRP Appoints New Logistics Director

Caliber Collision OpensNew Stores in Coloradoand CaliforniaCaliber Collision Centers has an-nounced the acquisition of Mat-tocks Brothers Autobody inDenver, Colo., and the opening of anew location in Tustin, Calif.

“Our new Denver and Tustincenters increase Caliber Collision’slocations to 132 as we continue torestore our customers to therhythm of their lives in Coloradoand California,” said MarkSanders, COO for Caliber.

Added Steve Grimshaw, CaliberCEO, “Today’s opening of two newCaliber locations in Colorado andCalifornia reinforces our commit-ment to add centers that providethe operational consistency, cus-tomer focus and cost managementour clients require in today’s com-petitive insurance marketplace.”




Become part of the BodyShop BusinessReaders group and participate in livelyconversations with industry professionals on hot topics in the collision repair industry!

Visit: http://linkd.in/18aL71K

Consolidation

Sterling Autobody toDonate $10,000 toSusan G. KomenFoundation

Sterling Autobody Centers hasannounced that it will make a$10,000 donation to the Susan G.Komen Foundation as part of amonth-long campaign to supportbreast cancer awareness.

Throughout the campaign,Sterling employees will wearpink ribbon pins, and in-storebanners, warranty packets andvehicle mirror hangers will sup-port the breast cancer awarenessmessage. A pink USB charger willalso be placed in each deliveredvehicle.

“At Sterling Autobody Centers,our commitment to taking care ofpeople goes far beyond the wallsof our collision repair shops,”

said Nick Notte, Sterling’s presi-dent. “We believe no business iswhole without investing in thecommunity. At Sterling, we’repassionate about getting our cus-tomers back on the road safelyand swiftly, while providing un-paralleled customer carethroughout the experience. Wealso stand strong to supportcauses that touch lives and in-spire. We are proud to supportthe lifesaving work of the SusanG. Komen Foundation.”

Breast cancer awareness andSterling’s culture of giving backis also featured in a short videothat will be shared through aconsumer marketing campaign.The in-house produced videowas filmed in a Chicago-areashop and includes a voiceoverfrom one of their customer serv-ice representatives. The video canbe seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-J2Mk_CdeLM.

As part of their weekly blog onDestinationSafety.com, Sterlingshared the story of Jean King,senior national sales and rela-tionship manager and 20-yearbreast cancer survivor.

CARSTAR HonorsMarketing AwardWinners at Conference

CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Ex-perts announced the winners ofits top marketing awards at itsNational Conference in Las Ve-gas. The awards recognize thefranchisees and individuals whodeliver the marketing programswith the most impact throughoutthe year. Awards were distrib-uted by David James, vice presi-dent of marketing.

Steve Rigsby, marketing managerfor the Colorado CARSTAR Busi-ness Group, was named Marketer ofthe Year for 2013. To be consideredfor the award, a marketer must have




supported corporate marketing pro-grams like ACE, Make-A-Wish andMilitary Month; worked in market-ing for at least one year; and partici-pated in community involvementand creative marketing solutions.Rigsby also won the award in 2011.

The Extraordinary IndividualContribution to the Make-A-WishFoundation award went to KurtMueller of Kurt’s CARSTAR Col-lision Center in Marysville, Ill.The honor is presented to a storefor its efforts to go above and be-yond the normal call of duty tosupport the Make-A-Wish Foun-dation. Kurt’s CARSTAR Colli-sion Center was chosen for itsproactive approach to supportthe Make-A-Wish Foundation inits local market. The store alsoreceived the award in 2012.

The Extraordinary Group Con-tribution to the Make-A-WishFoundation award went to thePuget Sound Business Group inthe Seattle region. The groupsupports the Make-A-Wish Foun-dation with an annual golf tour-nament and other fundraisingefforts.

“These stores are leaders inbuilding and enhancing theCARSTAR brand locally and na-tionally, year after year,” saidJames. “Their delivery of unique,creative marketing programs hashelped drive sales, increasedmarket share and set theCARSTAR brand apart in theirrespective markets.”




Sherwin-Williams A-Plus NetworkAdds Full FeatureClaims Portal

Thanks to an expanded affiliation with VehicleOwnersGuide.com, Sherwin-Williams Automotive Fin-

ishes’ A-Plus Network shops willnow have access to the provider’sOpen Claims Gateway, a full featureclaims portal that includes claimsworkflow, dispatching, estimate re-view, vendor e-Coupons, consumertranslations and analytics.

