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VOL. 3 ISSUE 5 JULY 2012
Birmingham, AL, Shop Owners Drop State Farm’s Select Service Due to PartsTrader
State Farm PartsTrader Issue Resuscitates Mississippi Collision Repair Association
Several Birmingham, AL auto body shops have dropped State Farm rather than be forced to use its new PartsTrader procurement software within its Select Service Program. Auto body shops in Birmingham are located in one of four test markets where the pilot PartsTrader program, an online parts ordering/bidding software system developed by a New Zealand firm, is being tested. Usage of the PartsTrader software has been required by State Farm in four test markets nationwide: Tucson, AZ, Birmingham, AL, Grand Rapids, Mich. and Charlotte, NC. Approximately 10 percent of State Farm Select Service shops are participating in the pilot.
Anger over the proposed State Farm PartsTrader program revived a sleeping giant in Mississippi, revitalizing the previously dormant Mississippi Collision Repair Association, which met on May 23 for the first time in many years. “Due to many factors, our association as been inactive for almost eight years,” said Chad Smith, treasurer of the Mississippi Collision Repair Association and co- The Mississippi Collision Repair Association met on May owner of Smith Bros. Colli- 23 for the first time in 8 years, with special guest Attorsion Center with two ney General Jim Hood in attendance. locations in Brookhaven and Mc- controversy and negativity surroundSee Mississippi Reacts, Page 32 Comb. “But the new State Farm pro-
by Melanie Anderson
According to a report released by the Automotive Services Association (ASA), 17 Select Service shops in Birmingham, AL, removed themselves from the program prior to any registration or use of the application. “We are in a pilot—a pilot is still a process where you are learning,” said George Avery, a Property & Casualty Claims Auto Consultant who has been with State Farm for 33 years. “We had an unfortunate incident in Birmingham because some repair facilities decided to leave the Select Service program before we even got there. They made that decision before the pilot was even over or without even trying the tool, but that was a decision they felt they needed to make, See Birmingham Reacts, Page 28
gram has re-ignited our association’s fire!” The years may have gone by in comfort and complacency, but the
by Melanie Anderson
Rhode Island’s Auto Body Legislation Called “Great Consumer Bill” but Decried by Insurers Insurance companies are pushing for Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee to veto a bill passed by the General Assembly which is currently on the governor’s desk. The bill would allow auto body shops to directly sue insurers for reasonable reimbursement. Insurers are urging a veto to prevent a flood of law-
suits. The legislation was originally sponsored by the Auto Body Association of Rhode Island (ABARI) and sought by body shop owners, including the father and sister of state Rep. Peter Petrarca. It cleared its final legislative hurdle at 3:00 am on the final day of
Columnist David M. Brown starts a new series of articles on Nationwide Technician Training for Collision Repair Students. Special to Autobody News. see p. 44
the legislative session. Representatives from auto body shops say the bill is about equity. They claim they don’t have a chance to set their own rates because insurance companies refuse to negotiate. “It shouldn’t cost the consumer anything that’s not what it’s about. The
issue is more about getting the insurance companies to actually negotiate as opposed to taking a take it or leave it stance, which some of them currently do,” said Randy Bottella, president of the Auto Body Association of Rhode Island. See Great Consumer Bill, Page 10
We asked BMW North America: What Does it Take to Become a BMW Certified Collision Repair Center? Why there are only 69 in the US... see p. 41
CCC’s Director, Industry Analyst, Susanna E. Gotsch addresses Disruption as the New Normal —Macro Trends in the Industry Special to Autobody News
see p. 36
Change Service Requested
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Parts Manager: Eddie Williamson 800-729-6160 601-206-5894 local 601-206-5899 fax ewilliamson@graydaniels.com 6060 I-55 North, Jackson, MS 39211
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GENUINE SERVICE & PARTS
• Collision Parts Price Matching • Dedicated Wholesale Staff • Large Inventory Hours: Monday - Friday 7 am - 6 pm Saturday 8 am - 4 pm
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Parts Manager: Bill Styrone 800-898-1944 601-591-2648 fax bstyrone@graydaniels.com 201 Octavia Drive, Brandon, MS 39042
Gray-Daniels Toyota • Prompt, Accurate and Free Delivery • Dedicated Wholesale Staff • Large Inventory Hours: Mon. - Fri. 7am - 6 pm Saturday 8 am - 4 pm
Participating in Collision Link Parts Manager: Steve Calhoun 800-530-7955 601-948-0576 601-965-8458 fax scalhoun@graydaniels.com 104 Gray-Daniels Blvd., Brandon, MS 39042
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2 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
WWW.GRAYDANIELS.COM For All Your Collisions Part Needs
Contents 22,000 Apply for New Jobs at Hyundai . . . 9 Alabama Car Manufacturing Strong as
NATIONAL
Arizona and California Schools Preparing
for Collision Repair’s Future . . . . . . . . . 44
Other Industries Slow. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
ASA Testifies at Texas Tax Law Hearing . . 20
August 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Disruption Became the New Normal in ‘11. 36
Alabama Texting Law Goes into Effect
Body Shop Does Paint Job on Paint Blob . 18
Alabama’s Economy Shrank in 2011,
DuPont Unveils New No. 24 Chevrolet
Birmingham Area Auto Dealers Get Ready
Epidemic of Scrap Metal Thefts Prompts
Birmingham, AL, Shop Owners Drop
Ford Ships New Escapes, Some Have
but Better than 2009 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 for a Busy Summer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
State Farm’s Select Service Due
Paint Scheme for 20th . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 New Restrictive Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Hail Damage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
to PartsTrader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Information Shops Can Use Presented at
Impersonating Adjuster . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Iowa Dealership Refuses to Participate
SkillsUSA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Louisiana State Penitentiary Lifer Makes
Florida Shop Owner Arrested for
Gadsden State Students Excel in State
Geico Settles Lawsuit with Gunder’s . . . . . 3
Gerber Collision Acquires Shops in
FLA and MD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Hail Pounds Wichita, Insurance Claims
Flood In . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Honda to Add Acura MDX to Alabama
Plant for Sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
East Bay CAA Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 in PartsTrader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
ASE Triple Master Rank . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Man Killed at Auto Shop in NC . . . . . . . . . . 4 Mitchell AutocheX Celebrates
Top-Performing Shops. . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
NABC Helps Operation Comfort’s Automotivation Secure a New
Facility for Disabled Vets . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Mississippi Nissan Plant Starts New
Nissan EVs Tested in New York Amid
Services Held for Auto Body Repairman
PARTS Patent Bill Gets Three Additional
Southeast Tech Celebrates Coming
PCI Claims ABARI Legislation Has Increased
State Farm PartsTrader Issue Resuscitates
Poll Shows Americans Still Blame Bush
Two Florida Families Receive Cars from
Rhode Island’s Auto Body Legislation
Jeffery McClung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Transport Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Mississippi Collision Repair Association. 1 Recycled Rides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Vehicles Stolen from Kenny’s. . . . . . . . . . . 4 COLUMNISTS
Attanasio - Matters of the Heart: A Body
Standard Debate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Sponsors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Repair Costs Twice National Avg. . . . . . 10
for Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Called “Great Consumer Bill” but
Decried by Insurers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
SCRS Hosts Repairer Driven Education
at SEMA 2012 Featuring “Innovation
Forum” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Shop Owner Saves a Life with CPR . . . 16
Seattle Auto Body Repair Students Give
Vehicle for 11-Year-Old Driver. . . . . . . . 42
Service, Diagnostic and Mechanical News . 26
Evans - Building a Junior Motor Sport Franklin - Maximizing Referrals to
Your Shop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Hey Toby! - Matrix Wand is a
“Billy-the-Kid” Hydroplane a Makeover. 12
Storm Chaser Chases Hail-Damaged Cars
for Shops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Student Restores Comet for Senior Project . 21
Game Changer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Students Flex Artistic Muscle Working
Refinishing Work? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Teens Drive Across America . . . . . . . . . . 18
Nigro - Are You Getting Paid for Your
on Crush Car . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Sisk - Al Brodeur’s Auto Body Offers
Texas Hail Storms Cause High
Weaver - Take it to the Dealer! . . . . . . . . . 27
Unique Lego Car Sold for $1,626
Honesty, Inspires Loyalty . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Williams - Allan Vigil Ford: Huge Inventory
Alone Is Not Key to Success . . . . . . . . . 7
Yoswick - SCRS Meeting Discusses
Insurance Regulation, State Farm . . . . . 30
Insured Losses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
for Charity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
What it Takes for a BMW Dealership to
Become a BMW CCRC. . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
against his customer, who he says understood the issues and did not dispute any portion of their billing. Gunder also claims that the customer was not aware of the bonding of his vehicle, claiming he would testify that he had not even been aware of GEICO taking possession of his vehicle until it had been removed. In the process of arranging the depositions of GEICO’s claims manager and the field claims rep who bonded the vehicle, GEICO elected to avoid the depositions by paying Gunder’s their full billing as well as all legal fees and costs of $2,621.09 for a total amount of $3,593.09. “I surely hope this sets precedence that handling returned parts, with all the administrative efforts, costs and assumed liabilities involved, is not merely a ‘cost of doing business,’” said Ray Gunder. “As I have learned from my good friend and business consultant Barrett Smith of Auto Damage Experts, performing such activities for free could very well be ‘the cost of going out of business.’ After setting this legal precedence, I hope to resume a respectful relationship with GEICO for the benefit of our mutual customers and our respective companies.”
Publisher & Editor: Jeremy Hayhurst General Manager: Barbara Davies Assistant Editor: Melanie Anderson Contributing Writers: Tom Franklin, Stefan Gesterkamp, John Yoswick, Lee Amaradio, Toby Chess, Mike Causey, Dan Espersen, Tom McGee, Jeff Webster, Rich Evans, Ed Attanasio, Chasidy Sisk Advertising Sales: Joe Momber, Sean Hartman, Jay Lukes (800) 699-8251 Sales Assistant: Kristy Navarro Art Director: Rodolfo Garcia
Indexof Advertisers
Altima Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Gunder’s Auto Center announced that GEICO has elected to settle a lawsuit Gunder’s filed on behalf of their customer rather than concede to deposition of their claims representatives. Upon deeming the customer’s vehicle a total loss and disputing Gunder’s billing for incurred charges (including a parts return fee), GEICO elected to post what is referred to as a “bond” through the county courts in the amount of Gunder’s billing ($972), which allowed GEICO to then take possession of the customer’s vehicle. As required, GEICO provided full payment of the disputed amount to the Clerk of Courts and was issued a “bond,” which legally required Gunder’s Auto Center to relinquish the vehicle along with their possessory lien on that vehicle. Gunder’s, according to stipulations in the bond statutes, was then confronted with having to file a lawsuit against the vehicle owner as the only means to exercise their right of recovery. If Gunder’s failed to file a lawsuit within 60 days, they would have then forfeited their right of collection, and the monies would have been refunded to GEICO, with Gunder’s receiving nothing. Ray Gunder, owner of Gunder’s, proceeded to file the lawsuit
Southeast
REGIONAL
Geico Settles Lawsuit with Gunder’s
Serving Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and adjacent metro areas, Autobody News is a monthly publication for the auto body industry. Permission to reproduce in any form the material published in Autobody News must be obtained in writing from the publisher. ©2012 Adamantine Media LLC.
Autobody News
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Allan Vigil Ford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 BMW Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 45 CCC Information Services . . . . . . . . 5 Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Delray Honda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Don Reid Ford. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Equalizer Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Ford Wholesale Parts Dealers FL, GA, AL, MS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Garmat USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Global Imports MINI . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Gray-Daniels Auto Family . . . . . . . . . 2 Gus Machado Ford . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Honda-Acura Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-25 Hyundai of Orange Park . . . . . . . . . 31 Hyundai Wholesale Parts Dealers . 39 Jerry Ulm Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge. 14-15 Kendall Mitsubishi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Kia Motors Wholesale Parts Dealers. 23 Mazda Wholesale Parts . . . . . . . . . 37 Mercedes-Benz Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
MINI Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 41 Mitsubishi Wholesale Parts Dealers. 18 MOPAR Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 9 NACE Registration . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Nalley BMW. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Nissan Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . 43 Palmers Toyota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Porsche Wholesale Parts Dealers . 46 Safety Regulation Strategies . . . . . 34 Sam Galloway Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . 19 SCA Appraisal Company . . . . . . . . 33 Serra Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Serra Automotive Group . . . . . . . . . 11 Solution Finish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Southtowne Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Star-A-Liner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Subaru of Gwinnett . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Subaru Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 40 Tameron Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Toyota Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 44 Volkswagen Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 3
Alabama Texting Law Goes into Effect August 1 A law restricting texting while driving was approved by Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley, and it may have insurance implications for drivers who violate the ban after it takes effect. Fines for using a hand-held device to text behind the wheel will be $25 for first-time violators, $50 for a second offense and $75 for the third and any subsequent violations. For each violation, the law will also institute a two-point penalty against a driver’s record, which auto insurance companies may be able to view as lawful justification for insurance-rate hikes. The law goes into effect on Aug. 1, 2012. “Signing this bill sends a message that drivers need to focus on driving, not on sending a text,” Gov. Bentley said in a statement. “There is nothing so urgent that it is worth risking your life, or the lives of others, by sending a text message while you are driving down the road.” Federal officials estimate that texting behind the wheel diverts a driver’s eyes from the road for an average of 4.6 seconds, meaning texting motorists going 55 mph are inattentive as they drive for what is equivalent to the length of a football field.
Gerber Collision Acquires Shops in Florida & Maryland
The Boyd Group Inc. announced June 4 the opening of a collision repair center in Orlando, Florida which commenced operations on May 30, 2012 as well as the acquisition of another new location in Jessup, Maryland on May 25, 2012. Both repair centers will operate under the Gerber Collision & Glass trade name. This brings the total number of U.S. locations in operation to 141 with two additional locations acquired, soon to be in operation. The new Orlando repair center, originally acquired on March 22, 2012 and previously known as Leading Edge Collision, is approximately 10,000 square feet in size, with 6,500 square feet of production space. Florida is a market Gerber first entered in January, and this latest center bolsters the number of locations operating in this market to nine locations. Orlando, the fifth largest city in Florida, is considered an attractive market by the company. The new Jessup repair center, the eighth in Maryland, was previously known as ACI Auto Collision and is approximately 13,000 square feet in size, of which 11,000 square feet is production space.
Rep. Jim McClendon (RShelby), who sponsored the state House version of the legislation, said that its finalization was a long time coming after six years of advocacy. “Persistence has finally paid off,” he said in a statement, adding that, “our highways will be safer with the passage of this law.” The regulation makes texting while driving a primary offense, meaning police can pull over any driver they suspect is breaking the ban to issue a citation. The law defines prohibited handheld devices as any that are “readily removable from a vehicle and are used to write, send, or read text or data through manual input.” The law expressly allows for use of voice-operated devices “which allow the user to send or receive a textbased communication without the use of either hand except to activate or deactivate a feature or function.”
Autobody News is pleased to announce our
Great Lakes Edition will publish in September!
Vehicles Stolen from Kenny’s
Two vehicles were taken from Kenny’s Auto Body, 615 E. Pacific, in Salina, KS. A window was knocked out on the west side of the dealership and a digital camera and binoculars were taken, along with vehicle keys, said Lt. Scott Siemsen of the Salina Police Department. Driven away were a black 2003 Chevrolet 1500 Z71 four-by-four extended cab pickup, valued at $8,000, and a white 2003 Chevrolet 2500 four-by-four extended cab pickup with a black grill guard, valued at $7,500. Neither vehicle had a license tag.
Man Killed at Auto Shop in NC
A man was shot and killed at an auto body shop in Fayetteville, NC according to authorities. The shooting happened just before noon at H&H Customs, an auto shop and custom detailing business on Cumberland Road. Investigators said Glenn Artis, 32, was killed at the shop following an argument with the business owner, Freddie Hudson, 38. Artis and Hudson had been involved in an ongoing dispute that spilled over into the business. According to witnesses, the pair pulled up to the shop in separate vehicles and exchanged gunfire.
PARTS Patent Bill Gets Three Additional Sponsors
Three more members of Congress have signed on as co-sponsors of federal legislation (HR 3889) that would reduce the time automakers can use design patents to prevent other companies from producing replacement crash parts. Reps. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Walter Jones (R-NC) and Dennis Ross (R-FL) are now supporting the bill, backed by insurers and non-OEM parts manufacturers and distributors, that would reduce patent protection for OEM parts from 14 years to just 2.5 years. Supporting the bill are numerous aftermarket organizations, including the Quality Parts Coalition who
issued a statement saying, in part: “American drivers currently have access to alternative auto replacement parts that can save them between 26–50% when repairing their cars after an accident. But car companies are trying to force consumers to buy their parts only and eliminate the competition. Car companies have been acquiring U.S. design patents on exterior auto repair parts—such as hoods, bumper covers and mirrors—and enforcing them against independent suppliers who have been selling these more affordable and quality alternative parts for more than 60 years.”
Services Held for Auto Body Repairman Jeffery McClung
A funeral for Jeffery “Bodean” O’Neal McClung, 42, of Vinemont was held June 8 at Peck Funeral Home Chapel. Mr. McClung was born Aug. 4, 1969 and died June 5, 2012 at his residence. He was a 1987 graduate of Brewer High School where he learned paint and auto body repair. He worked in the auto paint business for 18 years before becoming disabled by health problems. He loved life and anything to do with cars. His hobbies included following NASCAR’s No. 24 Jeff Gordon, drag racing, hot rods and show cars. He enjoyed boating and college football and was an avid Auburn fan. He was preceded in death by his paternal grandmother, Mary “Helen” Stinson Swindall, who he cherished and from whom was given the nickname “Bodean,” and his maternal grandfather, William Lavern Nelson. He is survived by his parents, Larry O. McClung of Falkville and Sheilah Nelson Horton of Yulee, Fla.; a son, Billy Heath McClung of Cherokee; a sister, Dana Suzanne Beasley and husband Kenneth Beasley of Falkville; a niece: Lauren Beasley; a nephew, Jordan Beasley.
4 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
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www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 5
Honda to Add Acura MDX to Alabama Plant for Sales
Hail Pounds Wichita, and Insurance Claims Flood In
Honda is adding the Acura MDX sport utility to the production lineup in Alabama next year, and the move will open up a new export market for the Lincoln plant’s products. Some of the MDX vehicles made at the plant will be shipped to China, said Tom Shoupe, head of Honda’s Alabama operations. A small percentage of the plant’s vehicles, now Odyssey minivans, Pilot SUVs and Ridgeline pickups, are exported each year to markets including the Middle East, South America and Central America. Pilots are also shipped to Russia. The MDX, now produced at a Honda plant in Canada, has been exported to China for several years in small numbers, so that will continue after the production switch. Last year, 485 MDX vehicles were shipped to China, Honda spokesman Ed Miller said. The SUV is sold in the United States. The MDX move will give Honda more room in Canada to build the popular CR-V SUV. Acura is Honda’s luxury vehicle division, and the MDX will be the first Acura product built in Alabama.
There was enough hail that insurance claim offices, auto body shops and roofers were flooded with calls. State Farm, which insures close to 100,000 homes in Sedgwick County, is expecting to get more than 1,000 claims filed. “We already had 50 people turn in claims by the time I came to work at 6 a.m.,” said Rick Beckler, a claim team manager for State Farm. “There was hail in all of Wichita for a good 30 minutes. These hail stones were very, very hard.” Kyle Armagost, manager of Collision Center of Andover, said he had done more than 50 estimates by noon. They weren’t all just dents. “We got a Mercedes in here that looks like it took the brunt of the storm,” Armagost said. “The back glass is all broken out, and it looks like a snow drift in the back seat. If it’s knocking out windows, it means you’re getting at least golf-ball-size hail coming down at a pretty good velocity.” J.R. Sartin, general manager of Auto Craft Collision Repair, said each of the company’s four locations in Wichita had done estimates on more than 60 vehicles by noon.
Poll Shows Americans Still Blame Bush for Economy
Southeast Tech Celebrates Coming Transport Center
Americans still blame the country’s economic ills more on former President George W. Bush than on President Obama, a Gallup poll released June 14 indicated. Sixty-eight percent of Americans still blame the Bush White House while 52 percent said Obama was at fault, results indicated. The relative economic blame ascribed to Bush over Obama in the latest poll is virtually the same as it was in September, the Princeton, NJ, polling agency said. Gallup first began assessing blame in July 2009, six months after Obama became president. Then, 80 percent of Americans indicated they gave Bush a great deal or a moderate amount of blame for the bad economy compared with 32 percent who ascribed the same level of blame to Obama. Results are based on nationwide telephone interviews with 1,004 adults conducted June 7-10. The margin of error is four percentage points.
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It’s not every day a public institution celebrates decreasing its size. But Southeast Technical College president Jim Johnson gathered with staff, local leaders and state legislators at the groundbreaking for the college’s new $2.3 million transportation center that Johnson said will “right-size” the college. The $2.3 million Southeast Tech addition will add 25,000 square feet to the college’s main campus, compared to the 70,000 square feet it used to have at the airport campus, which the school sold to PlastiComp last summer. “This addition is the final culmination of bringing seven programs back to this campus,” Johnson said. “This will be a really critical piece of the future of our college.” The addition will consolidate all of Southeast tech’s Winona programs at the main campus. Southeast Tech sold its airport campus to PlastiComp last summer and used the money to finance the transportation center addition. The transportation center will house the truck driving, automotive technology and automotive collision technology programs.
6 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Mississippi Nissan Plant Starts New Altima Model
The Canton Nissan plant in Mississipi began making the Altima back in 2004, and now its employees will work on the new, fifth-generation model, as the 2013 model year car has begun rolling off the line. The Canton plant, which also builds body-on-frame trucks, has put full priority on the 2013 Altima, building it in three shifts. The new 2013 model year midsize sedan is actually based on the old model’s platform, but it has been heavily restyled and modified. The base 2013 Altima comes with a 2.5-liter 182hp inline-four, starting at $21,500 and the top-of-the line model gets a 3.5-liter V6, in SL trim, it will grab just over $30,000. “Today’s successful start of production of the Nissan Altima, our top-selling vehicle, only can happen because of the support of our dedicated workforce in Canton,” said Bill Krueger, vice chairman, Nissan Americas. “The Canton team builds among the highest-quality vehicles in the industry, and we are looking forward to bringing their production expertise to the next generation of this award-winning car.”
