Northeastern Norrtheastern Edition E d i t i on Connecticut Delaware Maine Maryland Massachusetts New Hampshire
New Jersey New York Pennsylvania Rhode Island Vermont
35
YEARS
www.autobodynews.com ww ww.autobodynews.com
PPG Confirms Interest in AkzoNobel, So Far ‘No’ PPG confirmed on March 10 that it made an attractive and comprehensive proposal to Akzo Nobel N.V. on March 2, 2017, inviting AkzoNobel to enter into negotiations with PPG on a potential transaction to form a combined company, which AkzoNobel rejected. PPG continues to believe there is a strong strategic rationale for the proposed transaction between PPG and AkzoNobel. Michael McGarry, chairman and CEO of PPG, said, “PPG has long admired AkzoNobel’s businesses, global presence, culture and principles as well as its advances in innovative product development and sustainable business practices. We believe a combination of our two companies is a very compelling strategic opportunity. We are
confident that this combination is in the best interests of the stakeholders of both companies as it presents a unique opportunity to build on the successful legacies of our businesses. PPG has carefully considered the interest of all AkzoNobel stakeholders including shareholders, employees, customers and the communities it serves and has proposed its willingness to enter into serious commitments in respect of all stakeholders.” “Strategically, the combination of PPG and AkzoNobel would deliver an enhanced global player in paints, coatings and specialty materials, combining complementary products, technologies and geographies, and would create a stronger competitor in a highly competitive global market.”
Robert Pizarro And Juan Rivera Charged In Violent Robbery And Kidnapping of Bronx Shop Owner
Manhattan Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said: “As alleged, Robert Pizarro and Juan Rivera robbed, terrorized, and ultimately killed 36-yearold Robert Bishun. Today’s arrests mark the end of an exhaustive investigation by the DEA, the NYPD, and the New York State Police, and the beginning of justice for Bishun’s family.” DEA Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Division James J. Hunt said: “This investigation led law enforcement through a violent series of events leading to a murder by strangulation. The New York Drug Enforcement Task Force’s REDRUM See Bronx Shop Murder, Page 33
Change Service Requested
P.O. BOX 1516, CARLSBAD, CA 92018
Joon H. Kim, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, James J. Hunt, Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York Field Division of the Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), George P. Beach II, the Superintendent of the New York State Police (“NYSP”), and James P. O’Neill, the Police Commissioner of the City of New York (“NYPD”), announced the arrest of Robert Pizarro and Juan Rivera on charges of kidnapping conspiracy, kidnapping resulting in death, robbery conspiracy, robbery, and firearms offenses. The defendants have been remanded and remain in custody.
VOL. 8 ISSUE 1 APRIL 2017
23-Year-Old Female Shop Owner Runs the Show at Chesapeake, VA, Maaco by Chasidy Rae Sisk
Inge, owned the shop for over 30 years, and I was always very interested in how the vehicles changed from entry to completion. I felt amazed by
The collision repair industry is known for being a male-dominated industry, and with the increasing need for young professionals to enter the industry, it’s refreshing to meet Katie Inge, a 23-year-old shop owner in Chesapeake, VA. Inge’s passion for cars transcends any question of her place in this industry and proves that women have an important perspective to bring and role to play as we move into the future; it’s not Katie Inge with her father just a man’s world anymore! the process and couldn’t help but apInge grew up in her father’s preciate how much work goes into reMaaco Collision and Repair Center, spending weekends in the shop where pairing the vehicles.” she learned about the entire process, In high school, Inge participated in from painting to sanding to finishing a work-study program which allowed See 23-yo Shop Owner, Page 10 the vehicle. Inge recalls, “My dad, A.J.
NH Attorney General Accuses Used Car Dealer of Selling Unsafe Vehicles Without Notice Attorney General Joseph A. Foster announced that his office brought a consumer protection enforcement action against Platinum Auto Brokers, Inc., formerly located in Nashua, now doing business as Derry Auto Brokers. The Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Bureau received multiple complaints that Platinum Auto Brokers sold unsafe and uninspected motor vehicles without providing the buyers with a Notice of Sale of Unsafe Motor Vehicle or advising them of their right to have the car inspected with the defects noted on the form as is required by RSA 358-F. The company failed to remove old inspection stickers prior to the sale and failed to inform their customers that the car they bought was unsafe for operation on the roads of New Hampshire. The company also failed to provide buyers with the federally
mandated Buyer’s Guide. The Consumer Protection Act prohibits any unfair or deceptive act or practice in the conduct of trade or commerce within this state. . The Attorney General brought a complaint for unfair or deceptive trade practices and Platinum Auto Brokers agreed to resolve the complaint with a settlement document called a consent judgment. The Hillsborough County Superior Court approved that settlement on February 3, 2017. Under the terms of the consent judgment, Platinum Auto Brokers must provide any buyer of an uninspected motor vehicle with a copy of the Notice of Sale of Unsafe Motor Vehicle form, signed by both the buyer and salesperson, and a federally mandated Buyer’s Guide which contains any warranty terms of the sale. See NH Action, Page 39
Presorted Standard US Postage PAID San Bernardino, CA Permit #2244
2 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
COLUMNISTS Attanasio - Only WyoTech Grads Work at Richard Wood Kustoms . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 Attanasio - RGI Spray Booths Celebrates Grand Opening of New Tracy, CA Location . . . . . 24 Attanasio - She’s Retired, But Not Out of the Game: The Story of “Collisionista” . . . 30 Attanasio - There’s No Free Lunch When it Comes to Your Website . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Luehr - How to Create Loyal Customers . . . . 50 Phillips - Award-Winning CA Dealership Collision Center Says Employee Satisfaction and Customer Satisfaction Are One in the Same. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 Phillips - George Avery Shares Thoughts on Direct Repair Programs: From the Cradle to the Grave?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Yoswick - Survey Shows How Regularly Shops Get Paid for Shop Supplies, Aluminum Labor Rates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Yoswick - What Happened to the MSO that Pledged to Double In Size by Making the Insurer the Customer? . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 NATIONAL 2017 ASCCA/CalABC/CAA Joint Legislative Day April 25 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 2017 MSO Symposium Registration is Open, Agenda Released . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 23-Year-Old Female Shop Owner Runs the Show at Chesapeake, VA, Maaco . . . . . 1 3M Automotive Aftermarket Division Deploys New Mobile D.E.M.O. Trailer . . . . 28 AASP-MA Annual BBQ Event to be Held
on May 12, 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Accepting Nominations for the 2017 Mort Schwartz Excellence in Education Award . . 69 Advanced Technology & Diagnostic Repair Forum to Launch at NACE Automechanika. . 20 ASA: Maine Bills Threaten to Dismantle Safety Inspection Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Automotive Refinish Coatings Market Analysis, Segments, Growth and Value Chain 2015-2025 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Body Filler & Banana Skins . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 California Backs Down on Self-Driving Car Rules, DMW Says No Steering Wheel Needed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 California Lobbyist Jack Molodanof Updates CAA on Labor Rate Surveys, 2017 Laws . . 42 CCC Information Services Inc. Publishes 2017 Crash Course Report. . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Co-Defendants Plead Guilty in CA Insurance “Scratch Out” Fraud Scheme . . . . . . . . . . 27 Collision Industry Provides $12M+ to Schools, Students in 2016 Through Collision Repair Education Foundation. . . . 21 Equipment and Tool Institute Releases Position Statement on Pre- and Post-Repair System Scanning. . . . . . . . . . 69 I-CAR Announces 2017 International Board of Directors, Presents Joe Laurentino With Founder’s Award . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 I-CAR Announces Nationwide Initiative to Hold Classes in Technical Schools & Colleges . . 18 March 31 Deadline for Applications for NABC Executive Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 NACE Automechanika Chicago Education to Focus on Current Trends, Technologies and Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 National AutoBody Research to Launch New California Labor Rate Survey. . . . . . . 68 Oregon Collision Programs Seeking Donation to Help Educate Students . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Phillips - Pro Spot Hosts CREF Career Fair, Helping Students and Potential Employers Connect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Phillips - Ten Ways to Find Top Talent for Your Shop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Polyvance Releases R08 PPE+PS Plastic Welding Rod. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 PPG Debuts TouchMix® XI Touchscreen Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 PPG Holding Sold Out MVP Conference in Scottsdale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Self-driving Nissan Leaf Takes to Europe’s Streets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Sherwin-Williams Announces 2017 Second Quarter Training Schedule. . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Shop Owner Stabbed Because of Delayed Oil Change: Police . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Spanesi Americas Continues Expansion in the Rockies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 There is Still Time to Support 3M’s Hire Our Heroes Fundraiser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Uber Gets Calif. Permit to Test Robotic Cars . . 4 WIN 2017 Conference Registration Opens, Agenda Announced . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Women’s Industry Network Announces Winners of the 2017 Most Influential Women in Collision Repair Award . . . . . . . 71
The open meeting will be immediately followed by SCRS’ annual election for open seats on the board of directors. The election will begin at 5:15pm and ballot collection will close promptly at 5:45pm. On Wednesday, SCRS will be hosting the Repairer Roundtable meeting from 8:30am - 11:00am in the Waterfront room. The Roundtable is intended to stimulate open discussion among the participants in the room. The 2017 event is going to focus on current and future technology evolutions that have direct impact on collision repairer’s approach to modern day repairs. For more visit www.scrs.com.
Publisher & Editor: Jeremy Hayhurst General Manager: Barbara Davies Online Editor and Copywriter: Deana Cacus Contributing Writers: Tom Franklin, David Brown, John Yoswick, Janet Chaney, Toby Chess, Ed Attanasio, Chasidy Sisk, David Luehr, Stacey Phillips, Victoria Antonelli Advertising Sales: Joe Momber, Sean Hartman, Bill Doyle, Norman Morano (800) 699-8251 Office Manager: Louise Tedesco Sales Assistant: Jessica Day Content/Social Media Specialist: Cass Heckel Art Director: Rodolfo Garcia Graphic Designer: Michelle Lucas
Acura of Westchester . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Amato Agency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Atlantic Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Audi Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 68 Axalta Coating Systems . . . . . . . . . . 2 Bald Hill Chrysler-Jeep-DodgeRam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Bergey’s Wholesale Parts . . . . . . . . 31 BMW Wholesale Parts Dealers . 62-63 Cadillac of Mahwah . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 CarcoonAmerica Airflow Systems. . 44 Central Avenue Chrysler-JeepDodge-Ram. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Certified Automotive Parts Association (CAPA). . . . . . . . . . . 35 ChemSpec USA, LLC . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Clinton Acura . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 Collision Equipment Consulting, Inc. 32 Colonial Automotive Group . . . . . . 47 DJS Fabrications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Eco Repair Systems of North America, LLC . . . . . . . . . . 23 ECS Automotive Concepts . . . . . . . 28 Empire Auto Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Equalizer Industries, Inc . . . . . . . . . . 9 Fitzgerald’s Lakeforest HyundaiSubaru. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Ford Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 66 Fred Beans Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 Fuccillo Kia of Schenectady . . . . . . 43 GM Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . 59 GYS Welding USA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Heritage Chrysler-Jeep-DodgeRAM Owings Mills . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Herkules Equipment Corporation. . 12 Honda-Acura Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36-37 Hyundai Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 71 Infiniti of Norwood. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Insta Finish Car Care . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Kia Motors Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Killer Tools & Equipment. . . . . . . . . 17 Koeppel Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Serving New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Northern Virginia, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and adjacent metro areas. Autobody News is a monthly publication for the autobody industry. Permission to reproduce in any form the material published in Autobody News must be obtained in writing from the publisher. ©2017 Adamantine Media LLC. Autobody News P.O. Box 1516, Carlsbad, CA 92018 (800) 699-8251 (760) 603-3229 Fax www.autobodynews.com Email: news@autobodynews.com
Northeast
REGIONAL Alan’s Collision Center Renews Mercedes-Benz Certification; Invests $80,000 in Equipment Upgrade, Technician Training . . . . . . . . . . 10 Ben’s Auto Body Celebrates 85 Years in Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Fire Heavily Damages Auto Body Shop in MD . . 6 Greenwich-Based Mobile Auto Body 101 Brings the Body Shop to Your Driveway . . 12 H&V Collision Center to Team Up with Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany for Easter Party April 12 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 New Collision Repair, Body Shop Opens in Carver, MA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 NH Attorney General Accuses Used Car Dealer of Selling Unsafe Vehicles Without Notice . . 1 Orchard Park Community Members Step up to Clear Spray-Painted Swastikas . . . . . . . . 9 Owner Eyeing Former Auto Shop on Rt. 30 in Plainfield, IL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Owner of Rio Auto Body in NJ Serves as Keynote Speaker for Career Day At Local School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Pittsburgh, PA, to Host Several SCRS Events in April - RSVP by April 12. . . . . . . . 3 Robert Pizarro And Juan Rivera Charged In Violent Robbery And Kidnapping of Bronx Shop Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Stamford Firefighters Forced To Break Into Auto Body Shop To Attack Blaze . . . . . . . . . 8 Staten Island Body Shop Celebrates Women in Leadership with Release of New Video. . 15
On Tuesday, April 18th, the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) will hold an open board meeting from 3:00 - 5:00pm in the Grand Station 3 room at the Sheraton Station Square in Pittsburgh, PA. Everyone wishing to learn more about the association’s industry work is encouraged to attend. The two hour meeting will include updates from SCRS staff, committees, and guests from the industry sharing what they have undertaken on behalf of the membership. At the conclusion of the open meeting, SCRS will premiere the next installment of the SCRS video series.
Indexof Advertisers
Contents
Pittsburgh, PA, to Host Several SCRS Events in April - RSVP by April 12
Long Automotive Group . . . . . . . . . 65 Lynnes Auto Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 Mazda Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 52 McGovern Chrysler-Jeep-DodgeRam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Mercedes-Benz of Atlantic City. . . . 55 Mercedes-Benz of Fort Washington . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Mercedes-Benz of West Chester . . 55 Mercedes-Benz of Wilmington . . . . 56 Mercedes-Benz Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 MINI Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 60 Mitsubishi Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 MOPAR Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 41 Nissan/Infiniti Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Nucar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Polyvance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Porsche Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 46 Prima Welds, Inc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Providence Lacquer & Supply Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 SATA Dan-Am Company . . . . . . . . 13 Security Dodge-Chrysler-JeepRam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32, 33 Spanesi Americas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Subaru of Morristown . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Subaru Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 64 Tasca Automotive Group . . . . . . . . 29 Toyota of Morristown . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Toyota Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 54 Valspar Automotive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 VIP Honda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Volkswagen Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Westbury Jeep-Chrysler-DodgeRam-SRT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Wizards Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Yellow Jacket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Yonkers Kia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 3
California Backs Down on Self-Driving Car Rules, DMW Says No Steering Wheel Needed
California has relaxed several rules on self-driving cars as the state tries to maintain its status as a leader in the field. Alphabet, then Google, had a very public reaction to the original requirement that all vehicles have provisions for drivers and steering wheels. The state’s Department of Motor Vehicles released proposed regulations for autonomous vehicles, dropping an earlier requirement that a human driver had to be present while testing on public roads. The DMV also backed down on a previous rule that vehicles needed a steering wheel and pedals for the operator to take back control. “When we think of driverless vehicles they can either have conventional controls, which are steering wheels, pedals, things like that, or they cannot,” said California DMV Chief Counsel Brian Soublet during a conference call with reporters. If companies test vehicles without conventional controls, they have to show the California DMV that they have approval from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, he added. NHTSA said in early 2016 that self-driving software systems, not just humans, can be con-
sidered drivers. “If California was going to keep that level of development activity in the state, what they did was necessary and timely,” said Eric Noble, president of The CarLab, an automotive consulting firm. “They kind of had to do it because at some point manufacturers can’t move autonomous vehicles forward without getting controls out of cars.” California’s change of heart is likely good news for Mountain View, California-based Alphabet Inc., which is developing self-driving software and vehicles through its Waymo division. When the state’s DMV published draft regulations in late 2015 that required human drivers, a steering wheel and pedals, the company was “gravely disappointed.” Google had recently built prototypes with no steering wheel or pedals, and it had to retrofit them to continue testing in California. Californi’s new proposals follow a Michigan law passed in December, which allowed testing with no human driver. It also created a framework for selling autonomous cars which the California DMV also added to its proposed rules.
New Transportation Secretary Re-Evaluating SelfDriving Car Guidance
U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said she was reviewing self-driving vehicle guidance issued by the Obama administration and urged companies to explain the benefits of automated vehicles to a skeptical public. The guidelines, which were issued in September, call on automakers to voluntarily submit details of self-driving vehicle systems to regulators in a 15point “safety assessment” and urge states to defer to the federal government on most vehicle regulations. Automakers have raised numerous concerns about the guidance, including that it requires them to turn over significant data, could delay testing by months and lead to states making the voluntary guidelines mandatory. In November, major automakers urged the then-incoming Trump administration to re-evaluate the guidelines and some have called for significant changes. Automakers called on Congress earlier this month to make legislative changes to speed self-driving cars to U.S. roads. Chao, in her first major public remarks since taking office last month, told the National Governors Association: “This administration is evaluat-
Celphy Makes Room for The Clowns
ing this guidance and will consult with you and other stakeholders as we update it and amend it, to ensure that it strikes the right balance.” She said self-driving cars could dramatically improve safety. In 2015, 35,092 people died in U.S. traffic crashes, up 7 percent and the highest full-year increase since 1966. In the first nine months of 2016, fatalities were up 8 percent. Chao, noting research that 94 percent of traffic crashes were due to human error, said: “There’s a lot at stake in getting this technology right.” She said the Trump administration wanted to ensure it “is a catalyst for safe, efficient technologies, not an impediment. In particular, I want to challenge Silicon Valley, Detroit, and all other auto industry hubs to step up and help educate a skeptical public about the benefits of automated technology.” Chao said she was “very concerned” about the potential impact of automated vehicles on employment. There are 3.5 million U.S. truck drivers alone and millions of others employed in driving-related occupations. She also said she would seek input from states as regulators develop rules on drones.
4 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Uber Gets Calif. Permit To Test Robot Cars
Uber has received a permit from the California Department of Motor Vehicles to test its robot cars in the state and Consumer Watchdog warned that the cars should not carry passengers while still being tested. “When Uber illegally deployed its robot cars in San Francisco last year, the vehicles were observed driving through red lights,” said John M. Simpson Consumer Watchdog’s Privacy Project Director. “Uber’s technology simply isn’t safe enough to put passengers at risk.” Under California law companies testing selfdriving cars with a permit in the state must file reports of any crashes and annual “disengagement reports” describing when the robot technology failed and a human operator had to intervene. Both reports are posted on the DMV’s website. “Now that Uber has permits to test, the company’s activities must be closely monitored by police,” Simpson said. “What is clear is that Uber must not use passengers as human guinea pigs a publicity stunt.” Consumer Watchdog asked people in San Francisco to watch out for traffic violations and safety threats by Uber’s test vehicles.
Self-driving Nissan Leaf Takes to Europe’s Streets
A self-driving Nissan car has taken to the streets of London for the automaker’s first European tests of an autonomous vehicle. Traveling at up to 50 mph and moving from local streets to a major multi-lane road, the modified Nissan Leaf electric car showcased the kind of technology many hope to be the future of travel. Britain has been wooing developers of autonomous vehicles, hoping to grab a slice of an industry it estimates could be worth 900 billion pounds ($1.1 trillion) worldwide by 2025. It also recently announced changes to allow for a single insurance policy to cover motorists driving conventionally and in autonomous mode, as it tries to get regulations in place to encourage the uptake of driverless cars from 2020. Britain’s flexible approach to testing autonomous vehicles helped Nissan pick London for its first European tests, Maarten Sierhuis, the director of its research center in Silicon Valley told Reuters. “It’s not everywhere in Europe that we can go and drive on the road,” Sierhuis said. Nissan launched a version of its self-driving technology dubbed ProPILOT last year in Japan and plans to offer the feature in the Qashqai crossover in Europe this year.
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 5
New Collision Repair, Body Shop Opens in Carver, MA
As a registered repair and body shop, they work with all insurance At Crossroads Collision Center & companies, working with the insurAuto Repair in Carver, MA, they spe- ance agent after the customer makes cialize in collision repair but work on the original call with a claim. They all makes and models of cars. work with the rental companies and will drop off customers who live in the area. They also detail every car they service. Sprague and Garneau met when they were worked together in Marshfield. When he saw online that the shop in Carver at 78 North Main St. was for sale, he asked if she wanted to partner with him in a new business. “It was always a goal to be my own boss and have people working for me,” he said. Sprague, of Halifax, has Crossroads Collision Center & Auto Repair owners Chris also run two other shops, in Sprague and Jen Garneau welcome new customers to Abington and Marshfield, their business at 78 West Main Street. Credit: Kathryn but basically, working on Gallerani cars is all he’s ever done for New business owners Chris a living since he was 17. Before that, Sprague and Jen Garneau want to he’d work on cars with his friends for be known for doing quality work and fun. for their customer service. In 1999, he graduated from “We do help our customers from South Shore Vocational Technical start to finish,” Garneau said. “We’re High School, having entered a coop a one-stop shop.” program in school. by Kathryn Gallerani, Wicked Local Carver
said.
“It’s all I ever wanted to do,” he
Garneau has been in the autobile industry for 20 years and shares an affinity for cars. She handles the books for the business. Crossroads isn’t the Hanson resident’s only business, either. She co-owns a print shop with her boyfriend, and they plan to open a satellite office right next door. As Sprague and Garneau grow the business, they plan to hire new employees in addition to their production manager, Ed Whitmarsh, but for now Sprague is also working on cars, this time for his own business. “It feels good to get back out in the shop,” he said. Crossroads Collision Center & Auto Repair is on Facebook and Instagram and online at www.crossroads collisionma.com and can be contacted by calling 508-465-0255. The business hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays or by appointment. We thank Wicked Local Carver for reprint permission.
Fire Heavily Damages Auto Body Shop in MD
An auto body storage building goes up in flames in Cambridge, Maryland. The Maryland State Fire Marshal's office said the fire began in a bathroom at the facility on the morning of February 26.
Damage is estimated at $300, 000 to the 66-by-30-foot woodand-tin framed building, and $100,000 to the contents inside. No injuries were reported. Anyone who can help with the investigation is asked to contact the Maryland State Fire Marshal's Office at (410) 713-3780.
We thank Delaware 105.9FM News Talk for reprint permission.
Faster & Easier Steel & Aluminum Repair SMART RESISTANCE SPOT WELDER
NEOPULSE 300-T2
AUTO MODE makes this machine extremely simple to use
Double pulse MIG/MAG 270A welding machine for unrivalled welding quality
GYSPOT PTI SMART WELDER AUTO MODE for easy operation on High Strength steel (UHSS/Baron), High Pressure clamping force with up to 14,500 amps of power
DENTSTATION COMBI STEEL & ALUMINUM DENT REPAIR
Jeep-
Repair instead of replace for less downtime and more profit
GYS Welding USA
636-405-2800
info@gysweldingusa.com www.gysweldingusa.com Join our distributor network 6 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
GYSPRESS 8T Universal car body self-piercing riveting system. Operates on a pneumatic closed hydraulic system. Adjustable speed and pressure up to 8 tons
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 7
Owner of Rio Auto Body in NJ Serves as Keynote Speaker for Career Day At Local School able life. It’s about happiness.” He explained that hard work is the true On February 16, nearly 800 students key to success, no matter where you sat inside the Middle Township Per- came from or where you want to go. forming Arts Center (PAC) for MidLou himself is a true example of dle Township High School Career creating his own success through Day, eager to learn about the work- hard work. Since he was a little kid, ing world beyond high school. Stu- he always had a large interest in the automotive industry. He started working on cars at age 13 and developed a passion to own his own body shop one day. He worked hard and saved his money, and by the time he was 21, opened Rio Auto Body in 1994. “I invested every dollar I had into it, and eventually spun that off into multiple busiLou Altobelli, owner of Rio Auto Body, served as the nesses between three counkeynote speaker for Middle Township High School ties,” Lou shared. Career Day. Credit: www.CapeMayCountyHerald.com Today, Lou is the proud dents heard from over 40 presenters owner of Rio Auto Body, Hi-Tech plus two keynote speakers, one being Auto & Truck Service Center, Court Lou Altobelli, owner of Rio Auto House Towing, Marmora Auto Body, Body in Rio Grande. Marmora Auto & Truck Center, Black When speaking to the students, Horse Pike Auto Body and Vineland Lou focused heavily on success. “It’s Auto Body, all extremely successful not always about money and cars and businesses. houses,” he said. “It’s about being Additionally, he sits on the board able to support your family and hav- for Atlantic Cape Community Coling what you need to live a comfort- lege, Cape Regional Medical Center, by Gia Gallone, CapeMayCountyHerald.com
8 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Cape Assist, the Middle Township Chamber of Commerce, Volunteers in Medicine and the Middle Township Economic Development Council. Lou came from humble means and was able to achieve everything he wanted to achieve and more. Additionally, Lou gave advice and strategies on how to reach that desired success, such as set goals, use good common sense and learn from your mistakes. Students and other audience members really seemed to absorb everything from the first speaker to the last. Students were truly interested in finding out what’s outside of high school and what possibilities exist within the job market.
We thank www.CapeMayCounty Herald.com for reprint permission.
SEARCH FOR US ON
FACEBOOK :
Autobody News
Stamford Firefighters Forced To Break Into Auto Body Shop To Attack Blaze
by Frank MacEachern, Stamford Daily Voice
Stamford, CT firefighters had to use power saws to cut open locked security gates to fight a fire at an auto body shop in early March.
Auto body shop fire in Stamford. Credit: Frank MacEachern
Firefighters responded to a 911 call at 1:14 a.m. Friday, March 3 for a fire at Bill's Service at 49 Gleason Ave. Initially, firefighters couldn't get into the building that had heavy smoke emanating from the singlestory building. Firefighters had to fight through heavy smoke, zero visibility and the maze-like conditions due to stored vehicles in order to find the blaze. The fire was doused by 2:38 a.m. No one was hurt, and the fire marshal is investigating the cause.
