January 2018 Southwestern Edition

Southwestern Sou uthwestern Edition E d i t i on Arizona Arkansas Colorado Louisiana

New Mexico Oklahoma Texas Utah

36

YEARS

VOL. 36 ISSUE 1 JANUARY 2018

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Industry Associations Pledge 2018 Resolutions

Year in Review: The Collision Repair Industry in 2017

Most folks view New Year’s Eve as a time to reflect on the recent year and make resolutions for the next as they strive to improve themselves or their lives.

Collision repair industry associations have also begun preparing for 2018 by beginning to focus on their goals for next year and how they can help their members, advance their organizations and improve the industry for everyone. Several association leaders shared their 2018 New Year’s Resolutions with Autobody News.

In 2017, a lot of associations focused on membership growth, bringing

Starting with the inauguration of the 45th President, moving on to the solar eclipse and three devastating hurricanes, 2017 has been a year to remember with many major changes impacting the United States.

The collision repair industry has continued to change as well, with evolving technology and raging legal battles, including the now-famous John Eagle lawsuit in Texas. Associations around the country offered a variety of educational opportunities through meetings and conferences, and as the New Year

by Chasidy Rae Sisk

educational value to members and pursuing legislative initiatives to improve the industry. Industry professionals can expect to see these endeavors continue into 2018, though industry leaders anticipate taking their efforts to new heights.

The Automotive Service Association (ASA) spent a great deal of this past year on legislative endeavors, and plans to continue these initiatives into the New Year.

ASA Executive Director Dan Risley shared, “ASA resolves to be represented, engaged and vocal in as many meetings, conferences, hearings, summits and alike in Washington D.C. and See Industry Associations, Page 22

“Replacement Demand” From Hurricane Harvey Overhyped Says Industry Analyst

by Wolf Richter, Seeking Alpha

units for the year through July, despite record incentives, historically low interest rates, and muscular all-encompassing marketing. The industry’s

The total damage Hurricane Harvey inflicted on parts of Texas, particularly the vast Houston area, may never be See Houston Auto Sales, Page 12 fully known. In terms of vehicles, the estimates were all over the place. But one thing is known: Before the flood waters had even begun to recede, the entire industry was salivating over that huge “replacement demand.”

This would come just in the nick of time, as total new vehicle sales in the US had already fallen by about 300,000 Houston-area auto sales rise, but not nearly enough

by Chasidy Rae Sisk

crept up on us, Autobody News spoke with several association leaders about the best and most memorable things they did in 2017.

From getting associations off the ground to establishing a broader member base, several associations focused on growth this year.

Stephen Regan, Executive Director of ASA-MA/RI, shared, “The most memorable thing ASA-MA/RI has done in 2017 is open its doors.

We have brought back to the region an entity dedicated solely to the advancement of collision and mechaniSee Year in Review, Page 16

Happy New Year! from all of us at Autobody News

Leading Auto Body Associations and Consumer Group Meet With Texas DOI on Safety Concerns A delegation, including members of the Auto Body Association of Texas (ABAT), the Houston Auto Body Association (HABA), and Texas Watch, a statewide consumer group, met with high-level compliance and consumer protection staff at the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) to discuss abusive insurance industry practices and how they illegally reduce coverage and threaten Texans’ safety.

The recent $42 million verdict by a Dallas jury to a catastrophically injured couple for damages caused by unsafe automobile repairs has refocused attention on the safety of the Texas motoring public. The delegation discussed common pressure tactics used by the insurance companies when contesting repairs that must be made to return the vehicle to a safe condition. Among the range of topics discussed, the group also raised the

issue of how insurers wrongly steer Texans to body shops with whom they have a pre-existing commercial relationship.

Burl Richards, President of ABAT, stated: “Reimbursing shops the same based on a ‘prevailing’ rate and not taking into consideration the difference in the investment of individual shop’s commitment to training, equipment and certifications is out of touch with reality. You cannot continue to repair today’s technologically advanced vehicles the way you did even 3 or 5 years ago. You must research and follow the OEM recommended processes and procedures.

“When the insurance company is dictating repair methodology based on ‘profits,’ then the consumer is put at risk. If consumer safety and proper repairs that restore vehicles as close as See Meeting with TDI, Page 6

Change Service Requested

P.O. BOX 1516, CARLSBAD, CA 92018

Presorted Standard US Postage PAID San Bernardino, CA Permit #2244

2 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

REGIONAL

Antonelli - Louisiana Native Pursues Love of Cars, Collision Repair at TX High

School. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Austin-area Auto Sales Bounce Back

in 3rd Quarter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Body Shops Impacted by Summer

2017 Hail Storm in TX . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Charlton Auto Body in TX Is Going

Strong After 80 Years. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Gerber Collision & Glass Opens Second

Shops Deliver Proper, Safe Repairs . . . 38

Yoswick - Database Enhancement Gateway

Got its Start 10 Years Ago . . . . . . . . . . 34

Yoswick - Recent ‘Who Pays for What?’

Survey Looks at Scanning, Frame,

Mechanical Operations. . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

NATIONAL

33 Months Jailtime For Embezzlement in North Central MN, Funds Used to

Support Car Restoration Hobby . . . . . . 33

Location in Glenwood Springs, CO . . . . 18

Auto Care Association Announces New

Advertising Drive Truck Interest . . . . . . 59

AWDA Announces New Leadership With

Consumer Group Meet With Texas

BASF Customer Andrew Lee and Driven To

Hurricane Vehicle Replacements, Increased Leading Auto Body Associations and

DOI on Safety Concerns. . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Director, Data and Innovation . . . . . . . . 56

Three Officer Appointments . . . . . . . . . 59

Cure Receive State Of Maryland Award . 56

Police Investigate Suspicious Vehicle

CIC Seeks Input on Issues, Value of

Replacement Demand From Hurricane

CIECA Calls for 2018 Speakers . . . . . . . . 56

Harvey Overhyped Says Industry Analyst . 1

Service King Contributes $35,000 to

2017 Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

I-CAR, ASE Present Annual Master

Technician Award. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Singleton Moms of Phoenix, AZ . . . . . . . 6

Industry Associations Pledge Their

Acquires Perkins Paint & Collision . . . . . 6

Live Oak Bank Announces New Lending

Service King Expands CO Springs Footprint, Service King Opens 23rd Houston, TX,

Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

2018 Resolutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Segment for the Automotive Care

Industry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Service King Opens 36th Dallas-Fort Worth,

Mike Orso Speaks on Nationwide and

Service King Raises $125,000 for DFW, TX,

Mitchell 1 Has Enhanced Its Information

Service King San Antonio Raises $30,000

Polyvance Releases New Headlight Tab

Vulnerable Traffic Systems’ Focus on

Replacement Demand From Hurricane

TX, Repair Center. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Charities Ahead of Holiday Season. . . . 15

for Families of Fallen First Responders . . 9

San Antonio Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

COLUMNISTS

Attanasio - Former Body Shop Owner

Progressive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Repair Online Training Course . . . . . . . 56 Harvey Overhyped . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Six Detroit Cops Charged With Extortion for Taking Bribes From Repair Shop