Alabama’s Economy Shrank in 2011, but Better than 2009
Alabama’s economy performed worse than almost every state’s last year, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The agency said Alabama’s economy, as measured by gross domestic product, contracted 0.8 percent in 2011, worse than every state except Mississippi and Wyoming. GDP is the broadest measure of an economy, measure all goods and services produced. Alabama’s GDP figure in 2011 was $150.33 billion, lower than the figure for 2008. The BEA said 43 states managed GDP gains in 2011, led by North Dakota with a 7.6 percent gain. The states averaged a gain of 1.5 percent, down from 3.1 percent in 2010. Wyoming’s economy was weakest in 2011, shrinking 1.2 percent. Mississippi was No. 49, with a contraction of 0.8 percent. Alabama was No. 48. Alabama’s dismal performance last year was better than in 2009, when the state’s economy shrank by 5 percent. In 2010, it expanded by 2.3 percent, the BEA says.
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Distinctive Dealerships
Larry Williams is an innovative parts manager with national awards and over 30 years of experience in creating and managing profitable departments. He can be reached for consultation at ljoew2@gmail.com.
Allan Vigil Ford: Huge Inventory Alone Is Not Key to Success with Larry Williams
This month’s Autobody News’ featured dealership is Allan Vigil Ford in Morrow, GA. This locally-owned dealer has been in business for almost 30 years. The parts manager is Rusty Stewart and his parts department is one of the top Ford wholesalers in the nation. This is also one of the largest Ford parts departments in the nation, currently number 22 in sales, and on the rise. Rusty told me that they are the top power-train parts dealer in the area. Over $3 million dollars in inventory in a 60,000-square-foot warehouse assures his customers their orders will be filled the same day. Rusty knows that inventory alone cannot make a quality dealer, and backs up this impressive operation with the best personnel available. His parts department is staffed with 37 of the best people he can find. For his wholesale customers, he has 10 of the most experienced, professional, and dedicated countermen,
all of whom take a special interest in servicing collision repair. When you call 877-789-5415, you might talk to Buzz Boyd; with 50 years experience, or Clint Yancey with 39 years, David Stapp with 14, Gerald Knowles with 50, Larry Wright with 42, Miles Dean with 35, Sean
Collins with 18, Tim Oxford with 14, Virgil Hendricks with 43, or Wayne Flake with 30 year experience. This is an amazing collection of talent, with over 300 years of combined parts experience! With a crew like this, dedicated to giving the best service possible, their customers always get the
right part. Getting the “right part at the right time” is Rusty’s secret to success. He started out as a customer himself, and knows exactly how critical parts service is to completing the repairs on time. Rusty told me he remembers the time a small, seemingly unimportant part held up a $5,000 repair. He now considers every part equally important to his customer’s success. This is the reason for his impressive inventory— Rusty wants to deliver every part needed on the first delivery. With service like this, his customers can streamline their repair systems by reducing delays and maximizing their profits. Once again, I hear a success story based on service—and not just on profits. This theme of customer service, long-term relationships, and a partnership with their customers is a
“constant” with our leading wholesale dealers. I have talked to some other parts managers who have a negative attitude toward their wholesale business, and they always mention (lack of) profit first. Yes, these dealers will sell you their parts, but where is their service? A business that concentrates on pricing above all else has no heart, no soul, and eventually, no customers. The last three years have been hard on our business, but with dealers like Allan Vigil Ford, always giving the best service possible, we will all survive and grow stronger. We are a service industry, taking care of our customer’s needs, and those who put service first—ahead of price—will always come out on top. Allan Vigil Ford 6790 Mt. Zion Blvd Morrow, GA 30260 www.fordparts.com/alanvigilford (877)-858-3472
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Two Florida Families Receive Cars from Recycled Rides It is difficult for most of us to imagine leading a productive life without a car at our immediate disposal, yet the United States Bureau of Transportation estimates that over 15 million Americans have difficulty getting the transportation they need. This fact illustrates a great need for something most of us take for granted, and for this reason, the National Auto Body Council (NABC) is pleased to announce that the lives of two deserving Florida families were changed forever during the CCC Industry Conference which took place on May 17 at the Sawgrass Marriott in Jacksonville, Florida.
headed up the effort and the NABC members that worked in conjunction with the FACA to refurbish the vehicles were Sterling Autobody Centers and Sunbeam Auto Body. The McWhite family is comprised of single parent mom, Delphia, and her two daughters. Unable to complete high school, and without a driver’s license, Delphia had experienced difficulty finding the kind of work that would allow her to support her family. Relying on public transportation for doctor’s visits and transporting her children to other important appointments proved additional hardships. During her time with Family Prom-
tory control position with the southeast distributor for 7-UP/Snapple over a year ago. He and his son now reside in a mobile home close to his place of employment, and he hopes someday to move into a new house with his son, who is of school age. The family’s recycled ride comes into their life at a fortuitous time, as their old car’s transmission had recently given out. “The McWhites and Riddles are just two of the 150 families who will receive the gift of reliable transportation from Recycled Rides this year,” stated Nick Notte, Recycled Rides CoChairman and President of Sterling Autobody Centers. “That’s 150 families who will receive the opportunity make better lives for themselves through the intra-industry efforts of the program. I am grateful to be part of a project that clearly illustrates the giving nature of NABC members and the collision repair industry in general.”
Recycled Rides is a community awareness project whereby members of the NABC repair and donate refurbished vehicles to families and service organizations in need throughout
The families received the gift of reliable transportation through Recycled Rides®, a national initiative through which National Auto Body Council members—men and women putting their superior craftsmanship to benevolent use—refurbish donated vehicles and gift them to families in need and organizations dedicated to assisting others. Each Recycled Rides event is local in focus, and the program works with charities in specific geographic areas to find qualified recipients needing a vehicle to help them continue leading productive lives. Both recipient families are graduates of Family Promise of Jacksonville, Florida, a non-profit interfaith network that provides support to families in crisis. The Florida Autobody Collision Alliance (FACA) was responsible for getting the shops involved and securing the cars to be repaired, which were made available by insurance companies Geico and Allstate. FACA Executive Director Cathy Mills, a Recycled Rides committee member,
ise, Delphia completed her GED, obtained her driver’s license, found subsidized housing and secured a job with her daughter’s day care, allowing the family to move into their own apartment. In addition to making life less stressful and more productive, the refurbished vehicle will assist Delphia in her goal of pursuing a degree in Business Administration at Florida State College. The Riddle family is headed by Dan, who maintained a home in Arlington for 15 years while he held various warehousing jobs. After injuring his arm on the job, he couldn’t work for 15 months as he underwent surgery and rehabilitation. When he could work again, he was unable to return to his old position, so he took a job as a versatile handyman with a home remodeling/construction company. When the economy took a turn for the worse, Dan lost his house as a result of insufficient work. He and his son were accepted into the Family Promise program, where Dan continued to look for work and eventually met a volunteer who helped him secure an inven-
8 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
the United States. A green program, Recycled Rides recruits auto body shops, insurers, paint suppliers and parts vendors to contribute in their own specific ways.
Family Promise is a 501-c3 nonprofit with 140 networks nationwide that organizes houses of worship, community agencies, and social service agencies into a community-based interfaith hospitality network. Family Promise’s Family Mentoring Program is a homelessness prevention initiative that trains volunteers to act as advisors and advocates for at-risk families, helping them achieve goals and maintain self-sufficiency. Families that graduate from the program’s transitional sheltering program are enrolled in a mentoring program to assist them with sustaining an independent future.
National Auto Body Council is a nonprofit organization dedicated to enhancing the image of the collision industry. Please contact NABC directly for membership information. Call 1888-667-7433 (888-66PRIDE) or go to www.autobodycouncil.org.
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22,000 Apply for New Jobs at Hyundai More than 22,000 people have applied for 877 new jobs at Hyundai’s Montgomery auto plant, with the majority of applicants coming from south-central Alabama. The final tally of applications was 22,508, according to officials at the plant. Now the pool is being whittled down through diagnostic testing, interviews and hands-on assessments. The South Korean automaker is adding a third shift there to meet growing demand for its products. The average annual wage at Alabama’s three auto assembly plants, including Hyundai, Honda and Mercedes-Benz, tops $54,400, according to data from the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Alabama. By contrast, the overall annual average wage in Alabama is $34,600. About 50 of the new jobs at the Hyundai plant already have been filled with people who were temporary workers there. The goal is to complete hiring by the end of July, with plans to start up the third shift Sept. 1. Hyundai announced the third shift hiring plans on April 30. The company now operates two shifts at the Montgomery plant and has
had those workers on overtime schedules for two years to keep pace with demand for the popular Sonata sedan and Elantra compact. While unemployment has been falling across Alabama, jobs in the state’s auto sector clearly remain in high demand. According to a breakdown of applications, 41 percent of the Hyundai job-seekers hail from Montgomery, followed by six percent from Selma and five percent from Prattville. Birmingham is home to two percent of the applicants, as is Millbrook, Wetumpka, Greenville and Troy. One percent hail from Hayneville. In April, Alabama’s jobless rate was 7.2 percent, down from 7.4 percent in March and 9.2 percent in April 2011. Montgomery has seen a similar slide: The metro area’s unemployment stood at 6.7 percent in April, compared to 7.4 percent in March and 8.6 percent a year earlier. Birmingham’s jobless rate was 5.9 percent in April, down from 6.5 percent in March and 8 percent in April 2011. The move will bring Hyundai’s Montgomery work force to more than 3,000 people.
Storm Chaser Chases Hail-Damaged Cars for Shops
Steve Shapiro is the kind of storm chaser who goes after the damages, not the spectacle. For 21 years he’s traveled the world offering his services as a specialist in auto body damage caused by hail. “This is a severe storm,” Shapiro said as he worked on a damaged Honda at Bodies By Jay in Moreau, NY. Shapiro is in good company locally, as local body repair shops rely on tradesmen with skills like Shapiro’s to help motorists recover from severe weather. Shapiro works for North American Paintless Dent Repair. While he lives near Boston, he figures he’ll be in the Glens Falls, NY, area until the flood of hail-damaged vehicles subsides. The paintless dent repair techniques allow him to remove medium and small hail dents without the need for conventional body work and painting. “I just came in to deal with the major part of it,” Shapiro said, adding there are a lot of cars in the area that sustained damage requiring more drastic repairs. Jay Cardinale, who owns Bodies by Jay, said he’s seen his business double since the recent storm, which dropped golf-ball-sized hail in parts of Lake George and Bolton. The recent
storm resulted in the first widespread automobile hail damage Cardinale’s seen in four years, though the 2008 storm wasn’t as bad as this one, he said. Cardinale said damage bills for vehicles he’s fixed have been as high as $10,000. Rich Tanchyk, vice president of H&V Collision Center on Quaker Road in Queensbury, NY, has turned his business into a storm recovery center of sorts. He said his business, which also has locations in Saratoga Springs, Troy and Colonie, has about a dozen paintless dent repair specialists helping out with repairs. “We also have our own teams that move where the damage is,” said Tanchyk. He estimated his business had handled claims on hundreds of cars so far. He has also gathered insurance claims representatives at his Quaker Road location to help motorists file the paperwork needed to claim the damage on their vehicles.
Autobody News is pleased to announce our
Great Lakes Edition will publish in September!
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 9
Continued from Cover
Great Consumer Bill
“This bill doesn’t benefit consumers, it benefits the auto body shops. It provides them with more money for the work that they’re doing,” said Francis O’Brien of the Insurers Association of America. In a letter to policy holders, Robert A. DiMuccio, chairman and CEO of Amica Mutual Insurance, said the legislation that just passed “allows shops to set inflated prices for labor and repairs and [use] the threat of lawsuits to charge these exorbitant repair costs.” Until now, if a shop felt that it had been unfairly reimbursed, it could take the insurer to court, but only using an assignment of proceeds case where the shop would legally seek reimbursement representing the consumer. “This is a great consumer bill,” said Jina Petrarca-Karampetsos, who testified in support of the measure prior to the Senate vote. “This is a great bill. It’s a fair bill. This doesn’t require insurers to set a rate for every shop. This just says to every shop, ‘Hey, if you feel you are not getting a fair rate, then go ahead and prove your position in court.’” PCI New England Vice President and Regional Manager Frank O’Brien was actively posting messages on Twitter as the Senate Judiciary Committee debated the bill on June 12. O’Brien said the bill was bad for consumers and called the measure “the worst auto body bill ever.” He said insurers described the bill as “unprecedented” and the “most one-sided they’ve ever seen.” “This bill doesn’t benefit con-
sumers, it benefits the auto body shops. It provides them with more money for the work that they’re doing,” said Francis O’Brien of the Insurers Association of America. AIA believes H.B. 7782A allows for nationally unprecedented private rights of action for auto body shops directly against insurers and is "poor public policy." “No other state in the nation allows auto body shops to set non-negotiable rates and attempt to force them on third-party payers under threat of litigation,” said Gary Henning, AIA Northeast region vice president. “This legislation represents poor public policy which could lead to an explosion of litigation. It should be vetoed when it reaches the governor’s desk.” AIA says that Rhode Island is one of the most expensive states in the nation for auto body repairs. Currently, drivers pay the sixth highest collision insurance premiums in the nation due in large part to higher-than-average claim costs, including labor costs which exceed the national average by 26.7 percent. The bill also includes specific language stating that an insured may still assign the rights of their claim to a body shop if they so wish. The bill passed the Senate 24-11 and is now on the Governor’s desk, provides access to small claims court for shops who feel they must sue to be fairly reimbursed. Current law would require a shop to take these types of issues before a Superior or District Court, with proper legal representation. “If this bill passes, a shop can represent themselves in small claims court for a filing fee of $80,” said PetrarcaKarampetsos, speaking on behalf of the Auto Body Association of Rhode Is-
land (ABARI). The measure, originally sponsored by ABARI, also includes specific language stating that an insured may still assign the rights of their claim to a body shop if they so wish. The insurers testifying against the bill argued that the bill forces them to accept whatever a shop demands under the threat of being sued, but that is not so, according to Petrarca-Karampetsos. “This isn’t a name your price bill, this is a bill that requires a shop to prove before a court that their price is a fair one, that their charges are reasonable.” “The bill doesn’t say that insurers have to reach an agreement. It just says that they have to negotiate in good faith, and if you can’t reach an agreement, the insurer may pay whatever it determines. If the shop doesn’t feel that’s fair, the burden is on them to prove it in court.” “This actually removes a lot of the hassle and delay for consumers,” Petrarca-Karampetsos said. “If the shop and insurer don’t agree, this bill says to the insurer, ‘Just pay the claim on your number, whatever number you think is fair, write the check, leave it with the shop, and let them worry about it.’ This eliminates all the delays of the past. But perhaps more importantly, the customer is not involved. It leaves them out of it.” “This law is a simple, fair solution. It doesn’t require regulation. It gives insurers a chance to challenge everything we say, and it does so without a sweeping mandate,” says Petrarca-Karampetsos. But that isn’t the only new law this bill would create. The measure also makes changes to how total losses are handled in Rhode Island. Unless Governor Lin-
paid $782 per car. If following years also saw a similar 26.5 percent increase in costs, drivers would have had to pay even higher average vehicle damage premiums of $989 and $1,252 per car in 2010 and 2011, respectively. “Residents in Rhode Island already pay among the highest auto repair bills in the nation and unless something is done, the rapid growth is likely to continue,” said Frank O’Brien, PCI vice president. “We are urging Gov. Chafee to take the first step in addressing these out of control costs by vetoing HB 7782 A. Without him taking action this cost trend could
become even worse.” House Bill 7782 A, which passed in the final hours of the 2012 legislative session, could make it more expensive for vehicles to be repaired following an accident by forcing more cars with severe damage to be repaired instead of totaled. In addition it would allow body shops to charge an inflated amount for repairs and force insurance companies to pay these prices or face the possibility of a lawsuit. “In the midst of a struggling economy and not satisfied with having some of the fastest increasing costs in the country, the Auto Body
coln Chafee vetoes the bill, insurers will no longer be permitted to declare a vehicle a total loss if the cost to restore the vehicle to pre-accident condition is below 75 percent of the fair market value of the car. “This part of the bill is a real win for consumers,” said Petrarca-Karampetsos. “Today, it doesn’t matter how much a customer might beg and plead with their insurer to fix their car, if they don’t want it totaled. If their insurer got a high bid on the salvage, and can save money even by totaling their car at 50 percent or less, they total the car, no matter what their customer wants.” In addition, the bill sets forth a new definition of fair market value in the case of total losses. According to the bill, “Fair market value” means the retail value of a motor vehicle as set forth in a current edition of a nationally recognized compilation of retail values commonly used by the automotive industry to establish values of motor vehicles. The new definition, according to Petrarca-Karampetsos, would preclude the use of products developed exclusively for the insurance industry, such as the Audatex, CCC, and Mitchell systems, and require the use of guides like the NADA book used by car dealers. The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) and the American Insurance Association (AIA) are both opposed to the bill. AIA, in a press release on June 13, described the bill as “reckless” and called on Governor Chafee to veto the measure. The association said the law would unleash a flood of lawsuits against insurance companies. The bill would take effect upon passage. Download the text of the legislation at autobodynews.com.
PCI Claims ABARI Legislation Has Increased Repair Costs Twice National Avg.
According the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI), auto body repair costs in Rhode Island have skyrocketed since 2003 and if legislation (HB 7782A) passed by the state Legislature is signed into law by Governor Lincoln Chafee, consumers may face the prospects of even higher costs, Based on an analysis of the provisions in HB 7782A, had it passed in 2008 the result would have been a 26.5 percent increase in the vehicle damage insurance premium in 2009. Instead of Rhode Island drivers paying $618 per car for vehicle damage coverage in 2009, they would have
10 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Association of Rhode Island (ABARI) continues to push a legislative agenda that drives up the costs of auto body repair,” said O’Brien. “Since 2003 ABARI sponsored legislation has caused the average repair cost to accelerate at a rate more than twice the national average.” In 2011, Rhode Island had the 4th highest overall labor costs in the nation with the average total labor cost in this state being 26.7 percent higher than the countrywide average. Additionally, the high cost of auto body repairs is one of the main reasons Rhode Islanders pay among the highest rates in the nation for auto insurance.
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www.birminghamsubaru.com www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 11
Gadsden State Students Excel in State SkillsUSA
Gadsden State Community College students continued their winning tradition at the Alabama SkillsUSA Leadership Conference recently in Birmingham. Seven gold medals, four silver medals and four bronze medals were awarded to students from the Ayers, East Broad and Valley Street campuses. The gold medal winners advanced to the 48th annual National Leadership and Skills Conference, a showcase of career and technical education students, on June 23-27 in Kansas City, Mo. Tim Green, dean of technical education and workforce development, praised the dedication to excellence displayed by the students and their instructors. Individual gold medal winners were Zack Franklin, Horton, automotive refinishing; Corey Lucas, Piedmont, diesel equipment technology; Joseph Newcomb, Springville, collision Repair; Lisa Ruiz, Oxford, residential/construction wiring; and Cody Taylor, Gadsden, CNC turning tech-
nology. The team of Wade McDaniel and Tina Wallace, Hokes Bluff, and Allen
Silver medal winners were Jesse Bryant, Fort Payne, HVAC/R; James Griffin, Ashland, industrial motor con-
Talley, Southside won a gold medal in automotive manufacturing technology. Nic Hartman, Gadsden, won in state only/T-shirt design.
trols; Cody Rayford, Ashville, carpentry; and Michael Worrell, Oxford, automotive refinishing. Bronze medal winners were
Hunter Calvert, Guntersville, carpentry; Bradly Higdon, Higdon, HVAC/R; and Ronald Owens, Alexandria, precision machining technology. The team of Kayla Cole, Wedowee, and Jessica Ruger, Tuscaloosa, won a bronze medal in esthetics. Instructors in these specialties are Robin Cochran, esthetics; Tim Hardy, HVAC/R; Bruce Hill, collision repair and automotive refinishing; Heath McDaniel, carpentry; Joe Mashburn, automotive refinishing; David Smith, CNC turning, precision machining and automotive manufacturing technology; Stephan Stuelp, diesel equipment technology; Tony Thrower, industrial motor controls and residential/construction wiring; and James Wilson, automotive manufacturing technology and T-shirt design. SkillsUSA is the national organization for college/postsecondary technical students enrolled in trade, technical and skilled service profession instructional programs.
Seattle Auto Body Repair Students Give “Billy-the-Kid” Hydroplane a Makeover Students in South Seattle Community College’s Automotive Collision Repair program will have the opportunity to see their work making waves in the waters of Lake Washington this summer, after they finish their makeover of the Schumacher Racing unlimited hydroplane. The No. 37 hydroplane currently housed at the college in West Seattle is owned by legendary Billy Schumacher (“Billy the Kid”), the former unlimited champion driver who won 17 races from 1967-1976, and is perhaps best known for his unprecedented string of wins with the Miss Bardahl team. Schumacher Racing pays a shop fee and materials costs for the project. The newly-painted and refinished boat will carry the South Seattle Com-
munity College name and logo on its side, as it competes throughout the U.S. and in Qatar during the 2012 racing season.
According to instructor Steve Ford, the project couldn’t have come at a better time. His spring quarter cur-
riculum focuses on painting and refinishing, and he has grouped students into three teams that work on fabrication, prep, and paint. Their assignments all serve as final performance tests on problem solving and critical skills. “The beauty is that this gives students the chance to work on something other than fixing fenders on a car, and shows them there’s more variety in the field,” he explained. “It also gives everyone the chance to be involved in some aspect of the project.” Long-time racer Schumacher said he is delighted to be able to provide a new medium for the South Seattle Community College students to paint, noting, “This will be a good opportunity for them to see how much team
work it takes to paint such a large race boat.” The students were given direction, but have had to work and decide as a team how to best accomplish the tasks. One group has fabricated metal stands, braces, and brackets to support and hold many of the individual parts of the hydroplane that have to be painted. Another group has been repairing, sanding, cleaning, masking and painting the individual parts for the hydroplane. The third group, which includes advanced students who graduating this quarter, is responsible for spraying three color coats on the 14-ft by 31-ft hydroplane.