Orchard Park Community Members Step up to Clear Spray-Painted Swastikas
ASA: Maine Bills Threaten to Dismantle Safety Inspection Program
Eleven vehicles had swastikas and other graffiti spray painted on them over the weekend of February 26 in Orchard Park, NY. It was a blow to resident Kyle Hennessy-Snow, who uses her van that was spray-painted to transport her disabled daughter, Paige. After seeing the story on News 4, Jeff Drozdowksi jumped into action. “I felt terrible for her that she’s got a handicapped daughter and somebody would do that to her. We’re in the business to fix cars, so we figured we’d step up and take care of that for her,” said Jeff Drozdowski, Bank Street Auto Owner. Drozdowski owns a collision and mechanical repair shop called Bank Street Auto. He picked up the van from Kyle’s house Monday morning and cleared the graffiti off of it for free. “I couldn’t believe it, and I cried—I actually cried—just to know that there are good people in the world,” said Hennessy-Snow. “It would probably be about
Maine House Bill (HB) 439 and HB 567 propose to weaken or eliminate Maine’s safety inspection program. If enacted, HB 439, introduced by State Rep. Paul Stearns, R-119,
by Angela Christoforos, News 4 Reporter
500 dollars for somebody to come in if it was through insurance,” said Drozdowski. All of the graffiti has also been cleared from the South Davis Elementary school playground. A good samaritan in Orchard Park raised more than two thousand dollars for the cleanup through gofundme. “We help each other, and when somebody needs something we step up to the plate and that’s what we should be doing,” said HennessySnow. “If everybody stood up, and for every bad thing that happened, somebody stood up and did a good deed, it evens it out, so that’s what we’re trying to do here,” said Drozdowski. Police are still investigating the vandalism incidents and looking at surveillance video. They say it’s likely kids are the ones behind all the graffiti, but they are still trying to figure out exactly who is responsible. We thank WIVB for reprint permission.
www.autobodynews.com CHECK IT OUT!
by Automotive Service Association
would require a biennial safety inspection as opposed to the current annual requirement. The bill is cosponsored by State Rep. Richard Cebra, R-68, who sponsored the unsuccessful HB 167, a virtually identical bill that failed in committee at the end of January. Cebra is also the sponsor of HB 567, which would dismantle the entire vehicle safety inspection program in Maine. The Automotive Service Association is a staunch supporter of vehicle safety inspections and opposes these bills. Both HB 439 and HB 567
are scheduled for committee hearings this week. ASA encourages all interested parties in Maine to visit TakingTheHill.com to contact their state representatives in opposition to these bills. The Automotive Service Association is the largest not-for-profit trade association of its kind dedicated to and governed by independent automotive service and repair professionals. ASA serves an international membership base that includes numerous affiliate, state and chapter groups from both the mechanical and collision repair segments of the automotive service industry. ASA advances professionalism and excellence in the automotive repair industry through education, representation and member services. To take advantage of the many benefits of membership in ASA, please visit www.ASAshop.org or call (817) 514-2900. For additional information about ASA, including past news releases, go to www.ASAshop.org, or visit ASA’s legislative website at www.TakingTheHill.com.
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 9
Continued from Cover
23-yo Shop Owner
her to spend her afternoons working in the shop, and following a brief stint in community college, she returned to her father’s shop full-time as a result of her love for the business and her desire to follow in her father’s footsteps to become a Maaco shop owner. In 2015, Inge bought a portion of her father’s business, realizing her dream of becoming a shop owner at only 22 years old. Inge states, “Since then, my dad has stepped back and given me more responsibilities as a coowner. He deserves a break after working so hard for such a long time, but he’s always there to guide me when I need him.” The multi-generational ownership provides additional benefits as well, with Katie adding a millennial focus on social media and customer service which helps the shop appeal to a wider customer base. “My focus is more on
Katie Inge with shop employees
new technology while Dad’s focus is more old-school repair,” Inge explains, “but we still want the same results. It’s a win-win situation that allows us to combine his decades of knowledge with my comprehension of new technology.” Inge’s service experience has been very helpful in furthering her success as well. “It helps to know what you’re talking about so I can explain it to the customers and walk them through the shop. They really like feeling certain that they’re talking to someone who understands the process fully, and a lot of our female customers really like dealing with me because it makes them more comfortable.” Of course, being a young female shop owner does not come without its challenges, and although Inge admits that she encountered some difficulties with her employees at first, she says, “It got a lot better after they saw me dive in and get dirty. My strength is that I
Alan’s Collision Center Renews Mercedes-Benz Certification; Invests $80,000 in Equipment Upgrade, Technician Training Alan’s Collision Center, an independent, single-owner Philadelphia auto body repair business, recently announced renewal of its MercedesBenz certification with an investment of $80,000 for required equipment and technical training to meet rigorous Mercedes-Benz collision repair standards. For six consecutive years, Alan’s Collision Center has been the only Mercedes-Benz certified Philadelphia auto body repair business. Most recently, the business became the only Philadelphia auto body shop recognized by Ford for repair of the Ford aluminum F-150. “Mercedes-Benz is one of many certifications we maintain at Alan’s Collision Center, which means conforming to strict safety guidelines for collision repair is our top priority,” said Jim Pfau, general manager of Alan’s Collision, Philadelphia. “Because we’re an independent collision repair center, we thrive on demanding the best from our technicians. We must put a safe vehicle with the highest-quality collision repair back into the hands of every driver.”
started in the back and can do anything the group can do and show them how to do it too. I’m very strong-minded, so my age and gender just isn’t a big deal.” One valuable lesson that Katie learned from her father is to do what you promise when dealing with customers. “You have to do what you say and follow through with your promises to build rapport,” Inge emphasizes. “We like to sell low and deliver high; the finish product should exceed the client’s expectations.” When asked why she decided to pursue a career in the collision repair industry, Inge explains, “It’s a passion – I love what I do, and enjoying your work makes it easy because it doesn’t feel like work. I’ve always been around cars, and I love the body shop industry.” To other young ladies interested in pursuing a career in the automotive industry, Inge offers this advice: “Definitely learn as much as you can. You don’t want to learn just the front or back end – you want to know all sides of the business so people can’t take advantage of you. At the end of the day, you really have to love what you do, and I definitely do!”
www.autobodynews.com
10 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Every auto body repair business that conforms to Mercedes-Benz certification must adhere to collision repair equipment and training guidelines from the vehicle manufacturer. Mercedes-Benz requires its certified collision repair businesses to invest in unibody and frame straightening equipment; an approved Mercedes-Benz paint system; jig sets; authorized and genuine glass and adhesive; a MIG welder and a measuring and pulling system. The company’s investment of $80,000 was required to purchase a new Mercedes-Benz Carbench system that includes the required Mercedes-Benz equipment and tools. To maintain certification, the Alan’s Collision Center technical team is required to be 50 percent trained in Mercedes-Benz vehicle collision repair. The qualified team includes a painter, estimator, body repair tech, and a manager who each dedicate a majority of their time to MercedesBenz auto body repair. In addition, the team undergoes mandatory training courses offered by Mercedes-Benz that include four e-
OURCE PARTS S YOUR KIA
learning courses and two in-person courses annually. The training courses are necessary to accommodate hybrid and electric vehicles entering the market. Alan’s Collision Center, at 601 Red Lion Road, is a full-service, independent, single-owner auto body repair business founded in 1975 in Philadelphia. It employs a technical team of nearly 10 and each employee averages about 20 years with the business. Alan’s Collision Center is a member of the Assured Performance Network and is certified and/or dealer recognized to repair a variety of other original equipment manufacturer vehicles including General Motors, Honda, Ford, Chrysler, Jeep, Nissan, Chrysler, Chevrolet, Hyundai, Toyota, and others. The business is not a member of insurance company direct repair programs.
The right part makes the difference.
Yonkers Kia • Genuine Kia OEM Parts • Fast & Free Delivery
www.yonkerskia.com • Efficient Service on All Orders • Fax Your Order Today
914.268.0279
Fax: 914.652.7665
Hours: Mon-Thur 7:30am- 8pm / Fri 7:30am-7pm / Sat 8am-5pm 1840 Central Park Ave. • Yonkers, NY 10710
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 11
Greenwich-Based Mobile Auto Body 101 Brings the Body Shop to Your Driveway 2014, said, “Our names do get confusing, especially with our mail and sometimes with phone calls.” And, as they share a name, they share a love for working on cars. “The business was my dad’s idea. He ran Post Road Auto Body and he by Greenwich Free Press retired a year ago after running the shop for about 40 years,” Johnny said. In Greenwich, CT, where people rush “He was interested in continuing to do around and busy parking lots can feel some auto body work.” like treacherous games of musical “The job comes out the same as chairs with cars, dings and dents are inwith a body shop,” Johnny continued, evitable. as he sanded down the chipped and peeling bumper of a BMW in central Greenwich on a mild February morning. “You can’t tell the difference.” The Mobile Auto Body 101 truck features an external heater that blows warm air inside the spray enclosure, making it possible to work through the winter months. On cold days, all four side John Castellana, Jr. and his father John Castellana pair panels are attached to the enup to bring Mobile Auto Body 101 to your driveway or closure, and the Castellanas workplace. Credit: Leslie Yager work in t-shirts. The encloFortunately, there is a new Greensure, which is EPA certified and comwich-based service, Mobile Auto Body plies with all regulations, meets all safety and environmental standards. 101, who will come to your home, office park or business and perform most of the services of a traditional body shop. Hard to miss, the orange and black Mobile Auto Body 101 truck, a former Verizon truck, is kitted out with all the essentials of a body shop: generator, compressor and workbench. The compressor makes it possible to work with all the necessary tools, including paint sprayer and sanders. John Castellana Jr. looks up from sanding down a chipped, flaking bumper. Credit: Leslie “We prepped and painted the truck Yager ourselves,” said John Castellana, Jr., who owns the traveling auto body busiAnd, whereas leaving your car at ness and works alongside his father, a traditional body shop can mean three John Castellana. or more days having to pay for a “Johnny on the spot,” which is loaner car, the Mobile Auto Body 101 painted in orange on the truck’s hood usually get the job done within a day, is a reference to John, Jr.’s nickname. and in as little as a half day. Born and raised in Greenwich, “Most customers can do without Johnny, who graduated from GHS in their car for a half or full day,” he said. “All of our customers say they love the convenience.” The mobile auto body will do light body work, bumper repair, dent repair, lease clean ups, paint work, touch ups, and headlight & rim restoration. Johnny said the benefits of the mobile auto body go beyond convenience. THE FOLLOWING ARTICLE IS A CONSUMER-ORIENTED STORY that is reprinted here so that Collision Professionals are more aware of activities and reports in the general media about collision repair. We do not endorse or critique any such services. —The Editors
12 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
“We have even higher standards now because we’re a new company and have to compete with everyone else,” he said, adding that the goal is to one-up the status quo. “We’re cheaper than a traditional body shop. If you give me an estimate from a body shop, I’ll probably best it. Mostly our prices are lower than your deductible.” The process begins with protecting the driveway with a tarp. Next, the Castellanas set up the enclosure and put the car on portable lifts. Then the sanding begins. This is a labor-intensive process involving much elbow grease. After the edges are taped and all but the parts to be painted are protected, the spraying begins. Lastly, special heat lamps dry the paint from the inside out. “When we go to a neighborhood, we usually wind up staying for a week,” Johnny joked. “It’s amazing how many people come out and talk to you. We did one guy’s car and another neighbor came out and invited us to come look at his car, and then it went around the whole neighborhood.” As the Castellanas were setting up their spray enclosure in central
Greenwich, Christine Chimblo happened to drive by on her way to the gym. Stopping to say hello, she said she was also a customer. “They are the best guys. Number one,” she said. “They are polite and they don’t charge you an arm and a leg. They tell you
The Castellanas prepped and painted a former Verizon truck to create Mobile Auto Body 101. Credit: Leslie Yager
what they’re going to do and then they do it. A normal body shop would have charged twice the price.” Mobile Auto Body 101 services southern Fairfield County in CT and lower Westchester. To contact Mobile Auto Body 101, call (203) 517-7728 or email John Castellana Jr. at mobileautobody101 @gmail.com. We thank Greenwich Free Press for reprint permission.
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 13
Staten Island Body Shop Celebrates Women in Leadership with Release of New Video March is the month for celebrating women across America, but for Barry’s Auto Body, women are celebrated each and every day. That’s because Barry’s Auto Body team is led by women. From co-owner Michelle Crupi to Jayne, the auto collision estimator and Kerry, insurance claims representative, women are the engine that drives Barry’s Auto Body. To celebrate Women’s History Month, Barry’s Auto Body released the second in a series of humorous educational videos where Donna and her husband Vito struggle with various auto repair problems. Vito always thinks that he has the situation under control until Donna rolls in to save the day with a strong hand and lots of common sense.
In the first installment of the “I Gotta Guy” series, we were introduced to married couple Donna and Vito. Vito is a Ralph Cramden-esque character who yells and flails his arms when he learns that Donna had a car accident and didn’t tell him. The bluster doesn’t bother Donna in the least—instead, she calmly tells him that she has a guy to fix the car and proves it when Barry comically appears on the scene. The success of the first video prompted Barry and Michelle to film several more (which will be rolled out slowly throughout the year). “We developed the ‘I Gotta Guy’ video series because we wanted to educate our customers about how to han-
dle different car repair problems,” said Barry Crupi, co-owner of Barry’s Auto Body. “Much to Vito’s chagrin, Donna is the hero of the series, always coming up with the solution to the seemingly difficult situation. We wrote the script so that the characters would mimic what we see in the shop almost every day. People who think that car repair is a man’s world are living in the past. In today’s world, women make most of the decisions about auto repair both in the shop and out of the shop.” The new video is titled “You called who first?” and is a spoof on a popular commercial where a husband is talking to his insurance agent in the middle of the night. However, in this video, Donna
knows that Vito is talking to the insurance company and she squarely and comically reprimands him for not calling Barry’s Auto Body first. The point of the video is to let people know that they should know what repairs need to be done on the car ahead of filing their claim to ensure that the vehicle is repaired properly. For Barry and Michelle, Donna is a character composite of their strong female clients and the women who lead the shop’s repair team. Donna is played by comedian Jen Remauro and Vito is played by George Passariello. Barry and Michelle play themselves. The video can be seen at www.barrysautobody.com.
H&V Collision Center to Team Up with Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany for Easter Party April 12 H&V Collision Center, the largest independent and family-owned collision repair company in the Capital Region, will team up with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany and city leaders to sponsor an Easter party for children. The H&V Albany Easter Party will be held Wednesday, April 12 at 4 p.m. The party will be held at the Boys & Girls Clubs at 21 Delaware Avenue, Albany.
Various state, county and city elected officials will be on hand for the event. Members of the media are invited to attend as well. The 2017 H&V Albany Easter Party follows a successful Easter party thrown by H&V for about 60 kids at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany. The party this year will feature food, refreshments and an appearance by the Easter Bunny.
14 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
“Everyone at H&V is looking forward to working with an outstanding organization like the Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany to again sponsor this Easter party for a great group of kids,” said H&V’s Vartan Jerian, Jr. The H&V Albany Easter Party is one of a number of events sponsored by H&V to give back to the community. Last summer, H&V donated three cars to three veterans at a Tri-City ValleyCats
game and have donated a total of 16 cars to veterans and families and individuals facing special challenges. H&V has been recognized for contributions and support to veterans by area veteran organizations. “H&V is proud to be able to support worthwhile community organizations, including the Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany,” said Jerian. “This was a great event last year, and we are looking forward to the party this year.”
Automotive Refinish Coatings Market Analysis, Segments, Growth and Value Chain 2015–2025 by Abhishek Budholiya
Automotive vehicles require timely maintenance and repairing to enhance the appearance and durability of vehicle by protecting them from external factors such as extreme temperature and UV radiation. Automotive refinishing coatings are frequently used in automotive aftermarket by end-users like body shops and repair centers. For durability, speed and perfect matching color the service providers use advanced technology such as spray guns to apply primer and color coats of paints. Refinishing coatings are also applied to components and the body of vehicles to protect from deterioration caused by foreign particles such as stone and other debris. An increasing demand for refinishing of vehicles across the globe has led to significant improvements in the automotive refinish coatings market such as development of advanced coating material which are eco-friendly and low-solvent content. These products also provide good blend of ease of use, speed, durability
and color match. Some of the underlying growth factors in global automotive refinish coatings market is consistent increase in number of vehicles in operation worldwide. Increase in miles driven, road accidents, and demand for recreational vehicles are the major drivers responsible for the growth of the global automotive refinish coatings market. However, volatility of raw material prices and enhanced road safety parameters are some of the major challenges in the global automotive refinish coatings market. The global automotive refinish coatings market is geographically segmented into seven key regions which are, North America, Latin America, Eastern Europe, Western Europe, AsiaPacific, Japan and Middle East and Africa. Asia-Pacific is a leading automotive refinish coatings market in terms of revenue due to rising vehicles in operation and increasing sales of pre-owned cars. However the growth in North America, Eastern Europe and Western Europe is expected to remain stagnant for the forecast period.
Growth in the automotive refinish coatings market is relatively high in BRIC nations when compared with matured economies due to developing automotive aftermarket in these countries. This rapid growth in the market is fuelled by multiple macro-economic factors such as rising number of cab services, increasing car customization and rising capacity of collision repair and vehicle body shops. In addition, it is expected that in the next 30 years the total number of passenger cars in developing countries would reach around 3.5 to 4 billion. On the basis of product type, the global automotive refinish coatings market is further segmented into two sub-segments which are solvent-borne Coatings and waterborne Coatings. Solvent-borne coatings dominate the global automotive refinish coatings market, while for the forecast period, the growth rate of water-borne coating type is estimated to be high. In Europe and North America, automotive refinish coatings market adoption of waterborne coating material segment is
increasing rapidly due to government regulations to reduce volatile organic compounds (VOC) level, which is generally high in solventborne coatings. Some of the examples of market participants in global automotive refinish coatings market are DuPont Performance Coating, BASF SE, Kansai Paint Co. Ltd, Akzo Nobel N.V, KCC Corp, Noroo Paint Coatings Co. Ltd., PPG Industries Inc., and Matrix System Automotive Finishes. In future, the global automotive refinish market is expected to grow significantly in terms of volume and value. This growth will give rise to new product development with enhanced properties like quick-drying, cost-efficient and high-performance coatings.
FOLLOW US ON
INSTAGRAM :
@autobodynews
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 15
Ben’s Auto Body Celebrates 85 Years in Business pairing cars. With cars becoming the growing primary source of transportaIn January 1932, Herbert Hoover was tion, Ben saw the need for a garage that president of the United States, the avdid auto body repair, and thus began erage cost of a new car was about $600, Ben’s Auto Body in January 1932. and Ben Berounsky established the Ben died in 1940, leaving the roots of an auto body repair shop on business to his sons, Henry and Ardie. Rogers Street. They moved the business in the fall of Eighty-five years later, Ben’s 1941 to larger quarters at 801 IslingAuto Body is at 11 Mirona Road in ton St., where it grew to a shop that Portsmouth, NH, and run by the fourth could accommodate 20 vehicles. generation of Berounsky sons, Jason The business was on hiatus during World War II as the Berounsky brothers were drafted, closing the business in spring 1943 and reopening in July 1946. The post-war years boomed for the family business, according to the family history. Henry – also known as “Ben” – was the president and general manager. It was Henry who spearheaded the business’s next move – from IsMike Berounsky, left, and Jason Berounsky are fourth lington Street to Mirona Road, generation owners and operators of Ben’s Auto Body on then just a largely empty road Mirona Road in Portsmouth, now in its 85th year as an on the outskirts of town. independent collision repair shop. Credit: Paul Briand “All his buddies told him and Mike Jr. Their commitment to he was nuts putting it this far outside of their community and their customers Portsmouth,” Mike said. Now, of couis as strong as ever. rse, Mirona Road is a commercially ac“All our roots are here,” said Mike tive thoroughfare connecting Peverly Berounsky, who runs Ben’s Auto Body Hill Road with Lafayette Road. with Jason. Mike handles the office and Henry retired in July 1993, leavfinance end of the business while Jason ing the business in the hands of the handles the shop. senior Michael. With senior’s retireThe family-run business meant ment in 2013, the business went to the Mike and Jason were introduced to the control of Michael Jr. and Jason. work early on, just like their father Today, after a couple of expanand grandfather before them. sions, Ben’s Auto Body encompasses “I started hanging out around about 26,000 square feet and can achere when I was 10,” Jason said. His commodate up to 40 vehicles at once. father would give him little jobs to do – sweeping the floors, painting lines on the shop floor. Jason said he was always into cars and knew he’d be working at the shop. As a teen, Mike had other ideas, got into accounting then circled back into the family This photo from 1967 shows the exterior of Ben’s Auto business taking over the comp- Body four years after a new shop was constructed on troller responsibilities from his Mirona Road in Portsmouth by then-owner Henry Berounsky, who was chided by his buddies as being grandmother, Sophie. “nuts” for building so far outside of the city. Credit: “Jason had the hands-on Ben’s Auto Body in the shop, and I had the accounting knowledge to run the office,” Theirs is strictly a collision repair Mike said. shop, no custom auto body work for In the 1930s, Ben Berounsky was them. “We feel collision is our niche, living in Amesbury, Massachusetts, and that’s what we do,” said Jason. and according to Mike, had a buddy in And it’s an independent repair Portsmouth on Rogers Street with a shop, not contracted to any insurance two-bay garage who needed help re- company. That, according to Mike, by Paul Briand, Seacoastonline.com
16 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Ben’s Auto Body, said Mike, will give the customer the insurance company estimate specifying the fact that after-market parts will be used, and he’ll apprise the customer of what the cost would be with factory parts. “We give the consumer the option to pay the difference,” Mike said. “Our big thing is education.” Customers can try to get their insurance company to pay for the work with factory parts, and, if it doesn’t, deCirca 1960s cars are shown in Ben’s Auto Body in this cide if they want to pay out of 1967 photo of the shop that was built in 1963 on Minora pocket for the factory parts Road in Portsmouth. Credit: Ben’s Auto Body difference. “Insurance companies have a beef to give them the best possible repair we with us because we educate the cuscan give them.” tomer,” Mike said. According to Mike, when insurThe shop gives its customers a ance companies estimate the repair of written lifetime guarantee of its work. a damaged car they want a shop to Letters displayed in the reception laud base the cost on so-called after-marthe shop on its work, many of the notes ket parts, not factory original parts. citing “above and beyond” effort. After-market parts are less expensive. Their effort extends beyond the “Like everything else in this world, shop, as well, with Ben’s Auto Body there’s a reason they’re cheaper,” said Mike, noting the fit and finish aren’t being a generous contributor to local See Ben’s Auto Body, Page 54 normally as good as factory.
makes it better for the customers. “We pride ourselves on the fact that we are here for the consumer,” Mike said. “We have no insurance contracts. We solely work for the consumer
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 17
Shop Strategies
Stacey Phillips is a freelance writer and editor for the automotive industry. She has 20 years of experience writing for a variety of publications. She can be reached at sphillips.autobodynews@gmail.com.
I-CAR Announces Nationwide Initiative to Hold Classes in Technical Schools & Colleges with Stacey Phillips
Collision repair students across the country will soon have the opportunity to sign up and take I-CAR classes at a technical school or college in their local area. (I-CAR stands for the Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair.) In the past, classes were often held at collision repair facilities or other locations. Mike Miller, the northwest regional manager for I-CAR, said many shops in the industry had concerns about the possibility of losing employ-
ees by sending them to other collision repair facilities for training. “There will now be a neutral facility where the whole industry feels comfortable attending,” said Miller. “It is also a way that I-CAR can support the career technical schools and colleges that have supported us over the years.” This change is part of the national scheduling initiative I-CAR is currently implementing. The ultimate goal is to have training sites at 250-300 schools where students can enroll for the I-CAR Professional Development Program™ (PDP). All I-CAR live classes will be included. “I-CAR’s PDP offers collision repair professionals a role-relevant training path that provides them with the knowledge and skills needed to perform complete, safe and quality repairs,” said Miller. Established in 1979, the international not-for-profit organization is represented by all segments of the industry including collision repair; insurance companies; OEMs; education, training and research; tools, equipment and supply; and other industry services. Miller said it’s very common for ICAR to be approached by someone who is interested in taking a certain class shortly after that same class was just held. Rather than setting up instruction on a reactive basis, Miller said
the goal is to be proactive in the future. “We’re looking to give enough advanced notice so that everyone will have an opportunity to plan their training and decide when they need to send their technicians,” said Miller. “By being proactive, it allows the industry to look at our schedules and plan ahead.” In exchange for using the classrooms and lab space at the career technical school and colleges, I-CAR will provide the curriculum, licensing fees and other student fees at no charge. He estimates this will be a $5,000 annual savings to the schools, including savings of $1,100 for the annual PDP-Education Edition license, the inclusion of I-CAR’s Reparability Technical Support (RTS) portal access worth $1,700 and a savings of $150 fee per student. In addition, Miller said I-CAR is putting together a Purpose-Built curriculum. “Depending on the topic of the course and the needs of the course, it will determine whether it is delivered live, online or virtually,” he said. Live courses will typically have a hands-on component whereas online courses will be set up to teach technical information. During the past few months, ICAR has reached out to technical schools and colleges nationwide to discuss the national scheduling initiative. The plan is to roll out the program state by state over the year. In states with limited technical schools, such as Montana that only has one, I-CAR will reach out to vendor locations to hold classes. They might be a paint company or a rental car provider. Depending on the market area, ICAR will determine the appropriate number of times classes are offered. In urban markets with more technicians, the training cadence will be more frequent. In rural areas, the training will not be offered as frequently, but Miller said I-CAR is committed to delivering all needed training to those areas. “We looked at the collision repair facility numbers and the student base and facilities that are Gold Class® or on the Road to Gold™ for I-CAR. All of
18 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
that is factored in to the decision-making process,” said Miller. The majority of live I-CAR classes are four hours in length, which includes breaks and testing. Miller stressed the importance of staying up with current technology due to the changes in the industry. Part of this he attributes to the CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) standards. “They’re having to do everything they can to get vehicles as light as possible to achieve fuel efficiency,” said Miller. In the meantime, I-CAR continues to focus on educating the industry about collision repair. There are approximately 2,300 individuals who are part of the I-CAR infrastructure, either as a volunteer, instructor or staff member. In addition to 145 full-time staff, there are 1,760 I-CAR volunteers across the country who help with marketing classes, securing locations and other support. “That’s the reason we are able to do so many great things for the
industry at an affordable cost,” said Miller. All 540 I-CAR instructors have a strong knowledge about the automotive repair industry, with the majority having worked for a body shop or technical school. They all attend an instructor qualification workshop, as well as team teaching exercises with a veteran instructor. In addition, they are required to qualify for every course they teach and go through an Instructor Training Evaluation Process (ITE) to confirm they are prepared. I-CAR currently has about 270 committees throughout the United States. The committees are represented by all aspects of the industry. While the main focus has been class scheduling, the new national scheduling initiative will shift scheduling responsibility and allow volunteers to help grow I-CAR by reaching out those shops that currently are not training. See I-CAR Announces, Page 27
TOYOTA
of Morristown
. Use e f a S & l a y o sL airs. r p e e m R o r t s u o u Y C l r l Keep You ine Toyota Parts In A Our Genu
Competitive Discounts on All Our Genuine Toyota Parts Professionally Trained Toyota Wholesale Parts Specialists are Waiting to Serve You Four Delivery Vans Provide Same Day/Next Day Delivery to the Entire Tri-State Area Parts Direct 800-541-1127 FAX 973-292-0872 Parts Hours: M-F: 7 AM - 5 PM
Call our Parts Dept. Today!