The new dispatching system isalready populated with the A-PlusNetwork’s collision repair facilitiesand will provide a turnkey repairnetwork for insurance companiesthroughout the U.S. and Canada.The Open Claims Gateway portalwill dispatch cars to A-Plus shops,and then these facilities and insur-ance companies can use the systemto manage the claims.

“Open Claims Gateway will beprovided free of charge to A-PlusNetwork facilities, and there is nocontract to sign. This is another ex-ample of Sherwin-Williams helpingour A-Plus members exceed theirgoals through leveraging our in-dustry knowledge and relation-ships,” said Troy Neuerburg,director of sales excellence at Sher-win-Williams Automotive Finishes.“This system offers numerous ben-efits: when an insurance companywants to send a car to a shop, thatfacility is notified via an email andcan use the system to accept or re-ject the assignment, upload photo-graphs and estimates, review theestimate, update status and reviewtheir estimate KPI.”

Added Steven Siessman, presi-


108 October 2013 | BodyShop BusinessCircle 108 for Reader Service Circle 128 for Reader Service

Corporate

dent of VehicleOwnersGuide.com,“We are excited to partner withSherwin-Williams AutomotiveFinishes and the A-Plus Networkmembers to introduce our OpenClaims Gateway to the industry.The system works in a mixed esti-mating system environment, islow cost and provides a full fea-ture claims communications struc-ture that a national network ofcollision repair facilities and insur-ers can immediately utilize. An in-surer simply uses the system toenter and assign a claim to a colli-sion repair facility, and the repair-er and insurer use the system tomanage the claim using only anInternet browser.”

In addition to a full featureclaims system, Siessman noted thatusers can generate a consumer esti-mate that translates the collisionestimate to a consumer-friendlysummary that explains the repairsusing images and consumer text.This can be used by the A-Plus fa-cilities to explain the repair andbetter serve the vehicle owners, aswell as insurance users to betterserve their insureds by providing

consumer-friendly documentation.The new portal also includes an

e-Coupon program where partsand other vendors can present ad-ditional instant discounts or re-bates to A-Plus facilities as anincentive to do business with them.

The Sherwin-Williams Automo-tive Finishes A-Plus Network haslong been affiliated with Vehicle-OwnersGuide.com, with membersvisiting its estimating analysistool, EstimateScrubber.com. This isused in the repair planningprocess by prompting estimatorsto include commonly omitteditems and better identify the re-pair cost associated with estimateline entries.

Open Claims Gateway and Esti-mateScrubber.com are compatiblewith most estimating systems usedby the leading insurance compa-nies and allow repair shops toprint a PDF file of an UltraMate,Pathways or Audatex estimate.When this estimate printout is up-loaded to EstimateScrubber.com,the A-Plus Network member shopreceives a free, detailed P-pageanalysis.


www.bodyshopbusiness.com 109Circle 109 for Reader Service


WIX Filters and O’Reilly AutoParts, partners with Tomorrow’sTech as title sponsors for the “2013School of the Year” competition,have announced the Top 20 schoolsselected from nearly 160 entrantsin the U.S.

“This year’s nominations are areminder that technical schoolsacross the U.S. continue to embraceautomotive training as part of theircurriculum,” said Mike Harvey,brand manager for WIX Filters.“These skills are critical to autotechnicians being trained in newtechnologies required to service to-day’s high-tech, complex vehiclesystems.”

The Top 20 schools are:

Region 1� Assabet Valley Regional

Technical High School –Marlboro, Mass.

� Elizabethtown Technical andCommunity College –Elizabethtown, Ky.

� Lincoln College of Technology –Columbia, Md.

� Windham Technical HighSchool – Willimantic, Conn.

� Lakewood High School –Lakewood, Ohio

� Sinclair Community College –Dayton, Ohio

Region 2� Lincoln College of Technology –

Indianapolis, Ind.

� Hoffman Estates High School –Hoffman Estates, Ill.

� Northwest Iowa CommunityCollege – Sheldon, Iowa

� Baker College – Flint, Mich.� Fox Valley Technical College –

Appleton, Wis.

Region 3� San Jacinto College – Pasadena,

Texas� R.L. Turner Automotive

Technology – Carrollton, Texas� Eastern Oklahoma County

Technology Center – Choctaw,Okla.

� Crowley’s Ridge TechnicalInstitute – Forrest City, Ark.

� Southeast Community College –Milford, Neb.