Owners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Invents Photo Estimating App. . . . . . . . 28

SVP of BASF Coatings Discusses Changes

Owner Gets his ‘I Told You So’ Moment . 36

Tesla Strikes New Partnership with

American Honda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Universal Technical Institute Names Jerome

Standardizing in the 1920’s . . . . . . . . . 32

Warning: Key Fob System Hack for

Certification Program, Repair Procedures

Year in Review: The Collision Repair

Attanasio - Wreck Check Car Scan Centers Ledoux - OE Shop Certification Programs Ledoux - Training, Certifying and

Phillips - Audi Discusses Car Manufacturer’s

& Training for Collision Repairers . . . . . 46

Phillips - Mitchell Products Created to Help

Publisher & Editor: Jeremy Hayhurst General Manager: Barbara Davies Contributing Writers: John Yoswick, Janet Chaney, Toby Chess, Ed Attanasio, Chasidy Sisk, David Luehr, Stacey Phillips, Victoria Antonelli, Gary Ledoux Advertising Sales: Joe Momber, Sean Hartman, Bill Doyle, Norman Morano (800) 699-8251 Office Manager: Louise Tedesco Digital Marketing Manager: Bill Pierce Art Director: Rodolfo Garcia Graphic Designer: Michelle Lucas Online and Web Content Editor: Rochelle Beckel Accounting Manager: Heather Priddy Editorial/Sales Assistant: Randi Scholtes

Indexof Advertisers

Fire in CO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Ahead for Collision Industry . . . . . . . . . 44

OCC’s Auto Tech Program . . . . . . . . . . 23

Grant as Chief Operating Officer . . . . . . 48

Thieves to Steal Your Car . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Industry in 2017 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

further in August, with sales down 12.3 percent from the same month the previous year, according to Freeman Auto Report data.

The September bounce-back for Austin-area auto sales mirrored a national trend, as total U.S. auto sales rose 6.1 percent for the month with 1.52 million vehicles sold, according to Autodata Corp. The three largest auto sellers in the U.S. —General Motors, Ford and Toyota—saw sales rise during the month by 11.8 percent,14.9 percent and 8.9 percent, respectively.

The hurricanes that hit Texas and Florida salvaged many cars and created the need to replace them, industry experts say. That factor is likely to remain in place through the end of the year, adding, according to research firm Evercore ISI. In the Austin market, the top selling brand through the end of the third quarter was Ford, which sold a combined 13,554 new vehicles — 6,975 trucks and 6,579 cars — in that period, according to Freeman Auto Report data.

Close behind was Chevrolet, which sold a combined 13,384 new vehicles — 7,587 cars and 5,797 trucks — through the end of the third quarter, according to Freeman Auto Report data.

A Few Old Shops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Ancira Volkswagen . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Audi South Austin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Audi Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 49 AutoNation Chevrolet . . . . . . . . . . . 51 AutoNation Chrysler-Dodge-JeepRam NRH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 AutoNation Chrysler-Jeep-DodgeRam of North Phoenix. . . . . . . . . . 8 Bill Luke Chrysler-Dodge-JeepRam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 BMW Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 43 Bob Howard PDC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Certified Automotive Parts Association (CAPA). . . . . . . . . . . 19 Chapman Chevrolet . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 ChemSpec USA, LLC . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Chevyland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Classic BMW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 Dallas Dodge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Dent Magic Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Dominion Sure Seal . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Don Carlton Auto Group . . . . . . . . . 26 ECS Automotive Concepts . . . . . . . 16 Equalizer Industries, Inc . . . . . . . . . 23 Finnegan Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge . . . . 2 Flatirons Subaru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Ford Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 53 GM Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . 57 Greeley Subaru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Serving Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico, Arkansas, Colorado, Arizona, Utah and adjacent metro areas. Autobody News is a monthly publication for the autobody industry. Permission to reproduce in any form the material published in Autobody News must be obtained in writing from the publisher. ©2018 Adamantine Media LLC. Autobody News Box 1516, Carlsbad, CA 92018 (800) 699-8251 (760) 603-3229 Fax www.autobodynews.com editor@autobodynews.com

Southwest

Contents

Austin-area Auto Sales Bounce Back in 3rd Quarter

Led by a strong September, Austin-area auto dealers enjoyed a sales bounce in the third quarter that pushed local auto sales ahead of the previous year’s sales pace.

Austin-area auto dealers sold 14,333 new vehicles in September, a 17 percent increase over the same month in 2016, according to Freeman Auto Report, a Dallas-based service that tracks auto sales in Bastrop, Blanco, Burnet, Caldwell, Hays, Travis and Williamson counties.

The strong September sales helped dealers close out the quarter ahead of last year’s sales pace. At the end of the third quarter, Austin-area dealers had sold 98,138 new vehicles this year, according to Freeman Auto Report. That is a 1.5 percent increase over the first three quarters of 2016, according to Freeman Auto Report data.

The September sales also reversed a mid-year slide in Austin-area auto sales. After strong sales in January and February, sales of new vehicles skidded a bit. Sales from March through June were all lower than the same months from a year ago, with June seeing a 4.7 percent decline from the previous June. The numbers dropped even

GYS Welding USA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Honda-Acura Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30-31 Hyundai Wholesale Parts Dealers. . 55 Insta Finish Car Care . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Island Clean Air, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Kia Motors Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Lusid Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Mazda Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 54 Mike Calvert Toyota. . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Mitsubishi Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 MOPAR Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 35 North Freeway Hyundai . . . . . . . . . 40 Original One Parts™ . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Ray Huffines Chevrolet . . . . . . . . . . 39 Robaina Industries, Inc . . . . . . . . . . 41 SATA Dan-Am Company . . . . . . . . 11 South Pointe Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge. 15 Spanesi Americas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Subaru of Little Rock . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Subaru Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 47 Symach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Toyota of Laredo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Toyota Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 52 Volkswagen Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Wizards Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Young Chevrolet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 3

Techs Teach Disadvantaged Youth How to Restore Classics Through NV Nonprofit

by Victoria Antonelli

Volunteers from the collision repair and mechanical industry are teaching disadvantaged youth how to refurbish classic cars through a nonprofit organization called Team Restorations.

fle or auction of the project car to donate back into our community, was formed. I saw a car go through the Barret Jackson auction a few years ago and it was for a charity. It auctioned for much, much more than the car was actually worth, so it inspired me years

(l to r) Manny – Teen Challenge counselor; Teen Challenge Students – Jake, Clay, Justin, Andrew, Sebastian, Silas; Michael – Teen Challenge counselor; Ryan – Teen Challenge counselor; Chris Devine – Team Restorations, Vice President; Lanny Backes – Team Restorations, President; Kelly Enget – Volunteer, shop owner “Engines by Enget”

Incorporated in Reno, NV, in June 2017 by Lanny Backes, Team Restorations plans to eventually auction off the finished hot rods and muscle cars before donating the proceeds to those in need. Autobody News reached out to Backes to learn more.