800-444-1959
wholesale@toyotaofmorristown.com www.toyotaofmorristown.com 169 Ridgedale Ave // Morristown, NJ 07960
SUBARU OF OF MORRISTOWN MORRISTOWN CONTACT OUR PARTS DEPARTMENT:
800-541-1127 PARTS DEPARTMENT FAX:
973-292-0872 DECREASE CYCLE TIME - IMPROVE PROFITS AND KEEP YOUR CUSTOMERS HAPPY
Help Your Customers Stay in their Subaru with Genuine Subaru Parts.
Wholesale Parts SSpecialists pecialists for Over Over 25 25 Years We Will Get You Your Genuine Subaru Parts Fast Incredibly Incred Incr edib dib iblly ly Competitive CCom ompe petitititititive ve PPrices ririce ices Always Alwa Al ways ys PARTS DEPARTMENT HOURS:
M-F 7:00am - 5:00 pm wholesale@subaruofmorristown.com www.subaruofmorristown.com 175 Ridgedale Ave // Morristown, NJ 07960 www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 19
Advanced Technology & Diagnostic Repair Forum to Launch at NACE Automechanika The Automotive Service Association (ASA) has announced the launch of a new program for the collision repair market — the Advance Technology & Diagnostic Repair Forum. This inaugural event will take place Wednesday, July 26 at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place in Chicago during NACE Automechanika.
The Advanced Technology & Diagnostic Repair Forum will focus on advanced automotive technology that is redefining the scope of a proper repair after the vehicle was involved in an accident. Sensors, cameras, accident avoidance systems, and wireless communications are just some examples of new technology that affects repairs. Car manufacturers, insurers, repairers, and technology companies are driving the content, which makes this the most comprehensive and relevant
program of its kind. Attendees will learn about the technology in today’s vehicle with a look towards the next 12-36 months. The business is changing rapidly, which is forcing everyone to re-evaluate training, equipment, operational and repair best practices, as well as their interactions with vehicle owners.
All industry stakeholders involved in the collision repair industry are welcome, including but not limited to the following:
●
Collision repairers
●
Insurance professionals
● Executive and management staff from MSOs, networks and franchisors
●
Technology providers
Dan Risley, ASA president and executive director, introduced the advisory board and moderated meetings that determined the content for this new program. This year’s advisory board, made up of key professionals repre-
20 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
senting different facets of the industry, includes the following:
●
●
Erick Bickett, CEO, Fix Auto
Clint Marlow, Director, Allstate
● Mark Allen, Collision Programs and Workshop Equipment Specialist, Audi ● Russ Hoffbauer, Claims Director, State Farm
● John Eck, Manager, Wholesale Dealer Channel, General Motors
● Sean Carey, President, SCG Management Consultants LLC
● Russell Thrall III, Publisher & Editor-In-Chief, CollisionWeek
● Scott Benavidez, Owner, Mr. B’s Paint & Body Shop Inc. ● Tom Williams, VP of Marketing, CCC Information Services
●
Jake Rodenroth, Director of
Client Services at Collision Diagnostic Services, asTech
● Jack Rozint, VP, Sales & Service, Mitchell International
● Roy Schnepper, President, Butler’s Collision
Some of the topics that will be covered in the ATDR Forum include autonomous vehicles, the use of OEM parts vs. aftermarket and salvage parts, government regulation and legislation, cars as mobile computers, a panel discussion with insurers, and more. The schedule and session descriptions are as follows: 7:00 a.m. – Private breakfast and networking
8:00 a.m. – Industry Update - The “mobile computer” redefines an industry as onboard computers, network technology, accident avoidance, and consumer convenience take center stage. This presentation will include the various levels of vehicle autonomy and technology, while sharing the con-
cerns expressed by many of the industry segments. Specific technology, such as ADAS and the “connected car” will be included.
8:30 a.m. – OEM / A/M / Recycled Parts Panel - Discussion on OEM parts vs. the use of aftermarket or used OEM parts, specifically regarding advanced vehicle technology. For example, body control modules, ABS, windshields, adaptive headlights, cameras and alike. How do repairers address calibrating and programming? If OEM parts are the only solution, what is the impact on the industry? 9:15 a.m. – Coffee Break/Networking
9:45 a.m. – Governance Presentation - What role with government play in the advanced vehicle technology and the autonomous vehicle? How will the new administration impact or drive change? What rules/regulations and laws are in effect or proposed that could impact the industry? What does the playing field look like today?
10:15 a.m. – Bosch Presentation: OE Scan tool vs. A/M Scan Tool - Bosch manufactures the OE scan tool for sev-
eral car manufacturers. They also develop an A/M scan tool. Where do they get their information? What are their challenges? What is the difference between the two? Why do the differences exist?
10:30 a.m. – Repair & Insurer Panel What is required to recalibrate a vehicle? How are repairers adapting? When do shops decide to buy a scan tool? What are they buying? What are the biggest challenges repairers and insurers face? Where are repairers and insurers getting their information? What are the information providers doing? What is their role to provide repair information and vehicle build data (VIN #, trim detail)?
“This is the first event that exclusively covers the latest in telematics and other new technology as it relates to the collision repair industry,” Dan Risley stated. “The new advisory board made a huge impact in developing content relative to the needs of the market and attendees of this program will gain significant insight necessary for success in their businesses.”
www.autobodynews.com
Collision Industry Provides $12M+ to Schools, Students in 2016 Through Collision Repair Education Foundation
In 2016, the collision industry provided over $12 million in donations to high school and college collision school programs through the Collision Repair Education Foundation, an increase of over 13 percent from 2015. Over $60 million has been provided since 2008, when the Education Foundation began its philanthropic focus of assisting collision school programs and students. “In 2016, the Education Foundation made significant strides to help achieve its vision of a collision industry with a sufficient number of qualified, properly trained, and immediately productive entry-level employees to meet current and future Industry needs,” said Clark Plucinski, Collision Repair Education Foundation Executive Director. “Through the collision industry’s generous support, we are able to deliver on our mission to support collision repair school programs and students to connect them with the array of career opportunities across the industry. Working together as an industry ensures that the students graduate and are productive and efficient day one. Thank you for supporting our efforts as we are truly making a difference supporting schools
and students across the country.” The Education Foundation continues to be recognized by Charity Navigator as a Four (out of Four) Star Charity, and returned eight-eight cents of every dollar donated towards supporting the school programs, instructors, and students in 2016. Stacy Bartnik, Collision Repair Education Foundation Board of Trustees Chair from ITW Evercoat said, “On behalf of the Board of Trustees, staff and the collision school programs and students we were able to support, I would like to thank our 2016 donors. We had an incredible year that saw us clearly define our Vision and Mission and establish 16 collision career fairs across the U.S. that were attended by over 4000 students interested in entering the industry. In 2017, we have already developed a statement of need, in conjunction with our industry supporters, to clearly define the steps necessary to achieve our Vision. I would invite companies and individuals to join us in providing support.” For more information, visit www .CollisionEducationFoundation.org.
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 21
Shop Strategies with Stacey Phillips
Ten Ways to Find Top Talent for Your Shop Finding the right person to hire at your body shop can make a huge difference to the success of your business. With Baby Boomers retiring and a critical shortage of technicians, it is becoming more important than ever to fill the employment gap. According to the Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF), more than 21,500 collision repair technicians leave the industry every year, a trend that has increased steadily since 1995. “Even with 80,000 young people enrolled in collision repair classes, there will not be enough qualified graduates to meet growing labor demands,” said CREF. No longer can you just put a sign in your window looking for new hires and expect to find the perfect technician. However, there are ways to reach out to find a good match for your body shop. 10 ways to find top talent:
1) Partner with a technical school Trade schools across the country are working hard to prepare the next generation of workers. By building a relationship with one in your area, you’ll have the opportunity to meet potential new hires and showcase your body shop. Javier Valencia, the campus admissions representative from the Universal Technical Institute, said that technical schools offer students the opportunity to gain specific knowledge that will help them learn what it takes to work in a variety of jobs in the industry.
2) Offer a job shadowing program or internship Inviting less experienced technicians into your shop and offering them hands-on training often leads to those same individuals becoming full-time employees. Many schools offer intern-
ship programs for students and will help place qualified workers in your place of business.
3) Advertise on your own website Set up a dedicated section on your company website to include new jobs. It only takes a few minutes to update the information and also showcases your company’s culture so potential workers will learn about what your business stands for.
4) Look for career websites There are a variety of career websites to choose from such as CareerBuilder .com, Monster.com and Indeed.com. By listing your job opportunity on one or more of them, it will help you reach a wider audience.
5) Post on social media Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are great ways to advertise you are looking for employees. The next generation of workers are more than likely very comfortable on these mediums and use them frequently.
6) Offer perks A good wage is no longer enough to attract and retain employees. The next generation of workers is looking for companies that are open to flexible hours, make a difference in their communities and have open communication. They also want to learn and grow. Make sure to provide medical and dental benefits as well as the opportunity for advancement, which is very appealing to Millennials.
7) Attend career fairs Career fairs give companies a great opportunity to meet students who are looking for employment. “These types of events connect students with those looking to hire them,” said Brandon
Advertise in our CLASSIFIED SECTION for $50 per column inch! 800-699-8251
ltedesco@autobodynews.com
22 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Stacey Phillips is a freelance writer and editor for the automotive industry. She has 20 years of experience writing for a variety of publications. She can be reached at sphillips.autobodynews@gmail.com.
Eckenrode, the director of development for CREF.
8) Pay well and offer additional training Provide your employees with attractive compensation and make sure they stay current with training. By investing in their future, you will have a better chance to gain a long-term employee. Incentives such as a tool allowance and tuition reimbursement are also appealing to potential employees.
9) Get creative In addition to the typical ways of finding new hires, it may be advantageous to think outside of the box. Consider reaching out to the military or even correctional facilities. Many have workplace development programs in collision repair.
10) Be passionate
Develop a culture of trust. Demonstrate that you care about your employees and want to create a team atmosphere where everyone is respected and appreciated. CREF is gathering student information as part of the organization’s National Student Resume Database. High school and college collision repair students looking for full-time, part-time or internship work are invited to provide their contact information to CREF at the end of the spring school semester. The database will be then be distributed to industry supporters. For information, email Brandon .Eckonrode@ed-foundation.org. The industry is currently looking for new ways to hire workers. If you have additional recommendations on how to find top talent, we encourage you to email us. By working together as an industry, it will help the collision repair industry grow and prosper in the future.
The Smart Choice for Auto Body Coatings and Supplies!
ROVIDENCE PACQUER & L Supply Centre
Call Call Us Us at: at: 401-943-1700 401-943-1700
Branch Location - MA 142 Chandler St. Worcester, MA 508.752.9700
Main Store - RI 1155 Park Ave. Cranston, RI 401.943.1700
Branch Location - CT 485 N. Main St. Norwich, CT 860.885.0700
www.ProvidenceLacquer.com www ww w.Pr w.Pr w. Prov ovid ov iden id ence en ceLa ce Lacq La cq que uer r.co r.co r. com m
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 23
Shop Showcase
Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.
RGI Spray Booths Celebrates Grand Opening of New Tracy, CA, Location with Ed Attanasio
On February 11, RGI Spray Booth Company opened its second location in Tracy, CA at a Grand Opening that was attended by 300 body shop professionals, product distributors, assorted vendors and guests. For the first time, visitors were able to tour this new 60,000 sq. ft. facility that will be
region and selling into more than a dozen other industries in addition to collision repair, RGI Spray Booth Company is ready to hit the ground running. “We are all about customer service here at RGI and that is why we’ve succeeded in southern California, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico through our Ontario, CA location,” Garcia said. “So this is a logical progression of what we’ve been doing now for the past four years.” In addition to making paint booths and painting accessories, RGI is a distributor of a wide range of collision repair equipment, in- cluding StarAliner, Titanium, Signature, InThis is RGI Booth Company’s second location and will novative, Infinity, DV Syscomplement its Ontario, CA by providing manufacturing tems and Prima Welding. support and warehousing logistics By visiting body shops and used as a manufacturing plant, ware- collision centers from Gilroy south all house and showroom and will employ the way to Canada to the north, RGI 20 people. Spray Booth Company takes a personal, Sales Manager Napoleon Garhands-on approach to selling paint cia is proud of this new facility, booths, paint accessories and collision which will complement his com- repair equipment, Garcia said. pany’s original location in Ontario, CA that was established in 2013. “We have big plans for the Bay Area because there are more shops there, which means more opportunities,” he said. “We have seen so much growth in this area within the last four years that we decided to establish a location in Tracy.” Ideally situated to serve RGI Booth Company’s Sales Manager Napoleon Garcia its sales territory, RGI Spray (left), Account Rep Mary Valles and Accountant Carolina Booth Company’s new facil- Ramos cut the ribbon at their Grand Opening in Tracy, CA ity is in a prime location to “I tell shop owners all the time that achieve its goals, Garcia said. “We are they can buy any piece of equipment, in90 minutes from Santa Cruz, Sacracluding a spray booth online,” he said. mento and San Francisco, so we are in “But at the end of the day, it all comes a great position to cover northern Caldown to support and service. When peoifornia aggressively, as well as into ple buy a spray booth from us, they Seattle and even parts of Canada.” know we made it because our name is With six sales reps working the
Free
Register Your Email for Our
4x Monthly E E-Newsletter -Newsletter
www.autobodynews.com
24 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
on it and that there is no middleman.” Special guest vendors at the Grand Opening included DV Compressors, Signature Frame Machines,
Prima Welding, Infinity 3D Laser Measuring Systems, BendPak Lifts, Innovative Tools and Technologies and Titanium Hydraulic Products.
More than 300 people celebrated the Grand Opening of RGI Spray Booth Company’s new 60,000 sq. ft. facility in Tracy, CA on Feb. 11
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 25
26 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Co-Defendants Plead Guilty in CA Insurance “Scratch Out” Fraud Scheme Monterey County District Attorney Dean D. Flippo recently announced that on February 22, defendant Antonio Arias, age 47, of Salinas, pled guilty to a felony charge of auto insurance fraud and defendant Martin Lopez, age 49, of Salinas pled guilty to a felony charge of auto insurance fraud and a misdemeanor violation of worker’s compensation insurance fraud. Sentencing will take place on March 22, 2017 before Judge Andrew Liu. In 2015, investigators from MADCAT (the Multi Agency Detail Commercial Auto Theft), the District Attorney’s Office and NICB (the National Insurance Crime Bureau) discovered two auto body facilities in Salinas involved in a “scratch out” fraud scheme in which a fully insured vehicle is fraudulently vandalized by the vehicle owner or an associate of the body shop with the owner’s consent. Thereafter, an insurance claim is filed which is typically inflated and often seeks thousands of dollars to repair the fraudulent damage. When the insurance company pays the claim, the money is shared between the shop owner, the vehicle owner, and any other participants in the scheme. One such facility was West Market Auto
Body, operated by Martin Lopez. In mid-2015, a joint operation was undertaken wherein an undercover investigator contacted Arias and inquired about the possibility of setting up a “scratch out” scheme. Arias worked at West Market as a car painter who agreed to participate in the scheme. Arias then gave the investigator instructions on how to damage the vehicle to avoid any suspicions by the insurance company. He also gave the investigator instructions on what to say to the insurance adjustors in order to convince them the damage was legitimate. The investigator—using an undercover vehicle—followed Arias’ directions and returned the now damaged-vehicle to him for repair. After a claim was submitted, a check for $4888.11 was issued to West Market. In late 2015, Lopez, the owner of the auto body shop, agreed to host a separate scratch out scheme and a second undercover car was delivered to West Market. Lopez also gave specific instructions to undercover agents on how to vandalize the car for insurance money. A fictitious estimate was submitted by Lopez to the insurance company for payment and Lopez received $5,006.18. Upon inspection of
the body shop, investigators found that the shop was not in compliance with worker’s compensation insurance laws. Auto insurance fraud is not uncommon in Monterey County and is a serious problem nationwide resulting in billions of dollars lost every year. As a result, insurance rates are increased to cover those costs. The District Attorney’s Office-Auto Insurance Fraud Unit works in conjunction with the Monterey County Sheriff’s Department MADCAT in investigating auto body shops throughout the County. Members of the public having information about possible insurance fraud are encouraged to report what they know to MCSO Detective Ken Owen at 831-755-7279, CHP Detective Chuck Rodriguez at 831-755-3818, DA Investigator Maribel Torres-Hart at 831-883-7588 or District Attorney’s Office Fraud Hotline at 831-755-3224. This case was investigated by Detective Arras Wilson, MSCO, Detective Chris Browning, CHP, and Investigator Maribel Torres-Hart, District Attorney. John Pearce of the National Insurance Crime Bureau assisted in the investigation by providing the vehicles used in the undercover operation.
Continued from Page 18
I-CAR Announces
Miller encourages the industry to learn more about the new I-CAR classes being offered over the next several months. “It’s a win-win-win for everyone involved,” said Miller. “Career and technical schools win, I-CAR wins and ultimately the industry wins because we’re using a neutral location where students can attend and don’t feel like they are under any pressure. Ultimately, the motoring public wins with safer repairs.” For information about upcoming classes, visit www.i-car.com.
The source for timely information that every body shop needs!
CALL 800-699-8251
FREE
Mail Subscription
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 27
3M Automotive Aftermarket Division Deploys New Mobile D.E.M.O. Trailer 3M Automotive Aftermarket Division recently introduced a traveling interactive display trailer and educational classroom, featuring the latest in 3M collision repair technology. The 46foot long Demonstration & Education Mobile Operation (D.E.M.O.) trailer is out on tour visiting trade shows, distributors, collision shop customers and other major events.
On location, the DEMO unit expands into different live workstations, including body repair solutions, adhesives, coatings & sealers, paint prep, painting and paint finishing. Featured
product systems include the Accuspray™ Spray Gun System with PPS™ Paint Preparation System, to the new Total Automotive Sanding System, Cubitron™ II abrasives, Dynamic Mixing System, advanced power tools and more. The D.E.M.O. trailer made its debut at the Sherwin Williams National Meeting in Orlando and Premiere Auto Supply Open House in Miami, where, combined, more than 500 people took part in the mobile learning experience. The trailer gives customers the opportunity to try out 3M’s industry leading tools and product solutions.
CCC Information Services Inc. Publishes 2017 Crash Course Report
CCC Information Services Inc. (“CCC”) has announced today the availability of its 2017 Crash Course, an in-depth report that focuses on the trends and business drivers within the automotive collision industry. This year’s report, “It’s Happening,” ex-
amines the vast technological and digital advancements being broadly embraced by consumers and incorporated into today’s vehicles, and their impact on the automotive claims, collision repair, parts, casualty, and automotive manufacturing industries. Crash Course is compiled using research and information from a wide range of sources and an aggregated set of data from CCC’s data warehouse, which includes approximately 180 million claims worth of information.
“In this year’s report, we look at how rapidly changing technology is driving change for the consumer, the vehicle, the insurer, the repairer, the parts provider, and the manufacturer,” said Susanna Gotsch, Lead Industry Analyst, CCC. “The growing number of digital connections being created means greater access to information. This information brings an even greater understanding of the end customer and creates operational transparency and insights into new risks and opportunities for the companies that serve them. We explore how many of these technologies are playing a key role throughout the automotive ecosystem, and how businesses are responding.” To explore these topics and their impact, several CCC subject matter experts have contributed to an expanded report. The Crash Course report also provides in-depth analysis on repair costs, telematics, casualty trends, and myriad other factors that contribute to the performance of the industry. To download the 2017 Crash Course report, visit www.cccis.com /crash-course-2017.
28 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
The unit also includes a full classroom where collision repair professionals can learn the latest repair techniques, standard operating procedures and more, as well as earning ICAR continuing education credits. “Our team has put a lot of time an effort into the new mobile unit,” said Dale Ross, U.S. marketing operations manager for 3M Automotive Aftermarket Division. “We believe that when a customer has an opportunity to pick up a 3M tool, or try out one our breakthrough Cubitron II abrasives for themselves, or spray with PPS™ and Accuspray firsthand, they will see the difference and won’t want to use anything else. We are proud to have a great new way to bring all that 3M has to offer to more customers.”
PPG Debuts TouchMix® XI Touchscreen Computer
PPG has launched its state-of-theart TOUCHMIX® XI computer, the first of three advanced tools that will make up PPG’s new branded Color Solutions product line known as XI. A PPG exclusive, this robust WINDOWS® OS computer is designed to provide easy navigation of PPG’s PAINTMANAGER® software program to reduce mixing room complexity and allow technicians to work more efficiently. “This is a highly significant technological leap in color solutions,” said John Beran, director, refinish global color IT. “By linking this remarkable self-contained unit with our PaintManager system, we’ve developed a secure and compact solution for the most demanding collision center environments.” According to Beran, the TouchMix XI unit features plug-and-play functionality, an easy-to-clean 15” glass color touchscreen and a paintresistant finish. Its small footprint permits it to be configured in several ways: stand-, pole- or wall-mounted with no external computer or keyboard required. For more information, visit www.ppgrefinish.com.
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 29
Old School Know How
Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.
She’s Retired, But Not Out of the Game: The Story of “Collisionista” with Ed Attanasio
If you have ever collided with Petra Schroeder, you know why they call her “Collisionista,” because she isn’t afraid to take on any challenge in this male-dominated industry. If you ever encountered her at a Women’s Industry Network (WIN) event or at any industry conference, then you know that she is dedicated to helping the industry as a whole and the women who work in it specifically.
Petra Schroeder retired after nearly 47 years working in the paint side of the industry, but she is still the current chair of WIN and a trustee for the Collision Industry Foundation (CIF) logistics
Schroeder recently retired after working for the same paint company since 1969, although it has had several different names over the years, she explained. “I worked almost 47 years for Herberts/DuPont/Axalta on two different continents, first in Germany and then in the USA starting in 1995,” Schroeder said. “I now enjoy retirement, but am still very active as a volunteer in many of the North American industry associations and proudly serve as the current chair of WIN and as a trustee for Collision Industry Foundation (CIF). I also regularly attend CIC, NABC Board meetings and other meetings during industry week.” In 1995, Schroeder came to the United States and landed in Plymouth, MI, where she worked for American Standox as its Director of Technical Services until 2000. From there, she worked for Dupont Performance Coatings in brand development and then finished her career as a Standox brand manager and Industry Relations Manager for Axalta Coating Systems. From 1969 to 1995, she worked in various positions in color service, product management and strategy for Hoechst/Herberts/Standox, in Wuppertal, Germany, where she learned about
the automotive paint world. “I did an apprenticeship for a paint company, but wasn’t anywhere near paint at first,” she said. “I was in the business/administrative side and eventually it morphed into learning everything about the refinish paint—how it’s made; the chemistry behind it, research and development as well as product management. I was hooked at that point. Paint is a sticky thing and it tends to do that.” While working in Germany, Schroeder had to gain respect from her male counterparts by establishing trust and continually proving herself, she said. “When I would meet with clients in many countries on different continents, they immediately assumed that I was the secretary or the assistant,” she said. “So when they found that I was in charge, they were a little shocked. But once they saw that I knew what I was doing, they came around quickly. I had no problem with it, because my attitude has always been that once I prove myself with my knowledge and demeanor, respect will follow. Many of these relationships that were built back then are still going strong.” When Schroeder first came to the U.S., she immediately witnessed a big difference from the collision repair industry in Germany, where technicians are highly-skilled craftsmen. “The education and curriculum to be a technician in Germany is very intense and the certification process is stringent,” she said. “To become a master painter or a master body technician, you have to go through 2-3 years of intense schooling and then a series of additional classes to achieve the highest level. In general, I would say that it’s a more well-respected profession in Germany, but we are catching up in this country.” How did Schroeder initially learn about WIN and how did her role within the organization evolve? “I was at the first WIN conference in 2007, and that’s when I immediately connected with other females in the industry and I haven’t missed one of their conferences yet,” she said. “After joining, I decided to get involved as much as I could, so I started speaking out and joining committees. Now I am the organization’s Chair and [am] delighted to be doing it.”
30 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
If you’re not familiar with WIN, it is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to encouraging, developing and cultivating opportunities to attract women to collision repair. WIN recognizes excellence, promotes leadership and fosters a network primarily among women. To learn more about WIN programs or for information on becoming a member, please visit the WIN website at www.WomensIndustryNetwork .com. Schroeder has seen the organization grow in leaps and bounds and welcomes both men and women to join WIN. “We just hit 508 members in 2016, which is amazing, because we thought that 300 was going to be hard to reach just a few years back,” she said. “Many people don’t realize that we also welcome male members from the collision industry to join WIN. In fact, we have 30 men who are members now and whose support is greatly appreciated. We invite more to join.”
Currently living in Ypsilanti, MI and retired but surely not out of the game, what advice can Schroeder give to young women entering this industry? “I talk to young women in this industry on many occasions and work closely with 7-8 of them on a regular basis. We talk or text with them quite a bit about how to succeed in collision repair. I tell them, don’t get frustrated if you’re not immediately accepted. Do your job and the respect will come. If you can do your job and give respect, you will get it in return. You can achieve so much in this industry now— the sky is the limit. I tell them that it’s not a matter of if; it’s just a matter of when.” And one last question for Schroeder—why the nickname “Collisionista?” “It is a fantasy name, derived from the word collision,” she said. “Once I used it, people seemed to like it, so it’s been my moniker ever since.”
• We are the authorized insurance vendors for the AASP/Alliance of Automotive Service Providers of NJ. • Call us for competitive quotes. • Member only dividend & discount programs. • The Amato Agency is a full service agency representing most major insurance companies for all your insurance needs. Our goal is to reduce your insurance costs, without sacrificing the coverage you need. We will review your current program, check for adequacy and provide competitive alternatives.
www.amatoagency.com
Call Us Today at:
800-763-6574
Agency President Joseph Amato Sr.
to see how much $ we can save you!
4900 State Route 33 #103 Neptune, NJ 07753
Agency Manager & VP Joseph Amato Jr.
Your Guarantee of Protection and Exceptional Service for Over 40 Years.
Bergey’s WHOLESALE PAR T S • 10 Professional, Experienced Salesmen for your Convenience • UPS and FedEx Delivery Available
• Delivery Service for Wholesale Accounts in 13+ Counties in PA, NJ and DE • Servicing Retail and Wholesale Accounts
Bergey’s
Bergey’s
CHEV R O LET
Collision Hotline:
800-237-4399 Fax: 215-822-7109
OPEN: M-F 7am - 5pm
Mechanical Hotline:
877-275-3352 Fax: 215-822-5851
201 Bethlehem Pike / Colmar, PA 18915
F O RD
Collision Hotline:
800-237-4399 Fax: 215-822-7109
OPEN: M-F 7am - 5pm
Mechanical Hotline:
877-275-3352 Fax: 215-822-5851
201 Bethlehem Pike / Colmar, PA 18915
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 31
Media and Publicity for Shops
Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.