110 October 2013 | BodyShop BusinessCircle 110 for Reader Service Circle 130 for Reader Service

WIX Announces Top 20 Schools in

2013 School of the Year Competition


www.bodyshopbusiness.com 111Circle 111 for Reader Service Circle 131 for Reader Service

Region 4� Salt Lake Community College –

Salt Lake City, Utah� Rio Hondo College – Whittier,

Calif.� Westwood College – Denver,

Colo.� Pocatello High School –

Pocatello, Idaho

“The ‘School of the Year’ competi-tion has been a great success, and weare thrilled with the quality of en-trants this year,” said Jeff Stankard,publisher of Tomorrow’s Tech, a Bab-cox Media publication for automo-tive students. “Babcox andTomorrow’s Tech share O’Reilly AutoParts’ and WIX Filters’ support todedicated students vying to be thefuture leaders in this industry.

“The annual contest is a greatway to recognize automotiveschools and highlight their instruc-

tors’ dedication in training the nextgeneration of auto repairers, colli-sion specialists and heavy-dutyservice personnel. We look forwardto more opportunities to rewardstudents’ and instructors’ commit-ment to automotive excellence.”

This year marks the sixth year ofthe national contest to find andname the best technician trainingschool in the country. The programis open to all high schools or post-secondary schools that have a sub-scription to Tomorrow’s Tech. Of the158 entries for the 2013 contest, 60were from different high schools,technical schools and colleges.

The Top 20 schools have beenasked to submit a video highlight-ing their tech programs by Sept. 23.Judges will review the video entriesand select four finalists; the winnerwill be selected from the four final-ists and announced in October.

The winning school will receivea visit by Tomorrow’s Tech staff andprogram sponsors; $2,500 WIX Fil-ters donation to the school’s pro-gram; O’Reilly and WIX Filtersgear (hats, backpacks, key chains,shop banners and T-shirts, productsamples); and an appearance by ei-ther the WIX or O’Reilly AutoParts mobile marketing unit. In ad-dition, the winning school’s in-structor and guest will travel toLas Vegas and attend a Babcox Me-dia recognition dinner at AAPEXin November.

Each school that is nominatedwill receive national recognitionon Tomorrow’s Tech’s website, aswell as through social media out-lets. Schools that are selected tothe Final Four receive a profes-sional automotive tool set and a $250 gift card from O’Reilly Auto Parts.

Mitchell has announced the avail-ability of RepairCenter ReputationManager. The new package offer-ing combines real-time text andemail updates with advanced cus-tomer insights from satisfactionsurveys and social media data toimprove repair shop and vehicleowner processes.

The new bundle provides repairshops with the tools to increase re-peat business and referrals by pro-

viding actionable insight into thecustomer experience, according tothe company. Mitchell says that byadding the dimension of onlinecustomer satisfaction surveys andincorporating reporting and ana-lytics technology, repair shops cannow better identify steps duringthe repair process that can be im-proved.

“Customer retention and busi-ness growth go hand in hand, but

until recently, repair shops haven’thad the breadth of automated toolsneeded to improve upon the cus-tomer experience,” said Anlin Sethi,senior manager of product manage-ment, auto physical damage solu-tions. “By incorporating real-timeinteraction and engagement, along-side robust survey analytics, Repu-tation Manager allows repair shopsto improve their reputation andbuild stronger customer bases.”

RepairCenter Reputation Man-ager features a Text Analytics En-gine and Customer SentimentDashboard that provide actionabledata from open-ended surveyquestions and social media chatter.

“The dashboard is a very quickand easy way to see how your busi-ness is performing,” said Kelly Raz,director of operations for Kadel’sAuto Body in Portland, Ore. “Whentechnology can provide the analysisfor us and there is no need to spendhours reading a bunch of surveys,that is a good thing.”

In addition, Reputation Managerwill include Mitchell’s Repair-Center Web Status tool, a commu-nications feature that keepscustomers informed throughoutthe repair process. Web Status al-lows shops to communicate thestatus of a repair to customers viaan online Web portal, email or textmessage.




Mitchell Launches RepairCenter Reputation Manager

The Atlas Copco Group (AtlasCopco AB) has been included inthe Dow Jones Sustainability Indexfor the third consecutive year.

“Sustainable productivity lies atthe heart of Atlas Copco’s commit-ment to innovation and growth,”said Jim Levitt, president, AtlasCopco North America LLC. “Wecontinually strive to increase pro-ductivity in ways that make a posi-tive impact on society and theenvironment, and we are honoredto be included in the Dow JonesSustainability Index again in 2013.”