1. What is your background, and why did you decide to start Team Restorations?

I spent 20 years in the commercial airline parts industry as a broker of parts, engines and aircrafts. In my 20s, I made a lot of money, and knew from that experience that it took more than just money to make me happy. My grandfather used to tell me, “Find something you love to do, and you’ll never have to work a day in your life,” and that kept coming to mind. Plus, there were much fewer opportunities making their way to the brokering sector. This forced me to make a decision on whether to stay in or begin looking for other work. I also severely damaged my lumbar spine, which affected my abilities. I had it surgically repaired/fused in February this year. I’m still recovering, but overall am at least able to walk a little better now.

I had a little exposure to some nonprofit organizations here in Reno through When Charity Works, and they inspired me to explore what I could do for the community with my own nonprofit. Eventually, the idea of working with youth and teaching them the skills involved in restoring classic cars, and then utilizing the proceeds from the raf-

later to try and use this medium to raise capital for charities in our community.

2. Why automobile restoration?

I’ve always been interested in classic cars, specifically muscle cars. My first car was a Volkswagen Beetle. I did a lot of work on that car [to make] it into a “Baja Bug” that my friends and I rode around the Arizona desert in for fun. When I was 15, my dad bought a ‘72 Chevelle that needed some work done. I later wound up with that ‘72 Chevelle and by the time I was done with it, it looked like a true SS and was a ticket-getter! I knew I enjoyed turning wrenches, and I always wanted to learn auto body and paint to round it out. I worked in a body shop for a few months about seven years ago as a way to learn the process. Three years ago, I did a complete color change paint job on my Toyota truck. I knew then that doing that type of work as a career was beyond my physical capabilities, but I really enjoyed doing it!

3. What types of projects do you do?

We do complete frame-off restorations and resto mods on all of our projects.

Besides refurbishing hot rods and muscle cars, we have built into our business plan a program that takes low-cost, economical family-type vehicles in on donation, and does necessary refurbishments to make them dependable, reliable, nice-looking daily drivers.

They can then be used in a program that gets cars to families in need. We

4 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

plan to complete a couple of cars per year for this.

4. How many people work for the organization / how many volunteers do you have?

Currently, no one is officially on payroll with Team Restorations. I have a few guys who will eventually become full-time in the organization, and as we grow we hope to be able to expand into new communities and offer jobs to some of our interns who come up through the program. Presently, we have four volunteers who are professional mechanics and/or auto body and paint technicians.

interns, we will have to remain fairly closed [off from] taking anyone not in these existing programs. It is my hope that we can open up the program to offer opportunities to more young adults, but it will require a larger facility with more space, equipment and tooling, as well as staff.

For volunteers, any professional repair and maintenance technicians interested in working with our youth and leading them in restoration is encouraged to contact us so that we can discuss the program with them further and figure out a good fit for them.

7. What do the volunteers have to complete during a typical project?

The project cars are completely disas5. What are the backgrounds / age sembled by the interns, and all parts are demographic of the volunteers and properly inventoried for the reassembly interns?

The volunteers (teachers) we have up process. The body repairs include typito this point range [in age] from mid- cal dent repairs, filler application and 30s to about 50. We have a paint pro block sanding prep. Cutting and weldfrom Coachcraft Auto Body, an engine ing replacement panels and floor pans builder from Engines by Enget, an will be taught to and performed by inASE-certified master mechanic from terns as well. Primer and paint applicaTires Plus and a couple of restoration tion and finish are also going to be specialists from Classic Rod Shop. I taught and performed by all interns. will be soliciting help from more shops Along with the body, paint and interior once we [become] more established. work, we will also be teaching engine and drivetrain, suspension and brakes, and electrical as we completely go through each restoration. Once an intern has been through a couple of complete projects, they will have good resume material for getting jobs within the auto body repair and paint industry. At the very least, they should be able to find an apprentice poThe “interns” typically refurbish classic cars and hot rods sition. We will also be funding Our interns (students) are all a scholarship program for those who young adults ranging [in age] from 14 want to further their formal education to early 20s. The interns come from a and training. completely varied background and demographic. However, most would fall 8. Do you have partnerships with under the “at-risk youth” classification, collision repair-related businesses? meaning their situations have put all of We do have some partnerships forming them in compromising positions at with local companies like Sierra Invisisome point, so they aren’t in the mainble Shield, Coachcraft Auto Body, Classtream of other peer students. sic Rod Shop, Tires Plus, Engines by Enget, Hot August Nights and MAG Auto Auctions. We still have needs for 6. How can others get involved?

The three organizations we are working tooling, equipment and cash donations, with—Teen Challenge, The Children’s as well as project cars and trucks. We Cabinet and Inspire Academy—are the also haven’t yet made a decision and aconly organizations [from which] we tivated an insurance policy. Since those have interns coming into the program run annually with payment in advance, at this point. Until we have the ability we have been holding off until we are to field more projects, and have more ready to begin working in the shop. volunteers and staff to lead the student See Techs Teach, Page 9

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 5

Service King Contributes $35,000 to Singleton Moms of Phoenix, AZ

Service King Collision Repair Centers®, with the help of its Phoenix, AZ, teammates, recently presented a donation in the amount of $35,000 to Singleton Moms as part of the organization’s ongoing Service King Cares initiative.

The contribution, made possible through the efforts of the fourth annual Service King of Phoenix Charity Golf Tournament, continues the company’s longtime partnership with Singleton Moms—an organization that supports single parents facing advanced stages of cancer.

“The partnership with Service King over the last four years has been instrumental in our growth as an organization,” said Jody Farley, Executive Director of Singleton Moms. “In fact, we are moving into a larger facility now that will help us further our mission, and I know that Service King Continued from Cover

Meeting with TDI

humanly possible back to their ‘preloss’ condition is put in front of profits, then everything else will take care of itself.”

John Kopriva, President of HABA, stated: “Repair industry overview reveals that too often repairs are being made based on ‘profit’ and not on consumer safety and restoring vehicles to their pre-loss condition.

Technological advances in vehicle manufacture utilizing onboard computerized systems are a fact of life.

“Many shops are far behind and don’t know what they should know; training and capital investment in equipment are not keeping up. Insurers continue to push back by refusing to follow OEM procedures, P-page logic and mandating repairs by unskilled appraisers. Refusal to compensate fairly and hiding behind ‘prevailing rate,’ the over-use of salvage, aftermarket and reconditioned parts is out of control and drastically needs to change.

“The time has come for our industry to stand up and make some

has played a big role in that for us.”

The tournament, hosted at Eagle Mountain Golf Club on Oct. 27, attracted more than 140 golfers from around the Phoenix area in support of the organization. Throughout its four-year history, donations from the Service King Phoenix Charity Golf Tournaments have totaled more than $115,000 for the Singleton Moms organization.