There’s No Free Lunch When it Comes to Your Website with Ed Attanasio
Many body shop owners have been seduced by the idea of having a free website while their competitors are dropping major bucks on their sites. They see a commercial on TV from services like wix.com, web.com or myfreewebsite.com and they get all excited at the thought of saving a ton of money. But they never question why it’s free in the first place. Haven’t they learned yet that when you save money, you also risk sacrificing quality? You buy a cheap paint and you need more coats to paint the cars. You buy inexpensive tape and it doesn’t always adhere properly. It’s Common Sense 101, yet I see a lot of free body shop websites out there and I always find it both surprising and disturbing. First off, haven’t you learned that free doesn’t always mean free forever? Haven’t we all been lured in at some point on a deal that looked sweet, but after six months the promotional price disappeared and now
you’re paying full freight? It’s called the “freemium” approach, which involves providing a service for free at first and then later charging for basically the same service at a date in the future. It was a great deal when it was free, but now you are stuck with a subpar website that comes with a monthly bill. You got caught trying to save a few bucks and now this so-called free service is socking it to you. Most free website providers aren’t inexpensive once the free stage has transpired, so beware. First, they are going to charge you for hosting the site at a rate that is probably higher than most and if you want to make changes or add pages, for example, you better pony up additional funds. It’s never an easy task to customize a free website. They will usually let you change things like type styles, fonts, colors, templates or themes, but if you want to do anything more elabo-
rate than that, you’re out of luck. Free websites usually come along with advertising and they’re not advertising your shop. This is how these free website companies make money and one of the best ways for them to do this is by sticking advertising banners in prime positions on your website. One body shop went with a free service and then saw some of its competitors’ ads right on their home page, but that is the risk you take when you go cheap with your website. If you buy a free site, it also could be connected to a link farm. Marketing links is another easy way for website owners to make extra revenue. But if you have a free website and your provider has sold links on your site, you’re setting yourself up to be penalized by Google. And even worse, being blacklisted and re-indexed, which is essentially a death sentence from Google. In addition, your no-charge web-
site could crash or go offline at any time without warning. In the end, you don’t actually own your website, which means it can crash and you can’t do anything more than cry or pray. In a worst case scenario, your website goes down full-time and forever, which means you could lose your domain name as well. A free website is likely defenseless to hackers. If you want someone from Russia or China playing with your content, then they are more than happy to oblige. Security is not a big priority for free website providers, so don’t be shocked when you get hacked if you have one. Restoring your site after you’ve been hacked can be a traumatic experience and something you should avoid at all costs. Another drawback associated with having a free website is that they provide very limited space. So if you want to upload a wide range of photos or videos, you may run out of space
Announces:
2017 Second Quarter Training Schedule
OFFERS THE WIDEST CHOICE OF LIFTS AND BENCHES
All Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes training centers feature state-of-the-art teaching tools, such as iPads, to enhance the learning experience for today’s collision repair professionals. Explore our robust training programs in a variety of areas designed to improve productivity and profitability. Training Center
www.collisionequipment.net Ted Dinnella 516-361-9220
We’ll be there!
Date
Training Course Description
Philadelphia
5/8/17
Painter Certification
3
Philadelphia
5/30/17
Painter Certification
3
Fredericksburg* 6/27/17
Painter Certification
3
* Fredericksburg, MD location
For more information about Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes courses, visit its training section at:
Visit our Booth #423 - March 17-19 32 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Number of Days
www.sherwin-automotive.com/refinish/training-support or call 1-800-SWULTRA (1-800-798-5872).
rather quickly. Plus, your bandwidth will be seriously limited by using a free website service. This means that if you get a sudden surge of traffic or decide to host a substantial number of videos on your site, it could be pulled by the service without notice. Another way that free sites are limited pertains to the number of pages they offer and many of them feature three-page sites. A body shop website will look lightweight and cheap with just three pages and what do you do when you want to expand it in the future? One of the biggest shortcomings of a free website is that its Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is limited. Since you aren’t able to access the backend of a free website, any SEO
you can achieve is nothing more than rudimentary at best. If one of the main goals of any website is to enable potential customers to find you easily online, a free website is unlikely to enhance your SEO one iota. You probably wouldn’t be surprised if you learned that once you sign up for a free or trial website, the customer service is literally nonexistent in many instances. If you run into trouble with your website, good luck,
because you will never get them on the phone and they certainly won’t becalling you back anytime soon. There is a fine line between inexpensive and cheap, and if your website looks cheap, you’re probably going to be stuck in the cheap seats. You can save money on things like grocery bags and aftermarket headlights, but don’t try to cut dollars when you do your website the first time or re-design an old one.
Advertise in our CLASSIFIED SECTION for $50 per column inch! 800-699-8251
ltedesco@autobodynews.com
Continued from Cover
Bronx Shop Murder
Group and the U.S. Southern District of New York identified the alleged crimes committed by Pizarro and Rivera and worked collaboratively to arrest them today.” NYSP Superintendent George P. Beach II said: “I applaud the hard work of our law enforcement partners on the DEA New York Drug Enforcement Task Force. Through solid police work, two suspects have been put behind bars and two dangerous men are off of our streets. These men not only allegedly kidnapped a man from his business, robbing him of hard earned money – but they ultimately took his life. We look forward to continuing our strong partnership with the Task Force, and bringing those who commit these heinous types of crimes, to justice.” NYPD Commissioner James P. O’Neill said: “As alleged, the brazen violence carried out by the defendants named in this indictment demonstrates a blatant disregard for both the law and human life. I commend the prosecutors, investigators, and agents who diligently brought this case to its swift conclusion.” According to the allegations contained in the Indictment and other documents in the public record, and statements made in court: On September 20, 2016, Pizarro and Rivera robbed Robert Bishun at gunpoint in his auto body shop in the Bronx. They then kidnapped Bishun, forcing him into his own car, and driving it away. Bishun’s body was found several hours later in the back seat of his car. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner of New York City concluded that the cause of Bishun’s death was strangulation. On a prior occasion, in January 2015, Pizarro robbed Robert Bishun at gunpoint at the same auto body shop, taking approximately $10,000 cash from Bishun. Pizarro, 37, and Rivera, 39, both of the Bronx, are each charged with one count of kidnapping conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison; one count of kidnapping resulting in death, which carries a maximum sentence of death; one count of robbery conspiracy, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; and one count of use of a firearm, which See Bronx Shop Murder, Page 48
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 33
Industry Insight with John Yoswick
—John Yoswick is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon, who has a body shop in the family and has been writing about the automotive industry since 1988. He is the editor of the weekly CRASH Network (for a free 4-week trial subscription, visit www.CrashNetwork.com). Contact him by email at jyoswick@SpiritOne.com.
Survey Shows How Regularly Shops Get Paid for Shop Supplies, Aluminum Labor Rates Automaker repair procedures and position statements have a clear and positive effect for repairers looking to get reimbursed for “not-included” items. That was among the findings of a recent “Who Pays for What?” survey,
four questionnaires a year conducted by Collision Advice and CRASH Network. Each of the quarterly surveys focuses on a different aspect of collision repair, asking shops about which “not-included” procedures they bill for, and about how frequently each of the largest auto insurers pays for those procedures. The latest of the 2017 “Who Pays” surveys, focused on body labor operations, is being conducted throughout the month of April; visit https://www.crash network.com/collisionadvice for more information or to take the survey. The “Who Pays for What?” survey results released earlier this year found that more shops said “having OEM documentation” was most effec-
In fact, having OEM documentation out-ranked presenting an invoice, whether from a dealership or an invoicing system, and even edged out “the ability to select the item in the estimating database” in terms of the most effective negotiating tools. More than 1,000 shops across the country responded to that particular “Who Pays” survey, which covered aluminum repair rates, OEM certification programs and vehicle scanning, along with how frequently repairers charge— and get paid for—specific shop supplies. Comparing the 2016 findings to those of the same survey a year earlier found that shops are reporting increased success in getting reimbursed for every one of the 17 different “notincluded” shop supplies asked. In some cases, the improvements in reimbursement frequency were not significant; quite a few items, however, showed marked improvement in the number of shops getting paid “always” or “most of the time” for these shop supplies when they were necessary for the repair. In 2016, for example, more than half of all shops (56 percent) who bill for plastic repair materials are regu-
Fifty-six percent of shops said they are paid “always” or “most of the time” when invoicing for plastic repair materials, up from 48% in the same survey a year earlier
tive (among other choices presented) when negotiating to be compensated for “not-included” repair procedures and shop supplies used on a job. “I think that’s a big message to the OEMs,” said Mike Anderson of Collision Advice. “The fact that OEM documentation was ranked most effective when negotiating with insurers means that the position statements and bulletins published by the OEMs really do help our industry.”
larly reimbursed for them by the eight largest insurers; that was up 8.4 percentage points over the same survey in 2015. Insurers are also reimbursing shops more frequently for items like double-sided tape; more than threequarters of shops (78 percent) report regular reimbursement for this “not-included” item when it is required for the repair, up 6.8 percentage points from a year earlier.
34 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
“Once again, the survey results show that many shops are being paid for these items on a regular basis, even if your shop isn’t billing for them at
The survey asked shops that have earned one or more OEM aluminum repair certification to rate their satisfaction on their return in that investment
all,” Anderson said “You can’t get reimbursed for something you don’t bill for. And as more than 2,500 shops
who have taken one or more ‘Who Pays’ surveys can now attest, just participating in the four different quarterly surveys is a great reminder of the items and procedures that you are using or performing every day, but may not be listing on estimates or invoices.” Aluminum repair labor rates were another key part of the survey; those rates appear to have increased slightly from 2015 to 2016, though shops are generally charging those rates for a narrower range of repair operations. In 2015, the “Who Pays for What?” survey found that labor rates for non-structural aluminum repairs ranged widely, from $43 per hour to $118 per hour for repairs that were not part of an OEM certified repair program. A year later, the latest survey results show that the range, while just as wide, has increased slightly to $46 at the low end of the scale to $120 at the See Survey Shows, Page 45
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 35
H ONDA C ONN ECT I CUT
Lia Honda of Enfield E n fie l d
800-221-3131 860-741-3401 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-5:30; Sat 8-4 jdoucette@liacars.com
Schaller Honda N ew Br i tai n
800-382-4525 860-826-2080 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-5; Sat 8-1 jkiniry@schallerauto.com M AI NE
Berlin City Honda So u th P or tl a nd
800-640-6685 207-774-6685 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-5:30 mmmparts@berlincity.com
Prime Honda Saco
207-391-7910 207-282-0900 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Th. 7:30-7; Sat 7:30-4 klavalle@driveprime.com M ARY L AND
Criswell Honda Ge r m a n town
866-738-2886 Dept. Hours: M-Thu 7-9; Fri 7-7:30; Sat 8-6 hondaparts@criswellauto.com
AC URA M ARY L AND
Tischer Acura Lau rel
800-288-6983 301-498-3322 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-6; Sat 8-4 wholesaleparts@tischerauto.com M ASSA CHU SETT S
Acura of Boston Brig ht on
800-254-1169 617-254-5400 Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5:30; Sat 8-5 bruce.fisher@acuraofboston.com N EW J ERS EY
Acura Turnersville Tu r ners v ille
888-883-2884 856-516-6060 Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-4 kristen.powell@penskeautomotive.com 36 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Please contact these dealers for your Honda or Acura Genuine parts needs. MA R Y LAND
NE W J ERSE Y
N EW YOR K
P EN N SY LVA NI A
O’Donnell Honda
Hudson Honda
Brewster Honda
El li cott Ci ty
We s t New Yo r k
B rew st e r
Yo rk
410-461-5000 410-461-9654
866-483-6917 201-868-9500
845-278-4177
800-960-9041 717-848-2600
Dept. Hours: M-F 8-6; Sat 8-5 bshortt@odonnellhonda.com
Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 7:30-5; Sun 8-3 anthony.perrone@hudsonhonda.com
Ourisman Honda of Laurel
Madison Honda
R o che st e r
Baierl Honda
La ure l
Ma dis on
800-462-0056 (N.Y.) 585-586-4919
724-940-2006
Dept. Hours: M-Thur 8-8; Fri 8-5:30; Sat 8-5 parts@dickide.com
Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-4 johnryan@baierl.com
Lamacchia Honda
J.L. Freed Honda
Dick Ide Honda
800-288-6985 301-498-6050
800-648-0293 973-822-1710
Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-7; Sat 7-4 julio.cruz@ourismanautomotive.com
Dept. Hours: M-Thu 7-8; Fri 7-6; Sat 8-6; mschumer@madisonhonda.com
MA S SAC H U S ET TS
Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-4 kbennett@liacars.com
Rossi Honda
S y ra cu se
Apple Honda
Dept. Hours: M-F 7-6; Sat 7-4; Sun 10-4 applehondaparts@appleauto1.com
Wex ford
M o ntg o m e r yv il l e
215-855-3587
LIA Honda Northampton
Vin elan d
315-471-7278
Nor tha mpto n
800-893-3030 856-692-4449
Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-5:30; Sat 9-1 parts@lamacchiahonda.com
Dept. Hours: M-Thur 8-6; Fri 8-5; Sat 8-4 joseph.sciacca@jlfreed.com
Dept. Hours: M-F 6:30-5; Sat 7:30-3 dave@rossihonda.com
Lia Honda of Albany
Shadyside Honda
800-369-7889 413-586-6043 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-5:30; Sat 8-4 dstanisewski@liacars.com NE W J E R S E Y
Clinton Honda Ann a ndal e
908-735-0900 Dept. Hours: M,Tue, F 7-6; W, Thu 7-7; Sat 7-4 chrish@clintonhonda.com
Honda of Turnersville Tur ne rs vill e
800-883-0002 856-649-1584 Dept. Hours: M-F 8-6; Sat 8-4 sbaptist@penskeautomotive.com
NE W J E R S E Y
Route 22 Honda Hi lls id e
973-705-9100
A l ba n y
800-272-6741 518-482-2598
Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7:30; Sat 8-5 rt22hondaparts@route22honda.com
Dept. Hours: M, T, W, F 7:30-5:30; Thur 7:30-8; Sat 8-5 apersaud@liacars.com
VIP Honda
Lia Honda of Williamsville
Nor t h P lain f i el d
908-753-1680 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-3 kevinh@viphonda.com NE W YO RK
Babylon Honda We s t Ba by lo n
W i ll ia m sv il l e/ B u ff a l o
877-659-2672 716-632-3800 Dept. Hours: M-Thu 7:30-8; Fri 7:30-5; Sat 8-5:30 liaparts@liacars.com
Ray Laks Honda
Pi ttsb u rg h
800-468-2090 412-390-2908 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-5 shadysidehondaparts@hotmail.com
Sussman Honda Ro sl yn
800-682-2914 215-657-3301 Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-1 rendrick@sussmanauto.com VER MO NT
802 Honda Be rl i n
631-669-5800
We st S e ne ca
716-824-7852
802-223-9700
Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 7:30-3:30 babylonparts@aol.com
Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-8; Sat 7:30-5:30 ekuznicki@raylaks.com
Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-5; Sat 8-Noon hondaparts@802cars.com
NE W YO RK
PEN NS YLVANIA
PEN NSY LVAN IA
Elite Acura
Curry Acura
Baierl Acura
Ma p le Sh ad e
S c ar s da l e
Wexfo rd
Jen kint own
856-722-9600
800-725-2877 914-472-7406
800-246-7457 724-935-0800
800-826-4078 215-884-6285
Dept. Hours: M-F 8-6; Sat 8-5 parts@curryacura.com
Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-1 johnsabella@baierl.com
Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-1 rendrick@sussmanauto.com
Paragon Acura
Davis Acura
Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-4 bmartinsen@group1auto.com
Park Ave Acura Ma ywoo d
888-690-7621 201-587-0028 Dept. Hours: M-F 8-6; Sat 8-3 jon.tangen@parkaveacura.com NE W Y O R K
Acura of Westchester We st ch est er
914-834-8887 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-8; Sat 8-4; Sun 9-4 acura.parts@yahoo.com
Woo d s i d e
L a ngho r ne
718-507-3990
866-50-ACURA 215-943-7000
Dept. Hours: M-F 8-6; Sat 8-5; Sun 9-4 johnp@paragonacura.com
Smithtown Acura St. James
888-832-8220 631-366-4114 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-5:30; Sat 8-4 parts@smithtownacura.com
Sussman Acura
Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 8-4 markh@davisacura.com
Lehigh Valley Acura Emma us
877-860-3954 610-967-6500 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-5; Sat 8-5 mustafa@vinart.com
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 37
Body Filler & Banana Skins by Peter L Phillipson
One of the most common application questions I get asked about is with regards to body filler and how problems manifest themselves. This of course can be with or without the use of infrared. I therefore decided to write an article to cover the do’s & don’ts to help you avoid the possible things that can slip you up, or as I call them, banana skins. To begin, let’s first establish what body filler is and why it can cause problems if not treated correctly. The main ingredients (but not in all cases) are talc, as in baby powder, fiberglass (polyester) resin, styrene, and in the hardener, methyl ethyl ketone peroxide (MEKP). This is not good stuff to get in your body either via inhalation of fumes or dust from sanding. A point to note is the boiling point (decomposes): >80°C / 176°F. Another important point to note is do not get that stuff anywhere near your eyes. It can cause blindness in seconds, so little chance for an eye wash in time. In addition, body filler, or should I say the talc content, is hygroscopic (readily absorbs water) so don’t leave a vehicle in damp conditions with ex-
posed body filler. Moisture could get absorbed and give you big problems later in the repair. Body filler is exothermic (creates its own heat when curing). You can actually feel the heat coming off it when it’s curing on the panel. It’s therefore important that it’s not applied in low temperature, by that I mean low 60º’s F / 15.5º C or below as there are major downsides. First, the chemical reaction slows significantly, as in getting this full cured (ready to sand) could now take hours. Secondly, if the ambient temperature is really low, the metal panel is most likely lower still, so the potential of creating condensation under the filler
38 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
is very real. One of the common mistakes made with body filler is incorrect mixing of the hardener. Yes, I know there are some good mixing products out there, but many will be just using a pot of body filler and a tube of hardener. The mixing ratios are really quite fine, for example 3 part per 100 or 50 to 1 etc. Judging that is really quite a challenge. Here are a few suggestions to keep in mind to make this judgment easier. Squeeze out a line of hardener 2 thirds across a filler pancake or cow pat. Another approximate ratio I was shown was the golf ball and small garden pea guide. Not very scientific, but it worked for me.
Over catalysation is sometimes done on purpose, especially in cold weather or the body man is under pressure to get a job out quick. Unfortu-
nately, this can come back and bite you in many ways. There is a list of problems you could experience, including incorrect curing, brittle job that can crack, peroxide bleed-through on the finished paint job, and increased bubble chances, to mention a few.
When I am giving a clinic on infrared curing, one of my suggestions is to use infrared all the way through the process, in fact I go further, use infrared on the panel before you apply the very first product and that’s body filler in most cases. The reason is it removes any chance of moisture causing an adhesion problem at a later date and
the added heat also helps the product work properly. I am only talking about a 2 minute application of infrared costing less than 1 cent For goodness sake! This can avoid so many problems and cost. For example the shop does not use infrared on the filler, but does on the primer. All of a sudden, they see something starting to lift or bubble / blister on the primer surface. Yes, trapped moisture, air, or gas expands when you heat it and that 2 minute application I suggested starts to make sense. If the filler is going to react i.e. has air trapped in it, at least you see it before getting into the more expensive part of the repair, top coat etc. When mixing body filler, try to spread it out, fold and repeat, rather than just stir in the hardener. To avoid folding in air bubbles, press the spreader to the palate to squeeze air bubbles out as you mix. Also avoid using bits of cardboard as your mixing palette, although yes, most of us have done this at one time. The reason is that a lot of cardboard is treated to make it a little waterproof. That treatment includes wax, which can be transferred into your filler and onto the paint job. It can also pick up fibers, which again can effect
the quality of your paint job. Mixing palettes are not expensive and worth the small expense. The other scenario if not using infrared is the heated booth shows you the problem when the clear is baked, or it might not even show you the problem there. The job could pass quality control and get handed back to the customer. The new paint job is sitting on the customer’s driveway and Mother Nature (the sun) delivers a large dose of infrared that exposes the underlying problem. This can manifest itself in small micro blisters, pin holing, or even cause the filler to bulge. It’s certainly going to be a re-do, that comes off the shops bottom line, not to mention the effect on the shops reputation. Anyway, back to using the infrared on body filler. Body fillers can be treated with varying temperatures dependant on the manufacturer. There are even variations between European and US brands, so here is a really safe starting point. If you have temperature control, set it at a max of 120º F / 48.8º C. This may be increased in some cases, but first check the product instructions you get from the manufacturer of the body filler. You can also control temperature
using distance however, I can only give you advice on B-TEC Systems units as all infrared units will have distance, power and wave length variations. Our units are normally used at 24” from the panel. If you don’t have our temperature controlled units, pull back to 36” and bake on full for around 6 minutes. Allow to cool before sanding. Another option is keeping the 24” distance, but only run on half power for approx 7 minutes. It’s all about building on a firm foundation. There is no point using great paint systems if the products underneath it fail.
I hope you found this article useful and it helps you avoid some of the common slip-ups found when using body filler. If you have any questions or require advice about infrared, you can contact me at B-TEC Systems.
Continued from Cover
NH Action
Old inspection stickers must be removed prior to sale. As part of the settlement with the Attorney General, Platinum Auto has refunded approximately $12,000 to consumers who bought used motor vehicles from them that were sold in violation of the Consumer Protection Act. Platinum Auto Brokers was ordered to pay a fine of $5,000 with all but $1,000 of the fine suspended for five years conditioned on the company complying with all terms of the settlement agreement.
The source for timely information that every body shop needs!
CALL 800-699-8251
FREE
Mail Subscription
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 39
Western Associations 2017 ASCCA/CalABC/CAA Joint Legislative Day April 25 with Ed Attanasio
Every year, there are more than 2,500 separate bills that hit Sacramento almost simultaneously. How many will potentially harm the collision repair industry and how many might help it? Every year, this deluge of bills comes around like clockwork and that’s why the annual ASCCA/CalABC/CAA’s Joint Legislative Day on April 25 in the State Capitol is always significant, as body shop and mechanical shop owners meet with their representatives to oppose some bills while endorsing others. The individual sifting through these bills right now is Jack Molodanof, the go-to lawyer/lobbyist in California for the automotive repair industry who represents several state-wide automotive associations, inclu- ding the California Autobody Association (CAA) and Automotive Service Councils of California (ASCCA). Every year, this enormous job is handled adroitly by Molodanof and his team. “We need to find the bills that are going to directly affect the automotive repair industry in California if they pass,” he said. “There are always a lot of different groups out there with different agendas, so we need to be vigilant and thorough to ferret out the ones we need to address.” Again in 2017, CAA partners with the Automotive Service Councils of California (ASCCA)—the largest independent automotive repair organization in California—to hold this event. With more than 800 members, the ASCCA has been representing all areas of the automotive repair industry, including mechanical, auto body, supplier and educators in the automotive technology field for the past 77 years. With scheduled appointments throughout the Capitol’s offices all day long, ASCCA/CAA members will break into smaller groups to canvas to cover as much territory as possible. As members of both organizations hurriedly search through the hallways looking for politicians’ offices to make their appointments, there is always a little excitement in the air, according to CAA Executive David McClune. “We have limited time and we want to see as many people as we possibly can,” McClune said. “I have seen that this type of lobbying truly works. When a body shop owner sits down
with its local politician and tells them about their business and the issues that they face, they get attention. Starting a dialogue is the first step, and Legislative Day is where it happens in many cases.” This year’s ASCCA State President David Kusa is ready to take on the Capitol on April 25. “I can confidently say the government work that we perform year after year has to be the best thing we do here at ASCCA, and partnering with an organization like CAA makes us even more powerful at the state level,” Kusa said. “Having someone in Sacramento fighting for our rights is vital and shops need to know that we are playing that vital role at CAA.” CAA State President Kathy Mello also sees great value in this annual pilgrimage to the Capitol. “This is our big day every year when we can meet with our political representatives,” said. “We can influence these bills before they become laws and provide important feedback for our key decision makers, so we tell our membership to make the most of it. If we’re not part of the process, we can’t play a role, so Legislative Day is a huge deal for us and for the industry as a whole.” Executive Director Johan Gallo from the California Automotive Business Coalition (CalABC), one of the Legislative Day sponsors, values the annual event for several reasons, he said. “There are so many different professional automotive repair organizations in California, and Legislative Day is an excellent opportunity for all of us to get together and discuss our issues and needs. We’re stronger if we’re unified, and by sharing our knowledge with each other, we can stay that way.” Although most of the bills are still being reviewed by both organizations at this point, one is on both ASCCA and CAA’s radar. It’s AB 475, as introduced by Assemblyman Ed Chau (D-Monterey). Entitled “Total Loss Salvage Vehicles and Dismantled Vehicles: Registration,” the bill states, “Existing law prohibits a vehicle that has been reported as a total loss salvage vehicle or dismantled vehicle from being subsequently registered until the prescribed bill of sale, an appropriate application, official lamp and brake adjustment certificates, as specified, other required
40 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.
documents and fees, and specified pollution control information is submitted to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Existing law prohibits the Department of Motor Vehicles from registering a vehicle that has been reported as a total loss salvage vehicle or dismantled vehicle if the vehicle has been referred to the Department of the California Highway Patrol, or selected for inspection by that department, as specified, until the applicant for registration submits to the Department of Motor Vehicles a certification of that inspection. “This bill would additionally require a certification of structural integrity to be submitted to the Department of Motor Vehicles before a vehicle that has been reported as a total loss salvage vehicle or dismantled vehicle may be registered.” For body shops that hold annual car giveaways, this bill could impact their ability to take salvaged vehicles and refurbish them for deserving peo-
ple, according to Molodanof. Speakers on Legislative Day 2017 will include the Bureau of Automotive Repair’s Chief Art Dorais and his new Deputy Chief Tim Corcoran, who will discuss BAR updates, regulations and enforcement. In addition, Assemblyman Ed Chau has also agreed to talk about AB 475 and field questions from ASCCA and CAA members in attendance. Legislative Day starts at 8 am and runs until 3 at the Capitol Event Center, located at 1020 11th Street in Sacramento. The day commences with a breakfast featuring the day’s speakers, as well as a presentation from Jack Molodanof about how to approach state legislators during the day. “This is our chance to be heard as an industry in Sacramento,” Molodanof said. “We work year round to make this happen and we know from our experience that we’ve changed bills and have had others blocked through our efforts.”
Acura of Westchester
HOURS:
Mon. - Fri.:
7:30am - 8pm
Sat.:
8am - 4pm
Sun.:
9am - 4pm acura.parts@yahoo.com
2155 Palmer Ave. Larchmont, NY 10538
Call or e-mail us Today!
• Large Inventory • Delivering to Westchester, Rockland, Putnam • NYC 5 Boroughs & Connecticut • Fast Free Delivery • Great Discounted Prices
914-834-8887 914-833-1812 FAX
www.acuraofwestchester.com www.oeconnection.com
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 41
California Lobbyist Jack Molodanof Updates CAA on Labor Rate Surveys, 2017 Laws by Victoria Antonelli
On March 2, California Autobody Association (CAA) lobbyist Jack Molodanof addressed a packed room of industry members gathered at the Brookside Golf Club in Pasadena, CA. Attendees enjoyed dinner and networking opportunities from 6pm to 7pm before CAA Glendale/Foothill Chapter President Hillel Shamam introduced Molodanof.