Inclusion in the SustainabilityIndex is based on annual compa-ny assessments and comparisonto industry peers. Key factors inthis review include managementof opportunities and associated

risk that are derived from eco-nomic, environmental and socialdevelopments. Corporate gover-nance and strategy, as well as keyperformance indicators like emis-sion and waste, are also takeninto consideration.

Earlier this year, Atlas Copco

was named a “leader” in theFTSE4Good Index, which meas-ures globally recognized corporateresponsibility standards in envi-ronmental, social and governancepractices. Atlas Copco is also amember of the Top 100 GlobalSustainable Companies and isranked one of the world’s mostethical companies by the Ethi-sphere Institute.


www.bodyshopbusiness.com 113Circle 113 for Reader Service Circle 133 for Reader Service

Atlas Copco Included in Dow Jones SustainabilityIndex for Third Consecutive Year

LKQ Corporation Announces Grand Prize Winner of 2014 Car Calendar Contest

LKQ Corporation has selected the winners of its 2014 LKQ Car Calendar Con-

test. Car enthusiasts had the opportunity to be featured as one of 14 finalists

in the 2014 calendar.

The grand prize winner is Ubaldo Bosques of Jacksonville, Fla., for his

entry of a 1963 Volkswagen Double Cab. He will receive an expenses-paid trip

to the 2013 SEMA Show in Las Vegas, along with a feature on the cover of the

2014 LKQ Car Calendar, a limited edition Car Calendar T-shirt and a 24-by-

36-inch poster of his winning entry.

Chief University, the training armof Chief Automotive Technologies,has added 12 classes to its fourthquarter schedule, including threemore sessions of its Design BasedRepair course.

Already, 11 of the 34 total classesscheduled for October, Novemberand December have been filled, soregister soon to secure a seat in a

remaining session. Courses com-bine classroom learning withhands-on training using recentlydamaged vehicles.

Most Chief University classescost $655 and include comprehen-sive training materials and certifi-cates of completion. StructuralDamage Analysis is a three-daycourse that costs $985. The courses

are led by professional Chief certi-fied instructors and approved for I-CAR credit hours through theI-CAR Industry Training Allianceprogram. Chief training also hasbeen certified by the National Insti-tute for Automotive Service Excel-lence (ASE) for compliance withthe Continuing Automotive ServiceEducation (CASE) Standards.



Chief University Expands Fourth Quarter Training Schedule

AkzoNobel Announces2013 FIT SustainabilityAward Winners

AkzoNobel Automotive & Aero-space Coatings Americas (A&AC)has announced the recipients of thefourth annual AkzoNobel FIT Sus-tainability Award for 2013.

The winners include:� Given’s Collision Repair Center,

Inc. – Fredrick, Md.� Collision Repair Education

Foundation – Hoffman Estates, Ill.� Haury’s Lake City Collision –

Seattle, Wash.“We are delighted to recognize

these leaders with the FIT Award,”said A&AC Americas Director ofMarketing Laura Costello. “Fromensuring that the collision repair in-dustry has an ongoing, well-trainedand educated workforce to newprocesses implemented in repaircenters targeting the reduction ofwaste and an improved carbonfootprint, these thought leaders aredoing their part to actively modeland guide personnel and colleagueson the long-term impact that sus-tainable practices can have on ourenvironment, the people around us,and business profitability.”

The winners will be invited to par-ticipate in the third annual AkzoNo-bel Sustainability LeadershipSymposium at the 2013 SEMA Show.

• Communicate with BodyShop Businesseditorial team

• Learn about promotions/contests• Live trade show coverage

ProductShowcase

Add Versatility toYour VacuumThe VaccUFlex kit consistsof two specially engineeredthermoplastic rubber capsthat easily attach towet/dry, upright or canistervacuum hoses, enabling the use of four sizes of small-diameter flexibletubing. The tubing will not collapse with vacuuming, and the caps’ de-sign ensures VaccUFlex will not become clogged. The tube end is softenough to shape with ordinary scissors, enabling it to clean angled oroddly shaped areas. VaccUFlexwww.vaccuflex.com


Flexible WaterbornePrimer for Plastics

Hydroflex Plus Primer is aunique waterborne acrylic ure-thane primer surface designedfor a wide range of plastics. Itcan withstand abuse and impacton a bumper cover and preventcracking while providing excel-

lent fill. It comes ready to spray,with no mixing or reducer required.Transtar Autobody Technologieswww.tat-co.com