“The Service King family is privileged to join hands with a great organization like Singleton Moms,” said Ryan Downs, Service King Market Vice President. “The impact they make across the Phoenix community is profound. It’s our hope [that] this small token of our appreciation of their work furthers their mission to help single parents and their families battling cancer.”

Through regular local volunteer efforts across the country, Service King Cares contributed more than $750,000 to nearly 100 nonprofit organizations in 2016. The company is also a longtime partner with the National Breast Cancer Foundation and National Auto Body Council’s Recycled Rides initiative, which provides vehicles to families in need.

tough decisions to balance insurance and shop cooperation. Consumer safety and adherence to quality repairs should be at the top of the list.”

Ware Wendell, Executive Director of Texas Watch, stated: “Texans have the right to choose the body shop that will repair their vehicle. They should shop around, check out repair facilities’ qualifications, and make sure repairs are made using high-quality parts and proper procedures. Insurance companies care only about their bottom line. Insurance schemes designed to cut their costs can cost your family its life if an unsafe car is put back on the road.”

The delegation will continue to document insurance company abuses for TDI and is calling on the state regulator to mount an investigation into abusive insurance practices and to take enforcement action where indicated.

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6 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Service King Expands CO Springs Footprint, Acquires Perkins Paint & Collision

Service King Collision Repair Centers® recently announced the company is expanding its service in the Colorado Springs area.

The announcement comes as the organization closed on terms to acquire Perkins Paint and Collision— a division of Perkins Motors.

The deal officially closed Friday, Dec. 1, with operations of Perkins Paint and Collision, located at 2025 Sheldon Ave. in Colorado Springs, transitioning to Service King immediately. The 30,000-square-foot facility provides Service King the capacity to repair up to 300 vehicles per month in addition to its three existing collision repair centers in the market.

“This is another exciting move for the Service King family as we continue our mission of serving as the collision repair operator of choice for our customers and business partners,” said Clayton Geisendorff, Service King Market Director. “As part of that growth strategy, Service King looks to premier teams for partnership opportunities. Perkins Paint and Collision, with its history of quality service to the community, certainly fits that mold.

David Perkins and his team have built a best-in-class reputation and we look

forward to continuing that tradition in the future as one Service King family.”

With the deal, Service King continues its quick growth across the Colorado Springs area after opening its first location in the market in May. Today, the company operates four conveniently located Colorado Springs locations and an overall network of 332 repair centers in 24 states across the U.S. Service King provides all customers a written lifetime warranty on all repair work, valid at any of its locations.

“Perkins Motors has been committed to providing its customers with outstanding vehicle choices and market-leading customer service since 1945,” said David Perkins, Perkins Motors President. “With this decision to sell our body shop to national service leader Service King, our team will now have the ability to further focus on what we have done best since my grandfather founded the organization: providing people in the Pikes Peak Region with the best options in cars, trucks, SUVs and service in the region. We are excited about today’s announcement and look forward to leveraging our additional bandwidth to focus on our core business.”

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 7

Vulnerable Traffic Systems’ Focus on San Antonio Project

by Paul Flahive, Texas Public Radio

Your morning commute is guided by invisible forces in the form of sensors, electronic traffic signs and lights.

As complex traffic systems become more and more integrated, the potential for traffic-fueled calamity increases, say cyber security experts.

In May of 2016, drivers in Dallas woke up to a strange sight: Someone had hacked a number of roadside Texas Department of Transportation signs and put in its own message about then-candidate Donald Trump.

“Donald Trump is a shape shifting lizard!!” read the sign. Dallas drivers were unscathed by the stunt that made the rounds on social media.

But some questioned whether that roadside sign had been warning people that a road was closed that wasn’t. What if they made all the lights in the city red?

This isn’t a theoretical question for Allen Hillaker. In 2014, he and a few of his classmates at the University of Michigan proved just how real it could be.

“As soon as we got onto the network, we had control of any traffic light that was connected,” he said.

“They partnered with an undisclosed

local government and it opened their eyes to just how vulnerable those traffic systems were.

“Just about everything that was deployed, default username and passwords were in use, which meant anyone with a little bit of Google knowledge, and knowledge of the manufacturer of the device would be

Credit: Chris Eudaily / TPR News

able to log in, if they could find a connection.”

The city they hacked didn’t use WiFi, but a special kind of point-topoint radio system, so the team had to use an extra set of the radios to hack in.

Some traffic systems are centrally controlled, while others let lights and

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sensors work autonomously. Some use wireless radios to network, while some use Ethernet. And some aren’t connected at all. And with hundreds of vendors and few standards, cities can configure traffic systems in a lot of different ways.

For instance, according to Dan Zajac at Southwest Research Institute, Texas systems can do some traffic routing; they control live camera feeds, but don’t connect to stop lights. The big problem is that traffic centers are slow to adopt cyber security.

“Some are doing very little. Some are doing quite a bit. And the whole idea is to try and level-set across the nation. Try to figure out how we can help the small people that don’t have huge amounts of budgets and dedicated people and staff,” Zajac said.

Zajac is principal investigator on the project, hoping to help secure these systems. They just got $750,000 from the Transportation Research Board to create a tool that tells traffic planners across the country what to do with what systems.

“Basically, the end product is

going to be a web-based tool that will allow the user to log into the system and then go through an inventory checklist of equipment they have, systems they have—network topology,” Zajac said.

Think of it like an online recipe generator, he said. You put in the ingredients you have (or in this case, the types of traffic system hardware you have), and the computer spits out instructions on what to do to get secure.

These kinds of hacks take some time and the payoff isn’t huge, said Allen Hillaker, a cyber security consultant. He questioned how popular a target these systems are currently, but with automated cars on the horizon, smart, networked infrastructure is going to play a bigger and bigger role, Hillaker added.

“From what we saw, it sounded like the bare minimum is a good starting point,” he said.

Southwest Research has partnered with Austin-based cyber security firm Praetorian on the project. It is funded for two years.

We thank Texas Public Radio for reprint permission.

www.autobodynews.com

Service King San Antonio Raises $30,000 for Families of Fallen First Responders

Service King Collision Repair Centers®, as part of the organization’s continued dedication to enriching local communities, recently presented a donation in the amount of $30,000 to The 100 Club of San Antonio. The donation, made possible through the ongoing Service King Cares initiative and contributions raised

from Service King’s sixth annual San Antonio Charity Golf Tournament, was officially presented on Monday, Nov. 13.

The tournament took place at Fair Oaks Ranch in San Antonio, TX, and saw more than 150 golfers in attendance. The 100 Club is a local, citizen-based organization vdedicated to raising funds for families of fallen first responders across the community. “The 100 Club of San Antonio is most appreciative of the sincere generosity of Service King and their partners,” said Richard Miller, President of The 100 Club of San Antonio.

“This significant donation will further our mission to serve the children and families of our fallen first responders in providing financial assistance within 24 hours of a loss and assisting with higher education needs for their children.” The $30,000 donation came after the San Antonio community lost two local law enforcement officers and one local firefighter in the line of duty this year.