Florida Shop Owner Arrested for Impersonating Adjuster
A Florida body shop owner was charged with impersonating an insurance adjuster for three carriers at accident scenes to generate more business for his auto body shop, police say. Vincenzo Gurrera, 43, of Boynton Beach, FL, became the subject of an investigation after numerous complaints were filed against his shop, Collision World, at 610 Industrial Ave, according to the Palm Beach County sheriff’s office and the Sun Sentinel newspaper. Between August 2011 and April, Gurrera allegedly impersonated an adjuster from GEICO, Liberty Mutual or
State Farm, giving specific directions to people to take their cars to his shop for repairs. It would often take weeks for the companies to find out about Gurrera’s transaction, the sheriff’s office said. The routine Vincenzo Gurrera allegedly began in August 2011 and continued to April of this year. Those involved in the crashes told investigators they signed Gurrera’s release forms because they
12 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
thought Gurrera was a “legitimate insurance representative.” Each victim identified Gurrera in a photo line-up, authorities said. Detectives received four sworn affidavits from the three insurance companies, which stated Gurrera does not currently work, and has never worked, as an insurance adjuster for their companies. The Florida Department of Financial Services confirmed to investigators that Gurrera was not licensed. Anyone who suspects they are being lured into an insurance scam should call the Department of Financial Services at 877-693-5236.
According to investigators, Gurrera was possibly receiving accident information from crash scenes and then filing claims based on that information. In Florida, however, accident reports are not released for 60 days after the crash. Police recommended that consumers who believe they were affected contact the Department of Financial Services, Division of Consumer Services by calling 1877-MY-FL-CFO (1-877-693-5236) or www.myfloridacfo.com/division/consumers for assistance, or to report a possible scam.
Birmingham Area Auto Dealers Get Ready for a Busy Summer Birmingham area auto dealers are poised for a busy summer, as their sales numbers are rising along with the thermometer. In May, new and used vehicle sales in Jefferson and Shelby counties totaled 10,776, up nine percent from a year ago. Through the first five months of this year, sales rose six percent over the year ago period to 55,771, according to the latest data from the Birmingham Auto Dealers Association. Across the U.S., auto sales have continued their recovery in 2012, buoyed by pent-up demand and improving economic conditions. While there have been blips along the way - May U.S. sales reportedly missed some expectations - industry analysts project a strong summer as gas prices ease and automakers ratchet up the deals to move older inventory and make way for 2013 models. “We’re hearing a lot of optimism out of our customers,” said Birmingham auto dealer Bruce Limbaugh. Last month was especially good for Limbaugh Toyota, where sales rose 68 percent over a year ago. Part of the gain is due to low in-
ventory and sales last spring following the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan that damaged supplier operations and caused a parts shortage and production cuts in the U.S. for Toyota, Honda and other Japanese automakers. But Limbaugh said there are a lot of drivers who simply need to replace aging vehicles. “The great news for us is Toyota is building all the vehicles in any model line that we could use. We’ve got an abundance of merchandise coming from the factories,” he said. Honda has also ramped up its output again, and that’s being felt on dealer lots. “Honda’s been doing some extra incentives, finance-wise and price-wise, so our sales volumes have increased pretty well,” said Josh Browning, new car sales manager for Serra Honda. He expects more of the same in the next few months as the company tries to move older inventory in preparation for the new model year. At Carl Cannon Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac in Jasper, 144 vehicles — 75 new and 69 used
— were sold during May, said Randy Boyles, general sales manager for the dealership. So far this year, sales are up 35 percent over last year, he said, and he expects to sell 160 vehicles this month. Boyles said the 2009 federal government incentives program Cash for Clunkers, which enticed drivers to trade in old cars for new, more fuelefficient models, took a lot of used cars off the market and has driven up used car values. That means trade-in values are up, and many people are taking advantage of that to buy new cars. “The Cash for Clunkers whiplash caught up with us,” he said. “Now you’ve got used car prices through the roof.” According to the Birmingham Auto Dealers Association, new car sales in Jefferson and Shelby counties rose 4.6 percent in May over the yearago period, and through the first five months of the year, they are up 4 percent. Meanwhile, used car sales in May grew 11 percent over a year ago, and
year-to-date sales have improved 7 percent. “Our Birmingham area dealers are optimistic about increased car sales this summer. Consumers seem to be eager and ready to purchase cars and now is an excellent time to do so,” said Jennifer Whisenant, executive director of the association. Charlie Martin, new car sales manager at Jim Skinner Ford, said recent activity at the dealership has been encouraging. “We are seeing a little bit of an increase,” he said. “We just hope that continues instead of the one week good, one week bad.” At the Tameron Honda and Hyundai dealerships, the manufacturers are being aggressive with incentives, said Rob Gallick, director of variable operations. The Memorial Day weekend drew big crowds, he said. “It was like the good old days are back,” he said.
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www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 15
Matters of the Heart: A Body Shop Owner Saves a Life with CPR by Ed Attanasio
Fixing cars is rarely a life-and-death situation. But, on a hot summer day last year, a body shop owner had to act quickly to save the life of an insurance adjuster who was experiencing a serious heart attack at his facility. If Bob McSherry, owner of North Haven Auto Body in North Haven, Connecticut had not acted quickly and definitively when Mike Vitale, an adjuster for GEICO, experienced a serious heart attack in his rear parking lot, there is a very good chance he would no longer be alive. It started out as a typical hot, humid summer morning, but quickly became a life-changing experience for at least two people. “It was one of those days in Connecticut where you’re sweating heavily by 11 a.m.,” McSherry explained. “Mike had a long day ahead of him, and he used to be kind of high-strung back then anyway. Now, since the heart attack, he has slowed down quite a bit. But, he was a little wound up that morning because he was behind schedule.” Vitale’s itinerary then changed radically, McSherry continued. “So, Mike was out there in our back parking lot writing up a vehicle when suddenly he collapsed between two cars. A couple of my techs saw him go down, which was lucky. One of them ran into the office and said, ‘The guy from GEICO is down and we don’t know what happened to him!’” Vitale was fortunate to be at North Haven Auto Body because McSherry is an EMT and a volunteer fireman. “I got out there pretty quick and Mike was not breathing at all,” McSherry said. “After establishing that he had no pulse, I started doing CPR on him, and, luckily, the fire department was here within three or four minutes. The firehouse is about a mile from here and they were Johnny-on-the-spot. They gave him a shock here and then another one on the way to the hospital, and by the time he got there he had a heartbeat and was breathing.” Unfortunately, Vitale wasn’t quite out of the woods yet, McSherry said. “They put him in a medically-induced coma for next three days because they were obviously concerned about brain damage. The people at the hospital told Mike’s family that they were lucky because we acted quickly,
but they weren’t sure what his condition was. When they took him out of the coma three days later, he was 100%, talking and being Mike again.”
A series of fortunate events led to cerned with aren’t as important anyVitale’s life being saved, he explained. more. Now when I become 65, I will “Thank God there was a guy working seriously be thinking about retireon the asphalt in the parking lot. I col- ment.” lapsed between two Vitale thanked everyone who cars, so if that guy helped save his life, including the guy hadn’t been there, I fixing the asphalt, Bob McSherry and doubt that anyone the local fire department. “Gratitude would have found is the word I can use. The first chance me until it was way I had, I went around to let everyone too late. He notified involved know that I am truly apprea tech and he ran ciative and indebted forever. Bob Mcinto the office to Sherry and I have always had a good tell everyone I was relationship, but now I can say withd o w n . A n o t h e r out hesitation that he is my very best lucky thing was the friend.” Body shop owner Bob McSherry (left) acted quickly to save a life fact that I had the Another valuable piece of adwhen Mike Vitale, a GEICO adjuster, had a heart attack in the auto attack at Bob Mcvice from Vitale is visit the doctor body shop parking lot last summer Sherry’s shop and regularly, whether you need to or As a volunteer fireman for almost the fire station was so close by. It was not. “I talked to the doctor after the 30 years, McSherry was well-pre- a combination of things and without incident and they told me that they pared and trained to act without hesi- them, I would probably not be here to probably would have seen some pretation. “Most people hear about CPR, talk to you right now.” cursors of the heart attack, especially but they rarely see it done in person. Vitale, 61, is now seeing life from the high blood pressure I wasn’t It’s a mind-blower and not for the a different perspective after the nearaware of. I used to be one of those faint-of-heart, that’s for sure. After death experience, he said. “I have so people that would never go to the Mike went down in the parking lot, much more to accomplish and now I doctor, even when I was sick. But, more than a few of my employees can. I have a granddaughter and I quit now for obvious reasons, I have came to me and asked about learning smoking, so life is good now. Some of changed my mind about going to the CPR. We agreed Mike was very lucky the things that I used to be so condoctor.” that day, but I asked my guys, ‘If someone had a heart attack at your house, for example, wouldn’t you want to help them?’ My employees said we should do some training and I agreed.” McSherry set up a CPR training • Tickets over $100 00 Free Overnight Freight day for his staff and paid for the expense. “This way, the entire shop will • Parts on COD be ready if anything like that happens • Overnight Via Noble again. We hired a local fireman who Billing • Interstate Billing does CPR training and it took about eight hours to do it, but after you complete it, you’re pretty much an expert on how to administer it. We did the training right here at the shop, and we’re also in the process of installing a defibrillator, which some people Parts Dept.: call ‘the paddles.’ It costs roughly Mon. - Fri. $2,700, but in the end it’s worth every 7:30am - 6pm penny. I hope one day they don’t have Sat. to use it on me,” he laughed. “They’re 7:30am - 2pm easy to use, and with all of the illustrations on the device, anyone can do it.” Call, Fax or Email Your Order Today! Vitale is happy to be lucky, in the Parts Line: 205-661-5878 right place and most importantly, alive Toll Free: 888-448-7278 and well. “I went to the shop to look at Fax Line: 205-661-5879 a car, and the next thing, I was wak1503 Gadsden Hwy., Trussville, AL 35235 ing up at the hospital. There were no warnings. My diet is usually pretty Parts Mgr.: Casey Cargo - caseyc@serramazda.com good and my weight is ideal, so it www.serramazda.com came as quite a surprise.”
16 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
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Students Flex Artistic Muscle Working on Crush Car
Students in the auto body class at Morris County School of Technology (MCST) in Denville, NJ diligently worked to transform a car into a work of art, just for it to be destroyed. This may sound like madness, but it was actually an opportunity for the students to flex their artistic muscle. The crush car was on display at a pit party before being crushed on June 16 during Monster Jam Path of Destruction at MetLife Stadium. MCST wa one of only three vocational schools in New Jersey to participate. The people behind Monster Jam, Feld Motor Sports, Inc., provided another treat for the students, a chance to meet drivers from Mohawk Warrior, Spider-Man, and the People’s Truck, Advance Auto Parts Grinder: George Balhan, Bari Musawwir, and Lupe Soza. Cassandra Lorenzo of Mine Hill was one of the dozen MCST students who adorned the car with artwork that celebrated both the event and the school. Cassandra noted that MCST’s devil mascot had to be represented as cute and funny, not violent. This was just one of the challenges she and her partner faced. They, like the other students, had to submit their designs to their teacher, members of the Board of Education, and representatives of Feld.
The students were literally sent back to the drawing board many times. Cassandra, who is in her junior year, said this was a departure from her usual art style which is to draw whatever comes to mind. For this project, she had to be more mindful about it and keep to “what was needed and be part of a team.” Most of the students involved are boys, but for Cassandra, being a girl interested in cars is nothing out of the ordinary. In fact, one could say it is in her blood. Her uncle owns an auto body shop and she has often worked on cars with her father. Cassandra’s area of interest is not tinkering in the engine, but quite apt for this project, fixing up cars’ exteriors. She likes “painting them and making things better.” For Anthony Xochipa, the project opened his eyes to another career possibility. The sophomore learned that it is not enough to be satisfied with the drawing on the paper, but with it on the car, as well. At that moment, his feelings were mixed. He was pleased with his devil, but was experiencing some issues with the paint. Cassandra and Anthony’s teacher, Louis Rosso said, “It is a great opportunity for the kids to showcase their artistry, drawing capability and how to transfer artwork on to a car.
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NABC Helps Operation Comfort’s Automotivation Secure a New Facility for Disabled Vets The National Auto Body Council (NABC) announced it has received board approval to help Operation Comfort’s Automotivation program secure a new facility in which it can continue to help disabled U.S. service members and their families through the instruction and practice of proper collision repair. Located in San Antonio, Texas, Operation Comfort complements the rehabilitation efforts carried out by the U.S. Army at the Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC). As a form of occupational therapy, the organization runs the Automotivation program through which disabled veterans, in many cases those that have lost one or more limbs, are rehabilitated through automotive-related activities such as rebuilding and restoring cars, trucks, and motorcycles. The property Automotivation used for training is being sold, a development made even more disheartening because Operation Comfort used the facility without a rent or utility obligation. Now, a newer, larger building much closer to the hospital is being offered for sale to Operation Comfort and the National Auto Body Council intends to raise the funds for purchas-
ing and renovating the new building. Though fund-raising details are still being finalized, the National Auto Body Council will work with the Collision Industry Foundation, a recognized 501(c)(3) charity. Because the Foundation will be the entity through which money will be raised, those wishing to support Operation Comfort will have the option to make their donation tax deductible. A fundraising committee is being created to seek out contributions at several different levels: corporate donations for vendors, insurers and other interested businesses, as well as body shop level and individual contributions. Matching grants are also being considered in order that businesses and employees, vendors and customers, and other partners can be invited to match funds. “Our battle-tested veterans have given more of themselves for their country than most of us can even imagine,” stated NABC Executive Director Chuck Sulkala. Those interested in making donations for the new Automotivation facility should contact Chuck Sulkala at 888-66-PRIDE or e-mail: chuck@autobodycouncil.org.
Diana Gauthier, Parts Manager for Stew Hansen Dodge Ram Chrysler Jeep in Urbandale, Iowa, wrote an open letter intended for all collision repairers in the state of Iowa.
lision centers that will be forced by State Farm to take part in the bid process for their parts, you have our support should you refuse—we will continue to conduct our parts business as we have done historically. If our refusal to participate in PartsTrader means you cannot buy parts from our store, we will surely miss talking with you and servicing your business—but we will not have a hand in the further demise of the independence of collision centers across the state of Iowa. I make a statement on most of our mailings and Mopar Magazine that the success of your business is our business. We can’t succeed without all of you; we have a vested interest in making your store as successful as possible. The insurance companies like State Farm are on their own—I refuse to help them take control of your businesses and the industry in general. For what it’s worth, that’s the line we’ve drawn in the sand to help support your stand against this program.”
Iowa Dealership Refuses to Participate in PartsTrader
All who may be questioning our intent can rest at ease. Stew Hansen Dodge Ram Chrysler Jeep will not participate in PartsTrader. I’ve been involved in the collision industry since the mid-'70s, and what I’ve witnessed is the systematic takeover in the industry by insurance companies. We all know insurance companies are not insurance companies. They are, in fact, investment companies that use insurance as a tool to fund their investments, right? Chrysler’s answer to the insurance companies’ demands on the body industry was to step up with pricematching the aftermarket parts. But their response is limited to a few of the body items that are most consistently replaced, and not really a stand that can be taken with the insurance companies insisting on less quality, nonfitting aftermarket parts. We at this dealership have taken a stand. We will not participate in this blatantly biased program and reduce the collision centers’ profit even further with parts bidding. To those col-
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www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 17
Teens Drive Across America A group of teenagers from Kansas City, MO are driving from the Pacific to the Atlantic in an electric-powered modified 1977 Lotus Espirit that they helped design and build. The drive is part of an “Electrifying Education Coast-to-Coast” trip. The teens are national ambassadors for clean energy and for the industrious potential of the next generation. “I was concerned we would not be able to go,” said 18-year-old Elias Williams, aware of some of the trials the volunteer organization Minddrive was going through to get the teens and their mentors on the road. “We’re trying to share not just our story,” he said, “but the story that this can be done, this hands-on education. We can do this. And you can, too.” The students are part of an independent Saturday morning class that brings together some 20 students at a time from a variety of Kansas City schools, mostly charters. The students started their journey with a celebration before being dispatching to Southern California and Interstates 8 and 10. They’ll haul the vehicle by trailer to San Diego and then head east, where they will cruise through jack-rabbit scrublands in Arizona, the 360-degree horizon of West Texas, bridging bright coastal bays on the Gulf Coast, the Bayou, all the way to steamy Florida. Along the 10-day tour, electric car clubs are planning to join them on the road. They’ll also be meeting up with students at various high schools to share their experiences in engineering and technology education. The Minddrive class was started by architect Steve Rees who wanted to teach creative entrepreneurial studies at DeLaSalle Education Center, an alternative school. The car-building class and clean-
energy mission that awaited them wasn’t even what Rees had imagined when he naively embarked on his education endeavor at DeLaSalle. However, he found his niche recruiting students who wanted the chance to join a program outside of school working with volunteer mentors to learn engineering and technology in a classroom and workshop. They tried many projects in those first semesters from 2009, but a favorite was when students shaped car bodies about the size of bread loaves out of urethane foam. Andrew Deckard, 20, was one of those original students. He was right there with others eager to try a life-size auto body they made out of polystyrene. “We all were asking, ‘Can we work on a real car?’?” he said. Rees is a car enthusiast who works on his own cars, but he needed specialists if they were going to build a road-drivable car. He began to grow his group of mentors, creating dual programming in both technology and media communications. First they designed bodies to go on old Indy race car chassis. Then they designed and built the electric car to fit the old Lotus sports car. Soon they wanted to spread their message about education and energy, and they made allies of the Metropolitan Energy Center’s Electrify Heartland Project in Kansas City. Half of the team of students and mentors will get the car to San Antonio, Texas, and the other half will take it from there, following it in two large vans with a trailer and two 240-volt, 30-amp converters. The car will usually travel about 60 miles between stops on its publicity tour, and will fully recharge in an hour, Rees said.
Body Shop Does Paint Job on Paint Blob
On Broad Street in Philadelphia, next to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, a giant orange paint glob sits on the sidewalk underneath the paint torch. The dollop is positioned to appear as if it was dropped from the top of the brush of Claes Oldenburg’s “Paint Torch,” which towers several stories above. Few have probably noticed, though, that the blob is now backwards. When the sculpture was originally installed, the paintdrop’s peak was on the brush side. Pennsylvania Now it rises toacademy of ward Broad Street. the fine arts Skateboarders have made a habit of detouring from the sidewalk to skip off the glob, scratching and marking its surface, said Harry Philbrick, museum director at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. So the damaged drop got shipped via tow truck to an Edgemont autobody shop, Keenan Auto Body West. “The whole thing was covered with marks,” shop manager Max Sorensen said of the glob. “We polished the whole entire piece with a
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Mitchell AutocheX Celebrates Top-Performing Shops
Mitchell honored collision repair facilities from throughout the U.S. and Canada with the 10th annual AutocheX(TM) Premier Achiever Awards, hosted "virtually" for the first time on the exclusive Premier Achiever Award website. The Premier Achiever Awards recognize top-performing auto body repair shops throughout the U.S. and Canada, celebrating exceptional customer service and satisfaction achievements. The class of 2011 Premier Achievers includes top-performing collision repair facilities of all sizes across the U.S. and Canada. In an in-
dustry of nearly 50,000 North American shops, these winning shops qualified among the 400 exclusive Premier Achiever Award recipients. Since the award program was launched in 2002, AutocheX has presented over 3,000 Premier Achiever Awards to industryleading collision repair facilities. The award is based on customer satisfaction scores as measured by AutocheX, either independently or as part of an insurance-sponsored repair program. This year, participating insurance programs included seven of the top 25 carriers in North America.
18 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
buffer and rubbing compound.” Gouges in the fiberglass had to be filled with clear resin, because the tip glows at night, thanks to a light inside. The brush atop “The Paint Torch” also shines nocturnally. After sanding, the piece was sprayed with a clear sealer, then orange base coat, followed by a new, stronger ceramic clear coat. “It’s basically like the paint that’s on a Mercedez-Benz,” Sorensen said. As for cost, he’d only say, imagine a car getting a first-class paint job. On May 30, the piece was reinstalled on Broad Street, surrounded by a moat of uneven paving stones, a kind of rumble strip for skateboards. It was also turned 180 degrees. On purpose. Matching, it turns out, the sculptor’s original design. The hope was that, with the most upright side toward the sidewalk, skateboarders would be less tempted. A few days later, though, the dollop already had a few new scuff marks. The piece is tougher to scratch, so chances are good the marks can be harmlessly removed with rubbing compound, Sorensen said. Under a new City Council proposal, those skateboarding, bicycling or roller-blading on public art or monuments could be jailed for 90 days and fined $2,000.
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Alabama Car Manufacturing Strengthens, Other Industries Slow With the exception of a hot automotive industry, job growth in Alabama’s hard-hit manufacturing sector trails most other states as the anemic economic recovery struggles to take hold, economists said recently. While Alabama had 239,400 manufacturing jobs in March, the highest level since October 2009, it remains far below the pre-recession peak of 297,800 in January 2007, figures from the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations show. Factory jobs fell by 100 last month to 239,300. Gov. Robert Bentley touted strength in Alabama’s automotive base while announcing that Alabama’s jobless rate fell for the ninth-straight month to 7.2 percent, the lowest level since November 2008. The Mercedes plant in Vance, Honda plant in Lincoln, and Hyundai plant in Montgomery, which is adding a third shift, have all announced additional jobs over the past year. Employment in Alabama’s auto manufacturing parts industry increased by 13.1 percent over the past year, leading the state, while auto plant employment grew by nearly four
percent, state figures show. Last week, the Toyota engine plant in Huntsville said it is adding a new 300,000-square-foot building that will create 125 jobs as it increases North American production of V6 engines. And in March, Navistar International said its Colbert County plant will begin producing a new work truck for U.S. and Canada customers in early 2013. John Norris, managing director at Birmingham’s Oakworth Capital Bank, said despite all the talk about a resurgence in manufacturing jobs, Alabama doesn’t appear to be keeping up with most of the rest of the country. Since December 2009, manufacturing employment has grown 4.2 percent across the country, but is up only 0.5 percent in Alabama, he said. “Yes, absolute growth is better than the alternative,” said Norris, an economist who follows the labor market. “However, the relative performance of the state has not been good. There have been some recent bright spots, like Hyundai adding an extra shift down in Montgomery. However, we need more of them, a lot more of them.”