Retro Parts for Older Fordsand ChevysFloors, rockers, door bottoms, quarter-inch trunk floors, tail pans, floor braces,and other retro parts are now availablefor 1935-1958 Ford models and 1935-1954 Chevy models. Thse high-qualityproducts are die stamped from 18-gauge steel and include all OEMshapes, curves and grooves.EMS Automotivewww.emsautomotive.com


Create Nearly Every Vehicle Color Specifically designed for repainting cars, Serie 500 is atintometric system that uses highly concentrated colorbases that are mixed with different binders to achieveproducts that can be used in basecoat or single-stagesystems. It has 68 color bases that can be used to createnearly every vehicle color.Bernardo Ecenarro S.A. (BESA)www.bernardoecenarro.com



Quality Air BreathingSystemThe Model 50 SL System will pro-vide Grade “D” Breathable Air for aNIOSH approved respirator. Withthe provided 54-inch tool air hose,the system can also supply air for aspray gun. Complete with a four-stage filtration system, the Model50 SL System filters the air whilethe on-board carbon monoxidemonitor continuously checks the airquality for compliance with thecurrent OSHA standards. The sys-tems are available with 35-inch and50-inch single line hose assembly.Martech Services Companywww.breathingsystems.com


»| Product Showcase |«

High Capacity ScaleDesigned for 5-gallon mixes,PMA.Power EX is a high-capacity/high-resolution scale with a stable0.1g readability through the entireweighing range. It is ideal forshops that primarily do fleet accounts and require increasedreadability for dense high solids,pearls and whites.Sartoriuswww.sartorius.us



Precisely EqualizedLiftingThe 3,500-lb. capacity QuickJackportable jack system collapses to a3-inch profile and can be raised totwo feet in less than 10 seconds.The QuickJack provides an open-

center design, rugged safety lockbars, remote pendant control on a20-foot cord, quick-connect hosesand a built-in flow divider for pre-cisely equalized lifting. The systemcomes with an eight-piece set ofrubber lift blocks, positioning han-dles and a mini portable hydraulicpower unit that runs off standard110-volt current. A 12-volt DC unitis also available.BendPakwww.bendpak.com


Easily RemoveTrim PiecesThe Trim Scraper Set is acompilation of 12 piecesincluding a heavy-dutybody panel clip remover that provides more leverage on tough-to-remove clips and 11 hard plastic pieces that are double-sided to offera wider range of options. Designed to easily and simply remove inte-rior and exterior trim pieces, the set helps remove a variety of materi-als ranging from tough to delicate safely to avoid ordering new parts. Dent Fix Equipmentwww.dentfix.com


Compressed Air FilterDesigned to operate most effectively when placed nearthe point of use, the 5 Micron Compressed Air Filter of-fers a two-stage filtration system that clears out all un-wanted debris. The filter is available in sizes with flowranges of 15 SCFM to 250 SCFM and pressure ratings ofup to 250 PSI. Equipped with a permanently mounteddifferential pressure gauge and mounting brackets, thefilter can be helpful in such applications as surface prepa-ration, paint spraying, pneumatically operated equip-ment and many more. Walmec North Americawww.walmecna.com


Collision VendingSolutionAs the only cloud-based, automat-ed, secure inventory control systemfor collision centers, CollisionVendis Internet based, always availableand integrated with ComCept.netjobber management and OrderLinx

inventory control systems. The integration of the two systems allows foraccurate pricing and automatic ordering in real time. The browser-basedreporting also allows for inventory usage reporting by repair order, tech-nician, machine and location. ComCept Solutionswww.comcept.net


AFC Air Filtration Co. 46Aframe Spray Booths 85Airomax/U.S.Body Products 94Airvantage Tools Inc. 54Amerex Corporation 112American Honda Motor Co. 27Anest Iwata USA 53Atlas Copco Compressors LLC 105Automotive Mgmt Institute 113Axalta Coating Systems 5BASF Corporation InsertBendPak 109, InsertBernardo Ecenarro 14-15Big Sky 104Blair 42BMW 41Campbell Hausfeld 102CCC 24, 104Cebotech Inc. 80Certified Auto Parts Association 19ChemSpec USA 33Chief Automotive 56CJJ Inc. 88Col-Met Spraybooths 17Crash-writeR InsertDent Fix Equipment 11Dent Magic Tools 112Driven Brands Inc/MAACO 82DV Systems 44, 95Dynabrade Inc. 113Eagle Abrasives 84, 100Eurovac 109Evercoat 3