With the help of The 100 Club, proceeds raised from the event will directly support families of fallen heroes.

“The Service King family is honored to present this small token of our deep appreciation for The 100 Club of San Antonio,” said Jason Peel, Service King Market Vice President for South Texas.

“It’s our hope [that] these proceeds further the mission of serving children and family members of fallen first responders across the community.” In the six-year history of the Service King San Antonio Charity Golf Tournament, the organization has raised more than $190,000 for local nonprofit organizations such as The 100 Club. Service King, one of the nation’s fastest-growing and most trusted providers of high-quality automotive repair service, operates 11 locations in the San Antonio area and more than 300 repair centers in 24 states nationwide.

Continued from Page 4

Techs Teach

9. Anything else you’d like our readers to know?

I want to thank Aaron Valencia of Lost Angels Children’s Project in Lancaster, CA, for his inspiration and also for leading the way in his community.

I found Aaron in May this year while trying to find other companies doing what Team Restorations plans to accomplish, and I believe Aaron is the only other one in the country! When we spoke over the phone, his enthusiasm for what we were getting ready to launch was awesome, and seeing his success helped us know that it could truly be done.

Most of the owners of classic cars today are either baby boomers or their children, and Team Restorations aims to pass the torch on to the millennials with the hope that we can help keep these cars alive well into the future. How else can we keep the love for these cars alive if we don’t create the passion within them from an early age?

Contact Lanny Backes at lanny@ team restorations.org.

Mike Orso Speaks on Nationwide and Progressive New York’s Second Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed the decision of a lower court, ruling that Nick’s Garage in Syracuse, NY, had presented sufficient evidence to defeat summary judgment as it related to its allegations against Nationwide and Progressive in two separate cases.

The court’s reversal was based on it finding that the insurers may have committed deceptive practices and breached contracts with customers through their failure to pay sufficient amounts on repair claims. Although the court has not yet made a final finding, it determined the shop had provided enough evidence to proceed to trial.

Originally, both cases (Nick’s Garage, Inc. v. Progressive and Nick’s Garage, Inc. v. Nationwide) were dismissed due to lack of evidence, but the court determined that the insurers failed to prove that Nick’s Garage could not support its claims and also examined some of the shop’s evidence, presenting several findings that could significantly impact the future of the collision repair industry.

To read more search “Mike Orso” at autobodynews.com.

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 9

Service King Opens 23rd Houston, TX, Location

Service King Collision Repair Centers® recently announced the opening of a new Houston, TX, location.

The repair center officially opened for business Wednesday, Dec. 6 at 8943 Gulf Frwy in Houston, and continues the organization’s ongoing national growth strategy.

With the new repair center, Service King grows to 23 Houston locations and a total of 334 locations in 24 states across the U.S. The Richardson, Texas-based company opened its first Houston location in 2008.

“This is another proud step in our continuous growth across the Houston community,” said Justin Regan, Service King’s Houston Market Vice President. “We are certainly proud of this new location and look forward to providing our longtime Houston customers and business partners with an expanded lineup of high-quality collision repair centers.”

The 27,000+ square-foot facility provides Service King the additional capacity to repair about 200 vehicles per month. Meanwhile, the location has been custom designed and outfitted to suit Service King’s high-quality repair operations, and will now employ about 35 teammates.

Charlton Auto Body in TX Is Going Strong After 80 Years

by Donna Hill, Fort Bend Star

Chuck Charlton of Charlton Auto Body in Stafford, TX, understands customers and treats them like family.

The foundation for the success of Charlton Auto Body has always been its focus on the customer, and it’s been that way for three generations.

“My grandfather, E.C. Charlton, moved to Stafford in 1950, opened up the business in 1951, and later named the company Charlton’s Garage and Auto Sales. In 1970 my dad, Johnny Mack, took over the company. When he retired in 1982, I took over,” Charlton said.

Chuck kept the same phone number and business name, and built “Charlton Auto Body into what it is today.”

It’s been 24 years in a very active auto business, focusing on collision and insurance work.

“If you wreck your car, that’s the kind of work we do—fix any damage.

We’ve repaired them clear up to the value of the cars, so we’ve seen it all.

And we work on all vehicles,” he said.

As a successful small businessman in Stafford, Charlton is firmly

established in the industry, yet has no plans for expanding the business.

“I like to keep the business small so I can keep an eye on all aspects of the company,” he said.

Charlton is candid about car tips after a collision.

“Number one, insurance companies try and get you to go to shops that work for them. I tell everybody that you don’t have to work with shops that work with insurance companies. Most are so big, and they don’t have the hands-on experience we have here at Charlton’s. I tell people you have the right to [go to] the body shop of your choice. We have a great customer database and a lot of customers, and most of our work is [through] word-of-mouth,” he said.

He stays away from cars during the weekend, but talks to customers over the phone if they need him.

Advertise in our CLASSIFIED SECTION for $50 per column inch!

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Police Investigate Suspicious Vehicle Fire in CO

Ellis Thompson-Ellis said fire crews quickly brought the fire under The Grand Junction, CO, Police control.

Department is investigating a car The fire is considered suspifire that was reported outside an cious and the investigation is onauto body shop in the 800 block of going, Davidson said.

South Seventh Street the morning A woman who works at the of Dec. 5, according to a depart- shop, Schausten’s Auto Body & Paint, said her boyfriend was at the shop’s office when the fire started. He ran outside and saw somebody running away from the car, said the woman, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.

“One of them had the gas can on fire and (was) running with it,” said the woman, who These charred remains are all that's left of the interior said she was also at of a Chevy Malibu after a suspicious fire at Schausten’s the shop and ran outAuto Body & Paint in Grand Junction, CO. The fire is side when she heard under investigation. Credit: Chancey Bush her boyfriend yelling. ment spokeswoman.

“Flames were shooting everyThe Grand Junction Fire De- where… I’m just glad my car [didpartment responded to a car fire at n’t catch] on fire.”

4:01 a.m. Dec. 5 outside an auto We thank The Daily Sentinel body shop at 814 S. Seventh St., ac- for reprint permission. cording to police spokeswoman Heidi Davidson.

Fire department spokeswoman www.autobodynews.com

by Gabrielle Porter, The Daily Sentinel

10 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

After discussing any damage issues, Charlton said, “I really don’t recommend customers take the car to the storage lot. Tow it to the house and I’ll get it out the next morning.”

Instead of tinkering with cars in his spare time, Charlton enjoys taking trips to Mexico. It’s one of his favorite fast vacation getaways.

“We can get there in two hours,” he said.

He’s happy to note that customer satisfaction is the key to the success of the family business of Charlton’s Auto Body.

“Our customers are not just a name and a number here, you know.

We become friends with them, too,” he said. “Bring your car to Charlton’s, where you’re treated as family and not just another customer.”

We thank Fort Bend Star for reprint permission.

ltedesco@autobodynews.com

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 11

Continued from Cover

Houston Auto Sales

elements on Wall Street propagated the idea that post-Harvey “replacement demand” would boost auto sales in 2017, turn the year around, and possibly create another record year, with more booming sales in 2018.