Since the end of 2007, manufacturing employment has shrunk around 18.8 percent in Alabama compared to dropping 13.1 percent nationwide. “Neither number is good, but manufacturing is supposed to be one of our strong points,” Norris said. Ahmad Ijaz, an economist at the University of Alabama, said Alabama’s automotive sector has benefited as more manufacturers are moving back to U.S. shores to cut shipping costs and due to lack of quality and production controls overseas. “Overall manufacturing sector and particularly the durable goods producers in the state and U.S. in general are relatively much more competitive now than they have been in the past compared to overseas producers,” Ijaz said. Although nondurable goods-producing manufacturers such as apparel are still struggling, those producing durable goods such as automobiles and steel have seen a considerable jump in their payrolls, Ijaz said. Over the 12-month period ending in April, there were 3,100 jobs added in the transportation equip-
ment-related manufacturing and 900 by both fabricated and primary metals producers. “That is good for the state since these firms pay relatively higher wages compared to services and other manufacturing firms,” he said. “It helps that that type of motor vehicles and engines being produced in Alabama have a relatively high consumer demand in both domestic and foreign markets. Foreign demand, particularly from China has been relatively strong for these products.” Nationwide, the growth in manufacturing employment has been heavily skewed to the midwest and the state of Washington, Norris said. The rest of the country has been experiencing Alabama-like numbers, some a little less, some a little more,” Norris said. “This makes sense, as the American auto companies have had a bit of a rebound recently, and Boeing’s sales have picked up over the last couple of years,” Norris said. “So, are we seeing an American manufacturing resurgence or bounce back from the abyss?”
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Epidemic of Scrap Metal Thefts Prompts New Restrictive Bill Every day when he enters his Bristol Township auto body shop, Craig Bowen doesn’t know what he’ll find missing. Eight times in the last five years, scrap metal thieves have hit his repair shop and a nearby small strip shopping center he owns. One day he arrived at work to find 14 cars stripped of their catalytic converters, which control gas emissions and contain valuable metals. Then, two weeks after Bowen installed surveillance cameras at the shop, he reviewed footage and saw thieves steal the copper out of his newly replaced rooftop air-conditioning unit. “It takes the wind right out of you,” he said. Bowen is hardly alone. Since January, at least 60 scrap metal thefts have been reported to police throughout Lower Bucks County. The epidemic of such thefts has prompted Bucks County lawmaker Rep. Tina Davis, D-141, to introduce a bill that would place new restrictions on scrap metal sales, require better record-keeping practices involving
transactions and provide police with another tool to track down thieves. “My bill would require that every scrap metal transaction be recorded and that the seller provides a photo ID,” Davis said at a news conference announcing the bill in Bristol Township. The township was a fitting place for Davis to announce the bill since 28 scrap metal thefts reported in the lower end of the county this year took place there. In March, nine Bristol Township businesses along Veterans Highway had rooftop air-conditioner units stolen during a three-hour spree; the estimated loss was $27,000. An FBI report indicates the price of copper has risen 500 percent in the last 10 years as a result of a greater demand in developing nations such as China and India. The International Trade Commission said the United States exported 6 million tons of scrap metal to developing nations in 2000, and more than 18 million tons in 2007. The federal law enforcement agency has called scrap metal theft a risk to U.S. infrastructure since typi-
ASA Testifies at Texas Tax Law Hearing
The Automotive Service Association (ASA) testified before the Ways and Means Commission in Austin, Texas, June 5, regarding what it feels is an inequity in the current Texas Franchise Tax code. Denise Caspersen, ASA’s Collision Division manager; Charles Parker, executive director of ASATexas; John Firm, AAM, president of ASA-Texas and owner of Firm Automotive in Fort Worth; and John Miller, owner of Freedom Automotive in Stafford, were all present at the hearing. ASA members from Texas who testified included Vince Oliva, owner of Vin’s Paint and Body Mid Co. Inc. in Nederland, and Vin’s Paint and Body Inc. in Beaumont; Johnny Bang, owner of Johnny Bangs and Bumps Shop Inc. in Tomball; and Danny Sullivan, owner of Sullivan Advanced Auto Care in Kingwood. If passed, House Bill 429 and its companion, Senate Bill 476, would allow automotive repair shops to be taxed the same amount that dealers, parts stores and tire stores are now taxed. “The independently owned automotive repair and collision businesses in Texas are being denied
equal treatment under the law,” said Parker. “Automotive repair and collision shops owned and operated by new or used car dealerships are taxed at half the rate used to tax the independently owned businesses doing identical work. This is justified in the tax code by classifying dealership sales as ‘retail’ and allowing their service and repair business to be included under that banner. “Furthermore, repair shops operated by tire companies (NTW, Firestone, Goodyear), parts stores (Pep Boys) and mass-merchandisers (Sears, Wal-Mart, Target) are also charged at half the rate paid by independent repair shops. We should not be taxed at a rate different than a business performing an identical service. We should not be denied the true cost of our product by disallowing our skilled labor.” Added Caspersen, “We were very pleased with the number of ASA members who took time away from their businesses to attend the hearing and demonstrate how important it is to change the current franchise tax law in Texas. We ask other shop owners in Texas to take the time to contact their legislators asking them to support ASA’s efforts.”
20 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
cal targets include electrical substations, cell towers, telephone lines, railroads and wells. Davis’ bill would amend the current Scrap Material Theft Prevention Act and require scrap metal dealers and recycling processors to record all transactions of any value including requiring sellers to provide photo identification and a license plate number. Current law requires only that transactions of $100 or more be recorded. But what often happens, Davis said, is that prolific thieves will break up pieces and sell them at numerous scrap metal dealers, avoiding the $100 reporting threshold. Davis’ bill would also put an end to the practice of cash payments to sellers, requiring check-only payments, which again would help police track sellers. Two local Republicans have signed on as co-sponsors of HB 2358, local Rep. Bernie O’Neill, R-29, and Robert Godshall, R-53. The bill, which was introduced last month, was referred to the House committee on consumer affairs. Bensalem and Bristol Township
police who attended the press conference said tighter record-keeping requirements and ending cash payments would help curb sales of stolen metal, as well as help police better track thieves. A favorite target among illegal scrappers are large air-conditioning and heating units that businesses typically use, which can cost $5,000 or more, and yield about $400 worth of copper, according to police. At the Middletown office complex where his ophthalmology practice is located, Dr. David Pao said he had to replace his ground-level airconditioner units at least six times in recent years after copper thieves damaged them. At least 25 units throughout the complex have succumbed to thievery, he added. After one theft, Pao paid for 24hour security details. Other businesses in the complex have installed cages around the units to discourage thieves. Pao had an alarm system installed on his units so it sounds if someone tampers with them. “It’s just frustrating. It disrupts everything,” he said.
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Nissan EVs Tested in New York Amid Standard Debate Nissan is supplying New York City with fuel-efficient cabs, including six electric cars for testing, but acknowledged uncertainties about an ongoing “debate” over charging standards for electric vehicles. The battle in fast-charging stations, the equivalent of gasoline stands for electric vehicles, is threatening to turn into a futuristic replay of other major platform wars like VHS of Panasonic vs. Sony’s Beta in video. Nissan Executive Vice President Andy Palmer said the debate was still going on, and it was unknown whether nations will adopt the CHAdeMo used by Nissan, or the competing one called Combo backed by General Motors Co. and European automakers. The standards use different plugs and aren’t compatible. Palmer said Nissan as a leader in electric vehicles must persuade others that its standard is the best. “The disadvantage is that we are setting the standard,” he said, adding that Nissan was “engaged in that debate” over charging standards. CHAdeMo, which comes from the words “charge” and “move,” and sounds like Japanese for “Care for some tea?” is also backed by Mitsubishi Motors. Nissan said its gas-engine NV200 vehicle, painted yellow, is set to start
running as New York taxis in October 2013, and six Leaf electric vehicles will be part of a pilot program this year. But it is still unclear whether New York will opt for CHAdeMo. Electric vehicles’ limited cruise range means they can be used only for short trips, or towns must invest in building charging stations. “If we can get the combination right, the EV is very viable,” said Palmer. At least one electric-car competitor has proposed using replacement batteries for electric vehicles so they can keep running, rather than using charging stations, Palmer said. Although charging stations would not be needed, service stations would have to pick up the used batteries. Electric vehicles can also be recharged from regular home sockets, but that takes longer. Growing concerns over global warming and pollution are major boosts for the zero-emission electric car.
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Unique Lego Car Sold for $1,626 for Charity
Paul Boratko of Johnstown, PA raised more than he expected with the online auction of a special Lego car – the Vampire GT – he designed and built. The 38-year-old Johnstown man works in auto body repair during the day, but at night he builds Lego cars. Boratko’s creations are not exactly “toys,” however. His cars are highly technical – built with the help of a friend in California who is an aeronautical engineer. The auto body repairman completed the sale on eBay for $1,626 – $626 more than his goal – and has donated the money to the Make-AWish Foundation. “Paypal took $65.98 in fees, but I am going to add that amount out of my own personal account to stay true to my word that every cent of the final bid will go to Make-A-Wish,” Boratko said. The talented Lego builder decided to hold the fundraiser after meeting a young fan who had serious physical difficulties. The eBay auction was won by Derek Ward of the United Kingdom. Boratko, whose work has been featured in AutoTrends Magazine, entered the car’s design on a Lego website. The public is invited to vote on
the entries at no cost. Those receiving 10,000 votes are considered by the company to be made into kits and sold to the public. Boratko would love to see that happen with the Vampire GT. “It would be cool to walk through Toys R Us and you see your name on the (box),” Boratko said. “It could become a reality.” In the world of Lego enthusiasts, Boratko is a celebrity of sorts. A website dedicated to his creations has followers around the world. It was an encounter at a Lego trade show that convinced Boratko to do something for charity when he met a young boy with his father. Boratko found out the boy was celebrating his 21st birthday. “I thought he was about 12. It was very, very humbling.” Boratko returned home and told his wife that he wanted to do something for charity. Amanda Boratko, who often accompanies her husband to trade shows, said she is extremely proud of his talents. “I love watching him create something from nothing,” she said. “The way he figures out how to put so many functions in the car, like a working engine and transmission, still blows my mind.”
Student Restores Comet for Senior Project
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The day before he was to show it off to his classmates, Tyler Post of North Stonington, CT put the finishing touches on his senior project. He washed the windows and meticulously worked on the body of the 1962 Mercury Comet he had restored over the last five months. The next day, Post, 18, would tell his classmates during a 15-minute presentation about the hundreds of hours he put into the car, from engine work to cutting, grinding and welding the body before sanding and painting the car satin black with a stripe of carnival red pearl. “All these months for 15 minutes,” Post said. What Post didn’t have time to tell his classmates was how he had to plan this project for more than two years so he could save up for, find and buy the perfect car. Or how he spent the next summer saving more money working at Cross Sound Ferry in New London so he could buy parts, materials and supplies. Or how he felt an overwhelming sense of relief once he finished a project that he said excited him more than graduation itself. “My senior year wasn’t a lot of fun, it was a commitment to this car,” Post told his peers as they examined the 50-year-old Comet outside the school
following his presentation. “It’s probably the greatest thing I accomplished in my high school career.” It’s the latest accomplishment for Post, a unique student who has decided to forgo college and has plans to go work for Electric Boat instead. At Wheeler High School, Post played lacrosse and basketball all four years and soccer his freshman and sophomore years. He’s also an accomplished artist, having had an art piece, a pencil sketch titled “Bird Flew” entered in the Slater Memorial Museum’s Connecticut Artists Juried Exhibition. Post shares a knack for art with his brother, John, 20, who attends graphic design school in New York City. His art skills also come into play in car restoration. Post and his father, Todd, refer to the car as a “canvas.” “You’ve got to get your canvas perfectly primed and sanded, otherwise the imperfections will show through when you paint it,” Post said. The car was a labor of love, Post said, one passed on for generations. Todd Post said his great-grandfather owned an auto business in New Jersey during the turn of the 20th century, and Todd Post’s white 1960 Chevrolet Bel Air is a testament to the family’s car obsession.
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 21
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Chasidy Rae Sisk is a freelance technical writer from Wilmington, Delaware, who writes on a variety of fields and subjects, and grew up in a family of NASCAR fans. She can be contacted at crsisk@chasidyraesisk.com.
Al Brodeur’s Auto Body Offers Honesty, Inspires Loyalty with Chasidy Rae Sisk
Al Brodeur’s Auto Body, Inc. in Marlborough, MA, offers their customers peace of mind in knowing that every step of their repair is being handled in a professional manner. The shop facilitates the claim from start to finish as they strive to make the repair process as fluid as possible. According to Molly Brodeur, Chief Operating Officer and daughter of owner Al Brodeur, “Al has always operated an honest shop, and as a result, our customer base is large and very loyal.” Since Al Brodeur opened his shop in 1970 in a small rented space down the street from his current operation,
garding environmental concerns, the motto at Al Brodeur’s Auto Body is borrowed from a Native American proverb: “We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it from our Children.” Everyone at Al Brodeur’s Auto Body understands the impact that the collision industry has on the environment, so they strive to reduce that impact as much as possible. Al Brodeur’s Auto Body ensures that their painters are certified sprayers of DuPont advanced waterborne paint repair systems. They also use SATA high volume-low pressure spray gun technology, and their DeVilbiss spray booth is equipped with superior filtration systems rated at 99% efficiency, exceeding ASHRAE and EPA requirements. Additionally, they comply with all EPA regulations regarding how to properly handle hazardous waste by participating in hazardous waste recycling programs, and their recycling efforts extend to include the recycling of used parts, sheet metal and cardboard. The shop uses Spies Hecker paints, and while their customers own a mixture of older and newer model vehicles, they have recently noticed an increase in older model vehicles, 2007 model and older. Due to this, they have also seen more total losses in the past year due to the vehicles’ age and mileage. Luckily, Al Brodeur’s Auto Body rarely has issues with matching paint, even on older vehicles, due to their experience refinish technicians and the sophisticated paint matching systems that they use. Al Brodeur’s Auto Body is housed in a 6,800-square-foot shop with 14 employees. They complete repairs on approximately 90 to 100 cars monthly. In addition to standard lifts, welders, the shop utilizes Car-O-Liner frame equipment and a DeVilbiss Downdraft Spray Booth. In addition, they upgraded their management software in 2010, and it has completely changed the way they operate by enhancing every facet of their business. All of the technicians employed by Al Brodeur’s Auto Body are I-CAR certified platinum, and their refinish technicians are DuPont certified in
waterborne paint applications. Though direct repair programs are illegal in Massachusetts, Al Brodeur’s Auto Body negotiates repairs with all insur-
Mainstream Media
COO Molly Brodeur with Owner Al Brodeur
he has been very involved with the local auto body associations. He served as Treasurer and Director of the Central Massachusetts Auto Rebuilders Association, which has now merged with AASP-MA, for over 25 years. Molly is currently the Treasurer for AASP-MA as well as the President of the Midstate Chapter of AASP-MA. Molly notes, “Being so involved at the association level has put us in a unique position to always be at the front line and directly impact legislation and regulations that affect our industry every day. In late March 2012, AASP-MA was successful in killing a DRP bill and an anti-fraud bill that were positioned to move out of Committee. Both would have been extremely detrimental to our industry here in Massachusetts.” Beyond their involvement with the collision industry, Al Brodeur’s Auto Body is a member of both the Marlborough Chamber of Commerce and the Rotary Club of Marlborough for over 20 years. They have also sponsored multiple youth sports programs and participated in various community fundraising events. Re-
22 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
Al Brodeur’s Auto Body in Marlborough, MA
ers operating in the state in order to best serve their customers. They sublet towing, storage, paintless dent repair and rentals to other local vendors. In discussing current trends in the collision repair industry, Molly Brodeur notes that it is inspiring to see news about shops who have successfully filed lawsuits against insurers for
short pays by utilizing the Assignment of Rights form. “It’s encouraging to see shops taking advantage of the mechanisms available to be properly reimbursed for repairs.” She also notes that steering continues to be an issue in the Massachusetts market as does the labor rate compensation from insurers as Massachusetts has the lowest reimbursement rate in the country. In regards to the future of this industry, Molly says. “Our industry will continue to strive to meet whatever challenges lie ahead. We are a resilient bunch and will always work hard to rise above any roadblocks. Relationships with customers, insurers and employees will always remain our focus.” Al Brodeur’s Auto Body, Inc. 87 Mill Street Central Marlborough, MA 01752 508-485-1082 www.albrodeur.com
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Jerry Damson Acura
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 25
Service, Diagnostic and Mechanical NEWS
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Malibu Ecos, More Acura TLs Face Recall
GM has said it is recalling 4,304 of the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu Ecos to reprogram a part that controls the deployment of air bags. Honda Motor Co. said it is recalling 52,615 of the 2007-08 Acura TL vehicles because of fire risks from leaking power steering hoses. GM said no crashes or injuries have been reported due to the problem with the Malibu Eco, but it authorized the recall after it found the problem during a development test in which the vehicle was performing “extreme maneuvers,” according to a GM statement. After hard braking, a module may reset. If that happens during aggressive turning and the vehicle senses a potential rollover, the roof rail air bag may unintentionally deploy, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Also, the air bags or seat belt pretensioners may not deploy during a crash, increasing risk of injury. The Malibus were manufactured from Oct. 24, 2011, through March 31. The recall follows a customer satisfaction program GM launched about a month ago on about 10,000
Malibu Ecos that had the module issue, GM spokesman Alan Adler said. In that program, affected customers were sent letters advising them to have their module reprogrammed by a certain date to qualify for a free repair. Dealers also fixed the software issue on many cars before they were sold to the public, Adler said. The 4,304 Malibu Ecos under recall are the remaining vehicles that haven’t had the module reprogrammed, Adler said. Customers will receive letters after June 1 with instructions on how to contact their dealer to have the issue fixed for free. In the Acura TL recall, Honda said the power steering hose may fail, causing fluid to leak onto the hot catalytic converter, the Japanese automaker told NHTSA. In total, Honda has now recalled more than 370,000 vehicles to address the problem in three separate recalls. In November 2007, Honda recalled 43,200 2005-08 Acura RL vehicles to address the same problem. In February 2008, Honda recalled 273,000 2004-08 Acura TLs. The new recall adds the 2008 TL base model and 2007-08 Type-S.
Toyota, Honda and General Motors have confirmed they plan to integrate Siri, Apple Inc.’s voice control technology used on the iPhone, into connectivity systems of upcoming vehicles. Spokespersons from the three companies confirmed the plans to Automotive News after announcements made by Apple at its Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco. In essence, vehicles compatible with the Siri service will allow drivers to make calls, dictate text messages, look up directions and use
other Siri functions by plugging their iPhone into a USB cable in the car. Pressing a button on the steering wheel will activate Siri, and drivers can speak commands to their phone hands-free. A new Siri feature, called “Eyes Free,” will help drivers use their iPhones while keeping their eyes on the road by allowing iPhone owners to control more of the device’s functions with Siri with the screen off to mitigate distracted driving. The Eyes Free feature will be released as part of Apple’s latest version of its mobile operating software due out this fall.
The Lexus GX SUV, first introduced in 2003, has always been marketed as a luxury SUV but is based on the rugged body-on-frame platform un-
derpinning more serious off-roaders like the Toyota 4Runner and FJ Cruiser. Despite this, the vehicle has en-
Toyota, Honda and GM Will Use Siri Voice Technology
3rd Generation Lexus GX Could Lose its SUV Look
26 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
July 2012
2012 Chevy Cruze Added to NHTSA Probe The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has widened its investigation of engine fires in the Chevrolet Cruze to include the 2012 model year. In April, the agency announced it was probing about 177,000 2011 Cruzes after reports of two fires that engulfed and destroyed two vehicles. In documents posted on its Web site this week, NHTSA said it’s now also investigating the 2012 model. GM spokesman Alan Adler said 370,000 vehicles are now included in the investigation. In an April 4 letter to GM, NHTSA requested data from the automaker by May 11. Adler said GM responded to 10 of NHTSA’s 12 questions, and got an extension on the other two. No documentation of GM’s response was available on NHTSA’s website. Though the Cruze hasn’t been recalled, these types of NHTSA investigations can lead to vehicle recalls. There have been no reported injuries or accidents resulting from the fires being investigated, and Adler said GM is also investigating several fires, but wouldn’t comment on the number being investigated. On April 29, according to a complaint to NHTSA, a driver reported
Malibu Eco recall Separately, GM said it is recalling 4,304 Chevrolet Malibu Eco cars sold in the United States to reprogram a module that controls airbag deployments. GM said in what it described as rare cases under extremely aggressive turning, the roof rail airbags in some 2013 model year Malibu Ecos might inflate. It also said in another scenario it described as rarer that the airbags and safety belt pretensioners might not deploy. GM said no crashes or injuries have been reported related to this issue. GM said it discovered the problem during a development test in which one of the cars was performing extreme maneuvers. It said letters will be mailed to car owners on June 1 with instructions to have the reprogramming done at no cost at a dealer.
Chrysler has expanded a recall regarding corrosion on Jeep Liberty SUVs to include the 2006 and 2007 model years after recalling the 2004 and 2005 model years in March, U.S. safety regulators and Chrysler said today. The action brings the total number of Jeep Liberty vehicles recalled in the four model years to about 410,000. Most of those vehicles, about 347,000, are in the United States. The two additional years add 137,176 U.S. vehicles to the recall. The recall affects vehicles in
cold-weather areas that can sustain a rear suspension lower control arm fracture due to excessive conditions because of salt on roads in winter, according to a filing with the U.S. National Highway Transportation Safety Administration. Such a break could lead to loss of vehicle control and a crash, NHTSA said. Chrysler said it was not aware of any injuries or accidents related to the issue. Chrysler will pay to replace rear lower control arms in the affected vehicles.
Chrysler Expands Recall
joyed a reasonable level of sales and in 2010 spawned a second-generation model. For the third-generation of its
that flames burst through the front of a 2012 Cruze while traveling at about 45 miles per hour. GM sold 18,205 Cruzes in April, down 28 percent from the same month last year. It sold 75,288 of the vehicles through the first four months of 2012, down slightly from sales of 75,365 during the same period last year.
GX, Lexus is considering adopting a car-like unibody platform, which would make the GX more a crossover than a true SUV.