Farecla Inc. 4FBS Distribution Co Inc. 67FS Curtis 58Garmat USA 6-7Global Finishing Solutions 31, 76Goffs Curtain Walls 55Herkules Equipment Corp. 36I-CAR 37Induction Innovations 74Innovative Tools & Technologies, Inc. 23Island Clean Air 86Kaeser Compressors 43, 76Klean-Strip Automotive 69Lancer Insurance Company 60LiftMaster 91Lincoln Electric Co. 71, 77Logicar Inc. 74, 77Malco Products 9Martech Services Co. 108Martin Tool & Forge/ Martin Sprocket & Gear, Inc.114Masters School of Autobody 48Matrix System Automotive Finishes LLC 21, 103Maxzone Auto Parts Corp. 101Mitchell International 18Mobile Spray Technology 40Motor Guard Corp. 106NAPA 99Nissan Motor Corp. USA 81NRD LLC 110O’Reilly Auto Parts 97Performance Gateway 106PPG Industries 89PPG Industries 2nd Cover - 1

Pro Spot International Cover 3Pro-Spray 61RBL Products 49, 90Reflex Truck Liners 24Rubber-Seal Products 22S.A.I.M.A. Of N America 59Safety Regulation Strategies 107Sartorius 50, 102Sata Spray Equipment 87Scorpion Truck Bed Linings 78, 108Sherwin-Williams Company 45Shop-Pro Equipment 51Southern Polyurethanes 73Spanesi 29Spray Tech 75Steck Mfg. Co. 107Suburban Mfg. 110Sunmight Abrasives 98TG Products 96Tite Spot Welders 111Toyota Cover 4Transtar Autobody Technologies 65, 78TYC/Genera Corp. 93UniCure Spray Booths 39, 77Urethane Supply Co. 63U.S. Chemical 83Valspar/Debeer 79Volkswagen Parts & Accessories 38Walmec North America 111Wedge Clamp Systems, Inc. 47Zendex Tool Corporation 28

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We hear it can get pretty hot in Arizona.I moved here in 1989 from Oklahoma at the

end of October, and I thought it was the

best thing in the world. It was dry and

70 degrees during the day and low

60s at night. But that next summer I

had a rude awakening. A record

high of 123 degrees was recorded at

the airport. It was my first summer

here, and the most brutal, too.

Are you a Diamondbacks fan?No, I’m more into college sports

because I didn’t grow up with any pro-

fessional teams in Oklahoma. I’m an

Oklahoma State fan.

So how did you go from being apastry chef to a collision specialist?I went from the kitchen to food and bev-

erage management to resort manage-

ment, which then led to resort

development construction. From there, I

built subdivisions. I caught the residen-

tial construction boom just perfect and

got out just in time and was looking for a

way to hedge my bet. Besides, my wife

was ready to kill me for staying at home!

So I thought investing in a collision shop

would be a pretty good thing because

people still wreck cars and I saw a ton of

opportunity from the customer experience

side of things. Growing up with the Ritz-

Carlton and Sheraton, they beat that cus-

tomer service into you constantly, so every

time I look at organizations, the first thing

I think about is how much opportunity

might be on that front.

Which do you enjoy the most, bakingor cooking?I don’t bake much. My daughter had her

birthday recently, and I had my former

assistant pastry chef make the cake for me.

With baking, you have to have all the right

equipment to do it – the ovens, scales, etc. I

don’t have that at my home anymore. And

baking is a science – it’s a lot more

difficult than cooking. Pastry chefs

always say that anybody can stand

behind a grill and pull

something off it. But I do enjoy

cooking, especially around the

holidays.

What are your favoritethings to cook? I’m heavily French influ-

enced because that’s the

way I was classically

trained, so I’m a big lamb

fan. Also, anything related to

Thanksgiving.

Since you’re the cook, do all ofthe cooking responsibilities at

home fall on you?This is bad, but we typically only eat at

home on Wednesday nights. My daugh-

ter is very active in ballet and also off

the charts with math, so we’re constantly

going to tutoring sessions and ballet

classes around town. So neither my wife

nor I cook at all except for weekends when

we’ll have big parties. But it’s she who han-

dles the Wednesday night meal, not me.

What do you do to relax?I really like science and trying to

understand physics and looking at how

the big picture and the big solar sys-

tem interplays with the small, nano,

atomic scale. I like trying to figure out

the link between those and why there is no

golden formula we can apply to the super

small as well as the super large. BSB

TheShopDaren PierseOwnerArizona Collision Specialists � Scottsdale, Ariz.


BodyShop Business, October 2013

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