The estimates I have come across at the time ranged from 300,000 vehicles at the low end to over 600,000 vehicles that would need to be replaced. Much of this replacement demand would occur over the remaining months in 2017 and early 2018. These sales would be so big that they would boost US sales overall to new highs.

But now the first real numbers are emerging. Turns out even the lowend estimates of replacement demand were too high, and all that salivation over the projected sales boom based on the larger estimates was wasted.

Harvey-based sales increases of new vehicles are real, but they won’t be able to pull out 2017 unit sales.

New vehicle sales in the Houston metro, battered by the oil bust, had already plunged to Financial Crisis levels before the hurricane. In the 12 months through July, dealers sold 284,000 new vehicles, down 25% from the levels in late 2015 and early 2016, according to TexAuto Facts, published by InfoNation at the time.

Hurricane Harvey brought sales to a halt in late August, and new vehicle sales plunged 45.5% from the already beaten down levels last year to just 15,473 vehicles for the month.

In September, the first few days of sales were essentially zero. But then dealerships reopened and the mad scramble began, and in the remaining days of the month, Houston-area dealers sold an astonishing 28,246 vehicles, up 22% from the beaten-down levels a year earlier. The rolling 12month total, at 277,621 vehicles, was still down 10% from the same period a year earlier.

In October, Houston-area new vehicle sales spiked 31.6% year-overyear to 33,211 units. It was a huge increase. Dealers were red-hot. But it wasn’t enough. During the 12 months through October, dealers sold 285,604 vehicles, still down 6.3% from the beaten-down levels a year earlier.

“Demand for replacement vehicles in the aftermath of Harvey has caused sales to spike since August, though the short-term rebound is unlikely to reverse the overall downward trend,” said InfoNation at the time.

Today, TexAuto Facts released the November sales data, published by InfoNation, cited by the Greater Houston Partnership: New Vehicle sales in the Houston-area jumped 35.4% yearover-year to 30,670 vehicles. It was huge for a November. Compared to 2015, before the oil bust collided with the auto industry head-on, November 2017 sales were up 25%! The rolling 12-month total, at 293,614 vehicles, was still down 3.1% from the financial-crisis levels a year earlier (chart by the Greater Houston Partnership, red marks added): These are booming sales by any

Body Shops Impacted by Summer Hail Storm in TX

by Eric Onyechefule, News West 9

It’s been a few months, but auto body shops are still tied up with vehicles that have been damaged by hail storms.

Some shops are now freeing up space to help with other vehicle issues.

“It’s been pretty crazy this year,” said Nicole Bill, administrative assistant at Reliable Collision Body Shop.

You hear that—auto body shops locally are agreeing in unison.

“Oh wow, we just barely got through the end of our hail storm claims that were severe,” Bill said.

Still busy, Reliable Collision Body Shop in Midland, TX, is one of the few that can see the light at the end of the tunnel going into 2018.

“We were used to kicking out jobs, no matter what it was, within

nine business days. Once the hail storms came in, it pushed us back between 14–18 business days, and the severity of it, we were talking 30–45 business days,” Bill said.

Fixing some vehicles was easier than fixing others.

“It was a very hard year to get a lot of parts in for [Dodges],” Bill said.

Looking forward, the shop will do what it can to help others.

“We’re not going to take in too much, but we’re going to take in [more vehicles] to help out, make sure we’re keeping everyone coming and going, and we’re helping out our family and friends around here,” said Bill.

And hope for a smooth ride next year.

We thank News West 9 for reprint permission.

12 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

standard, a big breath of fresh air for Houston dealers, but just not enough to meet the prior estimates of replacement demand that were hoped to pull out the rest of the nation’s auto sales.

InfoNation, whose estimates of replacement demand had already been at the very low end of the spectrum, put it this way in its report: InfoNation estimates that Harvey replacements account for 26,600 of the 92,127 new vehicles sold since the start of September. The DMV counted 175,102 flood damaged vehicles through the end of November. Though that number will likely continue to rise, it may signal that the scope of damage was less than the 300,000 vehicles previously estimated.

Initially, InfoNation had estimated that replacement demand would create an additional 75,000 new-vehicle sales over the five months from September 2017 through January 2018. Given that only 26,600 replacement vehicles were sold over the first three of those five months, the replacement demand will likely fall far short of the 75,000 vehicles through January estimated earlier.

And there’s more, according to InfoNation: Sales of used vehicles ac-

tually dropped from a white-hot 83,000 in October to 62,500 in November. The replacement boom is already fading.

In other words, sales at dealers in the hurricane-affected areas are booming. And dealers are busy and are loving it, but it’s just not enough to overcome the downturn in auto sales in the rest of the nation, and even those effects are beginning to fade.

Nationwide through November, industry sales are 232,600 new vehicles behind the same period last year.

In order to end the year 2017 flat with 2016, new vehicles sales in December in the US would have to surge by 13.8% year-over-year, an impossibly large nut to crack. The industry will be lucky to not fall further behind because December 2016 had been a phenomenal month and will be hard to beat.

So 2017 will be a down year for the auto industry—and not by a hair either—despite record incentives, historically low interest rates, and muscular marketing. And in 2018, replacement demand will peter out after the first few months, and auto sales will be left to their own devices.

We’re Looking for a Few Old Shops!

Do you think you have the oldest, continuously-operated body shop in your area? Would you like to see your shop’s colorful history in print? If so, we want to hear from you.

A Autobody News and collision industry journalist Gary Ledoux are working on a joint project to find, and highlight the oldest continuously operated body shops in America. Some shops may have sstarted out in the early 1900’s as a blacksmith or carriage shop.

Some may have started as a mechanical repair service at a parking garage in New York or San Francisco during the 1920’s, and then turned to body work. In the latter part of the 1940’s, many ex-servicemen started body shops with skills they learned working on GI trucks and equipment.

There are so many unique and interesting stories out there that should be recorded and preserved for posterity.

Each qualifying shop submitted will be highlighted in Ledoux’ forthcoming book; YesterWreck: The History of Collision Repair in America. The estimated publishing date is the first quarter of 2019.

No book of this sort has ever been published for the collision industry. This is a unique opportunity to be part of something special. Ledoux will provide a signed, first-edition copy of the book, upon its publishing, to any shop whose photos are used in the book.

In addition, Ledoux will contact one shop from each of the five regions served by Autobody News for a complete interview and a feature story to be run in that region’s edition of the magazine.

What To Send If you think you have the oldest continuously-operated body shop in your state please send us: • Shop’s Name • Address / City State and Zip • Phone number • Email address • Current owner’s name • A brief history of the shop, most importantly what year the shop was founded.

Include the month if you know it. • Two to three photos of the shop, especially from its earliest days with any recognizable persons identified. These could be a picture of the front of the building, a group shot of everyone that worked in the shop at the time, people working on cars in the shop, etc. All photos should be scanned as a JPG with a minimum of 300 DPI. (Please do not take a telephone picture of a photo. The quality of such a photo cannot be satisfactorily reproduced.) All people in the photos should be identified if possible.