Gonzo’s Toolbox
Take it to the Dealer! with Gonzo Weaver
This is a new story by Scott “Gonzo” Weaver as posted on his website, www.gonzostoolbox.com. Gonzo has been serving the Tulsa area at Superior Auto Electric for over 27 years. See his book “Hey Look! I Found The Loose Nut”, which provides a Good Laugh for Mechanics of Any Age. The book is available at amazon.com. Contact Gonzo at Gonzosae@aol.com.
Everyone has a reason why they use a ing with. Whatever the case may be, dealer repair shop vs. an independent once they are at your front counter shop… These are a few of those rea- you want to try and make them a cussons I’ve run into over my decades of tomer of your own. with Richard Arnold Then again, do you really want independent service work. Customers come in a wide range to take on every job that comes in the of styles. There are my regular cus- door? I certainly don’t. There’s times tomers, occasional customers, price someone will bring in something that shoppers,referrals, and friends of the I’m not qualified to work on, or it’s family. Some don’t bother to tell me something that is so far gone it can’t how they happened to be at the shop; be taken care of without an exorbitant with Ed Attanasio maybe they’ve read an advertisement, amount of cash to repair it. Then there saw a billboard somewhere, or are those proverbial “basket cases”, they’ve checked out one of those oh yeah... actual “basket cases” websites that evaluate businesses by dragged in to the service bays. (And way of customer responses. Perhaps “YES” they do come in baskets, they’ve heard of the shop through the crates, and/or boxes. All the nuts, grapevine, or they might haveSchroeder just bolts, electrical parts, and compowith Erica driven by to check it out. But I’ve nents scattered in hap-hazard piles of never heard of anyone refer to them- the owner’s greatest intentions gone wrong.) selves as a “dealer customer.” Of course, there are the strange It could be there are some differences between what people think of or unusual customer responses that the various different types of repair keep you on your toes. I sometimes shops, or what they are used to deal- stand behind the counter wondering
Jobber Journal
what in the world these people are thinking... how am I going to get through the usual monologue in the front office and still have enough sanity left to repair the car? Some of these requests and explanations are just too bizarre to be real. “Hi, I’m here because of my brother-in-law sent me,” (I’m thinking to myself... alright! this is a good start), he said you could fix my car,” the new arrival to the shop tells me. “What seems to be the problem?” I’ll ask. “He changed the “autovalve” and he said you would know what to do about it.” “I’m afraid I don’t know what an “autovalve” is. (So much for a good start...) Could you describe what’s wrong with the car, and then maybe I can sort out what part you’re actually talking about.” “Apparently you’re not as good as my brother-in-law said you were. You should know what one is. Obviously you don’t know how to fix my car then... I’m taking it to the dealer,” the now aggravated customer tells me, “Oh, and don’t worry I’ll tell my brother-in-law about this.” You know, there are times I don’t want to even ask another question, or want to take the time to get to the bottom of some of these wacky explanations. I’d rather see this kind of problem just vanish with the goofy owner and their explanations. If they think they need something done to their autovalve I’m more than happy to let the dealer take care of it. Off you go to the dealer little lady... they’ll love to talk to you, and I’m sure they have plenty of autovalves over there. At times, I pity the poor service writers at the dealerships. Because as it seems to be in these cases, the dealership is primarily the last stop in this long line of relatives with wrenches, repair facilities, and parts store geniuses trying to help out the customer. The service writer really doesn’t have much choice but to deal with them. Let’s face it...... they are the “deal-ership” The phone rings again, the caller tells me, “Well, I don’t know if you
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with The Insurance Insider
can do this kind of work or not. I probably ought to just take it to the dealership.” “What seems to be the problem, sir?” “It’s my electric window, I think it’s the switch because my window is stuck halfway down. Probably bent a bracket you know.” (Self-inflicted-diagnostics … I can tell...) “Sir, any decent independent shop can handle anything the dealerships can do. A window problem is no big deal. I take it you were referred here?” “Yes, a couple of my friends told me about you.” (Apparently, his friends neglected to tell him that we actually make the repairs too. I suppose he thinks his neighbors just come by the shop and chat about car repair.) I find it rather confusing when a customer calls and tells me their car is at the dealership. They’ll tell me that the problem has already been diagnosed, and then tell me that all their friends recommended that they take their car to my shop for repair... but, instead they are sitting in a service bay at the dealership. After the usual phone introductions they’ll soon get to the real reason for their phone call: “They want $947.53 cents to fix my car... do you think that’s too high?” I guess at this point, I’m supposed to justify the cost or give them some outrageously lower price. I really don’t know how I can do that, when I haven’t even seen the car yet, or even what problems they’re having with it! “You’re there already ma’am. If they have done their job correctly, and diagnosed the car properly then the price is their price.” “They want a diagnostic charge if I take it out of their shop right now.” “Ma’am, you’ll pay another diagnostic charge at the next shop, so I would advise you… since you’re there... let them take care of the problem as they see fit. Unless you feel uncomfortable with their results or diagnosis, I would suggest you let them take care of it.” See Take it to the Dealer, Page 38
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 27
Continued from Cover
Birmingham Reacts
so we certainly have to respect that. We were disappointed they left the program, they were obviously high performers. We continue doing the test, we had more than (those 17 shops) in the market area,” Avery said. Tim Crawford, who has owned and operated Hwy 280 Paint and Body at 19360 Hwy 280 in Birmingham, for 40 years, was one of those shops. He recently dropped State Farm after a long and beneficial relationship, opting to remove his shop from State Farm’s Select Service program than be forced to use the PartsTrader software. “I have been on the State Farm Select Service program since the very beginning, a long time. We’ve had a very good relationship with State Farm,” said Crawford. “But through the years, we have realized that they have started controlling different parts of my business, from labor rates and labor times ... to this new PartsTrader program, which has really taken the last aspect of my business out of my control. At that point, State Farm has total control over my business, and that’s not what I went into business for. When they start dictating things to the point that it takes all of my profit away, I’m gonna have to take a stand and take my business back.” Crawford’s three main objections to the PartsTrader program are 1) being forced to use only the vendors who sign up with PartsTrader, 2) losing parts profits and 3) waiting on parts through the bidding process which could delay jobs getting starting and causing a “clerical nightmare.” According to the ASA fact-finding report released in early June, the time frame for “parts pricing” is set at two hours as a default and can be adjusted to one hour by the repairer, or the repairer can set a custom close time greater than one hour. Pricing remains open for the allotted time, and during this process, shops are unable to execute on the estimate. In addition, “the PartsTrader program would take me from the vendors I normally use, which was going to take my business out of the Birmingham area, and make me use vendors I have no relationship with,” Crawford said, adding that none of the Birmingham vendors he uses opted to sign up with PartsTrader. The ASA report notes that partic-
ipation in the Select Service program is a collision shop decision, but that participation in the PartsTrader program is a supplier decision. “Their agreement with us has a provision that they (repair shops) are required to use the tool, and that has been in our agreement for a long time,” said Avery. “We have a tool that we believe meets the need of the customer. Our goal is to have a win-win for everybody, but there could be a repairer who doesn’t feels that way and chooses to leave the Select Service program because they don’t feel it is in their best interest and that is something they need to decide. But our goal is to get information from all the stakeholders, which would include the repairers and the suppliers, to have a win for everybody. The goal is to improve across the board for our shared customer.” Three weeks after dropping State Farm, Crawford says business is booming. “I am encouraged by the amount of work I have not having State Farm. They were probably 50% of my business, but I have not found any reduction in my business by leaving them,” Crawford said. “Of course, my customers came to me for what we do for them, not because I was a State Farm shop. They come because of the type of work we do, our customer service, and the quality of our work. I am not really worried about State Farm sending me work or not.” He added, “I feel that State Farm does not have enough good shops left in Birmingham to handle their business. In the Birmingham area, they lost close to approximately 40% of their quality shops that did close to 70% of their work.” Don Meadows has been the body shop manager for 23 years with Jim Burke Automotive, a new car dealership that sells seven lines and has been in business since 1945. They are located at 517 14th St. North in Birmingham. The high volume dealership does $450,000 a month in business. They aren’t sure yet how much business they’ve lost after being dropped by Select Service due to their refusal to try PartsTrader. According to Meadows, the dealership didn’t want to try the PartsTrader software because they didn’t like the idea of having all parts purchases going through a third-party vendor. “We were told if we did not use PartsTrader, we would be taken off Select Service, and we were the day the PartsTrader program started,” Mead-
28 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
ows said, adding that their customers are being affected by having to wait one to three days for State Farm to inspect their vehicles for estimates and supplements. “I have called several shops that are using PartsTrader and none have had anything good to say about the program,” Meadows said. He feels State Farm is implementing PartsTrader because “they want complete control of the repair process.” John Fagan, owner of Fagan Collision Repair in Moody, AL., has been in business for 15 years and also opted out of Select Service rather than get on board with PartsTrader. He doesn’t like the idea of having to use the lowest price bid on parts or the fact that State Farm “threw the LKQ (like and kind quality) parts and aftermarket parts into the same mix. It if was just a parts locater for used parts, it might have been OK.” But, mainly, he said, he is concerned about “the uncertainty of the LKQ parts they want you to buy.” He reported he hadn’t lost any business in the first few weeks after dropping State Farm. Donnie Burgett, owner of Donnie’s Paint & Body, which has been in business for 22 years in Trussville, AL., also opted to drop out of State Farm’s Select Service rather than use PartsTrader. He feels that if he had gone on the PartsTrader program, he’d be working more than the 10-11 hours a day he was already working handling State Farm clients and claims. The PartsTrader program would bring additional administrative work, less money and a reduction in profits, he said. “I decided to bail out of the program after several years because I didn’t see any benefit for my company or myself in any way whatsoever,” Burgett said. “PartsTrader was going to create discounts and maybe even ill feelings with my vendors because they were going to have to bid on parts and I felt like parts would be coming in from every direction on one job, instead of from one direction. It’s all about discounts for State Farm, and I don’t have a problem with discounts, except when it is going to cost me money. Being on the program would cause me extra work, an extra two hours per claim on my part, to save State Farm money and cost me money and reduce my profits.” He said ‘no thanks.’ Additionally, he said he doesn’t know of any suppliers participating in the program. According to the ASA fact-finding study, the report stated, “Currently in the pilot, shops are experiencing ini-
tial increased administrative costs at an estimate of 30 minutes daily. This is being evaluated within the pilot. PartsTrader states that this is true with any new system, but that over time, it will be more efficient and save time. PartsTrader intends to contract an independent study to validate this.” Burgett feels some satisfaction about dropping State Farm’s Select Service. Today, he works a normal eight-hour day instead of 10 or 11 hours a day. Three weeks off Select Service, he sees no affect to his repair shop. “If there is going to be any affect, it has not hit yet,” he said. “It is like it was 15 years ago. They send an appraiser out and we negotiate repairs on a claim and they do all the administrative work and we just do the body work again like it used to be.” Like other body show owners in his area, Burgett reports that he doesn’t know anyone who is happy with the PartsTrader program. “Most of my competitors who are doing the program are doing it in desperation, for fear they might lose State Farm business ... they are afraid... but they aren’t happy.” Now that he is no longer tied to State Farm, Burgett feels he did the right thing. “I felt like this was something I needed to do a couple years ago, but like my competitors, I felt like I needed them (State Farm) ... until it came to this and it made my final decision to bail out of the program. It’s all about their profits. They will realize more savings, which will make them realize more profits, at the expense of the body shops and parts vendors. I am surprised this program hasn’t gone away yet.” According to ASA’s findings to date, the majority of repairers making comments are not in favor of the new State Farm application. “While the majority of sentiments are coming from non-participating shops (which make up approximately 75 percent of the facility market), the actions of some of the Select Service shops (removing themselves from the program) also demonstrate lack of support for the application,” the report said. In response to the controversy surrounding the PartsTrader issue, State Farm in early June sent an open letter to all of its 10,300 Select Service shops and repair facilities throughout the United States and Canada. Avery noted that the letter explained State Farm’s general intent, the status of the program, the overall process, as well as acknowledging the negative comments See Birmingham Reacts, Page 47
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 29
Industry Insight
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.
SCRS Meeting Discusses Insurance Regulation, State Farm with John Yoswick
State Farm’s PartsTrader program, the repairs. SCRS worked with CARFAX use of shops’ estimating and other and determined the report was in error, data, and how one state regulator incorrectly linking collision damage oversees auto insurers, were among on one vehicle to the VIN of another. with Ed Attanasio the topics at a recent board meeting of CARFAX was able to correct the the Society of Collision Repair Spe- error, Schulenburg reported. cialists (SCRS). He also said that SCRS held a A number of participants at the meeting in late April with I-CAR and meeting held on April 24 in Oklahoma representatives of many of the top auCity, OK, wore large buttons oppos- tomakers to discuss increasing the ing “data mining” by theEd “Big Three” amount and availability of published with Attanasio information providers, indicating they OEM repair procedures. The meeting wanted the ability to “opt out” of hav- was the result of another joint stateing their shop estimating data aggre- ment by SCRS and other trade associgated and used or sold. The buttons ations last November recognizing were part of the follow-up to a joint published automaker repair procestatement that SCRS and two other dures as the “official industry-recogtrade associations sent in January to nized repair standards for collision CCC Information Services, Mitchell repair.” The associations also asked Iand Audatex, voicing concern about CAR to create an industry council “to collection and use of shop data. identify gaps in existing OEM proceSCRS Executive Director Aaron dures and develop processes to close Schulenburg said that as of late April, (those) gaps.” only CCC had provided a formal reThe need for training and stansponse to the associations’ request. dards was illustrated in a presentation “The response addressed that they by SCRS board member Paul Val, have a mutual concern in protection of who brought to the Oklahoma City data, but didn’t really address the meeting a quarter panel his Arizona questions that we’d asked relative to shop had removed from a poorly-rean opt-out policy or discontinuation of paired vehicle brought into his shop collecting the data,” Schulenburg said. because of a water leak in the trunk. He said it is his understanding Val said the MIG welds used to “atMitchell and Audatex are working on tach” the quarter panel didn’t penetheir responses, which he said the as- trate, and no weld-through primer or sociations intend to share with the in- corrosion protection had been applied. dustry. “You could literally just pull the One aspect of data privacy con- quarter off,” Val said. cerns that Schulenburg said the assoHe said his shop had to do $3,000 ciation has looked into were reports of in re-repairs to the vehicle. He said the vehicle accident histories showing up shop that had done the original work on CARFAX reports—instances in under an insurer direct repair program which the vehicle owner presumed the paid his shop for the rework with a information could only have been ob- credit card – and remains on the direct tained through the collision repair repair program. shop that prepared an estimate on (or “Someone is going to get killed in repaired) the vehicle. one of these cars,” Val said. In two of the three cases of this Also at the meeting, a presentatype of situation that SCRS looked tion by representatives of the Oklainto, Schulenburg said, the CARFAX homa Department of Insurance was data actually had been sourced though probably both heartening and dislocal police accident reports. In a third heartening at times for collision reinstance, a woman seeking to trade-in pairers. a vehicle was upset that a CARFAX On the upside, Michael report indicated that her vehicle had Copeland of the Department’s antihad structural damage repair, when fraud unit confirmed the regulator is she knew this wasn’t the case. She now focused more on fraud against contacted the shop shown on the consumers by insurers, rather than CARFAX report as having done the consumer insurance fraud, which had
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30 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
been its priority under some previous Insurance Commissioners. Copeland also said he’d like to partner more with the Oklahoma Auto Body Association to address issues of concern. On the other hand, Jason Johnston, a senior claims processor and reviewer for the Department, seemed to acknowledge the state’s anti-steering law is being interpreted loosely. The law prohibits insurers from making shop referrals unless requested by the vehicle owner. “But we’ve determined the insurance company can say, ‘Do you have a place in mind, or we can offer a repair place,’” Johnston said. “We give (insurers) that option.” He said he’s probably had only a half dozen complaints related to steering, and they are difficult to address because it’s usually a shop’s word against the insurer’s. He said an audio recording or affidavits - enough to show a pattern - could help.
But he was also asked how a shop can combat some of the subtle but perceived as unfair “steering” techniques used, such as an insurer telling a customer the process could be slower at the non-DRP shop and thus could result in the customer having to pay some of their own rental car costs (even if the customer has 30 days of rental coverage on their policy). Johnston’s only suggestion: Perhaps the non-DRP shop can offer something to better compete for that customer’s business, such as a free rental car. State Farm’s PartsTrader program had been the focus of a closed session of SCRS’ board meeting, but during the open session, Schulenburg asked State Farm’s George Avery if the insurer would move forward with PartsTrader if shops, dealers and other parts vendors are resistant to it. “At this point, we are moving forward,” Avery said. “We are moving See SCRS Meeting, Page 33
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Domenico Nigro is the president of Nigro’s Auto Body, a very progressive shop for their community in Philadelphia. In addition to many productivity innovations, Nigro’s installs equipment for disabled drivers, has developed several phone Applications, and represents products which directly support charities such as United Way and the National Breast Cancer Foundation. Contact him at: nigroautobody@comcast.net.
Are You Getting Paid for Your Refinishing Work? with Domenico Nigro
For some reason, refinishing is one time and materials that are directly used facet of our business that we accept losin the refinishing process and should be ing partial revenue on, or are content billed properly. with our ignorance of how to properly with Janet Cheney P-Pages and other estimating sysbe compensated. Unless you’re adding tems have several loopholes that allow priming as a separate line item, you’re you to lose valuable revenue on your redonating the time and materials to the finishing work. The point and click nainsurance company. You need to make ture of these systems have allowed us some very basic but critical changes to to forget about or let the computers hanyour estimating and billing procedures dle the logic that goes into each estiwithpaid Frank Sherosky so you can start being properly for mate. We put too much faith in the all the pieces of the refinishing process. accuracy of this logic and it’s been hurtHave you heard the following from ing shop owners for decades. Even if adjusters? “I’ll make up for it someyou are aware of how to properly acwhere else in the estimate.” Or, “I’ll count for all the costs associated with make it up to you on the next job.” They repairing a wrecked vehicle, often times don’t want to be reprimanded by their the insurance adjusters can bully you bosses for paying out for procedures out of recouping these costs and prothat they’ve been getting for free for so hibiting us from charging what we are long. As an industry, we deserve to be truly owed. If this is happening to you, paid for our work, all of it, and the supand you’re aware of it, you may be costplies that go into it. This isn’t a cost like shifting to compensate, or you may paying rent or your electric bill, and consider these losses as insignificant. shouldn’t be considered overhead or a In a previous column, I wrote about cost of doing business today. This is “feather, sand and fill” and it’s recog-
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nized as a procedure that should now receive industry-wide acceptance and payment, but there are other primer issues not receiving that same regard and not being paid for by the adjusters. I’ll talk about some of the main ones and discuss how to change this behavior to start getting paid properly. Here’s a good example: We did a quarter panel and the adjuster manually cut the refinish time in half, citing a process he (and several other insurance adjusters) call “blend within the panel.” There was less than five inches of undamaged panel on the repair, so what exactly are we blending to? This “blend to panel” isn’t even listed in the databases. As far as we can tell, it’s just a name they made up to intimidate or confuse the shops. So remember, if primer ever touches the panel, a full refinish time should be covered. Did you know that 2.5 hours maximum on clears only covers labor and not materials? If you do the calculations on the total clear hours needed, subtract the 2.5 hours and then multiply that number by your paint multiplier, you’ll have the extra clear needed for the job. (I have a separate line item that I call additional clearcoat materials needed above 2.5 max). Coating bare metal parts so they are restored to a “new panel equivalent” is another example of where you may be losing revenue. Another example is doing solvent and tape testing for the stability of primers on plastic parts. What about blending within a panel? Two of the major databases don’t account for color mixing. As far as tint is concerned, are you putting it in with paint labor or body labor? The adjuster will probably tell you it goes in the body column because you’re not using any new material, which again just is not the case. Your painter knows that upwards of a dozen variances are added to achieve a desired tint. These are more materials that you’re giving away for free. The same applies to setting up for a second color. For instance: a bumper on a sports car that has a different color than the rest of the vehicle. The paint providers assume that it’s all done as a single operation. They fail to account for clean up between colors, identifying, mixing and matching both colors.
