In the past, technicians typically went online at night after work. Our goal is to help technicians sharpen their skills and support shop owners while they prepare for an economic rebound. We launched our 3M online platform in 2018. In March, we introduced a webinar series for the industry and we have more than 25 on-demand classes for techs. We also host one-hour “how-to” webinars multiple times per week and post them on YouTube. The sessions focus on a deeper understanding of body shop processes and procedures. I don’t think we’ll ever replace the need for physical training at our
are using their cars, that’s changing. We’re still going to birthday parties, but we have drive-by birthday parties. We’re going to church, but staying in our cars. In the 1950s, people looked forward to going to a drive-in movie or restaurant. Using the car was passion-driven. Today, and especially with the COVID-19 situation, cars are becoming our safe haven. Recent surveys show that people are going to be driving more after the pandemic and avoiding the use of mass transit and shared mobility due to hygiene concerns. When we think about getting into someone else’s car, we’re not sure if it has been sanitized. However, we have comfort in knowing that our cars have been cleaned. Another reason is due to congestion. For many years, there was a big push to use mass transit to reduce consumption. But now the question is becoming: do 3M is directing a majority of respirators produced to health you want to be safe or worry care workers and first responders, followed by critical about causing congestion? national infrastructure All of this is positive for internal centers, but we’ve found the collision repair industry. We need that you can do a lot of training on- to continue watching these trends closely and prepare for the future. line. We also launched an application, I understand that sometimes it “Ask Me Anything,” where techni- feels like it is going to take forevcians can reach out to 3M on the fly er. But if you look back in history, I and have a company representative think the auto aftermarket recovers answer questions in a timely manner. much faster than other sectors. People don’t need to buy anything; they What are some of the most just get back in their cars and begin significant changes you’ve to drive. seen over the last few months? How is 3M supporting the inAs the economy is opendustry as it gets ready to ramp ing back up across the U.S., up again? we’re seeing the return of miles driven faster than we were expectIt is important for us to track ing. People are getting out and startthe market and be ready for ing to drive. I think that’s good news the rebound. We want to make sure and an encouraging sign for our in- that we have the right products available and the support the industry dustry. Depending on the part of coun- needs to service customers. try, miles driven are about 75% to Prior to COVID-19, 3M was 85% of what they were pre-COVID always committed to balanced disand are continuing to increase. The tribution of respirators to our existRV industry is also recovering quite ing industrial, retail and health care customers. well, and sales are up. In this unprecedented crisis, 3M If you think about how people
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tailed information on our website showing examples of how to use sanitizer on a vehicle based on information from the CDC. You would think it’s intuitive, but for some of these chemicals to work, they have to saturate or stay wet for a certain amount of time. If we can help assure customers that their cars will come back safe, clean and sanitized, then consumer confidence will help drive additional repairs. We’re a trusted leader in this industry and work 3M’s global headquarters is located in Saint Paul, MN hard to serve the needs of ture during the pandemic. customers. For the automotive af 3M is also going to be launching termarket division, our strategy and two new products for sanitization over vision are to create the future of the next couple of months. They have care and repair with our customers been thoroughly tested to ensure they and industry partners. We’re in the are safe to use on automotive interi- industry for the long-term and want ors. When developing the products, everyone to know that we’re in this we took into account efficiency and together. productivity in the shop because we understand that every minute counts For more information about 3M’s during a repair and want to create the training resources, visit: https:// most value for our market. www.3m.com/3M/en_US/learning Since safety and sanitization is marketplace/automotive-academy/ top of mind right now, we have de- collision-repair/. is directing a substantial majority of the respirators we produce to our heroic and courageous health care workers and first responders, followed by critical national infrastruc-
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