Please send all information via email to yesterwreck@yahoo.com.

For any questions, please contact Gary Ledoux @ yesterwreck@yahoo.com

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 13

What Shop Owners Can Do When Told Their Severity Is Too High

by Autobody News Staff

Nearly 20 years ago, Tim Ronak said he was frustrated with the way shops were being judged on KPIs. “I saw an irrational behavior as a result of a purported truth when shops didn’t conform to a specific statistic or negatively performed when compared to that measurement. I felt that in many cases, the statistic benchmark didn’t have any validity,” said Ronak, senior services consultant for AkzoNobel. “Shops were frantically trying to move a number they weren’t able to move, and this is particularly true when discussing severity.”

As a result, about 10 years ago Ronak wrote an article titled “Does Severity Matter” as a tool to help people understand the statistics on which shops are being evaluated.

“You have a right to understand what they are and how to interpret it,” he said. “If it’s an arbitrary measurement, you need to call it what it is.”

During the SEMA 2017 Show in Las Vegas, Ronak asked a room full of collision repairers, “Have you ever

ity—Why It Does Not Matter and What to Do About It!” The presentation was part of the SCRS Repairer Driven Education series.

Q: What exactly is “severity?”

In the context of this discusA: sion, severity is the cumulative costs associated with effecting repairs

If costs are rising and they are comparing your shop with historical data, what does the current data look like? How could you not have your severity too high in a rising environ-

of the value of the mean, both above the mean and below the mean. The key point is that any random data set will vary around that central value both above and below until it contains

ment? It’s mathematically impossible, yet it seems that everyone on DRPs are beaten into submission by a range of statistics they can’t directly change.

Frequency is up and severity is up. With both of those rising, we’re going to see higher severity amounts and even more claims. This will create more pressure to ‘manage’ to an ‘unmanageable’ target.

the ‘majority’ (+68 percent) of the observed values. This ‘normal distribution’ typically only occurs when enough data is present (typically more than 1,000 observations) and the population the data is pulled from is completely random. In a financial environment where deductibles affect the number of submitted claims, the data loses this ‘random’ status and could be potentially skewed as a result. This affects the QUALITY of the arithmetic mean as a KPI measurement.

For example, if an insurer with a VERY large $5,000 claim data set for a current month in your immediate local area has a $3,000 average RO value for vehicles it purports to have paid repairs on, one-third (1 standard deviation) of that is about $1,000. This means if their data strictly followed a normally distributed pattern, 68 percent of all of the cars repaired would range between $2,000 and $4,000) following +/- 1 standard deviation of the normally distributed data. In this case with a perfect normally distributed dataset if an individual shop has an average severity of $3,600, you’re within one standard deviation above the calculated arithmetic mean. That’s 68 percent of all the data. The majority of the data would support the fact that $3,600 is not out of line, as it does not vary more than the 68 percent majority.

Statistics are only as good as the data you gather. Otherwise, you can’t

to a damaged vehicle to restore it to its pre-loss condition.

What is important to underQ: stand in terms of severity?

Vehicles aren’t built the same A: way as they were in the past.

Each one has its own unique set of cir-

cumstances when it comes to repairs.

No longer is it one size fits all. According to Thatcham Research Centre, a think-tank study group funded by the insurance industry in Europe, OEMs must lower collision repair costs.

“The average repair bill has risen by 32 percent over the last three

When it comes to KPIs, is an “average” a meaningful perQ: formance measure?

In statistics, there are three A: measures of what is called central tendency—the typical value in the

been told your severity is too high?

Absolutely—I know [that] everyone here who has run a shop has been told that at one point or another.”

What Ronak found over the years is that “typically, severity is too variable to actually be used to meaningfully measure performance.”

He helped SEMA attendees understand how severity is calculated and addressed what shops can do when told their severity is too high.

The following information is from Ronak’s SEMA presentation “Sever-

years,” said Thatcham CEO Peter Shaw in a statement. “This has been driven by the repairability of parts such as headlamps, increasing complexity of vehicle materials and technology and the rising cost of spare parts, influenced to some extent by currency fluctuations. Vehicle manufacturers must bring these costs under control.”

Thatcham is the United Kingdom’s version of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, and also researches and develops repair procedures.

14 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

distribution that describes the way in which a group of data cluster around a central value. There is the mean, the arithmetic average of all values; the median, the midpoint of values; and the mode, the most frequently occurring value.

What I found from my research over the years is the mean is not a reliable or meaningful measurement.

Think about the repair of a Maserati, a Cadillac and a Ford. As an industry, we have variability among the type of work that we do. Additionally, if we align manufacturer context, all Cadillacs do not run into the same tree at the same speed!

In a normal distribution, there is a concept of standard deviation, which measures the quality of an average. In a normal distribution, the standard deviation will be around 30-40 percent

See Severity, Page 52

Service King Raises $125,000 for DFW, TX, Charities Ahead of Holiday Season For 23 years, Service King Collision Repair Centers and its Dallas-Fort Worth teammates have welcomed the fall with its annual DFW Charity Golf Tournament.

This year, the tradition continued as 375 golfers hit the links on Oct. 16 to raise $125,000 for local nonprofit organizations ahead of the holiday season.

On Friday, Dec. 1, Service King teammates proudly presented a check for $75,000 to representatives and families from Heroes for Children as the primary beneficiary of the event.

Service King will go on to support additional local charity organizations throughout the holiday season with remaining proceeds raised from the tournament, including Interfaith Family Services, The Samaritan Inn

and more.

“Heroes for Children is honored to be the beneficiary of this year’s Service King DFW Charity Golf Tournament,” said Larissa Linton, Executive Director and Co-Founder of Heroes for Children. “The funds raised will enable Heroes for Children to continue our mission of providing financial and social assistance to families across Texas who have a child battling cancer.

Thank you to the team at Service King for being a hero to so many families with a child battling cancer.”

Through the support of donors and partners, Heroes for Children provides weekly assistance to families in need including rent, mortgage, utilities, transportation costs and funerals.

“The DFW Service King Charity Golf Tournament continues to serve as a core component of our mission to support our local communities and the organizations that make them great,” said Jeff McFadden, Service King President. “It’s a privilege to join hands with the wonderful people from Heroes for Children that truly do life-changing work

for those who need it most. It’s our hope the funds raised from this tournament help to further their mission and provide hope to families across North Texas in the process.”

The Service King Cares program, which functions as Service King’s community outreach initiative, exists to positively impact people, organizations and causes for the greater good of local communities.

The DFW Charity Golf Tournament continues to support that mission annually.