CAA lobbyist Jack Molodanof was the featured speaker at the CAA meeting March 2 in Pasadena
“There are over 200 insurance companies in the state, and only about 12-15 use labor rate surveys,” said Molodanof. “[Even without a survey], the insurers can negotiate in good faith or pay your retail rate, that’s fine, but once they start saying ‘this is all we’re paying’ they better have prepared and filed a survey that complies with the new requirements.” The CAA lobbyist urged auto body shop owners to submit a formal complaint to California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones if they come across an insurance company that is refusing to negotiate rates in good faith and does not have a standardized labor rate survey filed with the department. “Dave Jones, in my opinion, is one of the best CICs we’ve had in this state,” said Molodanof. “He understands the auto body industry and is very strong for advocate for consumers. You can have a pretty intelligent conversation with him about labor rates surveys, steering, aftermarket crash markets, while a lot of our elected officials have no clue what you’re talking about.” The California Department of Insurance (CDI) complaint forms were handed out at the meeting and are also available on the CDI website and CAA website. “If an insurance company or adjuster comes in and says they’ve completed a standardized survey, ask about geo-coding and how your shop compares to the six closest shops (core
The CAA lobbyist began by explaining the new labor rate survey regulations that took effect on March 1, 2017. In order for insurers to meet the new standardized requirements, labor rate surveys must be current and have to be completed annually. After that time, they become non-compliant, unless they includes a Consumer Price Index (CPI), which allows for a year extension. The surveys must include all auto body shops in the geographical area that are registered with the Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR). The geographical area is determined through “geo-coding”, a “very accurate” formula that uses the longitude and latitude of a location to determine the six closest auto body shops. The survey must be completed directly by the auto body shop owner and/or manager. The survey also requires every shop to be registered with BAR, have the specified CAA lobbyist, Jack Molodanof, answers a question posed by CAA Glendale/Foothill President, Hillel Shamam equipment criteria, workers’ compensation insurance, and Garage area),” said Molodanof. “You’ll know Keeper’s Liability Insurance. right away if the survey is geo-coding “You cannot use Direct Repair compliant or not.” Program (DRP) rates or negotiated Although performing labor rate rates,” Molodanof stressed. “This has surveys are voluntary, there is, howbeen a big stumbling block because inever, a huge incentive for insurance surance companies want to use the companies to conduct a standardized DRP rates; the new standardized regulabor rate survey. lations require retail labor rates.” “If the insurance company com-
42 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
pletes the survey and complies with all of the requirements, they get a rebuttable presumption … which means they can adjust your labor rate [they want to pay you],” Molodanof explained.
tions are the most comprehensive in the entire country,” he added. “It will benefit consumers, insurance companies and shops.” After answering multiple questions from the attendees, Molodanof moved on to anti-steering. The main updates were as follows and only pertain to policyholders (summarized by CAA Glendale/Foothill President Hillel Shamam):
● Insurance companies have six business days for an original inspection and an additional six business days for supplements/re-inspections, provided the vehicle is made available for inspection.
Attendees listened intently while Jack Molodanof went over recently passed collision repair laws
“If you get a survey from an insurance company, you should fill it out,” he added. “If you don’t fill it out, it’s going to be used against you.” According to Molodanof, the new standardized labor rate survey form is “very straightforward and simple.” “The labor rate survey regula-
● Insurance companies can get an additional three business days for photos.
● Insurance companies waive their rights to inspection if they don’t comply within the time periods noted above. See CAA Lobbyist, Page 44
Koeppel Mazda The Source for Mazda Parts! 57-15 Northern Blvd., Woodside, NY 11377 Parts: 3250 57th St., Woodside, NY 11377
• Value Products & Tires Available • Free Dedicated Delivery • Large Stock of OEM Parts Parts Dept.
718.721.9100 718.626.1427 Fax Hours: Mon-Fri 7:30am - 6pm; Sat 8am - 4pm
jvelez@koeppelautogroup.com
www.koeppelmazda.com
FUCCILLO KIA OF SCHENECTADY
$250,000 in Body Parts in Stock!
Hours M, T, Th: 7:30-5:30 W: 7:30-7; F: 7:30-5; S: 8-5
518-847-0808 Huge Inventory
Free Daily Delivery
Amazing Discounts
Covering the Capital District, Northeast and all adjacent areas including MA, VT and the Southern zone.
www.fuccillokiaschenectady.com FAX 518-372-4589
3900 State St. Schenectady, NY 12304 www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 43
will go into effect on April 1. In order to compensate for the battery plant contamination clean-up in Los Angeles that cost the state $180 ● Insurance companies cannot re- million, Governor Jerry Brown has quire customers to have their vehicle enacted a law affecting those who sell inspected at their DRP vendors once acid batteries to consumers. their policyholder has chosen a facil“As a repair shop, when you reity. place a damaged or nonfunctional battery, you’re going to need to charge an ● Insurance companies cannot make additional $1 per battery fee and it deceptive comments about shops not in must be itemized on your invoice,” their program such as “their service or said Molodanof. “It’s an obligation; repair quality is poor” or “an inspection even if you don’t collect, you’re still will occur at a later date.” responsible for the fee.” The last new law he covered conNext, Molodanof discussed a new law cerned bandit tow trucks, which have concerning battery replacement that become a problem in Southern California, especially Los Angeles. “Bandit tow truck drivers pick up cars and take off with them, and then the customer doesn’t know where the car is,” Molodanof explained. “By the time they find out, they end up having to pay $2000 to $2500 to the storage facility.” In order to combat this, the previous law stated that auto body shops receiving vehicles There wasn’t a single empty seat at Brookside Golf Club during the March 2 CAA meeting from tow trucks had to make Continued from Page 42
CAA Lobbyist
“[When replacing a windshield], estimates on the POS systems have to disclose to the customer that the vehicle cannot be operated for a certain amount of time while the adhesives dry,” said Molodanof. “The ‘cure time’ information also has to be included on the final invoice that goes to the customer.” He explained that the law came about due to a complaint that the BAR received from a senator in Northern California whose constituent had a windshield issue. Industry leader Charlie Robertson and CAA Los Angeles President Anthony Jack Molondanof spent the majority of the meeting Guinn also spoke on March answering questions from attendees 2 to inform attendees of the truck driver pulls something sketchy, CAA Los Angeles March 14 meetand their information isn’t on file, the ing, which featured a presentation on shop owner could go to jail for up to six Modernized Collision Repair Busimonths. ness Solutions. “A law was passed this year allowing auto body shops to accept alterFor more information on CAA, visit native IDs, such as an employee motor calautobody.com. club ID card, in place of a driver’s license,” said Molodanof. The last law passed this year that the CAA lobbyist discussed concerned windshields and adhesives. note of the driver’s name, license, and registration. However, a lot of tow truck drivers did not feel comfortable handing over their licenses due to identity fraud, etc. This left auto body shops in a tough spot, because if the tow
Th The Carcoon A W Features: tttures: The T Th he C Carcoon Ca C arcoon America arco Amer Am A America eriiica ca Workstation Workstation W orkk ork ksttati kst ati tiion io i nF Fe F ea e eat atures: a tu ures
• A massive 179 square feet of filtration area. • Two huge input filters (over 36sf ) clean the air going through the Workstation.
• Four Paint Arrest Filters (140+ square feet) and two Activated • Charcoal Filters ensure the air going back into the environment is clean and EPA compliant.
Different Diff fferent ffe ren nt Sizes Sizes Sizes Available—Including: S Availab A Availabl ble le—IIncludin ncllud diing: g:
• 13’x11’—Parts, pieces and motorcycles. • 30’x14’—Any full size vehicle. • 35’x16’x12’5” tall—As above but also Sprinter vans, small boats, and smaller RVs.
• 60’x16’x12’5” tall—Full size RVs, boats, large trucks, etc. Lighting: LLighting: Ligh ghtiing g:
• Four large clear windows provide ample lighting. • Additional stand lights can be placed outside the booth.
44 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
A Smart Solution. The The Carcoon Car arco co oon on America Am A meerica ric Workstation Wo orksta atio on works work wo orks ks the the he same sam sa me and and just ju ust as effectively eff ffecctivvely as as a cross-flow ccrros rosss--fl flow flo fl w paint paiint booth. ootth The Th T he Carcoon Carrco Ca C oon America oo Am me erricca Workstation Work W Work kstation kst ation n is is EPA E A Certified. Cer fi C fie ed Ideal Ideall for fo or the the busy b busy body b dy bod dy shop-mobile sh p-m mob bile technician/smaller techn tech hn nician/smaller nici ian n/sma alle er shop sh hop ho p with w th limited llim mited facilities. fac facil cilliti ities. es
866.910.0899 www.carcoonworkstation.com
Continued from Page 34
Survey Shows
high end; 50 percent of respondents had a rate of $75 or higher. Compared to a year earlier, however, fewer shops (down 5.1 percentage points) said they are charging those higher aluminum repair rates for oper-
cent. Structural repair labor rates also saw the same slight increase over last year, from a range of $48 to $123 per hour in 2015 to a range of $50 to $130 per hour in 2016; 50 percent of respondents had a rate of $85 or higher. A number of the “Who Pays for What?” surveys have asked shops about their vehicle scanning processes. In the results released earlier this year, when
Which do you find most effective in ensuring you are compensated for ‘not-included’ items?
Shops said OEM documentation was the most effective tool in getting reimbursed for not-included items
ations such as R&I of components, or for refinish operations on aluminum (which fell 9.2 percentage points from last year). The percentage of shops charging higher rates for structural repair or replacement on aluminum vehicles remained virtually unchanged from a year ago, slightly higher than 91 per-
given a choice of eight different possible reasons for not performing a vehicle diagnostic scan, more than half of all shops (51 percent) said that sometimes the level of damage just doesn’t warrant a scan. On the other hand, very few (3 to 4 percent) said they skip the scanning process because it takes too long and impacts cycle time.
Despite the growing number of car manufacturers stressing the importance of scanning every vehicle, the survey indicates that many shops might not be getting the message. American Honda, for example, recently explained that a diagnostic scan is the only way to detect most trouble codes, noting that “only a small fraction of those codes actually turn on a [dash light],” yet a whopping 44 percent of repairers cited the absence of a dash light as a reason they would skip a post-repair scan. Some insurers may not be getting the message, either; the third most common reason shops gave is that insurers don’t want to pay for a post-repair scan (and even fewer want to pay for a pre-repair scan). Anderson said he’s even heard some insurers say that if no trouble codes are identified in a scan, the insurer shouldn’t have to pay for it at all. But as Anderson argued this past fall, “If your child got hurt at the playground, and you went to the hospital and they x-rayed your child’s leg and found it was okay, does the health insurance still cover the x-ray? The answer is yes, because it’s the only way to make sure nothing is wrong.”
The other three “Who Pays for What?” surveys conducted each year focus on body labor, refinish labor, and frame and mechanical labor. Shops can take the current survey (or sign up to be notified about future surveys) at https://www.crashnetwork .com/collisionadvice. The surveys each take about 15-20 minutes, and should be completed by the shop owner, manager or estimator who is most familiar with the shop’s billing practices and the payment practices of the largest national insurers. Individual responses are not released in any way; only cumulative data is released. At the website, shops also can download the results of previous surveys, reports that break the findings down by region, by insurer and by DRP vs. non-DRP. The reports also include analysis and resources to help shops better understand and use the information presented.
FOLLOW US ON
INSTAGRAM :
@autobodynews
aSuperior a Superior Service aHuge Fleet of Delivery Vans aHighly Competitive Discounts aOver 30 Years Experience and $1 Million Inventory VIP Honda 700 Rt. 22 East N. Plainfield, NJ 07060
Start something special.
PH FX
908.753.1680 908.753.5135
www.viphonda.com
Mon-Fri 7:30am-6:00pm Sat 8:00am-3:00pm
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 45
Shop Strategies
Stacey Phillips is a freelance writer and editor for the automotive industry. She has 20 years of experience writing for a variety of publications. She can be reached at sphillips.autobodynews@gmail.com.
George Avery Shares Thoughts on Direct Repair Programs: From the Cradle to the Grave? with Stacey Phillips
Are customers driving the DRP? According to George Avery, who worked for State Farm Insurance for 37 years, the answer is a resounding yes. Avery said that direct repair programs (DRPs) were originally set up by insurance companies to offer better customer service and help ease the repair process. “When you get down to the bottom line, managing repair costs, quality and efficiency are the overall focus,” he said during a Guild 21 webinar in February.
multiple benefits as a result of tracking information, the challenge is when people look at different data points. He used the analogy of a bay full of ships. Data can tell you the characteristics of the ships, how many there are, the sizes, and how much they are carrying. “The point is that somebody has to get wet and get under the boat to see if there is a leak,” said Avery. “In our case, that’s an individual looking at a repair job and there are a lot of people
“As Dale Delmege used to say, ‘It starts to ratchet the oxygen down on a DRP in its success,’ ” — George Avery
“Typically, it’s the customer that drives that change for efficiency.” Avery, a past Collision Industry Conference chairman and State Farm executive, shared some of his thoughts about DRPs and reasons they might underperform. “The DRP added another level of complexity in some respects,” said Avery, who retired from State Farm in June 2016. “It’s easier for the customer but also has some stress for the other stakeholders.”
who don’t want to get wet.” Not only can it be time-consuming and expensive, but it can also cause frustration when one job affects the rest of the data. There is obviously more involved in the process than the amount of money spent on repair costs, according to Avery. For example, the data collected might suggest there are poor photos or poor repairs, but when you take a closer look, a poor repair might be referencing a piece of masking tape not pulled off or a rail that wasn’t welded correctly. “The The Evolution of the DRP and Big Data problem occurs when there is confusion During his Guild 21 presentation, Avery with how the issue impacts the rerecalled the days of writing competitive pairer’s performance,” he said. bids in the late 1970s and early 1980s Avery posed the following queswhen insurance estimators/adjustors tion to webinar attendees during his began writing repair estimates. “Compresentation: “Do you think big data is petitive bids had a great advantage,” he missing a step by not looking at enough said. “They gave the insureds a competvehicles?” Eighty percent answered itive price and I think it also yes—big data is missing a helped the repairers.” To help step—whereas the remaining make the process more con20 percent said it was not. venient for customers, insurers “For those 20 percent thinkbegan hiring estimators/adjusing that big data isn’t missing tors and setting up appointa step, are those people who ments for drivers to come in have confidence and perhaps for an estimate. This eventuare better at looking at spreadGeorge Avery, ally led to the DRP. sheets and doing analysis?” former State Farm Electronic estimates also asked Avery. executive emerged. “At first, everyone Avery then talked about five thought it was a glorified adding mabehaviors that cause DRPs to underperchine, but it really opened the door to form. He compared them to a person’s communicating electronically and that physical health and having conditions was the start of managing by data,” such as high cholesterol, high blood said Avery. pressure and overeating. “We all have Both insurers and repairers are curthings that that can cause you to get sick rently managing their businesses with or die but you can live with them,” said “big data.” Although he said there are Avery. “The behaviors that are happen-
46 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
ing in the DRP contribute to the health of the DRP concept.”
Five behaviors that cause DRPs to underperform: 1) Managing performance with the DRP concept Avery said that DRP contracts can often be very detailed and he maintains that nobody really reads them. It’s like accepting the basic terms and conditions on the Internet before purchasing software or viewing a website. Many click “Agree” without reading the Terms and Conditions. While insurers outline their expectations in DRP contracts, Avery found they aren’t used in the body shop as an everyday tool to determine how to repair vehicles. Repairers are faced with making repair decisions all the time and most of them don’t take out the DRP contract to reference. Instead, most of the feedback they hear comes after the repair. “What happens is no news is good news,” he said. If nobody ques-
tions the repair, then they make the assumption “I guess it’s OK.”
2) Limited access to insurance claim handling practices Contracts aren’t able to cover every repair situation, according to Avery. When a shop has multiple DRP relationships, the insurer’s positions often vary, for example on appearance allowance, wheel repair or recycled air bags. “If there is limited or no access to get that information, it causes a problem,” said Avery. Confusion can also be caused when insurance staff handles situations differently or there are exceptions that occur. All of this leads to delays, extra phone calls and the time it takes to wait for answers. “As Dale Delmege used to say, ‘It starts to ratchet the oxygen down on a DRP in its success,’ ” said Avery. He said it is helpful for both the insurance staff and repairers if there is See George Avery Shares, Page 48
Genuine Porsche Parts... Only The Best. The Dealers Below are Genuine Porsche Parts Distributors.
MARYLAND Porsche Towson
NEW JERSEY Porsche of Princeton
844-588-0145
609-945-1500
parts@porschetowson.com www.porschetowson.com
www.princeton.porschedealer.com
Towson, Md
410-296-4852 Fax
MASSACHUSETTS Porsche Norwell Norwell
781-261-5230 781-261-5274 Fax M-F 8:00am - 5:00pm
www.porschenorwell.com
Lawrenceville
609-945-0501 Fax
NEW YORK Porsche of Southampton Southampton
631-204-2565
Tue-Sat 8:00am - 5:00pm
gspano@porscheofsouthampton.com www.porscheofsouthampton.com
Wholesale Parts Network Our knowledgeable and helpful parts professionals want to earn your business and will provide you with the highest level of customer friendly service.
• We W stock over $2,000,0000 in collision colllision & mechanical parts • We W deliver throughout Massachusetts, Massachussetts, Rhode Island and New N Hampshire every day • Our O reputation is built on providingg you y u the best SERVICE yo • Save Saave time, improve profits and keep your S yyou o r customers loyal • Place Pla lace any order on line with our parts order orrde der form at buycolonial.com bu uycolonial.com m • Daily Daiily shipping available throughout New England Englandd and the Northeast • Join our o r growing list of satisfied customers ou Colonial Ford 147 Samoset St. Plymouth, MA 02360 Ph: 800-233-8109 Fx: 508-830-1658 Hours: M-F 7:30-5 Sat 7:30-4 Colonial Buick-GMC 66 Galen St. Watertown, MA 02472 Ph: 888-560-5337 Fx: 617-489-6875 Hours: M-F 8-5:30 Sat 8-4
GENUINE SERVICE & PARTS
Colonial Nissan 104 Mystic Ave. Medford, MA 02155 Ph: 781-395-3025 Fx: 781-475-5063 Hours: M-F 7:30-5 Sat 8-4 North End Mazda 747 Chase Rd. (Rte.13) Lunenburg, MA 01462 Ph: 800-322-1241 Fx: 978-582-9841 Hours: M-F 7:30-5:30 Sat 8-4
Colonial Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram 24 Coolidge St. (Rte. 62), Hudson, MA 01749 Ph: 978-568-8000 / Fx: 978-562-1213 Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-4 www.buymoparpartsnow.com Colonial South Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram 42 State Rd., Dartmouth, MA 02747 Ph: 508-984-1900 / Fx: 774-328-9915 Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-3 ddupuis@buycolonialsouthcjd.com www.buymoparparts.com
Colonial Honda of Dartmouth 225 State Rd., Dartmouth, MA 02747
Toll Free: 888-240-2773 Parts Dir: 508-997-2919 Fx: 508-730-6578 Hours: M-Th 7-7; F 7-5:30; Sat 8-4:30 jdelcolle@buycolonialhonda.com www.hondapartswholesaledirect.com
Colonial Volkswagen 89 Turnpike Rd. (Rte. 9), Westborough, MA 01581 Ph: 888-322-6570 / Fx: 508-616-0445 Hours: M-F 7:30-5:30; Sat 7:30-4 Colonial VW of Medford 340 Mystic Ave., Medford, MA 02155 Ph: 781-475-5208 / Fx: 781-391-3506 Hours: M-Th 7-7; F 7-5; Sat 8-4 nmedeiros@vwmedford.com
City Side Subaru 790 Pleasant St., Belmont, MA 02478 Ph: 617-826-5005 / Fx: 617-489-0733 Hours: M-F 7:30-5:30; Sat 8-4 parts@citysidesubaru.com
Wellesley Volkswagen 231 Linden St., Wellesley, MA 02482 Ph: 800-228-8344 / Fx: 781-237-6024 Hours: M-F 7:30-5; Sat 7:30-4 wellesleyvwparts@aol.com Contact: Dan Bettencourt / Wholesale Parts Manager
North End Subaru 757 Chase Rd. (Rte.13), Lunenburg, MA 01462 Ph: 888-686-4387 / Fx: 978-582-9843 Hours: M-F 7:30-5:30; Sat 8-4 parts@northendsubaru.com www.northendsubaru.com
Colonial Cadillac of Woburn 201 Cambridge Rd., Woburn, MA 01801 Ph: 781-935-7009 / Fx: 781-933-7728 Hours: M, T, Th, F 7-5; W 7-8; Sat 8-4 www.buycolonialcadillac.com Colonial Chevrolet 171 Great Rd., Acton, MA 01720 Ph: 978-263-3994 / Fx: 978-263-8587 Hours: M-F 7-5; Sat 8-4 parts@colonialchevrolet.com Colonial South Chevrolet 361 State St., Dartmouth, MA 02747 Ph: 508-997-6711 / Fx: 508-979-1219 Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-4 parts@colonialsouthchevrolet.com Colonial West Chevrolet 314 John Fitch Hwy., Fitchburg, MA 01420 Ph: 978-503-7480 / Fx: 978-345-1152 Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-4 www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 47
Continued from Page 46
George Avery Shares
that can be hired to validate a facility’s capabilities, whether it is in person or by collecting information remotely.
something that can be referred to. Avery asked attendees: “Do insurers provide shops access to relevant claim information?” About 20 percent answered “yes,” they receive relevant information. The majority said they either aren’t receiving relevant information or are only sometimes receiving it.
4) Lack of communication/interaction “Most would probably agree that DRPs were developed to improve customer service and manage repair costs but it also reduced insurance claim staff,” said Avery. As a result, DRPs tend to operate with less interaction unless there is a problem or performance issue. “That lack of oxygen again starts to ratchet down the oxygen on the healthy DRP environment,” said Avery. Less interaction often causes delays and lack of communication, which can lead to rumors. This is especially apparent with social media. Avery said most of this can be avoided by having more information available up front. One way to encourage this is by setting up an advisory council consisting of both insurers and repairers. When Avery worked at State Farm, he participated in a repairers’ advisory council. As an industry spokesperson, he soon realized the benefits of having an active group like this and said it was an excellent way to help communication on both sides. “Sometimes changes are made; sometimes not,” said Avery.
Continued from Page 33
Mr. Kim praised the investigative efforts of the DEA New York Drug Enforcement Task Force, which comprises agents and officers of the DEA, NYPD, and NYSP. The case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Violent and Organized Crime Unit. Assistant United States Attorneys Margaret Graham, Jessica Fender, and Jared Lenow are in charge of the prosecution. The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
3) Not inspecting repair facilities Although Avery acknowledged it takes time and can be costly, he stressed the importance of physically inspecting repair facilities to verify equipment is up to date. Otherwise, Avery said there are several symptoms of not looking at repair facilities. He pointed out that an insurer may not be aware that a certain repairer on their program is no longer a high performer or has the necessary equipment for the job. Competing shops are often frustrated when a less qualified, less equipped shop is on the same DRP program. With the rapid change of the automobile, it becomes even more important to inspect facilities on a regular basis. There are many companies
Bronx Shop Murder
carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. PIZARRO is also charged with one count of robbery related to his January 2015 robbery of Bishun, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencings of the defendants will be determined by a judge
Shop Owner Stabbed Because of Delayed Oil Change: Police
by Tim Moran, Orland Park Patch
A customer at an Orland Park, IL auto shop has been charged with aggravated battery after police said he stabbed a shop manager after he was told his scheduled oil change was delayed. Luis Barrios of Tinley Park was charged with one felony count of aggravated battery Saturday morning after the alleged customer dispute at the Sears Auto Center in Orland Square. Barrios was described in a police report as a “longtime” customer of the auto shop. An argument between Barrios and
the shop owner began around 10:20 a.m. when the owner informed Barrios that his scheduled oil change would be delayed. The confrontation escalated and the owner escorted Barrios outside the business, where police said he was stabbed with a small pocket knife. The victim, a 37-year-old man, was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn and is expected to survive. Barrios was found nearby by Orland Park police. We thank Orland Park Patch for reprint permission.
48 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
“Having someone participate in industry events, you can’t help but collect valid on-the-ground information. I think it benefits the insurer and the repairer, especially if the spokesperson is approachable and you have an opportunity where you can share your concerns.”
5) Limited or no physical inspections after the repairs are completed Avery also talked about the benefits of initiating a program to check the quality of repairs and validate the costs. “That applies to both the repairer and the insurer,” he said. “We all know that sometimes something can get missed.” The challenge for the insurer, according to Avery, is that there is no possible way to inspect every vehicle. Instead, a methodology is implemented where everything is “subject to review.” By not looking at some of the repairs after they are complete, Avery said customer complaints could arise from poor repair performance, inaccurate billing, and other issues. There is often frustration from the repairer and insurer about the time and money spent to re-inspect as well as from customers who don’t want to be disturbed after the repair. However, Avery said physical inspections are an important
aspect to maintain quality control and ensure vehicles are fixed correctly. He said a potential stall of the DRP process is regarding efficiency. “This is the grave question mark,” said Avery. “I believe that insurers unintentionally put pressure on repairers simply by having different programs,” said Avery. “Basically, repairers wait for insurers to create programs and then they adapt to them. As a result, they spend a lot of energy with multiple procedures.” In closing, he asked webinar attendees if it would be possible for insurers and repairers to work together and create standard guidelines for DRPs. A clear majority showed interest in moving forward. A group from Guild 21 are looking at the feasibility of devising guidelines for the industry. Autobody News will continue to follow this story. George Avery provides consultant services and speaks at local, national, and international industry events on a variety of topics. He is an active participant in the National Auto Body Council (NABC) and Collision Industry Conference (CIC). For more information, contact George Avery at george @averyknows.com.
Finish it like a Masterpiece
THESE DEALERS ARE MERCEDES-BENZ GENUINE PARTS SPECIALISTS.
è USE GENUINE MERCEDES-BENZ PARTS.
D EL AWA RE
NEW YO RK
Mercedes-Benz of Wilmington
Mercedes-Benz of Smithtown
Wilmington
St. James
800-800-1949
302-995-5030 Parts Direct 302-995-5033 Fax M-F 7:30am - 5pm; Sat 8am - 2pm parts@mbofwilmington.com www.mbofwilmington.com
631-265-5339
631-265-8146 Fax M-F 8am - 5pm; Sat 8am - 4pm mlevantino@mbofsmithtown.com www.mbofsmithtown.com
Mercedes-Benz of New Rochelle New Rochelle
800-581-2705
914-206-3797 Fax M-F 8am - 6pm; Sat 8am - 5pm parts@mbnewrochelle.com www.mbnewrochelle.com
PARTS Right on Time!