These are just a few easy examples of processes that you may not be getting paid for. The list goes on. What are you going to do about it? P-Pages obviously has its limitations and faults, but these issues aren’t insurmountable and altering P-Pages isn’t the only solution. Let the responsibility fall on you and your shop to start examining P-Pages more carefully to determine how much revenue you are losing every day. If you’re not concerned with filling these revenue leaks and correcting the oversights that negatively affect our bottom line, then why even bother showing up to work in the first place? We’ve given too much power to the insurers, and the average shop that isn’t a DRP needs to start correcting these mistakes if they have any chance in the industry today. Again, the solution is coming together as a community and creating a new standard. If we all familiarize ourselves with the P-page logic and determine what we are and aren’t getting paid for, then we can begin to make a change in how adjusters value our time and materials. Know your P-Pages: Your estimating database can be your best tool but you have to know it thoroughly to use it correctly. There are seminars and online classes if you need help, but you must familiarize yourself with what is and is not covered in each procedure. Join a professional association. Network with your competition. They may compete for your jobs, but we’re all in the same boat when it comes to getting paid what we’re worth. Don’t ever stop complaining or voicing concern through the proper channels. If you educate yourself on properly accounting for these procedures and you’re still having trouble getting compensated by the insurance adjusters, make your voice heard. Write your local and national representatives. Call the insurance company. It’s possible they’re unaware of what these procedures actually entail, and at the very least it’ll put you on their radar and get them thinking about it. Imagine if they hear it from body shops all over the country all the time? They wouldn’t be See Getting Paid, Page 33
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 31
Continued from Cover
Mississippi Reacts
ing the State Farm Proposed Parts Procurement Program within its Select Service Program changed all that. More than 100 MCRA members, as well as Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood and John Wells of the Mississippi Department of Insurance, came together in Pearl, Miss. to hear what body shop owners from Birmingham, AL had to say about the PartsTrader program. Birmingham is one of the four national test markets where the PartsTrader program is being tested. Usage of the PartsTrader software has been required by State Farm in four test markets: Tucson, AZ, Birmingham, AL, Grand Rapids, Mich. and Charlotte, NC. Approximately 10 percent of State Farm Select Service shops are participating in the pilot. The Mississippi Collision Repair Association invited auto body and repair shop owners from Birmingham to come to their meeting to discuss their experiences with PartsTrader. “We wanted to know what the program is and what it will do to our industry, and the Birmingham group had nothing positive to say about the PartsTrader program,” said John Mosley, who owns and operates Clinton Body Shop Inc. and Clinton Body Shop of Richland in Central Mississippi. Mosley is a past president and one of the founding members of the association. “No one from State Farm has called, visited or made any attempt to explain anything about the PartsTrader program to our shops or to our local industry,” Mosley said. “The only knowledge we have of this program is what we read in the trade publications and the short video produced by State Farm. My personal interpretation of the video leaves me knowing the program is real and they plan to roll it out nationwide. The shops will have no choice but to participate in PartsTrader if they remain on the DRP and our choice of parts suppliers will be limited and the profit on parts will definitely go down.” Even though he hasn’t tried it, Mosley declared he isn’t interested in the electronic parts ordering application program and his answer to State Farm will be a resounding “NO!” if PartsTrader is a requirement to con-
tinue with the Select Service program. Mosley wants to stay with the Select Service program because it helps shops by saving time waiting on appraisers and allows the shop to determine what type of part and which supplier would serve to properly repair the vehicle in the least amount of time. However, he is willing to give
manding that this program be imple- State Farm video released in May. mented—I believe insurance compa“The State Farm video states this nies view shop profits as money they program will increase efficiency in the left on the table. They won’t be satis- repair process. My belief is it will defied until they have it all,” Fowler crease efficiency while enabling State said. Farm to keep more money out of the Fowler said he won’t participate repair by taking a share of the parts in the program either. profits. This is a very deceitful act to “I think this PartsTrader debacle perform under the cloak of fairness has caused many a shop and efficiency. The only real informaowner to drag out the Select tion we have learned in our area came Service agreement they from shop owners, suppliers and a forsigned and revisit just exactly mer State Farm employee from the all the things they agreed to,” Birmingham area.” said Fowler. “They are comThe Birmingham shop owners ating to a collective realization tending the MCRA meeting who have that all the language, terms actually tried the program “withdrew and conditions contained in themselves from the Select Service that agreement aren’t just program,” said Mosley. “They stated words to fill space. Each and the program was a nightmare. They every one of those conditions said it held up the repair process by will eventually come to gathering bids on parts. According to fruition and many are reconthese shop owners, one by one, they John Mosley addressing the Mississippi Collision Repair sidering if it is worth it. As far told us we will have to hire more adAssociation as me giving the program a ministrative personnel to keep up with up Select Service if it becomes tied to try, I have been quoted as saying, ‘If the program demands. They echoed PartsTrader. you put a s#!t sandwich in front of me, what we firmly believe: this program Mosley is one of several Missis- I don’t have to take a bite to tell you I will slow down the repair process, insippi auto body shop owners who don’t like it.’ So, no, there is no chance convenience the consumer, and cost opposes the PartsTrader program be- I will participate in the program, either the shops money in an effort to give cause, he says, it forces shops to wait voluntarily or involuntarily.” State Farm more control of the parts for the software program to gather Mosley also takes issue with the and their costs.” bids on parts. Supplements or a big repair job could create an administrative nightmare, Mosley said, adding that body shops would need to hire an additional employee to sit at the computer all day monitoring the bid process. Bill Fowler, who owns Bill Parts Hours: Fowler’s Bodyworks in Southaven, Monday-Friday 7:30 am - 5:30 pm; Saturday 8 am - 4 pm Miss., couldn’t agree more. “The concept that adding additional steps and Call Us Today! Fax: wait times will increase efficiency and 407.645-4971 cost effectiveness flies in the face of logic,” he said. “The fact that neither State Farm nor PartsTrader executives Ken Adams can offer any tangible evidence that it Parts Director does expedite the process, but instead answer direct questions with halftruths, evasiveness and outright misrepresentations gives great cause for concern and raises the suspicion that there are underlying ulterior motives F-250 Lariat ‘11 Fto reduce profitability for collision repair shops. It is insulting for State Farm to suggest that shop owners/opwww.fordparts.com/donreidford erators don’t have the good sense to procure parts in an expeditious manner and they have a better way that involves foisting considerably more administrative time onto parts suppliers and shop owners, with no cost or consequence to themselves. Regard1875 SOUTH ORLANDO AVE. AVE – MAITLAND, MAITLAND FL 32751 ing State Farm’s real motivation in de-
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George Avery, a Property & Casualty Claims Auto Consultant who has been with State Farm for 33 years, said about the Birmingham shops: “They made a business decision. I think a lot of them left before they even used the tool, which we felt was unfortunate, but that was a business decision they needed to make. I just don’t like to see a situation where someone makes a decision based on inaccurate or incomplete information. Info gets passed and sometimes it’s inaccurate and assumptions are made.” In a letter to George Avery, Mosley writes: “This program is now serving as a catalyst to both ignite and unite this industry in a manner I have never experienced in my 58 years.... After lengthy discussions with shop owners and parts suppliers in Alabama, I see no way this program is a benefit to the repair shop or the consumer. The underlying purpose of this program is for State Farm to make a higher profit at the expense of the collision repair industry and the parts industry... You present this program as a tool of efficiency serving to expedite repairs... How can any program that adds to the administrative process by gathering bids, waiting for those bids
before we can begin repairs, only to be waiting again when we have a supplement, add to efficiency? There is no way.” Avery said State Farm responded directly to Mr. Mosley in a personal letter. Two of Mosley’s biggest worries with the PartsTrader program are losing his relationships with parts suppliers—he said he doesn’t want a relationship with a piece of software—and how the parts bidding process will affect repairs. “In order for a vendor to win a bid, they have to be the lowest price. Being the lowest price doesn’t mean it will be good. It means a lot more to me to do a proper repair than finding the cheapest part to do the repair,” Mosley said. “We have a duty to our customers to fix vehicles with parts that will do that and I know who to get parts from.” According to an Automotive Services Association (ASA) fact-finding study: “State Farm can currently see the discounted MSRP prices provided by dealerships. ASA’s research shows this to be one of the largest concerns from the repairer’s perspective. State Farm was made aware of this
during the pilot process and reports it is seeking ways to address this.” Suppliers cannot see “price quotes” made by other suppliers. The ASA report also said that pilot shops have reported experiencing increased cycle time delays as related to “Priced Perfect” recycled parts – based on inaccurate description. “This is not a new issue. PartsTrader believes that a combination of supplier education and the planned feedback and ratings system can help address this,” the report said. Another issue to consider, Fowler noted, is “how State Farm is reacting to the wholesale rejection of the program in the Birmingham market area. They are scrambling to find replacement shops for their Select Service program and are approaching the very shops that they removed form the program when they scrapped the Service First program, or shops that have always passed over because of poor quality repairs, excessive charges, or both. State Farm bragged that only the best of the best shops were selected to participate in the Select Service program, so what does it say about the integrity of their DRP program when they are enlisting the very shops they
have already rejected? Why is this part program so important to State Farm that they would allow this question to be raised?” While the State Farm PartsTrader issue has brought some auto body shops up in arms, in Mississippi, State Farm has inadvertently revived an association. “Our association was very strong for several years,” Mosley said. “We helped bring I-CAR and other training to the state of Mississippi. We lobbied for legislation to protect consumers rights in our state. But we became victims of our own complacency. Everything was going good, so the once-energetic association slowed down and became inactive. But this issue served as a spark to unite our association, and body shops nationwide. The one thing this PartsTrader program has succeeded in is waking up and helping to unify our industry. The Mississippi Collision Repair Association is back, is on track, and will stay focused on this industry.”
Continued from Page 30
replacement eventually proved necessary, local State Farm claims staff were telling the shop they could only pay for one or the other, but not both. Schulenburg said State Farm was able To advertise to communicate to their staff that “if call Advertising Sales at: it’s legitimate to have attempted repair and then it’s necessary to replace, that 800-699-8251 certainly theree-mail: is no (company) policy prohibiting (paying for) that.” advertising@autobodynews.com Avery said advance communicawww.autobodynews.com tion between the shop and the insurer is the key. “We had cases where it really boiled down to there being no agreement up front,” Avery said. “So that’s See the N what we communicated. Please have communication with the repairer up front and say ‘Look, if we decide to pull this and it doesn’t work, what are www.autobodyn we talking about?’”
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through our test. We’re obviously gathering information, making adjustments along the way. But I can tell you that State Farm is moving forward with this. We think it is in the best interest of our customer. I know we don’t have agreement, and that is fine, and I carry that information back. (And) something could happen that I can’t predict. But I can tell you that, right now, that we are moving forward with the process with our Select Service providers.” Schulenburg said SCRS also had worked with State Farm on an issue related to shops in several markets being asked by the insurer to attempt repairs before replacing a part, but if Continued from Page 31
Getting Paid
able to ignore it or play ignorant. Never again accept the alternatives of costshifting, padding other repair times, or believing the promises of the adjusters to “make it up to you next time.” Like
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Autobody New
all industries, ours will keep evolving, losing the traits that harmed us and adding traits that are beneficial. The newest evolution our industry undertakes must include improvement to the To advertise estimation process and improved call Sean Hartman at: understanding between the shops 800-699-8251 and the adjuster of what refinishing procedures e-mail: entail. shartman@autobodynews.com
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 33
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Information Shops Can Use Presented at East Bay CAA Meeting by Ed Attanasio
accidents in the U.S. and more people with insurance were filing more claims than in 2010,” Forness said. “People are driving less, but there are more people out there driving, so they
shops to locate these non-OEM parts.” The parts climate is also changing as new vehicles embrace technological changes while attempting to meet increasing CAFÉ standards. “Too many cars now are being designed like aircraft,” Forness explained. “As they try to design cars that weigh less while maintaining structural integrity, we’re seeing more complicated parts mixes, consisting of more parts made of plastic composLKQ Industry Relations Representatives Albert Rendon (left) ites, carbon fibers, magnesium, and Lacy Towner attended to East Bay CAA chapter’s May high-strength steel and more meeting in Walnut Creek, Calif. aluminum. Also, the drive totend to offset each other. These num- ward making parts using more ecobers have gone up for the first time friendly materials includes things such since 2008, so that means there’s more as coconut fibers, soy foam for seat work out there right now.” cushions, mushroom roots for use in Another obvious factor affecting bumper covers, kenaf (a tropical plant), the collision industry is bad weather, and Ford Motor Company is researchForness said. And although it isn’t as ing the use of cooked chicken feathers important in northern California for use in some of its cars. (where we get rainstorms and earthOne alarming statistic is that more quakes that are way too infrequent to drivers are uninsured, Forness said. “In count on), bad weather helped the rest 2007, 86% of the drivers out there were of the country’s body shops in 2011. insured, but now it’s down to 82%. It’s caused by the recession, which is still lingering, and high unemployment.
If we’re only as good as the information we possess, people like Richard Forness are an invaluable asset to any collision repairer anywhere. As a highly-respected industry expert, national account manager for Industry expert Audatex (a Solera Richard Forness company), Forness gave a highly is a popular speaker informative presentation at who talks to body the May East Bay shops throughout CAA meeting the country about the current state of the industry and where it’s headed. On May 22, this 25year veteran who ran a series of highly successful body shops in the Greater Minnesota-St. Paul area, shared his views and offered useful statistics with the 60-plus East Bay CAA members in attendance. By closely observing the collision repair industry while traveling throughout the Western U.S. for his job with Audatex, Forness has been able to keep body shop owners and collision-related vendors on the cutting-edge of new developments that can impact their businesses. It’s information that is available to any body shop owner who can Owen-Dunn, the CAA’s preferred insurance service provider, find it, but compiling and pre- was represented by (from left) CWCA Tim Dickson, Patricia senting it in a logical way pro- Romero-Kaleel and CSFS/CWCA Marty O’Hara vides a complete picture of the world “There were almost 3,000 severe of collision repair, Forness explained. weather events last year, with 1,894 “We need to know, because we’re tornadoes and a wide range of inciheld at a higher level by the public and dents involving hailstorms, hurricanes our customers,” he said. “Knowledge and high winds. As a result, there were is power and by having the facts, you more claims in 2011, and we can cite can be a better owner and operator. bad weather as one of the main reaWe need to understand these new ve- sons,” Forness said. hicles, so that we can educate our cusAnother interesting trend in the tomers in the right things. It’s vital collision repair industry involves the because we can’t risk peoples’ lives continuing spread of aftermarket and with partial knowledge, especially in recycled parts, Forness said. “The use this volatile marketplace .” of OEM parts in repairs is still dropFirst, auto accidents are on the deping, and in 2011, there was another cline, which is good for the human drop in their sales overall. America’s race, but not profitable for the collision cars and trucks have reached a record industry. Previously, the average driver age of 10.8 years, and despite all of the in the United States was in an accident price-matching programs offered by once every eight years. Now, it's about the carmakers, body shops and insurevery nine years, according to Forness. ance companies are incorporating more But, don’t fret about the number of acand more aftermarket and recycled cidents, Forness explained, because parts in their repairs. The proliferation the news is still positive overall. of computer alternative part search en“In 2011, there were 22 million gines is also making it easier for body
34 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
When the economy further rebounds, the insured rate will increase, but until it does, that’s a scary number.” One answer that all body shops want to know is: will I be in business next year? Forness provided statistics to East Bay CAA offer a glimpse into Chapter President the future of body Tiffany Cichon-Silva shops in this coun(Accurate Auto try. “There are apBody) brought the membership up to proximately 34,000 speed on current collision shops out issues and there in the United upcoming events at States, and 500their May meeting 1,000 of those are closing every year. But, for those who can survive, there is good news. As the overall number of shops decreases, the average revenues per shop will grow around 2% every year.” After the presentation by Forness, East Bay CAA Chapter President Tiffany Chichon-Silva announced that the chapter’s annual golf tournament, originally to be held on June 2, will be re-scheduled for sometime in August.
Hey Toby! Matrix Wand is a Game Changer with Toby Chess
Toby Chess is an I-CAR program instructor, Training specialist, and former salvage yard operator. Toby is universally known in the collision industry for his work with first responders and advocacy for body shops and consumers. He can be reached at tcspeedster@yahoo.com
Question: How would you like to be City, arranged for a hands on demo. able to measure body structure, vehi- He had a 2009 BMW 3 Series BMW cle sub-frame movement, damaged that took a high hit. Both grilles, headsuspension components and used lamps, upper portion of the front BOF frame for damage or damaged bumper and hood were damaged. The parts in 20 minutes with a printout vehicle nose-dived under a bumper at less than 10 miles per hour. We inand the time of tear down? spected the bumper absorber and reinOK, how about the added advanwith David McClune tage of doing it anywhere in the shop? forcement for damage and there We’re not using any frame-measuring wasn’t any. We all concluded that the equipment, by the way. Let’s throw in damage was isolated to the upper another parameter and do all of these structure and there was no lower tasks and more with a camera. You structural damage. Rob Bailey (from say impossible? Up until recently Matrix) took a picture and imported it you’d be right but it’s not only possi- into his computer and 10 minutes later ble, it’s here. It’s called the Matrix his results showed that the left lower rail had a sway out 5 mm and sag Wand and it’s a game changer. I was invited to a presentation at down of 6 mm. Yeah, that’s what the the April CIC meeting in Oklahoma with John Yoswickpicture stated, but did the rail move? City by Jan Srack on the Matrix Gary placed the vehicle on a Celette Wand. It was an interesting presenta- Bench the next day, and sure enough tion, but being the skeptical person the rail had moved. Pretty impressive, that I am, I really questioned this tech- but I still was not convinced, so I nology. Gary Wano, Jr., owner of asked if they were doing any other GW & Son Collision in Oklahoma presentations and I was invited to their
office in Kansas. I spent two days with Rob Bailey, Tom Srack and Ron Chiles (national sales manager) measuring a number of cars. One of the vehicles was a 2010 Ford Escape. We found that the core support was asymmetrical. In other words, the driver’s side of the upper tie bar is 10 mm forward of the passenger’s side. Mitchell data says that length of the upper tie bar is the same. Who was right? I check with Chief and their measurement data also had 10 mm difference on the upper tie bar. I think that Mitchell better re-measure the vehicle and change their date. I told Jan that I would write an article on the equipment, but I would have to use it by myself to validate their claims of ease and accuracy. She loaned me a unit and I took it to Hawaii last month (I conducted a welding workshop and spoke to the Hawaiian Autobody Association) to check it out. What follows is what happened. Monday, the first vehicle I measured was a 2011 Honda Accord with damage to the left rail and left upper reinforcement area. The vehicle was on Global Bench System with the jigs in place.
The left rail was 8 mm back (circle).
California Autobody Association
Year in Quotes
The left rail had a sway over 25 mm and sag of 6 mm.
Collision Repair Association of CA. with Richard Steffen
Transition Planning with John Yoswick
2011 Equus
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More damage noted by the measuring system. I took a picture with the matrix system and this is what I found (see next page). I am going to use points 5/6, 9/10, and 13/14 on the distance table. Point 6-13 is 1237 mm and point 5-14 is 1212 mm. Point 5-10 is 1076 mm and Point 6-9 is 1080 mm. You can go to Mitchell data and verify any point-toSee Matrix Wand, Page 38
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 35
Disruption Became the New Normal in 2011 by Susanna E. Gotsch, Director, Industry Analyst CCC Information Services Inc.
The breathtaking speed of advancement in consumer electronics has become the new baseline for companies in terms of speed to market, price, and desirability of product. The most recent recession still drags the global economy, and continues to make consumers acutely aware of their finances, and the danger of living with too much debt. Consumers have become increasingly sensitive not only to price, but also to each individual product or service’s share of wallet. Technology such as smart phones, tablets, and social media has given individuals the ability to have their voice heard loud and clear. The channels for reaching and interacting with consumers have changed. It becomes increasingly difficult for businesses to remain relevant, to get their message heard, and to get the consumer to pay them any attention. Companies must also embrace the new disruptive paradigm where competition will emerge from outside their historic range of competitors. Take for example, Amazon’s emergence as one of the largest providers of cloud computing, and the disruption Apple’s iPhone created in the mobile phone market. Companies should be taking queue from recognized leaders in the consumer products and services area, but also be aware of where start-ups are focusing their efforts. Significant shifts in the demographic makeup of today’s consumer are also a factor driving the disruptive shift in consumer demands. The U.S., like most industrialized countries, has seen its population grow older. The oldest Baby Boomers turned 65 on January 1, 2011. An estimated ten thousand more per day will turn 65 over the next nineteen years, taking the share of 65-year-old-plus individuals to 18% of the U.S. population, versus just 13% today. An aging population has historically led to lower accident frequency as people have historically retired and reduced driving during peak traffic times. The recession however has led many to postpone retirement, so we may see the traditional reduction in frequency push out several years. Generation Y or “Millennials”, individuals born between 1997 and 1990,
accounted for 77.4 million individuals in the U.S. according to the U.S. Census, just slightly above the 76.2 million Baby Boomers. This generation is more ethnically diverse than older adults, and a greater share of them had at least one immigrant parent—11%, versus 7% for Gen X and 5% for Baby Boomers. A 2010 Pew Research Center study looked at the values, attitudes and behaviors of Millennials versus older generations. Among the findings of this study was the Millennials’ greater use of technology. Millennials feel that this is a defining feature of their generation. Millenials were also the first generation to fully embrace the use of technology in their role of a consumer as well. Owning an automobile has historically represented a rite of passage into adulthood and freedom for Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964), a category still accounting for approximately 45 percent of new-car purchases. But there is a growing sentiment that the automobile has been replaced by the Internet and smart phones for those in the Generation Y age group (born between 1978 and 1984); changing the world the same way the automobile did at the turn of the 20th century. One of the areas with perhaps the most potential to directly impact automotive claim severity and frequency is the shift in the population towards urban areas. Results from the 2010 U.S. Census report that 54 percent of the U.S. population resides in its 10 most populated states, with just over 83 percent living in one of the nation’s 366 metro areas (core urban area population of 50,000 or more). During the last decade, the metropolitan areas however saw the largest increase, significantly higher than micropolitan areas or areas outside a core based statistical area. Personal mobility will reach beyond individual vehicle ownership to an integrated mobility approach, incorporating car sharing, public transportation and greater use of technologies such as telematics, smart metering and navigation. These major demographic shifts may ultimately lead to a disruption in the historical trend of vehicle accident frequency and severity. A
36 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
greater share of the population will fall into the youngest and oldest age groups, where driving patterns may result in diverging patterns of frequency and severity. As the population shifts further to urban areas, increased congestion could lead to higher frequency, although increases in use of public transportation would do the direct opposite. Accident severity tends to be lower in traffic accidents occurring in congested urban areas, and the advent of crash avoidance technologies like the Volvo City Safety system have been shown to reduce both the frequency and severity of low-speed accidents. Economic conditions and the technology in vehicles have been shown to lead to decreases in vehicle accident frequency and severity, and will continue to do so in the future. Because each generation’s outlook is shaped by different cultural expectations and experiences, companies must understand these, and incorporate them into the way that they interact with potential and existing customers. The ability to customize communication and marketing into
generational and demographic categories will help companies portray the appropriate image and message and better grow their business. Insurers and repairers that will be successful in this disruptive demographic environment are those that have plans in place to market and serve the different age groups, and have looked at whether their current geographies are positioned to shrink or grow, and have adjusted their growth plans accordingly. While factors such as atmospheric conditions may be difficult to project, understanding employment trends (i.e. time of day people are commuting to work), vehicles purchased in your market (vehicle body type, accident avoidance technology and airbag availability and deployment), and driver age patterns will be critical to assessing market growth opportunity in the future.