Tell us what you want and when you need them by, and we’ll get them to you.
What we offer: • 80 wholesale professionals ready to serve cturer deliveries • Same night manufacturer ry on-site • $6.2 million inventory y • Open 22 hours a day elivery y • Automated order delivery and tracking • Regional / national parts locating • 24 hr. return / creditt process
CLOSED 9 - 11pm
O OPEN PEN OP PE N
Here to Help
with Any Parts Needs. For new customer inquiries, email: parts@nucar.com or call Nick Halliday at:
302-613-5593 “Call me with any questions you have”
PH: 800-633-6606 FAX: 800-346-5285
email: parts@nucar.com
Powered by: www.nucarparts.com www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 49
Lean Operations
How to Create Loyal Customers with David Luehr
David Luehr is the owner of Elite Body Shop Solutions, LLC, a collision business consulting firm based in Nashville, Tennessee. He is a 30 year veteran of the collision repair industry. David is an expert in Body Shop Operations and specializes in Lean, and Theory of Constraints methods. Email him at dluehr@msn.com
What is going to differentiate your ate this positive experience. If you are one of those shops putbusiness from the masses? It may not be what you think. What most colli- ting a low-wage, unskilled person at with Jennifer Driscoll-Chippendale sion repair shops advertise as their the front desk to greet customers and “unique value proposition” of high answer the phone, you could be makquality repairs is no longer sufficient ing a big mistake. If your estimators by itself. Even though many shops are not trained how to effectively crestill need a lot of improvement when it ate a positive experience for your cuscomes to a high-quality finished prod- tomers, you could be making a big with Erica Eversman mistake. In fact, in my opinion, time uct, from the customer’s perspective, quality, is table stakes just for you to spent training the front office staff be in the game. They expect it. To dif- with customer service skills could be ferentiate yourself as a shop, you must one of the biggest opportunities a shop have good quality, but a loyal cus- can take to differentiate themselves from the competition of our consolitomer wants more! Loyal customers, that will refer dating industry. With all the focus with Attanasio friends and family to a Ed shop, need to lately on training back-end operations, have a great experience, not just a diagnostic scanning, cycle time, and good repair. Repairers often seem to so-on, customer service has been takforget that they are in the business of ing a back seat. Based on my own exselling an emotion, not simply a repair perience from shops I visit, I would job. America’s greatest body shops say that customer service is actually understand this and spend the time getting worse as an industry! with Ed Attanasio If you are reading this article and necessary to train the people in customer-facing positions on how to cre- are thinking, “Well I have a CSI (Cus-
The Legal View The Legal View
Midwest Associations
National Associations
tomer Satisfaction Index) score of 95%, so I don’t see how this article applies to me,” you may have been lulled into a false sense of security. CSI scores do not measure a shop on all the factors that determine whether a customer will refer you, even if they say they will! Most shops think that good customer service means “gushing” over the customer and being annoyingly attentive. This is far from the truth. Think of the waiter at the restaurant that stands right behind you and fills your water glass every few minutes. This is not the experience I correlate with good customer service. There are several “emotional triggers” that must be activated to create a customer experience that will get them turned into a raving fan anxious to refer people to your shop. Importance Don’t most of us want to be treated
like we are important? I certainly do, and I prefer to shop at places that don’t make me feel like a number. You must take time to learn all you can about the customers’ needs, and what they find important in the repair experience and then deliver that experience to them. With all the recent emphasis in business that is placed on operational process, it is easy to forget to treat the customer like a real person. Don’t “process” customers! You must look at how your current practices contribute to customers feeling important. Do they have to fill out unnecessary lengthy forms, do employees call them by name, are they kept well informed throughout the repair process? Another way that importance plays a role in repeat and customer referrals is that customers also feel important when a friend or family member asks for a body shop referral. People instinctually want to help other people in
Northwest Associations with Ed Attanasio
Clinton Acura
Our parts. Your peace of mind.
Web Window with Victoria Antonelli
• Dedicated Wholesale Staff • Competitive Wholesale Prices • Exceptional Service withCustomer Chasidy Rae Sisk • Prompt & Dependable Delivery
Midwest Events Midwest News with Ed Attanasio
New Product Showcase with Ed Attanasio 50 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
908.735.5557 FAX 908.735.0380 PARTS DEPT. HOURS Mon.- Fri. 7am - 6pm Sat. 7am - 4pm 1756 Route 31 North Clinton, NJ 08809
need and also feel good doing so. I think shops would be surprised how often this referral does not happen, because of a lack of integrity, confidence, and consistency.
Integrity, Confidence, and Consistency Integrity by its definition requires that a business delivers on its promises to the customer. Without activating the integrity trigger inside the customer, you will be hard-pressed to get any referrals from them. Business friends, coming to my town, often ask me for restaurant recommendations and there is one that I always recommend. I feel confident to always recommend this restaurant, because every time I go there, I have a pleasant, consistent experience, and the food is always good. If the staff tells me that it will take fifteen minutes to be seated, it is ALWAYS fifteen minutes and usually less before I am seated. Are there restaurants in town with better food? Sure, but the experience is not consistent with each visit, therefore they are not showing me integrity to a standard, and they do not always deliver on their promises. Think of how this example applies to a collision repair business, but with an average tab of $2000!
Instead of gushing over your customers, and being over-the-top with your attempts to get a good CSI review, try treating them with respect, and attending to their needs. Here are a couple ideas that you can use to activate these emotional triggers that will get you referred!
● Provide a realistic promise date, and then deliver on this promise date. This for many shops is a challenge. That is why I recommend thorough repair planning/blueprinting prior to committing to a promise date. This shows that you can deliver on your promises…integrity!
● Another great way to show integrity is to make sure that your team completes all the little promises your estimators make, such as freebie touch-ups, etc. It is important to remember that if you forget to execute on these little promises, it won’t matter how good of a repair job you did on the rest of the car, because your credibility is shot in the customer’s eyes. Use a check-in sheet or other method of communication to ensure these promises are taken care of and you will be seen as a shop with great integrity.
● Don’t forget to proactively communicate with your customers during the repair process. Don’t make them call you to check on their repair status, this is no way to make customers feel important! ● Detail the car and make it cleaner than when it arrived.
● Show pride in your work during the vehicle delivery as you explain your warranty. This instills confidence in your customer.
Dave Luehr is the founder of Elite Body Shop Solutions, a company dedicated to the success of the independent collision repairer. He is also the co-author of “The Secrets of America’s Greatest Body Shops.” Visit www.elitebodyshopsolutions.com and www.bodyshopsecrets.com
INFINITI OF NORWOOD
SEARCH FOR US ON
FACEBOOK :
Autobody News
PPG Holding Sold Out MVP Conference in Scottsdale
PPG’s spring MVP Business Solutions Conference April 9-11 at the JW Marriott Camelback in Scottsdale, AZ, is another sellout with over 550 participants. The MVP Business Solutions Conferences are a place for collision center owners, managers and staff to step away from the dayto-day activity at the shop for the sake of re-charging, networking and learning. “We take the conferences very seriously” says Jim Berkey, PPG, Director, MVP Business Solutions. “We work hard to get the right balance between a comfortable and inviting venue, a mix of engaging and relevant content and a bit of entertainment as well. We have a great mix of collision center operators, distributors and supplying vendors from within the industry with a common goal of improving their business.” A mix of keynote speakers along with the ability to choose from a variety of breakout sessions gives the attendees an opportunity to tailor their experience based upon their specific needs and interests. The conference schedule is highlighted by prominent keynote speakers: Steve McClatchy, Tonya Reiman and John DiJulius.
888.340.4442 FX
781.702.6804
Proud Recipient of the 2013 Award of Excellence for outstanding customer service
√ 24-Hour Delivery √ Full Parts Inventory √ Overnight UPS Service √ Serving All of New England √ Call before 7pm for Next Day Delivery Genuine Infiniti Parts and Accessories deliver model-specific engineering, engineer perfect fit, reliability, and like new performance for your vehicle you would expect from an Original Equipment ent Manufacturer. Genuine Infiniti Parts and Accessories fit the first time, helping you save time and money. “You have my guarantee of personal service. We do what it takes to get the right Infiniti parts to you ou on time.” -Kevin Donnelly, Parts Manager
866 Boston Providence Highway Norwood MA www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 51
Historical Snapshot with John Yoswick
—John Yoswick is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon, who has a body shop in the family and has been writing about the automotive industry since 1988. He is the editor of the weekly CRASH Network (for a free 4-week trial subscription, visit www.CrashNetwork.com). Contact him by email at jyoswick@SpiritOne.com.
What Happened to the MSO that Pledged to Double In Size by Making the Insurer the Customer?
“The fact is, on Door C, the ma- they have a door that [needs] three What happened to the MSO that shop. Jeanne Silver, co-chair of the pledged to double in size by making CIC Parts and Airbags Committee, jority of the industry would quote that hours worth of repair and may have the insurer the customer? with Chasidy Rae said Siskthe shop was asked to order the door to an insurance estimator as been a repaint, that estimator is going door from three used parts suppliers being a clean door, with the full to hang up the phone and call another that the shop regularly does business knowledge in their mind that when recycler. The next recycler may not be 20 years ago in the collision repair with, without revealing the as honorable, and he’s going to say, industry (April 1997) Randy McPherson, the former pres- parts were part of a CIC proj‘Yes I have a perfect door.’ Then when ident of ABRA and now president of ect. Two of the companies the repairer orders the door, and when Collision Auto Repair of America were “single-location” auto it arrives, the repairer has a surprise. with Chasidy Rae recyclers, Sisk (CARA), said his organization grew while one was a That’s what happens in the real world.” into a $15 million company within 90 multi-location national sal– As reported in Hammer & Dolly. days of its formation last fall. He plans vage parts supplier. to double the size of the company by The results? All three Why Did Lou DiLisio say he was sick the end of this year, and continue parts were the correct year, to his stomach? growth both through acquisition of ex- make and model, and had all isting shops and development of new of the trim, glass and options 10 years ago in the collision repair with Chasidy Rae specified Sisk when ordered. (Hin- In 2002, a shop in Nashville brought to a CIC meeting facilities. industry (April 2007) McPherson said his company will ges were not specified when three used parts he ordered from three different vendors Former third-generation shop owner negotiate paint and equipment purordered; two of the doors to show how their condition compared to the description and Collision Industry Conference offered by the vendor chases direct from the manufacturers, came with hinges, but one did (CIC) chairman Lou DiLisio, now an and CARA company-owned stores not.) they deliver that door to the repairer, industry consultant, kicked off the will offer auto glass and paintless dent To avoid anti-trust issues, the comthey’ll have to negotiate the repairs on speeches during an “open mic” session repair. He said that his company, with Chasidylike Rae mittee Sisk did not reveal repair times the it,” Lieberman said. “They know very at the beginning of the CIC meeting in most of the consolidators, is focusing parts suppliers used to describe the conwell that if they tell the insurance es- Atlanta. on insurers as their customer. dition of the part, but said only that timator or body shop estimator that See What Happened, Page 54 “Now they have insureds that are Door A was described as having “light part of the process – we're not taking damage,” Door B was described as havthem for granted – but we really need ing “slight dings,” and that Door C Chasidy Rae “shows Sisk no damage.” How well the to embrace them with (insurers) as our customer,” McPherson said. “That’s a parts lived up to those descriptions was major change for this industry.” left to CIC participants to decide. “Clearly anyone who looked at – As reported in Autobody News. At its peak in the late 1990s, CARA Door C [and saw no damage] either had 26 locations in five states and $40 needs to get their eyes checked or they million in annualwith revenues. After losthe wrong door,” Massachusetts Chasidy Rae got Sisk ing $2 million in 1999, in mid-2000, shop owner Chuck Sulkala said. it locked the doors on its remaining 13 “Both the repairer who ordered shops – leaving customers’ cars inside the parts and I felt they were in differOrder Genuine Mazda Parts from these Parts Specialists in your area and 150 employees without their final ent condition than as described,” Silpaychecks – and filed Chapter 7 bank- ver agreed. “If you look at Door C, I DELAWARE MARYLAND ruptcy. McPherson blamed the col- would venture to say that any repairer with Chasidy Rae Sisk Nucar Mazda Ourisman Mazda lapse on CARA’s rapid and far-flung would return that door. Yet ‘shows no growth. His goal, he readily admits, damage’ is the exact description [the Wholesale Parts Of Rockville Rockville Distributors was to capitalize on the late-1990s seller provided].” New Castle Wall Street appetite for industry “rollThe committee also checked to 855-417-4511 Fax 240-499-2488 800-633-6606 ups” or consolidators. see if any of the doors had been refinM-F 8-5:30; Sat 8-5 www.nucarparts.com ished. Two of the doors had consistent Chasidy Siskmil thickness of 3.0; Door C, rockvilleparts@ourismanautomotive.com What happened with when CIC ordered Rae 3 paint www.rockvillemazda.com VIRGINIA used door assemblies to see what the however, had mil thickness that varied from 4.5 to 5, leading the commitvendors delivered? Brown’s Fairfax Mazda tee to suspect the door was a blended Fairfax panel in a previous repair. 15 years ago in the collision repair 703-385-3994 Fax 703-591-5348 CIC participant Herb Lieberindustry (April 2002) with Chasidy Rae Sisk M-F 7:30-6 Participants at the Collision Industry man of Lakenor LKQ Auto Salvage thy.kong@brownscar.com Conference (CIC) in Nashville hovin Santa Fe Springs, CA, said inaccuwww.brownscar.com ered around three Ford Taurus left rate descriptions of parts condition is front door assemblies, ordered and all too common a problem in his inbrought to the meeting by a Nashville dustry.
Associations Assembling Southeast News
Western Associations
Southwest Associations Southeast Associations Northeast Associations Midwest Associations
National Associations
Northwest Associations Shop Showcase
52 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
with Ed Attanasio
The Right Parts. A Perfect Fit.
LYNN ES HY UNDA I S E RV I CE , S E LE C TI O N AND V ALUE S I NCE 1 9 5 3
Delivering to the New Jersey area. Genuine Hyundai parts are built to the same standards as Hyundai vehicles. It’s no wonder they’re the driving force behind the most exhilarating vehicle on the road.
Large delivery fleet of 7 trucks for no-hassle deliveries
Parts: 800-782-7597 Email: John@lynnes.com
www.lynneshyundai.com
Hours: M-F 7:30am - 6pm, Sat 7:30am - 5pm 401 Bloomfield Ave. | Bloomfield, NJ 07003
LYNN ES N IS S A N E A S T S E RV I CE , S E LE C TI O N AND V ALUE S I NCE 1 9 5 3
Delivering to the New Jersey area. Genuine Nissan parts are built to the same standards as Nissan vehicles. It’s no wonder they’re the driving force behind the most exhilarating vehicle on the road.
GENUINE SERVICE & PARTS
7 experienced countermen ready to serve
Parts: 800-782-7597 Email: John@lynnes.com
www.lynnesnissan.com
Hours: M-F 7:30am - 6pm, Sat 7:30am - 5pm 318 Bloomfield Ave. | Bloomfield, NJ 07003
LYNNES S U BA RU S E RV I C E , S E LE C TI O N AND V ALUE SI NC E 1 9 5 3
Delivering to the New Jersey area. Genuine Subaru parts are built to the same standards as Subaru vehicles. It’s no wonder they’re the driving force behind the most exhilarating vehicle on the road.
Participating in:
Parts: 800-782-7597 Email: John@lynnes.com
www.lynnessubaru.com
Hours: M-F 7:30am - 6pm, Sat 7:30am - 5pm 318 Bloomfield Ave. | Bloomfield, NJ 07003
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 53
Continued from Page 52
What Happened
“I’ve been part of this industry my entire life, and in the last year, I gotta tell you the things I’ve seen going on in this industry just make me sick to my stomach,” DiLisio said. “We need to unite and start to address some of these issues instead of allowing people to run all over us. I could spend the next five hours on specifics but…CARSTAR just wrote a letter that pretty much says the exact same thing: enough is enough.” DiLisio was referring to a recent open letter to the industry from Dick Cross, CEO of the CARSTAR franchise chain of shops. In the letter, Cross said that his company sees “a heightened air of tension across our franchise system that we believe represents the emotional state of our entire industry.” That tension, Cross said, is based in part on new claims handling programs and by the economic reality of buyers (insurers) taking advantage of an excess supply (collision shop capacity). DiLisio was one of several of those who spoke at CIC who applauded Continued from Page 16
Ben’s Auto Body
organizations, particularly youth baseball, which they both played as kids. Cars, because of the technology that goes into them, are far more complex today than they were even 10 years ago. According to Jason, it’s not as simple of getting a replacement door and installing it into a newer car. There The source for timelysuch as are other factors to consider, information that every tied the side airbags and the electronics body shop needs! into the car’s primary software system. Jason said he keeps up with the CALL 800-699-8251 latest mechanical and technological advances by doing a lot of reading and attending trade shows. Car manufacMail Subscription turers have websites that are helpful. For all the technology in a car, however, the likelihood of getting into an accident is still pretty good. Mike
FREE
Free
CARSTAR for its letter urging “responsible push-back” by shops on such issues as unreasonable allowances for blend times and materials. – As reported in Northwest Automotive Journal. Cross led CARSTAR until 2011, when he was succeeded by David Byers.
In 2002, Dick Cross was CEO of the CARSTAR organization, and wrote an open letter to the industry calling for “responsible push-back” by shops on such issues as unreasonable allowances for blend times and materials
What was the real difference between non-Certified and Certified Shops?
5 years ago in the collision repair industry (April 2012) Steve Nantau of Ford Motor Company, who has been involved in the ‘insaid the average driver will get into an accident once every 7.2 years, and he believes distracted driving is the leading cause of accidents these days – be it from a handheld electronic device, such as a smartphone, or even some of the technologies built into the cars themselves. “They can put any safety feature in Promote a car, but people more distracted yourare business with inan a car than they’ve ever been,” Mike exclusive article featuring said. your products or services. It’s still very much a hands-on job in the shop. A big challenge is finding the skilled labor for the kind of work they do, including welding and metalCall finishing. The brothers cite for details! a need for a return to vocational training at the high school level. 800-699-8251 “You can make some decent money in this trade,” Mike said. “These guys are highly skilled.” We thank Seacoastonline.com for reprint permission.
Register Your Email for Our
4x Monthly E E-Newsletter -Newsletter
www.autobodynews.com
54 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
dustry standards’ effort since 2007, said he believes a standards program will only be effective if the investment by a shop to achieve and maintain certification is recognized and rewarded. “Somehow the customer has to be aware there’s a certified shop and a non-certified shop, and they have to choose the certified shop,” Nantau said during the recent Collision Repair Executive Webcast. “And in some way I think the insurance company has to recognize that, and either incorporate that in their direct repair programs, or compensate the repair shop for spending the money to become certified.” He said he supports the idea of a single, third-party certifying entity, because otherwise he foresees only a growth in the number of automaker and independent certification programs, few of which will gain enough traction to achieve consumer awareness. Paul Gange of Fix Auto USA said the problem he sees with automaker certification programs is they are open only to those independent shops that have a relationship with a dealer, often excluding equally-qualified shops.
“Repairers willing and capable of…adhering to standard specifications and doing the work that’s it’s going to take to ensure that they can repair vehicles properly should have a right to repair that vehicle,” Gange said. “I would not want there to be a standard that excludes a shop that wanted to adhere to the standard but perhaps wasn’t able to participate because it didn’t have the endorsement of another organization.” Nantau said he doesn’t disagree with Gange. “If there was just one (certifying) entity that could be recognized by everybody, that would be probably be best for the industry,” he said. “I just don’t know if we can get there. The OEMs are (launching their own certification programs), and I think we’ll see more of them go that direction.” – As reported in CRASH Network (www.CrashNetwork.com), April 23, 2012. Nantau was correct in doubting the industry’s willingness or ability to develop and adopt a single standards program for shops, and the number of automaker and third-party shop certifications has continued to proliferate.
THESE DEALERS are GENUINE WHOLESALE PARTS SPECIALISTS.
Maine
New Jersey
Downeast Toyota / Scion
Toyota of Morristown
207-989-4610 Fax
973-292-0872 Fax
M-F 7am-5pm; Sat 7am-4pm partsdepartment@downeasttoyota.com www.downeasttoyota.com
M-F 7am-5pm wholesale@toyotaofmorristown.com www.toyotaofmorristown.com
800-432-0220 BREWER
800-541-1127 MORRISTOWN
Your Mercedes-Benz Wholesale Parts Connection We Deliver to PA, NJ, DE & MD Mercedes-Benz of Fort Washington
G E N U I N E PA R T S
With mention of this ad,
Parts Hours:
Mon - Fri: 7:30-6; Sat: 7:30-5
take 5% off
267-419-1414
Parts: Order Fax:
215-540-0263
Newark
404 Pennsylvania Ave., Ave Fort Washington, PA 19034
Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz ofof West Chester West Chester
Allentown Reading Lancaster
Philadelphia Atlantic City
Baltimore Baltimor
484-313-1110
Parts: Order Fax:
Three Lo Locations oc - One Goal 100% Cu us Customer Satisfaction
484-313-1002
1260 Wilmington Pike, West Chester, PA 19382
All the Time!
NEW LOCATION Mercedes-Benz of Atlantic City Parts Hours:
Mon - Fri: 7:30-6; Sat: 7:30-5
Major Ma aj components such as a Engines and Transmissions are Tra Tr ex eexcluded from this sp sspecial. Call for details.
Trenton Tr
Wilmington
Parts Hours:
Mon - Fri: 7:30-6; Sat: 7:30-5
Ne York New rk
our already discounted dis c parts.
800-645-6115
Parts: Order Fax:
609-645-9597
www.You ur www.YourMercedes.com Direct Wholesale Wh W E-mail:
6623 Black Horse Pike MBPartsWholesale@yourmercedes.com MBPartsWholes M sa Egg Harbor Township, NJ 08234
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 55
Shop Showcase Only WyoTech Grads Work at Richard Wood Kustoms with Ed Attanasio
from WyoTech. He is giving back in a World-renowned for creating breathtaking cars that win top awards, big way to the school which he said Richard Wood believes in WyoTech, “Pulled me out of high school and the technical school he graduated from changed my life.” with Ed Attanasio Changing classic cars into amazing creations is what Richard Wood Kustoms is all about now, but his early days were not exactly easy, Wood said. “I was 21 and only two years out of WyoTech and I decided to start a body shop with my toolbox partner with Ed Attanasiofrom school. We took an old 7-11 convenience store and used their old freezer for our paint booth and invested everything we had into the business, which was only $5,000. It was a little scary at first, but as our reputawith Ed Attanasiotion grew, the work started pouring Richard Wood, the owner of Richard Wood in.” Kustoms in Austin, TX and a 1982 graduate of In 1984, Richard founded Custom WyoTech, employs seven people and all of Car Crafters, a 30,000 sq. ft. shop lothem are graduates from the school cated in North Austin and a 10,000 sq. 35 years ago. Today, Richard Wood ft. shop located South. In 2015, Wood Kustoms in Austin, TX employs seven was able to sell the shop to a large Phillips MSO to pursue his passion of restorpeople and all ofwith them Stacey are graduates
Social Media for Shops
SEMA Show Goes On
Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.
ing vehicles full-time. “We were one of the largest independent body shops in Texas with 87 employees, and then one day Caliber Collision called,” Wood said. “It was a substantial offer, so I got out, but also realized that I couldn’t retire.” Today, Richard Wood Kustoms operates out of a 5,000 sq. ft. shop located northwest of Austin in the Lake Travis area right next to his house on a lake. His commute is short and sweet and future expansion of the shop’s current size is evident. “Business is brisk and getting better all the time,” Wood exclaimed. “We have a long waiting list and [are] booked out for at least six months. We don’t do any collision work anymore, so things like cycle time and insurance companies aren’t a big part of our lives now. But I’m still attached to fixing cars and with my entire life dedicated to the industry, who knows, maybe one day, I’ll get back into that side of it.”
To get the work done on-time and of the highest quality, Wood calls upon his all-star crew to exceed everyone’s expectations, he said, even though he’s never surprised when they
Media and Publicity for Shops Shop Strategies
Body Shops Giving Back with Stacey Phillips
GENUINE PARTS
Tips for Busy Body Shops Mercedes-Benz of Wilmington with Stacey Phillips
Wood helps out his alma mater whenever he can. In this photo, he is working with WyoTech students on a custom build
* Large Inventory of Genuine Mercedes-Benz and Sprinter Parts * Free DailyDelivery to DE, NJ, MD and PA * Attentive and Professional Service. Call our Wholesale Parts Experts for All Your Repair and Collision Parts Needs
My SEMA with Stacey Phillips
800-800-1949 800-Shop 800-194Strategies 9 TOLL FREE PARTS:
PARTS PART PA RTS RT S LOCAL LOCA LO CAL CA LVictoria DIRECT: DIRE DI RECT RE CT:: Antonelli CT FAX: FAX: with
302-995-5030 302-995-5030
302-995-5033 302-995-5033
www.mbofwilmington.com parts@mbofwilmington.com
Product Innovation
56 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
with Ed Attanasio
Hours: Mon. - Fri. 7:30 am - 5:00 pm Sat. 8:00 am - 2:00 pm 3801 Lancaster Pike / Wilmington, DE 19805
continually impress him. “One of the best decisions I ever made was hiring WyoTech grads. I already know what they know because we all took the same classes. These guys are highly disciplined and not afraid of a challenge and that’s why they’re highly employable. I don’t have to re-train them and I surely don’t need to motivate them because they already got that part covered.” Wood’s attraction to working on cars got a kick start one evening when he was watching a TV show in 1977. “I was 12 and I was watching ‘That’s Incredible!’ and there was a guy on the show that was pin striping a car blindfolded,” he said. “When I saw that, I said I need to do that, but not with the blindfold. I got on my bike and rode to a shop nearby and said I needed a job and that’s how I got started.” Wood feels as though he owes something to the school and credits his success in many ways to his time at WyoTech. “The people from WyoTech came to my high school and pulled me out of there, which was definitely lifechanging,” he said. “My family was poor, so I knew that without WyoTech, my cards were already pretty much dealt. I was going to work at either a
chemical plant or in construction. Luckily, the folks at WyoTech saw that I had some talent and a passion for cars, otherwise I surely wouldn’t be where I am today.” Where he is today is winning best paint awards and doing vehicles for celebrities such as Jesse James, Lance
Rich Evans to keep wowing car collectors and fans for his work worldwide. To give back to his alma mater, Wood is more than optimistic to stay involved with WyoTech to give back in any way he can. For SEMA 2015, Wood worked alongside a team of nine other WyoTech graduates to build a
Richard Wood Kustoms is world-renowned for wowing car collectors and fans for its award-winning creations
Armstrong and Paul Tuttle from Orange County Choppers. He is partnering with top industry names like Detroit Muscle, Jeff Hayes of American Speed Shop, Mecum Auctions and
1966 Ford Mustang at his facility. The project that was sponsored by WyoTech and the United States Military Educators Association (USMEA) included body modifications, drivetrain upgrades
as well as engine, electrical, and interior work. The nine WyoTech grads included three Richard Wood Kustoms employees, Robert Buchanan (Class of 2011), Jaime Hernandez (Class of 1997) and the newest member to his team, Jason Stults (Class of 2015), who was hired after his participation in the build. Woods also speaks regularly to high school students to share his journey while imparting sage advice. “I tell them that you don’t need to go to college to have a good career. There are a lot multi-millionaires out there in this industry that never spent a day in college. Find out what you love and do it. Learn as much as you can about it and then work hard. You will succeed and the opportunities will be there, and I am an example of that.” Wood, 52, has won multiple awards for amazing vehicles, but he never gets tired of what he’s doing, he said. “Getting cars ready for big shows like SEMA and the Grand National and working as a team to get it done, I still love that. People ask me about retirement, but that’s not for me. I would go crazy if I retired and I’m still passionate about my work, so, God willing, I’ll be doing this for many years to come.”
Your #1 Source for GM Collision Wholesale Parts • Free Delivery to Northern New Jersey, Rockland, Westchester, Orange and Putnam Counties in New York and the Bronx
• Register with Cadillac of Mahwah to Receive an Introductory Discount on Your GM Parts Order
• A “Bump the Competition Conquest” Dealer
• Extensive Inventory of Genuine GM Parts
201.579.6497
Parts Hours: Mon. - Fri. 7:30am - 5pm Sat. 8am - 3pm
201.579.6506 FAX
www.cadillacofmahwah.com
mbuksch@cadillacofmahwah.com
319 Route 17 North // Mahwah, NJ 07430
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 57
Shop Strategies
Stacey Phillips is a freelance writer and editor for the automotive industry. She has 20 years of experience writing for a variety of publications. She can be reached at sphillips.autobodynews@gmail.com.
Award-Winning CA Dealership Collision Center Says Employee Satisfaction and Customer Satisfaction Are One and the Same with Stacey Phillips
Body Shops Giving Back
care of our customers and employees, it Lexus Toyota Carlsbad Collision Cenwill yield incredible results. We know ter in greater San DiegoStacey recently Phillips rewith ceived the prestigious Lexus, Toyota that our team members are the most imcertified shop of the year award. The portant assets to building a world-class facility opened in 1983 with 10,000 business. If you hire and train the best,
How long have you worked at Q: the collision repair shop and what is your background in the indus-
try?
I was hired by this incredible Tips for Busy Body ShopsA: company on August 8, 2008.
with Stacey Phillips
My SEMA with Stacey Phillips There are more than 52 employees at the award-winning collision center
square feet of production space, but by our customers/guests will experience 2005, the collision center had relo- legendary service, and I truly believe cated to a new building and a 48,000that it shows in our results of employee with Victoria Antonelli square-foot state-of-the-art facility. It satisfaction, customer satisfaction and was constructed for optimum effiultimately, profits and growth. Part of our successes in 2016 were ciency. Autobody News talked to Rudy Romero, the collision manager at Toymade at the beginning of the year when ota Carlsbad, about the award and Toyota Carlsbad Collision, FinishMaswhat makes the collision center so sucter, PPG and 3M made a commitment cessful. to assess Toyota Carlsbad Collisions
Shop Strategies
Q:
Product Innovation with Ed Attanasio
Congratulations on receiving the nation’s most prestigious award for Lexus, Toyota certified shop of the year! Can you tell us about the award?
We received this presA: tigious award, or notification of it, at the end of
Lexus Toyota Carlsbad Collision Center recently received the prestigious award for Lexus, Toyota certified shop of the year
February 2017. There will be an awards ceremony and celebration coming up soon, which will be a nice surprise for the entire team and spouses/guests, including some executives from the Lexus corporate office.
Q:
What are some of the shop's best practices that set your facility apart from others in the industry and may have contributed to receiving the award? We really focus on the basics and A: believe that by taking the best
current KPIs and SOPs and meet quarterly to make incremental improvements. We were all committed to re-writing the playbook for our shop, which helped reduce waste, “MUDA” (the Japanese word for wasted movement). We also implemented new processes, “Kaizen,” (a word used for continuous improvement) as part of our SOPs, which ultimately reduced costs and increased efficiencies. It is with “stakeholders” like this that help create greater successes for all entities.
58 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
I’ve been in this end of the industry for 25 years now and worked for some of the best automotive groups in the country, such as the Bob Baker Automotive, Larry Miller Automotive and Penske Automotive Groups. I took everything that I learned along the way and brought all my teachings and ideas to Toyota Carlsbad, which is Oceanside Auto Country Inc., owned by Judy Jones-Cone. Mrs. Jones-Cone and her executive management has afforded me the opportunity and support to build an incredible TEAM with a fantastic facility that produces world-class employees in a fantastic environment.
Can you tell us more about your Q: team? We have 52 employees at the A: award-winning collision center. Our number one focus is employee
satisfaction/guest satisfaction! They are one and the same. Our team members are customers and the face of the business. The employees are the customers of the management—we make the team members happy, they make the business grow! Nothing could be as important as each and every employee here. Our team of technicians takes pride in their workmanship. Each one has an average of 15 years of experience and they provide quality auto body repair and refinishing for our customers.
What special features were Q: added to your collision repair center since the renovation in 2005?
A:
Our collision center now features the latest in technology and equipment including frame machines, measuring systems, dimension charts, oxy-acetylene resistance, MIG welding equipment, a PPG refinishing system and climate-controlled down-
draft paint booths. In addition, we have networked and wireless computerized estimating with digital imaging. More than $1 million has been invested in our renovated facility and specialized equipment so we can offer our customers the latest repair techniques and procedures. We have 59 repair bays and about 350 vehicles are repaired every month. Since opening in 1983, we have repaired 84,000 vehicles! The goal is to put our customers and their families back on the road as safely and quickly as possible.
How do you ensure your customers are comfortable while Q: waiting for their vehicles to be repaired?
We designed a waiting area with A: our customers in mind. We have Wi-Fi, satellite TV, coffee, treats and a See Award Winning Center, Page 61
Parts You Need. People You Trust.
Genuine Mitsubishi Replacement Crash Parts are close at hand from the following quality dealerships.
MASSACHUSETTS
Courtesy Mitsubishi SOUTH ATTLEBORO
508-761-9700
(508) 761-0768 Fax www.courtesy-mitsu.com
INSIST ON GENUINE
GM PARTS Only Original Parts Protect The Vehicle’s Value.
CALL ANY OF THESE WHOLESALE WH PARTS DEALERS BELOW. Maryland
Criswell Chevrolet GAITHERSBURG
866-922-1636
301-590-1457 Local 301-670-0936 Fax
M-F 7 - 7:30; Sat 7 - 6 partssales@criswellauto.com
New Jersey
Waldorf Chevrolet Cadillac
Cadillac of Mahwah
301-645-9656
201-579-6506 Fax
MAHWAH
WALDORF
201-579-6497
301-870-6583 Fax
M-F 7 - 5
M-F 7 - 6; Sat 7:30-4
parts@waldorfchevycadillac.com
Massachusetts
NORTH BRUNSWICK
800-769-6256
Flemington Buick Chevrolet GMC
Marty’s Buick GMC 800-870-7573
908-782-1795 Fax
413-233-2185
M-F 7:30 - 5:30; Sat 8 - 4
Malouf Buick GMC
SPRINGFIELD
781-585-7570 781-585-2966 Fax
NORTH BRUNSWICK
lvazquez@baliseauto.com
Central Chevrolet
Mastria Buick Cadillac GMC
732-821-5410 732-821-7549 Fax
800-332-8504
888-572-1045
M-F 8 - 5
M-Th 7:30 - 7:30; F 7:30 - 6 Sat 7:30 - 5
413-781-1410 413-732-5524 Fax
ken.day@centralchevyauto.com
Long Cadillac SOUTHBOROUGH
508-820-9322 800-982-2258 508-879-1212 Fax
M-F 7:30 - 5 tschube@longauto.com
RAYNHAM
DOVER
973-366-5867 Fax
800-669-6256
M-Sat 7:30 - 4:30 dmarrash@nielsenchevy.com
Open Road Chevrolet UNION
800-981-9451 908-686-2727 908-687-4267 Fax
M-F 8 - 4:30 aaiello@malouf.com
508-822-4074 Fax
wholesale@mastria.com
Nielsen Chevrolet 973-366-1730
877-NJPARTS
brucem@martysbuickgmc.com
WEST SPRINGFIELD
M-F 8 - 5 kdiperi@malouf.com
FLEMINGTON
413-733-8617 Fax M-F 8 - 5
732-821-1517 Fax
mbuksch@cadillacofmahwah.com
Balise Chevrolet Buick GMC Business Elite
KINGSTON
Malouf Chevrolet Cadillac
M-F 8 - 5; Sat 8 - 4 david.connell@openroad.com
New York NEW YORK CITY
East Syracuse Chevy
212-708-3127 Fax
315-437-5464
Potamkin GM 212-708-3080 M-F 8 - 4:30 jmorena@potamkincadillac.com
EAST SYRACUSE
315-437-0878 Fax
M-F 7:30-5; Sat 8-3 partsdept@esyrchevy.com
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 59
NACE Automechanika Chicago Education to Focus on Current Trends, Technologies and Processes With four days full of training, powerful show floor exhibits, multiple co-located events and new business opportunities, the slate of offerings at NACE Automechanika Chicago brings current, innovative and necessary information to automotive professionals from all segments of the industry. NACE Automechanika, the largest U.S. trade show dedicated to high-end technical and management-related training for automotive service and collision
Automechanika Chicago has assembled for this July’s event is beyond that of any training program to date. This is the ‘must attend’ event for every student tech, working tech, shop owner, and educator in the industry.” A number of diagnostic courses will be taught, focusing on drivability concerns and electrical issues. These courses aim to improve technicians’ abilities to use the proper tools to find and resolve issues with vehicles, not
repair shops, takes place July 26-29 at McCormick Place West in Chicago. Registration for the show is open now. Education at the 2017 NACE Automechanika Chicago will focus on current topics and technologies that automotive professionals must understand and become proficient with to be successful, whether they are technicians, painters, welders, service managers or distributors. Dedicated educator courses will enhance automotive instructors’ skillsets, while current automotive students will be able to enhance their classroom learning by attending the show. “The 2015 training event received tremendous reviews from our attendees and we knew it would be a challenge to improve on it,” said Pete Meier, director of training for the UBM Automotive Group. “Today’s technicians and shop owners want to know how to find the problems they are faced with effectively and how to repair them the first time around. They want to learn the latest technology and keep as much of the work as they can in-house while engaging in a highly competitive industry. The lineup of independent education and premiere corporate training programs that NACE
solely the symptoms a problem presents. Additionally, detailed looks at specific underhood systems, undercar best practices and strategies for brake, transmission and emissions service as well as managerial courses on leadership, shop management and revenue streams will be presented. Hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles will be discussed in a variety of courses, while collision repair professionals can learn about vehicle scanning, estimating, bonding practices and more. “The training designed for auto body repair specialists is in line with the needs of today’s collision repair shops,” said Dan Risley, ASA president and executive director. “For example, pre- and post-repair scanning is a big discussion point in the industry right now, and we are pleased to offer specific courses instructing professionals on what they need to know and how to perform vehicle scans. And that’s just one example. Repair and management courses are designed specifically for these shops and their employees with real-world examples and lessons that they can implement immediately upon returning to their shops.” What’s more, all mechanical-re-
Advertise in our CLASSIFIED SECTION for $50 per column inch! 800-699-8251
lated training, both technical and management-based, is offered for no cost to attendees when they register with a code from one of NACE Automechanika Chicago’s many sponsors which include Automotive Training Institute, ATSG, CARQUEST Technical Institute, Federal-Mogul Motorparts, Mitchell 1 and the National Alternative Fuels Training Consortium. Attendees who complete courses throughout the training event will receive certificates for continuing education credits and business training requirements. This offer is open to professionals employed by a repair or auto body shop, educators and students. Friday, July 28th, is designated as a unique training day for students. The 28th features automotive training programs, show floor programs and networking opportunities enabling students to learn more about their industry. Additionally, the Business Outlook Conference offers information, insight and awareness of the economy, legislation, technology and their impact on the automotive industry and market. Scheduled for two half-day sessions, the conference offers a great opportunity for distributors to bolster their at-
Shift into Genuine Nissan and Infiniti OEM Parts
Choose Original MINI Parts. maryland MINI of Baltimore Towson 855-578-9902 (410) 363-7158 Fax parts@minibaltimore.com MINIBALTIMORE.COM
60 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Genuine Nissan and Infiniti OEM Wholesale Parts are superbly crafted to strict quality standards. The following dealer proudly stocks genuine parts for your Nissan or Infiniti repairs.
NEW JERSEY
ACTION NISSAN Flemington
908-782-8250 (908) 237-0036 Fax Mon-Sat 8am - 5pm
fmondello@actionautogroup.com The Dealers Above Are Original MINI Parts Distributors ©2017 MINI, a division of BMW of North America,
ltedesco@autobodynews.com
tendance at NACE Automechanika Chicago, showing dedication to their customers and beyond. Other co-located events round out the slate of educational, interactive and enlightening offerings at NACE Automechanika Chicago. The annual MSO Symposium will take place July 26th at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place, while the Advanced Technology & Diagnostic Repair Forum again will be offered. I-CAR training classes also will be part of the agenda for collision repair professionals to attend. You can view a full list of training sessions, register for courses and receive a free expo pass at www.NACE Automechanika.com. Additional courses and educational opportunities will be added to the July event in weeks leading up to the show. NACE Automechanika attendees also will be able to experience the latest technology, test equipment and discover advanced applications with live, interactive demonstrations. For the 2017 event, the show calendar has been adjusted to offer flexible scheduling between training sessions, expo and conference hours.
LLC. The MINI name, model names and logo are registered trademarks.
Continued from Page 58
Award Winning Center
telephone. Onsite Toyota rentals are available through Toyota Rent a Car (TRAC) for their convenience and we happen to be located next to Hertz. A free shuttle service is provided free of charge and runs every hour to nearby shopping, the beach, LEGOLAND and the Coaster train, which are all located in our vicinity.
Q: We have many certifications on A: many levels, with not only Toyota and Lexus, being master certified How many certifications does the collision center have?
LFA certified collision center in the country! We strive to be #1 in all facets of the automotive industry on all levels, and are very proud of our achievements. We win these awards because I feel we have the best owner in the country who is always willing to listen, provide us with support and the tools that we need to be the best we can be.
What other awards has the fareceived? Q: cility Toyota Carlsbad is one of the A: most award-winning dealerships in southern California. We have
The dealership also received the prestigious Toyota President’s Award, which is a very high honor and is only
in both realms, but I believe we’re the only Lexus certified collision center in San Diego County, and the first Lexus
awarded to dealerships that demonstrate a commitment to maintaining Toyota’s high standards for customer satisfaction.
Two collision repair training programs in Oregon are seeking assistance from the industry. The CTEC (Career & Technical Education Center) in Salem will open its new collision repair training program this
fall. They have finalized a list of large equipment still needed. Visit https://tinyurl.com/kznhv7r to see a copy. CTEC is asking for donations, discounts or financial contributions to help offset the $275,000 price tag. If
you or your business can contribute in some way, please contact Kim Hanson at (503) 881-4388. Portland Community College’s collision repair program at the school’s Rock Creek Campus is seeking vehicle donations. Vehicles
How does your shop get inQ: volved in the community?
Oregon Collision Programs Seeking Donation to Help Educate Students
’
» Prompt & Dependable Delivery » Experienced & Professional Parts Team
www.fitzgeraldslakeforestsubaru.com
Phone: 800.670.4801 Parts Hours: Mon-Fri: 7:30-6:00; Sat: 8-4
email: Ifsparts@fitzmall.com 905 North Frederick Ave., Gaithersburg, MD 20879
schools, our military and their families. Some of these include YMCA Camp Pendelton USMC, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Carlsbad, local high school athletics, food drives for the San Diego County Food Bank, and blood drives.
More than $1 million has been invested in the renovated facility and specialized equipment
been the recipient of the Toyota Motor Sales “Collision Center Excellence” award from 2009-2016. The award recognizes the outstanding level of detail, craftsmanship and excellence that is at the foundation of the service we provide.
Lakeforest
We support our community in A: many ways, continuously giving back to local charities, groups,
What message would Q: you like to share with your team?
I am very proud of my team and A: very thankful that they continue to choose me as their leader in this incredible adventure and am blessed to work with the best people in the industry. We are the champions—#1 in the nation for 2017!
that are 10 years old or newer are preferred, but they don’t have to run or look nice; body damage is okay as long as they haven’t been in a “train wreck.” Please contact Geoff Snook, geoff .snook@pcc.edu, (971) 722-7586.
’
Lakeforest HYUNDAI » Prompt & Dependable Delivery » Experienced & Professional Parts Team
www.gaithersburghyundai.com
Ready to help you find the Part You Need!
Phone: 800.670.4801 Parts Hours: Mon-Fri: 7:30-6:00; Sat: 8-4 Pa
email: Ifsparts@fitzmall.com 905 North Frederick Ave., Gaithersburg, MD 20879 www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 61
Original BMW Parts
North County BMW
www.ncountybmw.com
bmwusa.com
(800) 564-8222
Original BMW Parts
North County BMW
www.ncountybmw.com
bmwusa.com
(800) 564-8222
Original Thought #78
YOU ONLY GET ONE CHANCE AT THE FIRST REPAIR.
MARYLAND
BMW of Bel Air Bel Air 844-581-2752 443-640-1234 Fax parts@bmwbelair.com
BMW of Catonsville Catonsville 855-996-2906 410-818-2600 Fax M-F 8am-5pm
www.bmwofcatonsville.com
BMW of Rockville Rockville 844-588-0150 301-984-1710 Fax
parts@bmwrockville.com
BMW of Towson Towson 844-595-0290 410-296-4852 Fax parts@bmwtowson.com
MASSACHUSETTS BMW of Sudbury Sudbury 800-338-3198 508-881-7578 Fax M-F 7am-5pm
wholesaleparts@herbchambers.com www.bmwofsudbury.com
NEW HAMPSHIRE BMW of Stratham Stratham 800-989-5200 603-772-9436 Fax
jmaxwell@group1auto.com www.bmwofstratham.com
NEW JERSEY
BMW of Freehold Freehold 732-462-6286 732-577-0518 Fax M-F 8am-6pm Sat 8am-4pm
www.bmwoffreehold.com
62 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
BMW of Morristown Morristown 866-9-BMW PARTS 973-796-3146 Fax M-F 8am-6pm
wholesaleparts.bmw@openroad.com www.bmwofmorristown.com
BMW of Newton Newton 973-579-6020 973-579-6702 Fax M-F 8am-5:30pm
bmwofnewtonparts@gmail.com www.bmwnewton.com
Circle BMW Eatontown 732-440-1238 732-440-1239 Fax M-F 7:30am-6pm Sat 8am-3pm
Wholesale@circlebmw.com www.circlebmw.com
Flemington BMW Flemington 800-782-4269 908-824-9913 Fax
www.flemingtonbmw.com
Park Ave. BMW South Hackensack 888-349-5168 201-291-2376 Fax M-F 8am-5pm Sat 8am-4pm al@parkavebmw.com www.parkavebmw.com
NEW YORK
BMW of Bayside Bayside 516-304-3733 516-570-4268 Fax M-Sat 8am-5pm
bmwparts@bmwbayside.com www.bmwbayside.com
• Original BMW Parts & Accessories BMW of South Albany Glenmont 518-465-1724 518-463-2422 Fax M-Th 7:30am-5:30pm Fri 7:30am-5pm Sat 8am-4pm
bmwparts@bmwofsouthalbany.com www.bmwofsouthalbany.com
Competition BMW St James 631-724-3322 631-265-0501 Fax M-F 8am-5pm Sat 8am-4pm
asolla@competitionbmw.com www.competitionbmw.com
Habberstad BMW Huntington Station 631-271-7488 631-271-7931 Fax M-F 7:30am-5:30pm Sat 8am-4pm
parts@habberstadbmw.com www.habberstadbmw.com
PENNSYLVANIA Apple BMW York 717-849-6597 717-843-2948 Fax M-F 7am-5pm Sat 8am-4pm
applebmwparts@appleauto1.com www.applebmwofyork.com
RHODE ISLAND
BMW of Newport Middletown 401-847-9600 401-841-0680 Fax M-F 7:30am-5:30pm
gromani@metromotorgroup.com wwwbmwofnewport.com
When you repair a BMW, use the parts that are identical to those
used in Series production and just as reliable. Choose Original BMW Parts and Accessories. Because you can’t repair your reputation.
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 63
Polyvance Releases R08 PPE+PS Plastic Welding Rod Polyvance recently released its latest plastic welding rod to match plastics on some newer vehicles, the R08-01 PPE+PS. Polyphenylene Ether + Polystyrene (PPE+PS) is an engineering plastic that is used on some automotive interior and exterior applications. This plastic is quite rigid and may be glass-filled for greater strength. In the US and western Europe, it is marketed mainly by Sabic Industrial Plastics under their Noryl brand name. Using its in-house plastic extrusion line, Polyvance has extruded an injection-molding grade Noryl PPE+PS resin in a 1.8” diameter round profile, black in color. The rod is available for immediate sale. Polyvance offers the world’s largest variety of plastic welding rod materials, profiles, colors, and package sizes. The new R08 PPE+PS joins recently-added materials such as R13 PET, R14ASA, and R15 PPE+PA (GTX) plastics. For more information, visit www .polyvance.com.
www.autobodynews.com CHECK IT OUT!
WIN 2017 Conference Registration Opens, Agenda Announced by Chasidy Rae Sisk
The Women’s Industry Network (WIN®) opened registration for its 2017 Educational Conference on February 15 for association members. This year’s conference is entitled “Be Extraordinary with Balance, Purpose and Results” and will take place in Denver, CO on May 8-10, 2017. Association members can enjoy an early-bird discount by registering to attend WIN’s 2017 Educational Conference by Wednesday, March 15. After that date, registration costs will increase to the standard rate of $475 for members and $650 for nonmembers. As always, WIN’s agenda is packed full of informative sessions for collision repair professionals as well as a variety of networking opportunities. The conference begins at 1PM on Monday with “New Member Orientation” which will be followed by an “Opening General Session: WIN Welcome.” Traci Brown will kick off the educational sessions with “Unspoken Keys to Success,” with Kevin Wolfe’s “Path of Choice” afterwards. At 5PM, WINners will engage in a Scavenger Hunt, complete with an
FREE
Mail Subscription To advertise call Advertising Sales at:
www.autobodynews.com
After breakfast, Keynote Speaker Chuck Gallagher will present “Positive Choices for Business Success – The Ethics of Excellence.” Tuesday morning’s educational sessions conclude with Jody DeVere’s “Motivating Successful Women Leaders.” On Tuesday afternoon, conference attendees will choose two of the following three breakout sessions: “The Importance of OEM Certification” by Scott Biggs, “Managing For more information about WIN and Promote your business Ourselves and Our Energy Level”withits 2017 Educational Conference, visit presented by Alison Young, andfeaturing Jody https://www.womensindustrynetwork an exclusive article DeVere’s “Why It Is So Important to .com. your products or services.
Free
Call for details! MARYLAND
800-699-8251 Fitzgerald Subaru of Gaithersburg Gaithersburg (301) 670-4881 (301) 670-1595 Fax
Mon.-Fri. 7:30-6; Sat. 8-4 www.fitzmall.com
800-699-8251 e-mail:
Attract, Hire and Retain Women Employees.” Festivities on Tuesday evening will center around WIN’s Most Influential Women (MIW) and Scholarship Award Ceremony and Gala Dinner. During this event, WIN will honor its 2017 MIWs for their contributions to the collision repair industry, in addition to recognizing this year’s WIN scholarship recipients. The final day of WIN’s 2017 Educational Conference will begin with “Creating a Customer Care Culture, and Finding and Inspiring a Staff to Support It” which will be presented by Steve Trapp and Regina McDonald. At 9:35AM, a networking event entitled “An Opportunity to Work on You!” will be facilitated by Liz Stein, Kathy Mello and Blair Womble. The last educational seminar of this year’s conference will be Mike Jones’ “Creating a Better Version of Yourself” which precedes WIN’s “Closing Session” with the conference concluding at noon.
The source for timely information that every body shop needs!
CALL 800-699-8251
advertising@autobodynews.com
awards ceremony and refreshments. Monday evening will conclude with “Magical Thinking: Find the Extraordinary by Imagining the Impossible,” presented by Dennis Watkins from 7:45-8:45PM. Tuesday’s events will commence at 7AM with WIN’s Scholarship Industry Walk which benefits the association’s scholarship fund.