The Accident is The Ultimate Disruptor The average consumer today has an auto accident once every seven to 10 years, well behind the average vehicle trade-in cycle of every five years. Due to the nature of the product being sold,
auto insurers and collision repairers subsequently have very limited interaction with consumers. Insurers certainly interact with their customer at policy issue, at bill time, and sometimes through other services such as banking or games in apps. However, the real moment of truth for the auto insurer and the repairer is at the time of an accident. For the automotive insurance and collision repair industries, the challenge is to take the infrequent and unexpected negative experience of an auto accident and turn it into an experience where the customer is delighted. No one wants to have their vehicle damaged, and few consumers know what to expect in the auto claim and vehicle repair process. However, they come to this experience the same way they come to any other experience—with expectations that you know who they are, that you will fulfill your commitments to them, and that you will create a positive experience. For insurers, the claim is one of the most significant opportunities to retain or lose a customer. For repairers, a positive vehicle repair experience can create a customer that will share their experience with friends
and family, and help your business grow. Effective use of technology not only enables companies to meet the minimum set of expectations of their customers, but can also facilitate the delivery of a personalized experience that delights your customer. By combining innovative technologies that improve business processes, with the ability to finetune the messages delivered to customers at the right time, on the right device, businesses can place themselves in a position to meet the expectations of today’s consumer in a way that can provides them value. Effective use of technology not only enables companies to meet the minimum set of expectations of their customers, but can also streamline the overall claim and repair processes. For example, companies that have the technology in place to let consumers report the claim via a mobile device can capture a wealth of information on the facts of the loss, including photos. Incorporating this data into predictive analytics tools can help the insurer assign the claim to the best resource equipped to return the customer to pre-accident condition as quickly as possible. The
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ability for a repair technician to send messages to the claims adjuster electronically, versus calling and trading voicemails, can ensure speedier resolution to questions or issues that might otherwise hold up the repair. With customer satisfaction closely tied to the overall time it takes to return their vehicle to pre-accident condition, mobility can play a key role in reducing inefficiencies in the overall process. The recession led to a drop-off in driving, reduction in claim and fatality frequency, and a larger number of consumers opting to cash-out versus actually repair their car. As consumers begin to ramp up new vehicle purchases, and see moderate upticks in employment, the industry will gradually return to an environment that more closely resembles the market pre-recession. Over time this will lead to moderate increases in customers opting to actually repair their vehicles versus living with the damage (i.e. moderate increases in volume of vehicles actually repaired), but the gradual infusion of crash avoidance technologies in new vehicles will likely flatten-out any inflections in accident/claim frequency. With the exception of storm or catastrophe-driven claims activity, it is unlikely the market will see any dramatic change in the current patterns of claim frequency over the next 18 to 24 months. Outside of the increases in comprehensive losses tied to erratic weather patterns and catastrophes, loss costs for liability and collision are returning to their pre-recession pattern of year-over-year increases between one and three percent. Inflation in replacement parts and labor have accelerated slightly as the U.S. emerges from the recession, but still point to overall increases in repair costs of one to three percent. As new vehicle sales grow and ultimately show up in claims, repair costs will see some inherent lift. The juxtaposition of greater vehicle complexity in terms of electronics and materials with greater prevalence of crash avoidance systems may ultimately result in fewer
but more expensive repairs in the future. The average consumer today has an auto accident once every seven to ten years. Auto insurers and collision repairers subsequently have very limited interaction with consumers and few opportunities to show the value of their products and services. The real moment of truth for the auto insurer and the repairer is at the time of an accident. To be successful in today’s environment, companies must tap into the notion of disruption – where companies develop innovative technologies that improve business processes, and fine-tune the messages to customers so they are delivered at the right time, on the right device, with the most customized content, and place themselves in a position to meet the expectations of today’s consumer in a way that delivers value. Susanna Gotsch is Director, Industry Analyst at CCC Information Services Inc. She has been with CCC since July of 1992. Susanna brings twenty-plus years of experience within the automotive claims industry as Director, Industry Analyst. She has authored The Crash Course, CCC’s annual publication on trends impacting collision repair and total loss costs since 1995. This publication has become a key resource for the industry in understanding how broader trends within the economy, new and used vehicle market places, and collision industry are impacting auto claim frequency and costs. She is also responsible for the generation of all trend analyses of the insurance and automotive industries published by CCC since 1995. In 2011, Ms. Gotsch was selected as one of five Most Influential Women in the Collision Repair Industry through the annual industry honorarium established by AkzoNobel Automotive & Aerospace Coatings America (A&AC).
Coypright 2012 CCC Information Services Inc. All Rights Reserved. Confidential & Proprietary
Give us your opinion on matters affecting the industry.
write us! publisher@autobodynews.com
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 37
Continued from Page 35
Matrix Wand
point measurements and compare with the vehicle being photographed. When I went into the XYZ comparison, I found that the length was 8mm short, height was 5 mm down and width had moved 25mm and this was done with a picture. Dale Matsumoto, the owner of Autobody Hawaii, timed me and it took
me 20 minutes from the time I took the picture until I gave him a print out. The vehicle was pulled and here are the pictures: As you can see, the vehicle has been returned to its correct width, length and height. I proceeded to take another ‘after picture’ and measure. I am going to use points 13-14, 56 and 7-8. Points 13-8 is 1225 mm and points 14-7 is 1224 mm. Point 13-6 is 1077 and points 14-5 are 1076 mm. To verify that these measurements are accurate, I measured points 13-14 with
a tram gauge and found the distance to be 1026 mm. I went into Mitchell and their measurement was 1026 mm. Looking at the distance table in the picture, it read 1026 mm. All I can say is it’s pretty remarkable. The only way that you can appreciate this revolutionary piece of equipment is to see it in operation at your shop. Either call me at 310-995-7909 or email me at tcspeedster@yahoo.com and I will set up a demo for you, either personally or through the company. You will be amazed!
WANT EVERY JOB TO BE A BANG-UP JOB? These dealers are Genuine VW Parts Wholesale Specialists. Continued from Page 27
Take it to the Dealer
“I didn’t know where else to take it... but when I talked to my neighbors they told me about your shop,” the caller said. How about asking around first? You might even learn a little something about your neighbors; hey they’re probably quite friendly; maybe you’ll actually learn all of their kid’s names, too. So what’s the problem between the independent and dealer repair shops? It could be from previous dealings in the past, and the customer didn’t like the results. It could be size of the shop or the location... the real reasons are hard to pin down. I’m not
knocking the quality of work performed at a dealer repair shop, no... quite the opposite. I would say I’ve also seen an increase in the quality of the independent shops in my area as well. There’s fewer wrench slinging grease monkeys out there than in years past. It really takes a different type of “mechanic” than it did even ten or twenty years ago, and that’s not just for the independent shops... that goes for the dealer technicians as well. Locate a shop you like, find a technician who you feel comfortable with. If your search ends up with that individual at an independent shop… that’s fantastic! If you can’t find the service you’re happy with anywhere except at the dealership… well then, there’s only one thing to do… take it to the dealer.
38 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
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DuPont Unveils New No. 24 Chevrolet Paint Scheme for 20th by Chasidy Sisk
Four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion Jeff Gordon helped DuPont unveil a new 20th Anniversary paint scheme on his No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet at the headquarters of DuPont Performance Coatings during the 2012 DuPont NASCAR Day celebration.
Jeff Gordon addresses the event
Gordon, a NASCAR legend, will drive the new Hot Hues™ Cosmic Dust Silver Metallic No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet in the season finale at the Homestead-Miami Speedway in Florida this November marking his famous long-standing partnership with DuPont. Gordon’s historic NASCAR Cup
Series career started 20 years ago at Atlanta Motor Speedway as the young driver burst onto the raciang scene in the rainbow-colored Hendrick Motorsports No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet. The following season, Gordon started to take the motorsports world by storm. Now, 20 years later with four championships and 85 career victories under his belt, Gordon will race the commemorative No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet only one time at the last race of the 2012 season. Gordon, Hendrick Motorsports and DuPont are celebrating their 20th full season together - the longest current running driver/owner/sponsor partnership in NASCAR. “I’m very fortunate to have an incredible sponsor like DuPont that has invested so much in me and this No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports team. To stick with one driver and one team and to still be here with us today celebrating our 20th full season, is really incredible,” said Gordon. DuPont Performance Coatings products have been a constant during the storied career of Gordon and Hendrick Motorsports. The new paint
as DuPont™, Kevlar®, Nomex®, Teflon® and Tyvek®, took a chance on a young, unproven rookie driver to showcase its automotive finishes in brilliant fashion. Over 20 years of sponsorship, Gordon has been recognized by DuPont as a valuable corporate asset and spokesman. “Jeff Gordon has been the ideal ambassador for the DuPont brand for nearly two decades,” said Scott Coleman, chief marketing and sales officer for DuPont. “He is a consummate professional and a true champion both on and off the track.” Gordon has his sights set on one thing when racing the 20th Anniversary paint scheme on the No. 24 Chevrolet later this First Look at 20th Anniversary Car to Commemorate year – winning. NASCAR’s Longest Running Sponsor Partnership “I’m looking forward to said John McCool, president of DuPont hopefully taking this special DuPont Performance Coatings. “Twenty years 20 Years paint scheme to Victory Lane is a unique relationship in NASCAR in November to thank all of the amazand it shows that the business of racing ing DuPont employees and customers has been good business for DuPont and who I’ve come to know like family our customers.” and who have supported me loyally DuPont, a global Fortune 500 over the past two decades,” continued company best known for brands such Gordon.
scheme uses the popular DuPont™ ChromaPremier® Pro high performance paint finishes and was designed by NASCAR’s first officially licensed artist Sam Bass. “We are proud to have our DuPont™ ChromaPremier® Pro paint on the No. 24 DuPont Chevrolet with one of NASCAR’s all-time greats,”
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www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 39
On Creative Marketing
Tom Franklin has been a shop sales and marketing consultant for fifty years. He has written numerous books and provides marketing solutions and services for many businesses. He can be reached at (323) 871-6862 or at tbfranklin@aol.com. See Tom’s columns at www.autobodynews.com under Columnists > Franklin
Maximizing Referrals to Your Shop with Thomas Franklin
During the past 15 years or so, I’ve job to a shop that does a bad repair noticed that many body shops spend a will reflect badly on him or her and great deal of time and money promot- may lose that customer or client. So ing to referral sources that never send great caution is exercised in making a single job. There is some logic to referrals. On the other hand, I’ve spocontinually dripping on prospects in ken with agents who said they had the hope that at least a few of them gotten a glowing report from a cuswill send a job or two one day. And if tomer who had been referred to a the promotion going out isn’t too shop and found that referral formed with Dick Strom costly, it can’t hurt. an even closer bond with the cusBut what if more effort were ap- tomer. In a case like this, referrals can plied to reinforcing those sources that be an excellent way to solidify or actually do refer jobs? In a busy marbuild business. ket, I know of a shop that promotes to This should be a clear message to 200 insurance agents a month. Less a shop owner or manager seeking to than 10% of those agents ever refer build referral business. Getting the rework to the shop, and even fewer ac- ferral source to come to the shop to tually send work on a regular basis. see it in action, or better yet to bring This particular shop also has a DRP his or her own vehicle in for repairs with an insurance company that has will greatly improve the chances of regular agent meetings and has made getting referral business. Depending Lee Amaradio the conference with room and area avail- onJr. the financial capability of the shop, able for agent and manager meetings it could even be worthwhile to offer to fairly frequently. This has resulted in do a free repair to a potentially high significantly more referrals by agents volume referral source. who attend meetings at the shop. In Much depends on a shop carechecking with other shops that market fully identifying who has referred a to agents, I found this was a common job. When a real referral source has occurrence. Once an agent either came been identified, it’s time to reinforce to a shop, brought his or her vehicle to that willingness to refer in every way the shop for repairs, or had a customer possible. Many shops send thank you use that shop with a good result, the notes or offer a free car wash as a agent then did actually refer business thank you. Others offer small gifts with Sheila Loftuslike theater tickets, dinner for two at to the shop. A physician’s Hippocratic oath a nice restaurant, or a voucher for says, “First do no harm.” Someone use at a beauty parlor, local gym or contemplating a referral to a shop barbershop. Some agents aren’t alwill have a similar concern: “First, lowed to receive gifts, so a more subavoid any harm.” An agent or other tle form of appreciation is in order. referral source knows that referring a Like the shop, agents, car dealers
Opinions Count
Action Counts
and other referral sources are also looking to build their business. Posting their card or flyers at the shop would be a minimal thing to do, but hosting a promotional event at the shop could be appropriate for someone who frequently referred business. Some events can be a win-win for both the shop and an agent or dealership promotional person. A safe driving event for teenagers can bring in parents with insurable and repairable vehicles. In a previous article I wrote about a car care clinic for a woman’s professional network group. Promoting a good referral source as a sponsor and co-presenter for such an event would be an especially effective way to reinforce that source of referrals. Happy customer referrals can also be enhanced with recognition. One shop tracked the number of jobs per month and year and awarded a
Your Turn
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Ford Ships New Escapes, Some Have Hail Damage
Ford began shipping the new Escape “We haven’t determined what to dealers several weeks ago even as we will do with them yet, but they hail damaged thousands of units near will not be shipped to dealers as a Louisville with assembly plant.Chaney The new,” Nissen said. Janet Louisville Courier-Journal reported “We’ll be able to recover, over that 3,500 Escapes were damaged by time, our production volume as we go hail during an April 28 storm, while through the launch of the vehicle and awaiting shipment last month at Ford as the plant continues to ramp up,” Motor Co.’s Louisville, Ky., assem- Nissen said. This year through May bly plant, but the incident won’t delay 26, Ford has built 11,000 new Esthe launch of the all-new crossover. capes. The company spent $600 milFord spokesman Todd Nissen said lion to retool the Louisville plant, the company is inspecting the plant’s shifting production of the Escape shipment lot to assess damage. He from the company’s Kansas City, said affected SUVs will not be sold to Mo., factory. The move created about new-car buyers. 1,800 jobs.
Shop Showcase
Industry Overview with Janet Chaney
40 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
prize to the 10,000th customer. A shop might also create a “Customer Appreciation Day” once a month, and invite all customers who had referred jobs to come in for a fancy lunch and also perhaps a car wash. Unique souvenirs could also be awarded, like a coffee mug or special hat or T-shirt with the shop’s logo. The key element with individuals who refer business is to create a sense of family and belonging. And when one of these referring customers comes back for repairs on his or her vehicle, the shop might award a surprise rebate. It all comes down to recognizing who actually sends work. Radio, TV and publication ads reach out to the general public. Flyers, mailers, emails and more, target potential (but not yet real) referral sources. But there’s nothing like reinforcing and rewarding those who send the real jobs and provide the funds for reaching out to grow even more.
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What it Takes for a BMW Dealership to Become a BMW CCRC
Some recent controversy about who is a BMW certified training center and why, prompted us to look into exactly what the requirements are for dealerships to gain certification. There are no “authorized” repair centers and only dealerships can become BMW Certified Collision Repair Center (CCRC). At present there are only 69 CCRCs in the US, and only nine in California. The entity that owns the BMW Center must be the same entity and must have the same level of ownership in the applicable collision repair facility. Here you will find a condensed version of the key steps and requirements for a facility to become a BMW Certified Collision Repair Center. BMW requires each and every CCRC in the program to follow these stringent criteria and follow these guidelines. BMW CCRC’s are expected to repair BMW vehicles back to BMW specifications using only Original Parts and following the repair procedures stated by BMW. With general technician training, technicians are recognized for attend-
ing the training courses by BMW North America but they are not [necessarily] BMW Certified Technicians. They have a recognition plaque of all the training courses they have attained but it is not a Certification plaque. If the technician goes from a CCRC to another repair center it does not mean that shop will now have BMW Certified Technicians. The only time the word “Certified” is used is when the facility becomes part of the BMW Certified Collision Repair Center program. That means that the BMW CCRC has met all the requirements and goes through an annual Re-certification process.
2011 BMW Certified Collision Repair Center Program The BMW Certified Collision Repair Center Program is a voluntary, no fee program developed to ensure that BMW clients receive a first -class customer experience. The Certified Collision Repair Center (CCRC) Program is designed to enable BMW Centerowned collision repair centers to: ● Focus on achieving a high level of profitability;
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● Operate more efficiently; ● Ensure vehicles are repaired to BMW specifications (as outlined in the Technical Information System, or ISIS/ISTA); and ● Ensure vehicles are repaired using only BMW original parts, approved paint, materials, tools, and equipment.
CCRC Program Benefits During initial certification (and throughout the certification and re-certification process) BMW NA’s vendor, Summit Consulting, Inc. (“Summit”) provides several types of 100% BMWfunded support to help a CCRC enhance its collision repair business. The objectives of this support include: ● Identifying market opportunities to generate revenue; ● Establishing the CCRC’s current collision revenue performance; ● Closing the financial gap between the CCRC’s market revenue opportunity and its actual revenue performance trend on a per collision repair basis; and ● Identifying required tools / equipment needs, while assisting CCRCs to project the recommended capital investment levels.
Annual CCRC Managers’ Meeting The CCRC management should actively participate in the Annual BMW CCRC Managers’ Meeting. By attending this event, a CCRC manager benefits by: ● Receiving the latest BMW branded collision repair business tools; ● Reviewing the trend of CCRCs’ collision process and profitability performances; ● Learning and sharing key collision repair service strategies focused on improving profitability; ● On-going professional training; ● Management Roundtable Discussions—These facilitator-led group discussions are designed to allow CCRC participants to share proven techniques and best practices to grow the collision business both in parts sales and repair revenue; ● 4 Stage Market Network Development Financial Analysis Tool—This four stage tool provides enrolled CCRC managers access to: ▬ Identify market opportunities to generate revenue; ▬ Establish the CCRC’s current collision revenue performance; ▬ Close the financial gap between
CCRC’s market revenue opportunity and its actual revenue performance trend on a per collision repair basis; ▬ Identify recommended capital investment levels and required tools and equipment needs.
Collision Repair Parts Incentive Program All BMW Centers have the opportunity to open a BMW CCRC. BMW NA offers all CCRCs the opportunity to participate in the monthly Collision Repair Parts Incentive Program. Eligible BMW CCRCs can earn a 2% rebate on the dealer cost of all original BMW parts purchased from BMW NA and used by the CCRC for non-warranty or non-maintenance collision repairs. The BMW CCRC is eligible for the rebate only if the CCRC remains compliant with the CCRC Program.
CCRC Promotional Material ● BMW NA CCRC plaque and annual re-certification endorsement slugs; ● CCRC Customer Creed plaque; ● BMW branded marketing materials; ● BMW NA approval to use official CCRC signage.
Additional CCRC Benefits In addition to the benefits outlined above, CCRC Program Benefits include: ● Accessing & using customized BMW CCRC marketing materials; ● Utilizing BMW approved collision repair tools and equipment; ● Making use of the latest BMW branded collision repair business tools; ● Participating in body & paint technical and non-technical training courses; ● Efficiency improvement by using BMW repair specifications (ISIS/ISTA), the flat rate manual (KSD), and electronic parts catalog (EPC) for repairs; ● Utilizing an approved refinishing system of the BMW Group; ● Participating in the 2011 Profiles In Achievement (PIA), which includes an incentive program for CCRC managers; and ● CCRC’s premium access to Roadside Assistance. Program Participants Successful results in the CCRC Program rely heavily upon the CCRC’s See BMW CCRC, Page 43
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 41
Custom Corner with Rich Evans
Rich Evans is the owner of Huntington Beach Bodyworks and an award winning painter and fabricator. He offers workshops in repair and customization at his facility to share his unique talents. For contacts and design samples visit www.huntingtonbeachbodyworks.com
Building a Junior Motor Sport Vehicle for 11-Year-Old Driver I’ve been very busy the past three width and positioning. We got a Legmonths working on a new project for end vehicle and I stripped the body off Dan Weaver of the Bakersfield area it and I had Brandon’s dad, Dan, look and his 11-year-old son Brandon around and get some bodies. They Weaver, a junior race car driver who looked like miniatures of NASCAR, so we could make is number #1 in California and #3 in a plug. Making the the nation for his class, Bandalero plug means getBandit Division. with Thomas ting the shape and Dan and Brandon wanted me Franklin to design in place build them a junior motor sports vehiand modifying it cle and I’m excited to share this new to look like what project with you. I was pretty pumped Dan wants. Dan up. I’ve built body kits for the MusBrandon Weaver. fell in love with tang, I’ve worked with Mopar, and (From File) my Mustang and built the polyurethane body kits for the Challenger. Now, it’s going from he likes my style of the bodies. Using parts to a complete vehicle—I am all Fiberglass is obviously better than about that. This is a challenge for me. metal at this point because race cars It brings on my creativity and I will be get all banged up, they get wrecked able to learn more in depth what it and then they have to change out the with Dick Strom body. takes to build a complete vehicle. We cut the body in half because I started with a basic foundation and that’s a great way to get a head it was a little long, shortened it up, start. What I decided to do with this got it to fit the wheel base of the Legproject is to build backwards. We end, spliced it together and cut off the started with a Legend body because front end because we’re not going to Brandon is just a little guy, 70–80 be using that front end. I took pre-expounds max. This way I can gain the isting body parts that I’ve made and wheel base and get some ideas about pulled some parts out of molds so I
On Creative Marketing
Opinions Count
Action Counts with Lee Amaradio Jr.
Your Turn with Sheila Loftus
Shop Showcase with Janet Chaney
42 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
can cut them up and modify them to fit this car, which I would call a ‘mini-me’ because it’s a smaller version. Next, we took the splash off a Mustang hood, cut it down, and spliced it in so we can get our hood looking right, and then we got the body secured to the frame. We definitely needed to make accessories, so I came up with the scoop, the rear wing accessory, the left and right quarter scoops and the front fender scoop, and that gives us nine pieces, which means I need to make 9 molds. With all that being said, the proper process of doing this is sculpturing it out and making sure all sides are symmetrical, such as the left rear wheel wells matching the right wheel wells. I am modifying the rear of the car to look more like the Mustang, and the sides I have to modify to
make the lines look more like the Mustang, to give them a Rich Evans designed vehicle. We are using some features to replicate the Mustang. The whole idea is to use the taillights and headlights from a Mustang. We don’t want to have to re-create the wheel
and have to get into tooling expenses by making our own headlights and taillights, so we need to utilize what’s out there. After getting it pretty close, I’m using 80-grit sandpaper. PCL #901 once again has stepped up to the plate. I cannot build any cars without
that product. After shapingt with 36grit and then 80-grit, I’m ready for primer. For the first process of primer, I lay about three gallons of primer on the body. PCL is both a timesaver and saver. I’ll use 80-grit to shape to money this Southwest Edition? it, then guide coat it, and then come back with 150-grit, re-primer it with another gallon or gallon and a half of primer, sand it again with 150-grit autobodynews.com and come back with 400 wet. Then,
months of hard work to get to the molds. I am excited about this project. It’s another challenge. I have to thank my sponsors, PCL, 3M, SATA spray guns, Infratech heat lamps and SofSander, and Brandon and his dad for allowing me and believing in me to do this project. Also, check out my new website, builditwithRichEvans.com. DIY (Doit-yourself) car builders are the root the of American car ness with Promote your business with culture and one that I grew featuring an exclusive article featuring up in. If you guys are buildservices. your products or services. ing cars out in your garage, I could show up at your garage and give you three days of free help with your own do-it-yourself car building project. Fill out an online or details! Call for details! application off my new web251 800-699-8251 site. We’re teaming up with we’re ready for molds and that’s the my sponsors for free products and point where we are at now. Three parts. I want to know your story.