Register Your Email for Our
MASSACHUSETTS
4x Monthly E-Newsletter Long Automotive Group
Framingham www.autobodynews.com (800) 982-2298 (508) 879-1212 Fax
Mon.-Fri. 7:30-5 tschube@longauto.com
Register Your Email for Our
Be Seen by Our Readers! CALL Advertising Sales at:
800-699-8251
Free
SubaruE-Newsletter of Wakefield 4 Times Monthly
Wakefield (781) 246-3331 www.autobodynews.com (781) 587-0743 Fax
advertising@autobodynews.com www.autobodynews.com
The following dealerships are eager to serve your needs. Call your local Subaru collision parts specialist today! 64 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Mon.-Thur. 7-8; Fri.-Sat. 7-6 jbrown@subaruofwakefield.com www.subaruofwakefield.com
NEW JERSEY
Liberty Subaru Emerson (888) 782-9493 (201) 261-3261 Fax
Mon.-Fri. 7:30-6 parts@libertysubaru.com www.libertysubaru.com
Miller Subaru
Lumberton (609) 261-7844 (609) 261-7843 Fax
Mon.-Fri. 7:30-5 dseward@millertransgroup.com
Subaru of Morristown
Morristown (800) 541-1127 (973) 292-0872 Fax
Mon.-Fri. 7-5 wholesale@subaruofmorristown.com www.subaruofmorristown.com
I-CAR Announces 2017 International Board of Directors, Presents Joe Laurentino With Founder’s Award I-CAR announced its 2017 International Board of Directors and Executive Committee following its strategic planning session and annual membership meeting in La Jolla, California held during the week of March 6. The Board of Directors is comprised of representatives from each of the following six industry segments: collision repair; insurance; OEM vehicle manufacturers; equipment, tools, and supplies; education, training, and research; and related industry services. James Roach (American Honda Motor Company) will lead as Chair of the Executive Committee. In addition, the following will serve on the Executive Committee: Timothy O’Day, Gerber Collision & Glass (Vice Chair); Ron Vincenzi, Oakland Auto Body, A Cook’s Collision Company (Treasurer); Mark Woirol, Tech-Cor (Secretary); Kyle Thompson, USAA (Member-AtLarge); Mark Allen, Audi of America (Member-At-Large); and Joseph Laurentino, National General Insurance Company (Immediate Past Chair). The remaining Directors include – Mark Algie, 3M; Stacy Bartnik, ITW Evercoat, Education Foundation Representative; John Donley, IAnet;
John Eck, General Motors Company; Daniel Friedman, Enterprise Holdings; Jim Guthrie, Car Crafters Inc.; Tim Hession, GEICO; Robert Hills, Universal Technical Institute (UTI); Sandee Lindorfer, Allstate Insurance Company; Richard Perry, Chief Au-
tomotive Technologies; Roy Schnepper, Butler’s Collision Inc.; Randy Stabler, Pride Collision Centers Inc.; Marcy Tieger, Symphony Advisors LLC; Gary Wano, GW & Son Auto Body, Inc.; and Michele Wyatt, Mutual of Enumclaw Insurance Company. Jim Roach, Chair of the I-CAR International Board of Directors stated, “Every vehicle owner expects that their collision-damaged vehicle will be properly and safely repaired. Our industry is obliged to meet these expectations. And an ever-changing and more sophisticated vehicle technology compels I-CAR to work even harder to
make sure that our Industry has the information, knowledge and skills required to perform complete, safe and quality repairs. The I-CAR Board of Directors is resolutely committed to this important goal.” The overall strategic direction for I-CAR is set by the Board of Directors. In addition, the Board of Directors also assists in obtaining resources in support of the I-CAR Mission. Joe Laurentino Given Founder’s Award. Joe Laurentino, Immediate Past Chairman of the I-CAR® International Board of Directors, was awarded the Founder’s Award for his dedication and service to I-CAR at the event. Laurentino has served on the ICAR International Board of Directors since 2010, serving in various roles on the I-CAR Executive Committee before serving as Chairman in 20152016. “It has been an honor to serve on the I-CAR Board of Directors during these exciting yet challenging times,” said Laurentino. “The pace of technological change will continue to accelerate in the coming years and I am confident that I-CAR is uniquely po-
sitioned to meet the training and informational needs of our industry.” He is currently Vice President, Material Damage for National General Insurance Company (NGIC) where he is responsible for developing and refining national material damage philosophy, structure, objectives, and best practices. He oversees the management of all material damage personnel, contracted vendors and partners, and provides industry insight and direction to the senior management group and business leaders. Laurentino is a CIC Gold Pin Member and serves on a variety of industry committees and advisory boards. In addition, he is I-CAR Platinum™ and participates in a variety of other volunteer activities within his community. “It is an honor to present the Founder’s Award to Joe Laurentino,” said Roach. “Over the years, Joe has consistently been nothing less than an indispensable asset to the I-CAR Board of Directors, serving always with total commitment to the I-CAR Mission and Vision.”
www.autobodynews.com CHECK IT OUT!
INSIST ON GENUINE GM PARTS
ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT FIT AND FINISH • CONFIDENCE • WARRANTY advertise • Snap-On Electronic PartsTo Catalog call Advertising Sales at: • Experienced and Accurate Sales Staff 800-699-8251 • Competitive Discounts e-mail: • Liberal No-Hassle Return Policy advertising@autobodynews.com • GM Bump the Competition Conquest Program www.autobodynews.com • OE CollisionLink Dealer
• Internet Based National Parts Locator • Over 2 Million in inventory • 40,000 sq/ft. Warehouse • 30,000 Part Numbers in-Stock • Fleet of 16 Wholesale Delivery Trucks GPS-Equipped
Call our Parts Dept. for more information:
The Right Part, The Right Price, at The Right Time!
800-982-2298 24 Hr. Fax:
508-879-1212
Parts Hours:
M-F 8am - 5pm
Be Seen by Our Readers! CALL Advertising Sales at:
800-699-8251
advertising@autobodynews.com www.autobodynews.com
218 Turnpike Rd., Southboro, MA 01772 www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 65
Sherwin-Williams Announces 2017 Second Quarter Training Schedule
Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes has announced its second quarter training schedule starting in April
succeed in the automotive collision repair industry. Shop owners, managers, painters and technicians will learn
through June, 2017, with classes to be held at its training centers across the country. These training sessions provide participants with the skills needed to
through a combination of classroom, web and hands-on training settings. For more information, visit www .sherwin-automotive.com/refinish /training-support/.
There is Still Time to Support 3M’s Hire Our Heroes Fundraiser
There is still time to support military veterans and their families through the 3M Hire Our Heroes program and purchase the second annual 3M Hire Our Heroes Calendar for 2017. In partnership with the 3M Automotive Aftermarket Division (AAD), the Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF) announced it has donated more than $750,000 since 2013 to be used toward scholarships and tool grants for more than 210 military veterans and their families through the 3M Hire Our Heroes program. Shops interested in participating in this program can acquire a 2017 Hire Our Heroes Calendar with a $200 donation online. In 2017, 3M AAD and CREF are marking the fifth year of the program, and continuing an innovative way for shops to get involved, both organizations will be facilitating the second annual 3M Hire Our Heroes Calendar for 2017. With the $200 donation, designated to the 3M Hire Our Heroes fund, shops not only give to a worthy cause, they will also receive the commemorative calendar which contains approximately $1,700 worth of monthly deals on 3M products. In
2016, this initiative raised $210,000 for scholarships and tool grants distributed to military veterans and their family members who are studying collision repair. Those who make a $200 donation will be able to take advantage of exclusive free product offers on a wide array of 3M products, such as the 3M™ PPS ™ Sun Gun™ II light kit, 3M™ Power Tools, 3M™ Masking Tape, 3M™ Cubitron™ II abrasives, and other 3M™ products. This year, a bonus offer has been added: When a shop participates in all 12 months of promotional offers, they will qualify to receive a sample of new products introduced by 3M AAD in 2018. The first 500 people to make the $200 donation will also receive, in addition to the calendars, a Hire Our Heroes replica hood designed by automotive designer Chip Foose. Each month, shops receive an email with the information they need to redeem the coupon for the free products, based on their qualifying purchases and made on one invoice.
For more information, please visit www.collisioneducationfoundation.org
66 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
2017 MSO Symposium Registration is Open, Agenda Released
The MSO Symposium has announced that registration is open and the agenda has been released for the 2017 event. The sixth annual MSO Symposium, co-located with NACE Automechanika in Chicago, will take place Wednesday, July 26 at the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place. The agenda is as follows: 12:00 - 1:00: Luncheon 1:00 - 1:30: Industry Update presented by Vincent Romans, Brian Sullivan 1:30 - 2:15: Insurer Panel - moderated by Marcy Tieger, the panel will address the developing gap between car manufacturers and insurers as recommended repair procedures, vehicle scanning, onboard telematics, and repairability take center stage 2:15 - 3:00: OE Panel - moderated by Marcy Tieger, this panel will provide a perspective from the manufacturer’s standpoint of recommended repair procedures, vehicle scanning, and new technology 3:00 - 3:30: Refreshment Break - sponsored by BASF 3:30 - 4:10: MSO Panel - moderated by John Walcher, this panel will address challenges facing MSOs
including technology, scan tools, equipment, supplier consolidation, and staffing 4:10 - 4:50: MSO Panel II - this panel will cover OE certification and training, with leadership representing small, midsize, and large MSOs 4:50 - 5:30: Legislation and Regulation - Bob Redding will discuss how the new administration will affect business for the collision repair industry and insurers, as well as what legislation will have the greatest impact on business 5:30 - 7:00: Private MSO Symposium Reception - sponsored by PPG. “This is the only event that is exclusive to MSOs, insurance executives, and the strongest independent operators in the collision repair industry,” said Dan Risley, ASA president and executive director. Individuals must qualify to attend the MSO Symposium. The Symposium is exclusively attended by high-growth MSOs, owners of large independent repair shops, and property & casualty insurance company executives. For information and to register, please visit stonefortgroup.com/mso2017/register.
Spanesi Americas Continues Expansion in the Rockies
Spanesi Americas, a manufacturer of body shop equipment, is continuing to expand its distribution and customer support across North America. A recent addition to the company is Specialized Products Supply, who are now providing distribution and customer support in the Rockies, specifically in the State of Colorado. “Specialized Products Supply is a great addition to the Spanesi Americas team,” stated Tim Morgan, Managing Director of Spanesi Americas. “As we have continued to grow market share, Alan Squier and his group are already an established leader in the area market and their customers have been asking for solutions that together we will be able to provide them.” “We are excited to pick up the Spanesi equipment line,” said Alan Squier, owner of Specialized Products Supply. “This will give us the opportunity to offer a complete solution of high quality and exceptionally valued measuring and frame equipment, paint booths, and welders to our customers. Spanesi is a total equipment solution that will keep our customers up to date and competitive in the collision repair industry.” For more information, visit www .spanesi.com.
THESE DEALERS ARE GENUINE FORD PARTS WHOLESALE SPECIALISTS
N E W JE RS E Y
Ditschman/Flemington Ford-Lincoln-Mercury FLEMINGTON
877-NJ-PARTS 908-782-1795 Fax
MASSACHUSETTS
PENNSYLVANIA
South Attleboro
Easton
Courtesy Kia
508-761-9300
(508) 761-0768 Fax
8am-8pm Mon, Wed; 8am-5pm Tue, Thu, Fri 8am-4pm Sat frank@courtesyma.com www.courtesyma.com
NEW JERSEY Liberty Kia Ramsey
201-818-8995
(201) 783-8848 Fax
8am-5pm Mon-Sat parts@libertyhyundai.com
NEW YORK
Kia of Middletown New Hampton
888-374-6575
(845) 374-4718 Fax
8am-5pm Mon-Fri 8am-3pm Sat nissankiaofmiddletownparts@yahoo.com www.kiaofmiddletown.com
Brown Daub Kia
610-829-3020
(484) 546-0292 Fax
Kia of Coatesville Coatesville
610-384-7700
(610) 384-2171 Fax
8am-5pm Mon-Fri 8am-12pm Sat Alan@kiaofcoatesville.com www.kiaofcoatesville.com
Kia of West Chester West Chester
610-429-3500
(610) 429-0164 Fax
8am-5pm Mon-Fri 8am-12pm Sat Alan@kiaofcoatesville.com www.kiaofwestchester.com
RHODE ISLAND Bald Hill Kia Warwick
800-822-3015
(401) 822-8135 Fax 8am-5pm Mon-Fri 8am-4pm Sat www.shopkiaparts.com
VERMONT
Berlin City Kia
Precise fit and finish, easy installation and a limited warranty direct
Williston
from Kia — all genuine
(303) 928-6905 Fax
advantages of Genuine
800-684-5779
6am-6pm Mon, Wed, Fri 6am-7pm Tue, Thu 7am-3pm Sat ableau@berlincity.com
Kia Parts. Your local Kia retailer has all the parts you need.
Outten Kia Hamburg
610-562-4166
(610) 562-9436 Fax
7:30am-5pm Mon-Fri 8am-12pm Sat jhenne@outtencars.com www.outtenkia.com www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 67
National AutoBody Research to Launch New California Labor Rate Survey
This month, National AutoBody Re- and collision centers doing business in search (NABR) will launch a new ver- California,” said Sam Valenzuela, pression of its labor rate survey, specifically ident of NABR. “This solution protailored to the standardized labor rate vides exactly what the California survey format defined by the Califor- collision repair industry needs: one innia Department of Insurance (CDI) in dependent, third-party conducting comtheir new, recently implemented Auto pliant labor rate surveys and providing Body Labor Rate Survey regulations. one source for labor rate information NABR’s fully compliant survey not that both insurers and shops can use, so only will follow the standardized sur- everybody is on the same page.” Imvey format but also will comply with www.autobodynews.com portantly, NABR’s approach elimithe other technical and administrative nates the redundancy and inefficiency CHECK IT OUT! aspects of the regulation in order to sup- of multiple insurers conducting the port insurers who prefer to efficiently same survey to the same body shops, outsource the survey to a third-party, and avoids the inevitable problem of and to provide collision centers with costly and time-consuming reconciliaprevailing rate reports for their geo- tions among separate surveys, as those graphic area using a compliant survey surveys get different results due to diffrom an independent source. To meet ferences in survey response rates or some of the regulation’s more technical other survey inconsistencies. NABR’s requirements such as geocoding, deter- CDI-compliant labor rate survey will mination of qualified shops within a be available to all insurers with autoTo advertise “geographic area,” and the calculation motive insurance business in Califorcall Advertising Sales at: of a “prevailing rate,” NABR will lever- nia. For California collision centers, a 800-699-8251 age its Variable Rate System (VRS) on- personalized prevailing rate report for line software technology, enabling VRS their unique geographic area will be ine-mail: users to generate a compliant prevailingadvertising@autobodynews.com cluded at no additional charge for VRS rate report for any body shop and geo- subscribers, and available separately graphic area in California in mere sec- www.autobodynews.com for a fee for non-VRS subscribers. For onds. “We’re pleased to offer this more information, visit www.National complete survey service to all insurers AutoBodyResearch.com.
SCRS Education Committee Presents on “Kool Tools” from SEMA Show
On January 11th, the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) held an open board meeting in Palm Springs, California which included a presentation from the SCRS Education Committee providing an overview of “Kool Tools” and unique products for collision repair businesses. The March print issue of Autobody News has an in-depth Kool Tools article written by Toby Chess. The source for timely The presentation, led by cominformation that every mittee member Toby Chess and committee chairman Kye Yeung, body shop needs! was the latest in what has become an annual800-699-8251 presentation during the JanCALL uary meetings. The presentation is inspired by the wide range of products and offerings exhibited during Mail Subscription the SEMA Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. Each year, the Education Com-
FREE
Free
mittee searches the SEMA Show for unique tools, equipment and offerings to the collision repair industry that they feel provide notable value in fixing today’s damaged vehicles. The products are often personally purchased by presenters Yeung and Chess, and putyour to usebusiness in a working Promote with collision repair environment to see anthey exclusive article featuring how - and the technicians in the or services. shopyour - likeproducts the products. Products that leave an impression on the committee are included in a live presentation at the SCRS open meeting in January. Watch the “Kool Tools” preCall for SEMA details! sentaion at the 2017 show at: http://bit.ly/kooltools2016 For 800-699-8251 more information about SCRS, or to join as a member, please visit www.scrs.com, call toll free 1877-841-0660 or email info@scrs .com.
Register Your Email for Our
4x Monthly E-Newsletter E-Newsletter
www.autobodynews.com
Audi dealers strive to make you Be Seen by Our Readers! an Audi Genuine Parts fan CALL Advertising Sales at:
Register Your Email for Our
Free
4 Times Monthly E-Newsletter
www.autobodynews.com Your Audi customers expect quality and reliability from your repairs. 800-699-8251• Help meet those expectations by installing Audi Genuine Parts.
advertising@autobodynews.com
www.autobodynews.com • Audi dealers are supported by a nationwide network of parts distribution centers to help ensure that non-stocked parts are delivered the next day.
Installing Audi Genuine Parts from an Audi dealer is priceless to your reputation and your customers peace of mind. Order Genuine Audi Parts from these select dealers:
New York
Connecticut
New Jersey
Valenti Audi
DCH Millburn Audi
Paul Miller Audi
Watertown 860.274.9846 860.945.4987 Fax M-F 8am-5:30pm Sat 8am - 12pm
Maplewood 800.553.9250 973.762.2381 Fax M-F 7:30am-6pm Sat 7:30am - 4pm
Parsippany 800.356.4553 973.575.7793 973.575.5911 Fax M-F 8am-6pm; Sat 8am-5pm
AudiParts@valentiauto.com www.valentiaudi.com
ddipalma@dchusa.com www.dchmillburnaudi.com
www.paulmilleraudi.com Audiparts@paulmiller.com
Flemington Audi Flemington 877.NJPARTS 908.782.1795 Fax 68 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Audi Brooklyn of Bram Wholesale Parts Network 866.770.5999 718.392.6570 Fax 7:30am-5:30pm parts@lexusofqueens.com
Audi Southampton Southampton 631.204.2565 Tue - Sat 8am - 5pm parts@audisouthampton.com www.audisouthampton.com
Equipment and Tool Institute Releases Position Statement on Pre- and Post-Repair System Scanning The Equipment and Tool Institute has released the following position statement: The Equipment and Tool Institute (ETI) fully agrees with the process of the pre- and post- systems scan position many in the industry are taking. The electronic safety systems on today’s vehicles are very important for occupant safety and must be checked after a repair for proper functionality. The pre-scan is now necessary for the repair facility to be able to help scope and estimate the repair processes required for a safe and complete repair. This is an important concern for collision repair providers as the vast majority are not OEM dealership facilities. The need for affordable access to the tools that are essential to perform safe, complete and accurate repairs is extremely important. It is unlikely most shops will be able to justify the purchase cost of multiple OEM scan tools for this procedure since independent body shops work on a great variety of OEM’s vehicles. Thus, the importance of having accu-
rate, timely and affordable OEM scan tool data provided to the aftermarket to ensure our members have the information necessary to fully emulate the factory tool functions.
While we understand that many of the manufacturers do not know the capabilities of all the aftermarket scan tools, we know that many of the higher quality aftermarket tools provide the needed and necessary functions to complete a pre- and post scan properly for a majority of the vehicles they currently service. Data for the development of aftermarket scan tools is provided directly to scan tool manufacturers as agreed by previous contracts in the US so as to be able to fully emulate the factory tool. Many OEM’s provide this information in an affordable, accurate and timely manner. Yet some
OEM’s are less forthcoming and either restrict access to important data or price it at unaffordable levels. These access issues continue to plague the industry. ETI has no concern with repairers utilizing OEM tools when they are available and endorses their use in situations where they may be needed e.g. vehicles in their early years of service, where coverage may not be implemented in the current aftermarket tool release. For more information, contact ETI Executive Manager, Greg Potter, at gpotter@etools.org or 248656-5080. Founded in 1947, the Equipment and Tool Institute is a trade association of automotive tool and equipment manufacturers and technical information providers. ETI’s mission is to advance the vehicle service industry by providing technical data and open dialog between the manufacturers of transportation products, government regulators and the providers of tools, equipment and service information.
Accepting Nominations for the 2017 Mort Schwartz Excellence in Education Award
The Auto Care Association Education Committee is now accepting nominations for the 2017 Mort Schwartz Excellence in Education Award. The Mort Schwartz Excellence in Education Award is given to the person, company or educational institution that best advances the concepts and programs for education or continuing education in the North American auto care industry. Nominations should be submitted for their innovation, advancement or superlative efforts in education and training programs, or scholarship fundraising efforts. All Auto Care Association member companies and employees are eligible to submit a nomination. The winner will be selected by the Auto Care Association Education Committee, and presented during the 2017 Fall Leadership Days, Sept. 7, in San Francisco, CA. Submit a nomination by April 21, 2017. Use the online application form available at www.autocare.org /mort-schwartz-award/. The online application format enables applicants to enter, save and re-access text, attach documents and include internet links.
CONNECTICUT
MASSACHUSETTS
Valenti Volkswagen Watertown
Volkswagen of North Attleboro North Attleboro
Fax: 860-945-4987 M-F 8am-5:30pm; Sat 8am-12pm
Fax: 508-695-0321 M-F 8am-5pm; Sat 8am-2pm
860-274-9846 VWParts@valentiauto.com www.valentivw.com
508-695-7131 kenr@driveavw.com www.driveavw.com
MARYLAND
NEW JERSEY
King Volkswagen Gaithersburg
Open Road Volkswagen of Bridgewater Bridgewater
240-403-2300
Fax: 240-403-2398 M-F 7am-6pm; Sat 8am-4pm
dprunner@vwking.com www.vwking.com
Ourisman VW of Laurel Laurel
908-685-1068
Fax: 908-685-1547 M-F 7:30am-5pm; Sat 8am-3pm
Matthew.schlossbert@openroad.com www.openroadvwparts.com
301-498-6050
Fax: 301-498-0157 M-F 7:30am-7pm; Sat 7am-4pm
julio.cruz@ourismanautomotive.com
Ourisman VW of Rockville Rockville
855-417-4511
Fax: 240-499-2488 M-F 8am-5:30pm; Sat 8am-5pm
rockvilleparts@ourismanautomotive.com www.rockvillevolkswagen.com
www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 69
AUTOBODY MARKETPLACE
Technical Representative
Automotive, Fleet, OEM & Light Industrial Finishes
Due to our unprecedented growth in the industry Lusid Technologies, Inc. is looking for Technical Sales Representa!ves in all areas of the North American Market. Candidates should be able to demonstrate excellent communica!on and hands on technical skills. Successful candidates will find themselves working in a progressive and highly mo!vated and well trained team of people. Travel is expected to be extensive and the package on offer very compe!!ve. For full details and applica!on requirements contact HR@LUSID.BIZ in the strictest confidence.
When all you need to do is move a vehicle, use: An extra hand for soldering • Base protects from solder splatters • Stores & dispenses from solder spools & tubes • Solder wires quickly & easy
> EASY TO USE <
SAVES YOU TIME AND MONEY
ALSO OFFERING
Go to www.forkliftwrecker.com and watch our video.
Call Us Today!
Repair System
916-316-3672
877.593.6959
info@therailsaver.com / www.tgproductstools.com
Stop wasting valuable time looking for cardboard or cleaning mixing boards!
Clean Sheets® Mixing Boards are used by thousands of repair shops to mix epoxies, body filler, fiberglass, plastics, gel, putty and touch-up paint. • Prevents costly reworks • Bonded on 3 sides • Non-absorbing, heavy-duty paper with grip for mixing • Pays for itself the first week you use them!
Clean Sheets® “The Original Patented Mixing Pad
Since 1988”
Call your local Jobber or: 800-365-1308 www.cleansheetsmfg.com Turn-Key Operation Garage and Body Shop. High Visibility. Long Est. Business. 50+ Years. Building & Equipment/
Looking for Good Collision Personnel?
Call Mary Sheeley, Lic. Associate Broker
•1,262 Collision Techs resumes online •1,295 Painters resumes online •1,177 Estimators & Mgs resumes online •11,256 Mechanical Tech resumes online
Lucille Hand Real Estate 845-706-4334
ACTautostaffing.com or 727-733-5600
$499,999
70 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Call or e-mail now for rates: 800-699-8251 or ltedesco@autobodynews.com
March 31 Deadline for Applications for NABC Executive Director
The National Auto Body Council has announced last call for applications for its Executive Director position. The deadline is March 31. The NABC search campaign is to fill the vacancy created by the upcoming retirement of NABC founder and current Executive Director Chuck Sulkala by the end of 2017. The executive director position reports to the NABC Board of Directors and works collaboratively with the Board to implement NABC’s strategic annual goals. Responsibilities include oversight over NABC’s daily operations, membership, fundraising, marketing, finance and revenue growth. A detailed position description is available on the NABC website. Interested candidates should email resumes to Mike McManus at NABC office (m.mcmanus@autobodycouncil.org) with copies to Nick Notte (Nick.Notte@i-car.com) and Renee Ricciotti (rcricciotti@ mmm.com), co-chairs of the NABC Personnel Committee.
Women’s Industry Network Announces Winners of the 2017 Most Influential Women in Collision Repair Award
The Women’s Industry Network (WIN®) recently announced this year’s honorees for the Most Influential Women (MIW) of the collision repair industry award for 2017.After reviewing nominations and interviewing a number of amazing women, three inspiring industry leaders were selected to receive MIW honors:
● Cristina Fronzaglia-Murray, Manager of Marketing Communications, Automotive Refinish, PPG, Strongsville, OH ● Renee Ricciotti, Sales and Marketing Manager, 3M Automotive Aftermarket, St. Paul, MN ● Elizabeth Stein, Vice President of Industry Relations, Assured Performance Network, Laguna Hills, CA “As WIN celebrates being 500 members strong just 10 years after its founding, the 2017 MIW nominees showcased the geographic, functional and sector diversity of women who are shaping the future of collision repair,”
Maryland
Massachusetts
this prestigious award.” Established in 1999 and under WIN stewardship since 2013, the Most Influential Women program has recognized over 80 women for their professional accomplishments and for going beyond requirements of their positions to give back to their communities. “The recipients have been a positive influence within the industry and their local communities,” said Cheryl Boswell, Chief Financial Officer at DCR Systems, LLC, 2015 MIW Honoree and Co-Chair of the 2017 MIW Committee. “This award recognizes those women who not only excel within their own companies, but who are also active in mentoring others to help them advance within our industry. It is an honor to work among these amazing women who continue to elevate this industry and who lead by example.” When the 2017 WIN Educational Conference convenes in Denver, Colorado, on May 8-10, 2017, past and current MIW honorees will be celebrated during a gala awards reception. Registration for the conference and the MIW dinner is now open. For more information, visit www.womensindustry network.com
New York
FITZGERALD LAKEFOREST HYUNDAI
ROUTE 2 HYUNDAI
ATLANTIC HYUNDAI
301-670-4881
888-240-3495 978-534-9933 Fax
631-587-1628
Gaithersburg 905 North Frederick Ave.
301-670-1595 Fax
Leominster 743 North Main St.
Mon-Fri 7:30am - 6pm Sat 8am - 4pm www.gaithersburghyundai.com
Mon-Thu 7:30am - 7:30pm Fri-Sat 7:30am - 6pm parts@rte2hyundai.com www.rte2hyundai.com
HERB CHAMBERS HYUNDAI
ACTION HYUNDAI
Massachusetts Auburn 107 Andover St.
800-767-1898 508-832-6026 Fax
THE RIGHT PARTS
stated Sandra Herron, Owner of MiddlEdge, Inc. “This year’s award winners have blazed new trails for women in the industry. Each has a remarkable track record of creating company value, developing industry talent and serving both her local community and the collision repair industry.” Herron’s consulting firm was contracted as a third-party entity to interview the nominees and select this year’s honorees based on specific criteria established by the WIN Board of Directors. The Most Influential Women award recognizes women who have enriched the collision repair industry with their leadership, vision, and commitment to excellence. “Having been with WIN since its inception in 2006, it is wonderful to see first-hand how the MIW program has evolved and grown and how perfectly it aligns with WIN’s mission to ‘enhance the role of women in the industry,’” stated Petra Schroeder, WIN Chair. “Every year, I am truly amazed by the diversity of every nominee’s talent and industry involvement. It is my honor to extend heartfelt congratulations to Cristina, Renee and Elizabeth (Liz) for winning
Mon-Fri 7am - 6pm Sat 8am - 3pm pobrien@herbchambers.com www.herbchambershyundai.com
West Islip 193 Sunrise Hwy.
631-893-8491 Fax
Mon-Fri 8am - 5pm Sat 8am - 4pm www.AtlanticHyundai.com
New Jersey Flemington 180 Rte. US 202
908-782-8250 908-237-0036 Fax
Mon-Fri 8am - 5pm fmondello@actionautogroup.com www.actionhyundainj.com
For Your Collision Job Visit these Genuine Hyundai Parts Dealers www.autobodynews.com | APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS 71
72 APRIL 2017 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com