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Continued from Page 41
BMW CCRC
professionals and the culture in which they operate. These individuals are responsible for adopting the processes necessary to: order and install original BMW parts, follow BMW Repair Specifications and use only BMW NA approved paint, materials, tools, and equipment for every BMW collision repair.
CCRC Certification and Re-certification Process Initial Certification Visit The first visit by BMW’s vendor, Summit, will focus on ensuring basic compliance and review of the approved center’s collision repair facility’s core processes to profitably repair vehicles per BMW repair specifications (ISIS/ISTA.) A CCRC’s use of BMW NA approved paint, materials, tools, and equipment is also reviewed. Following the initial visit, the CCRC’s management team and Summit will develop specific on-site action plans for technical and ColorSystem training to ensure that these mutually agreed upon business goals are met by the CCRC.
Re-certification Visit If the CCRC continues to comply with the CCRC Program requirements, the CCRC receives an annual re-certification visit and follow-up by Summit. Following the re-certification visit, the CCRC’s management team and Summit will review specific onsite training and action plans to ensure that these mutually agreed upon business goals are met by the CCRC.
Certification Program Elements Technical and Non-Technical Training Requirements To ensure premium quality collision repairs, body and paint technicians will meet the training requirements listed in Appendix A. Each CCRC must have a designated individual who is accountable for approving staff training and determining the training path for each individual of the CCRC’s staff. The amount of training required is based on the CCRC’s body and paint market penetration, the size of the collision center staff, and the CORA Job Classification of the associates at the collision center. Training requirements are reviewed and adjusted on an annual basis. As the collision repair facility’s staff and market
penetration grow, so will their training requirements. Training is currently offered at the following five locations: ● Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey ● Spartanburg, South Carolina ● Oxnard, California ● Ontario, California ● Wixom, Michigan Technical training is offered without fees; however, transportation costs, lodging expenses, meals, salary, and any other related travel expenses are the responsibility of the CCRC. Collision Repair Facility Requirements The physical location of the CCRC must be within the BMW Center’s PMA.
Facility Criteria In support of the BMW brand, each CCRC may use BMW NA approved CCRC signage only if the facility consistently complies with the BMW NA recommended BMW facility guidelines. This applies whether the facility is on or off site in relation to approved certified center’s location.
Usage of Original BMW Parts Criteria The CCRC Program prohibits the installation of imitation, aftermarket, non-BMW remanufactured, and/or salvage (allegedly Like Kind and Quality) parts, including glass, on any year or model BMW passenger car or SAV. Failure to comply with this requirement qualifies for automatic decertification from the CCRC Program for at least the remainder of the calendar year in which these non-approved parts were installed.
Tools and Equipment A CCRC is required to have an on-site location for all approved tools and equipment necessary to properly repair BMW vehicles. The BMW approved tools, equipment, and materials are listed in Appendix C. Required tools, equipment, and materials are subject to change based on technology, required new tools, and special tool changes relating to new models.
Submission of Monthly Reports BMW NA’s CCRC Program requires participants to ensure timely submission of a monthly Parts Rebate Report. This Report verifies the CCRC’s purchases and use of original BMW parts on repairs, potentially eligible for a 2% rebate for those parts. This information must be submitted on a See BMW CCRC, Page 46
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 43
Arizona and California Schools Preparing for Collision Repair’s Future by David M. Brown
Two schools in Arizona and California are prepping the future of the industry. In Mesa, AZ., the collision repair program at The East Valley Institute of Technology is the state’s only high school-level coursework certified by the National Automotive Technicians Education Foundation, the independent non-profit based in Leesburg, VA. Since 1983, secondary and post-secondary automotive-training programs in 50 states have been accredited through NATEF standards. And, in Sacramento, the Universal Technical Institute campus offers its Collision Repair & Refinish Technology (CRRT) program, preparing students as collision repair and refinish technicians. Arizona’s first joint technological education district, EVIT, offers occupation training for high school students at 10 school districts in the expanding Phoenix East Valley. The main 65-acre main EVIT campus is at 1601 W. Main Street, and the extended campus, 6625 S. Power Road. The school’s areas of certification include non-structural analysis/damage repair and painting and refinishing. Students in the two-year program develop auto body repair and refinishing skills, learning to perform jobs from detailing to assisting with painting in a contemporary paint booth. The main campus facility includes two frame racks, two downdraft bake spray booths and two downdraft prep stations. The two-year program, with six elective credits toward graduation, teaches students collision and customizing skills, using I-CAR guidelines. The course started in the early 1970s when it was offered at Mesa VoTech, and for more than 20 years EVIT has offered it to aspiring technicians. “The format of their curriculum is exactly like the curriculum used by ICAR to certify technicians already in the industry,” says Instructor Neil Carroll, custom paint instructor and an EVIT teacher for 10 years. “Students learn the basics with emphatic hands-on lab practice.” Formed by the collision industry in 1979, the not-forprofit Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair focuses on helping the industry achieve a high level of technical training.
NATEF requires many items, such as a facility and equipment and that teachers must be ASE certified, he
manager, who notes the appreciation as well of Ed Baker, the dealership’s service director. “The industry is in
Collision Repair & Refinish Technology at UTI. Image courtesy UTI
says, noting his Master’s Technician certification through Automotive Service Excellence as well as Automotive Youth Education Systems certification (AYES). For the current school year, Carroll is guiding 71 high school students, divided between morning and afternoon sessions. In addition, an adult collision-repair program in the evenings, through the School of Adult Education, is administered by a different instructor. In Arizona, students compete in the SkillsUSA competition where EVIT wins the majority of the medals annually, Carroll says. Five EVIT students this year competed against 49 students statewide and won gold, silver, top estimator and other awards. Last year, a female student won bronze—the first female medal winner in state competition—and this year a female student won fourth, missing bronze by only 16 points. In 1995, a student won silver and, about four years ago, another student took bronze at National SkillsUSA. In addition, last year 11 students participated in internships, and there are currently 12 on internships this year, nearly double the national average, Carroll says. One of the oldest Ford dealerships in Arizona, Berge Ford in Mesa, employs a number of EVIT students and has been impressed. “They have found a great starting point here,” says Steve Roger, Collision Repair Center
44 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
great need of qualified entry-level personnel.” The Sacramento campus of Universal Technical Institute, founded in Phoenix in 1965, offers a Collision Repair & Refinish Technology Pro-
gram, accredited by NATEF, ACCSC (the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges), the State of California Bureau of Private Postsecondary Education and the U.S. Department of Education. The Houston campus of UTI, which opened in 1983, also offers the program. Nationwide, nine UTI locations provide automotive-education courses, and two motorcycle and/or marine technology. “Our program is designed to serve industry need,” says Don Black, education director for the Sacramento campus. “We partner with industry and I-CAR regarding our curriculum, facility, education delivery, training aids and lab activities to ensure that we are providing the most relevant technical training that will allow our students the greatest opportunity for success in the collision-repair industry.” He adds,”It is this focus on industry and partnership with industry that makes Universal Technical Institute the best choice for technical training and how we distinguish ourselves from our competitors.”
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Guided by 11 instructors, the 51week CRRT program guides the students on how to repair and refinish structural and non-structural damage as well as how to prepare cost estimates on all phases of repair and refinishing. Students also learn to repair mechanical and electrical damage. As a result of completing the program, graduates can achieve certifications in DuPont refinishing, 3M plastics repair and Chief Automotive measuring and straightening systems, Black explains. Based on the industry standard, ICAR Live, the course includes five modules of collision repair and refinish training: Nonstructural Repair; Structural Repair; Refinishing; Mechanical & Electrical Repair; and Auto Customizing. Graduates will be Platinum I-CAR certified, preparing them for entry-level collision repair or refinish technician for a dealership, an independent body shop or a fleet repair facility. Success has been continuing since the program started at UTI Sacramento in 2005. One recent example has been with Cooks Collision, a large regional CRRT employer with 20 locations in California. The company had been struggling to find estimators
for the last two years, and UTI thought there might be an opportunity to partner with the business, Black says. “During follow-up meetings with Cooks, UTI learned more about their needs and we were able to connect those needs with the value UTI provided, resulting in a win/win partnership,” he explains. Cooks would create a one-month paid training program on estimating to build on the foundation of the UTI training.
candidates, they hired six, and all but one of them was able to advance through the training program.” That group comprises Justin Abner, William Bakke, Colton Dorman, Carlos Solórzano, and Dylan Burtis, who started working with Cooks Collision in February as junior estimators. They recently returned to UTI to share their experiences and challenge students, telling them to focus on all courses, including estimating, as they didn’t know they would become estimators when starting the UTI program, Black says. “Our estimating training from UTI was a great foundation to build on during our training with Cooks and we wished we would have focused on it more,’ they said,” he reports, adding that UTI Megan Peterson is a student at EVIT taking advantage of two new paint mixing systems along with a computer, softwill soon be choosing the ware, label printer, paint books, tech manuals and a mixing next set of UTI graduates to scale from Leading Edge Auto Refinishes and Riverview be interviewed for an opporCollision in Mesa tunity with Cooks Collision. UTI first identified seven candiAnother recent UTI success is dates. “Our hope was to identify four Colton Hart, who graduated from the hires for the program,” Black says, school in September 2011, accepted a “but after interviewing our seven UTI job a month later working with Sunny Original BMW Parts
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Stotler in Kalispell, MT., doing custom auto body and refinish repair work. He started out at $15, received a raise in February and then switched to a flat-rate commission of 40 percent of the total job profit. Quickly, he was promoted to Refinish and Restoration Tech/Airbrush Artist for the two-man shop. “He now does all the paint and airbrush work and is continually taking on more of refinishing process,” Black reports. “Sunny reports that they have business lined up for the next two years and the community has become a fan of Colton’s airbrush work, with specific requests for his designs and skills.” Black said, “Colton is doing his dream job and is excited to keep learning and developing under the direction of a veteran in the industry, and UTI is very proud of Colton’s accomplishments and that he is pursuing his dreams.”
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SCRS Hosts Repairer Driven Education at SEMA 2012 Featuring “Innovation Forum”
North County BMW
The Repairer Driven Education (RDE) series, presented by the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS), North County BMW is returning to the SEMA Show for the third consecutive year. With courses individually selected or crafted by the www.ncountybmw.com (800) 564-8222 SCRS, the program includes nearly two dozen sessions taking place during the SEMA Show Tuesday-Friday, October 30–November 2, 2012, in Las Vegas. The headline session, “Game North County BMW Changers–Innovation Forum,” takes place November 2 and features induswww.ncountybmw.com try leaders discussing what innovation (800) 564-8222 can look like in the collision repair business and how it’s becoming core toBMW business strategy. Other sessions exNorth County plore how digital marketing, social media and related tools can increase www.ncountybmw.com customer retention and loyalty, and (800) 564-8222 how new metals being used in the construction of today’s vehicles are impacting the repair process. SCRS Executive Director Aaron Schulenburg said, “The RDE series is a tremendous educational opportunity for the collision industry, providing an accessible and affordable education on topics that address issues that truly matter to those working in repair facilities. We were fortunate to be able to present the series at the last www.ncountybmw.com
(800) 564-8222
two SEMA Shows, and look forward to expanding the program this coming year.” SCRS partnered with show organizers to present the RDE program at the 2011 SEMA Show. The annual trade show, which saw nearly 30 percent more collision repair attendees compared to the previous year, brings manufacturers of automotive parts and accessories together with industry buyers from all over the world. Manufacturers represent every segment of the automotive specialty equipment market, including restyling, hot rod, trucks and SUVs, and racing and performance. “The SEMA Show features products from every automotive niche, which makes it the ideal venue for buyers to discover new markets,” said Peter MacGillivray, SEMA VP of events and communications. “Because the collision market is so closely related to many of our traditional market segments, it’s become one of the fastest growing areas and is of huge interest to our attendees.” In addition to the SCRS RDE series, the SEMA Show will feature nearly 60 educational seminars throughout the week.
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 45
Continued from Page 43
BMW CCRC
monthly basis directly to Summit Consulting by the 15th of the following month. Failure to comply with this monthly requirement of submitting the parts rebate will result in the CCRC forfeiting that month’s rebate. Late reports will not be accepted for the parts rebate.
Failure to Comply with CCRC Program Elements CCRCs that fail to comply with the CCRC guidelines will be in jeopardy of forfeiting their certification and the related BMW CCRC’s monthly parts rebate. This decision will be at the sole discretion of BMW NA. The CCRC will then have 90 days to correct the area(s) of noncompliance or risk de-certification. During this 90 day period or until such time as the CCRC has remedied the non-compliance issue(s); the BMW CCRC will forfeit all parts rebates. If the CCRC fails to resolve the action item(s) by their deadline, they will be de-certified and removed from the BMW CCRC Program. Summit conducts CCRC facility on-site inspections of BMW NA-approved paint, materials, tools, equipment, and review of the CCRC’s staff training requirements. Summit works with the CCRC’s management team to evaluate and assist the staff to manage and improve the key elements needed to repair vehicles to BMW repair specifications and help increase profitability per collision repair. Summit’s team of seasoned professionals has extensive experience in the collision industry with top automotive distributors. Each consultant has the industry knowledge and training skills required to effectively assess and educate the CCRC’s staff to develop and utilize the processes for: ● Ordering and installing original BMW parts; ● Training collision repair staff; ● Repairing BMW vehicles to the highest quality standards; ● Analyzing financial performance, and establishing action plans; ● Submitting the Parts Rebate reports
2011 BMW CCRC Training Determining the number of technicians and estimators that must complete training to meet CCRC Requirements: ● 100% of the collision center staff
dedicated to BMW repairs based on the technician’s Dealer Enrollment Management System (DEMS) job classification will be required to meet the training standards established by BMW NA. The total number of dedicated and trained BMW technicians requiring training will be adjusted to take into account the CCRC’s BMW repair volume (in dollars) as a percent of its total repair volume. This same formula will also be taken into account for body shop estimators. Exceptions: ► SB011 GRAV Aluminum Repair: A minimum of 2 technicians per CCRC but at least 50% of body technicians based on repair volume; ► SB012 Level 3 Body Repair: A minimum of 2 technicians per CCRC but at least 50% of body technicians based on repair volume; ► SB018 Glass Repair and Replacement: A minimum of 1 technician per CCRC regardless of repair volume.
● Only those courses completed by associates or technicians who are regularly involved as part of their job description with physically performing body and paint repairs to BMW vehicles will count towards meeting the skill level requirements ● Technical training courses completed by managers, production coordinators, advisors, or other support staff members will not count towards certification requirements. ● Combination technicians will be treated as both body and paint technicians. ● Training completed by non-productive or support staff will not count towards certification requirements. Technician training course requirements are based on CORA job titles, which will be used to determine training requirements. It is imperative, then, that management lists the correct CORA job titles for associates and that Interactive Career Pathways (ICP)/ Dealer Enrollment Management System (DEMS) is updated on a regular basis. Please consult with your Regional Aftersales Development Manager (RADM) for more guidance. Improperly classifying technicians can severely impact a CCRC’s training requirements. It also affects an associate’s ability to log into CenterNet and DCSnet to research and obtain the most current repair information. It is in the CCRC’s best interest to regularly review and update
46 JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com
its ICP/RUA staff roster and make sure that associates have appropriate access to the BMW website. The CCRC’s training plan will be developed each year. A CCRC must then complete its training plan during the same calendar year (no later than December 31st). Adjustments to training plans may occur during the calendar year due to newly introduced training programs and/or changes to the CCRC’s technician count. Newly certified centers will receive a training plan at the on-site certification visit that will be pro-rated based on their certification date. A center’s progress towards completing their training plan is monitored regularly.
2011 BMW CCRC Program Tool, Equipment, and Materials Requirements Information Technology Requirements High speed internet service CenterNet access ICP administrative access ISIS/ISTA access on all terminals Separate computer terminal(s) for ISIS/ISTA access with printer located in or convenient to technicians that work in the metal shop Computerized estimating system
Frame/Unibody Alignment and Dimensioning System Any one of the following systems: Car Bench with dedicated or universal fixtures Car-O-Liner bench with Car-OTronic/Vision electronic measuring system with either EVO 1,2,3 or CarO-Flex universal fixture system, B66 or B76-77 side supports Celette bench with dedicated fixtures or NAJA electronic measuring system along with positioning tool NA.1000 Welding and Riveting Equipment Any one of the following Compression Resistance Spot Welders: Car-O-Liner CR600 Celette MIDIspot QSVM 9000 Elektron MI100 Control MIDIspot QSVM 1200 T
Wire Feed Welder: Approved MIG / GMAW welder Other Welding Equipment: Oxyacetylene torch Riveting and Bonding Equipment TKR Punch Riveting Tool Aluminum Repair Equipment Aluminum stud welder (Wielander & Schill Stud Welder BSP03) Powerbird stud/punch rivet extractor (PN 81430301745)
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Pyrosil flame coating kit (PN 81430301740) Dedicated aluminum hand tools consisting of body files, body hammers, body dollies, abrasive tools, and basic hand tools which are to be stored in their own, separate tool storage box. Curtain walls to separate aluminum work stalls, either portable or fixed with a minimum height of 8’. Hand or special tools (such as files, hammers, dollies, cutters, grinders, spoons, etc.) in sufficient quantities to properly repair vehicles dedicated to aluminum repair only must be marked as such.
Paint Shop Requirements Refinish Materials New CCRCs agree to purchase and use ColorSystem products for all repairs and refinish work performed on BMW Group vehicles at its collision repair location. As a reminder, any CCRC enrolled in the CCRC Program before October 10, 2007 has the opportunity to utilize Glasurit, Spies Hecker, or Standox in lieu of ColorSystem until their pre-existing paint contracts dated before October 10, 2007 expire. Once qualifying pre-existing paint contracts have expired,
conversion to ColorSystem must then occur to remain a part of the CCRC Program.
Spray Booth Down draft spray booth and oven must have the following minimum specifications: ●14,000 CFM (or higher) air flow capacity ●750,000 BTU (or higher) heating source Interior lighting system: 1200 LUX output, color corrected, with a Color Rendering Index of at least 96 CRI ●Three-stage air filtration system ●Air accelerators recommended for water-borne applications ●Refrigerant, desiccant, or membrane air filtration/drying unit The CCRC is responsible for ensuring that government regulations and restrictions are always followed in regards to paint application, storage and disposal. Please refer to your local EPA and OSHA guidelines. Thanks to Kenny Tran, BMW of North America, LLC, Body & Paint Technical Business Assistant and to Kevin Miller, BMW Concord Collision Center Manager for information herein.
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Texas Hail Storms Cause High Insured Losses It does not make drivers in Texas happy when they just get their car back from an auto body shop after getting repairs from the latest hail storm, only to have it damaged again as more baseball-size pieces of ice fall from the sky. Such is the case for some unlucky drivers in the Dallas area as two storm systems pummeled several cities in the area with hail ranging in size from a golf ball to a baseball. “We’ve had enough,” says Mark Hanna, spokesman for the Insurance Council of Texas (ICT). “Here we go with another high-loss event.” In April more than a dozen tornadoes ripped through the Dallas-Fort Worth area. ICT says insured losses from the tornadoes are estimated at $400 million. But the hail and wind storms on June 13 could produce higher insured losses. State Farm says it has already received 3,800 auto claims and expects that number to increase. “You’re talking about two systems with large hail hitting heavilypopulated areas,” Hanna says. “Everything got hit. The price of roofs hasn’t gotten any cheaper and neither have car repairs.” State Farm agent Stephanie South of Richardson, Texas says the Continued from Page 28
Birmingham Reacts
swirling around the program and State Farm’s attempt “to clear up perhaps some misinformation.” In the State Farm letter signed by Roger Mann, it stated: “Collision repairers must be profitable to provide the quality repairs on which our customers depend. At the same time, State Farm must act as an advocate for reasonable repair costs on behalf of all our customers. We believe repairer profitability and reasonably priced, quality repairs can both be achieved. “... We understand there are many factors associated with making part selection decisions. Pricing, availability, vehicle type, and supplier service levels are all important considerations. Our pilot acknowledges and respects existing relationships that repairers have with suppliers, including the confidentiality around margins and purchase prices. This new process keeps repairers in control of all part selection decisions. There are no requirements for repairers to use suppliers they don’t know or trust. Suppliers are invited to
morning after the hail storm was the busiest she has ever had. “When I got in, every line was ringing,” she says. Most claims are for heavily-damaged vehicles with shattered windows. Other policyholders are calling to seek advice about their home roofs. South says she is telling policyholders to mitigate future damages, especially for cars without windows, by putting the car in the garage or placing a tarp over the car. Hail the size of baseballs traveling at a high rate of speed from the sky is enough to break windshields and compromise the roofs of homes, leaving them susceptible to leaks. Vehicles traveling on the city’s highways when the hail started falling scrambled to find shelter under overpasses, which became crowded quickly, or on the sides of tractor-trailers, at least to shield some of the falling ice. “Other than that, you pull over and take your lumps,” Hanna says. Insurers have classified the June 13 storm as a catastrophe, meaning insurance adjusters from throughout the state are returning to Dallas to help with claims. “If they were headed home from the last storm, they’re headed back now,” Hanna says.
participate by their repairers and have an opportunity to compete on equal footing – putting their best price forward. Since it is widely accepted that open competition is at the heart of successful marketplaces, we aim to help by providing repairers with a more competitive and comprehensive parts marketplace,” the letter continued. Added Avery, “We thought it was imperative to reach out to all our Select Service shops, even though they aren’t in the test or pilot. They are obviously hearing a lot.” As the PartsTrader pilot continues in its four test markets, Avery reported that the four-week “feedback phase” phase started June 4 and comprises of State Farm representatives who will follow up with each repairer on the program to gather their feedback. The next phase will be the “evaluation phase” and the length of that stage will be determined by the amount and type of feedback State Farm receives from those shops testing the PartsTrader software application. Avery explained there will be “two portions” to the evaluation stage, how the process itself is working and recommendations on software changes.
www.autobodynews.com | JULY 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 47
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