“The DFW Charity Golf Tournament is a shining symbol of our teammates’ and local business partners’ eagerness to serve those who need it most,” said Christine Barry, Service King Regional Business Development Manager. “We couldn’t be more inspired by the generosity of those who took part in making this tournament a success. We sincerely hope the proceeds raised will go toward spreading hope this holiday season.”

www.autobodynews.com

UPDATED DAILY

Service King Opens 36th Dallas-Fort Worth, TX, Repair Center

Service King Collision Repair Centers® recently announced the opening of its 36th Dallas-Fort Worth location.

The new facility is located at 1780 E. Interstate 30 in Rockwall and continues Service King’s ongoing national growth strategy.

“This is another proud moment for the Service King family as we open the doors to a brand new facility in our home market,” said Dan Michaelis, Service King Regional Vice President. “We’re proud of our rich history in the Dallas-Fort Worth community and look forward to building upon that with this new repair center. Today, customers and business partners have more choices than ever before for high-quality repairs backed by the Service King promise.”

The new 16,000-square-foot location, which officially broke ground in March, opened for business Dec. 4 and will employ up to 25 teammates.

Meanwhile, Service King’s Rockwall repair center marks the company’s second new construction project to open in DFW in the last year following the 2016 opening of its location in The Colony, TX.

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 15

Continued from Cover

Year in Review

cal repair shops and those who serve them. Unlike many state trade associations in the industry, ASA-MA/RI has a fully staffed, dedicated office location. Our sole purpose is the professional operation of the association on behalf of its members and supporters.”

Brian Davies, President of the North Carolina Association of Collision and Autobody Repair, said, “2017 was our first full year of existence. It is a broad statement, but we made ourselves relevant to the collision industry in North Carolina and made a significant impact by bringing the collision industry closer together, learning how to work together, and helping each other improve while improving the industry in North Carolina. Another big move was being accepted as an affiliate member to the SCRS. With their support, we all feel more confident knowing we have others all over the U.S. that have our back. In addition, having the support of the largest U.S. paint manufacturer, PPG, has been invaluable, and without them, we would not be where we are now.”

The Women’s Industry Network (WIN®) has surpassed its goals, but continues to focus on growth.

“After a very successful and exciting 2017, it is challenging to focus on just one thing… besides encouraging, developing and cultivating opportunities to attract women to collision repair, the WIN Board of Directors considered how we might move our organization to the next level of impacting women,” said Petra Schroeder, WIN’s Chair.

“We reflected on our industry-atlarge and surveyed our board leaders, our members and our sponsors to assess their satisfaction with their WIN affiliation. This was followed by a board retreat to reflect on our current position and to dream about WIN’s contributions to our industry in the future. Finally, we charted the course to get there through our 2018–2020 strategic plan. It sets out a bold and ambitious vision for the members of WIN and all women in the collision repair industry. It will also provide direction for the ongoing growth and sustainability of our organization in a rapidly changing industry.

“In our first strategic plan (2008– 2011), we envisioned a 500-memberstrong national network, recognized as

a key contributor to our industry’s success. We surpassed the 500-member mark in 2016. In addition to ensuring that we continue to provide value for our growing network of members, the new plan looks beyond our membership to identify ways that WIN can have a greater impact on industry diversity and sustainability.”

Education, for both repairers and consumers, was also a major area of concern for many associations.

According to Auto Body Association of Connecticut (ABAC) President Tony Ferraiolo, “I think the best thing our association did in 2017 was bring educational meetings to our members. We also took a stand on photo estimates, informing consumers and shops that, in our state, the customer has the right to have their vehicles physically inspected in person by a licensed appraiser if they choose to [do so].”

Ray Fisher, President of ASAMI, shared, “There were many things that were quite memorable in 2017, but the one that I think stands out for the collision repair industry here in Michigan is the session that we created from scratch, titled ‘The Relationship between Structural Repair and Vehicle Calibration.’ The reason that it stands out was because it came about from a conversation at the PF3 Paint Supply Open House and [came to] fruition within a few months. The training was intense, and it combined collision and mechanical technology and teachings, creating awareness for not only what is ahead, but also what is on the road currently. I am proud that ASA represents the professionals within the automotive independent collision repair industry, and I think it is important to keep that attribute at the forefront as we move into the future. Today, not only is our reputation of craftsmanship at risk, but the lives of our customers and their families are in our hands every time we make a decision to repair a vehicle. I believe that 2017 served as a ‘wake-up call’ to the repair industry reflecting on this very point via a major settlement. Just as the cardiologist does what their previous or their required annual training taught them to do during open heart surgery, the technician also has to apply their knowledge to repair the vehicle properly within the guidelines of the vehicle manufacturer to ensure safe and proper repairs. I understand keeping the cost of repairs down— that is the art of negotiation between

16 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

two businesses—but it should never be used to pressure anyone to compromise proper and safe repairs being performed by the expert.”

Burl Richards, President of the Auto Body Association of Texas (ABAT), said, “The most memorable things ABAT did in 2017 were related to Todd Tracy, who allowed us to visit his law firm in Dallas. It was unlike anything we had ever seen, with hundreds of wrecked vehicles in warehouses at his facility. It was eye-opening to see the amount of time and expertise that was being used to inspect these wrecked vehicles. Then, we invited him to speak at our tradeshow. His presence was met with a little resistance from the industry, but once everyone heard the message, ‘Repairing vehicles has consequences, so you better follow OEM guidelines,’ it was a message well-received, and I believe it made us all better for it.”

For the Automotive Service Association (ASA), the most important experience in 2017 was related to legislation.

ASA Executive Director Dan Risley shared, “We have invested several thousand man hours representing our

members and the industry in Washington D.C. We have been working tirelessly with legislators, other industry partners and the OE’s on new vehicle technology relative to telematics, (ADAS) advanced driver assistance systems, autonomous vehicles and the connected car. ASA has been extremely vocal and visible representing the best interests of the collision and service repair industries. Our goal is to ensure that our members continue to have access to the information necessary to repair their customers’ vehicles without having to enact legislation. As cybersecurity and data ownership continue to take center stage, we are ensuring that the independent repairer is part of the solution and equation.”

A lot of momentum was begun and carried through into 2017, and 2018 is gearing up to be an even bigger year for the collision repair industry as these associations and others continue to educate members, expand their offerings and fight for the rights of shop owners and consumers.

Autobody News looks forward to continuing to bring you all of the latest association news in 2018. Happy holidays!

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 17

Techs of Tomorrow

Victoria Antonelli is a freelance writer and model, based in Los Angeles.

She has been writing for the collision industry since 2013. She can be reached at vantonelli.autobodynews@gmail.com.

Louisiana Native Pursues Love of Cars, Collision Repair at TX High School with Victoria Antonelli

Tyler LeJeune and his father, Travis, moved from Lake Charles, LA, to Greater Houston, TX, when Tyler was in sixth grade. Now, the 17-year-old is a senior at Kingwood Park High School, taking collision repair courses.

“At a very young age, I would go to car shows that my father competed in,” Tyler shared. “Since then, I have had a fascination with show cars and always knew that one day I would want to build one, but I was not aware that that was considered part of the collision repair field until now.”

Tyler’s father, Travis, said he views automotive racing as more of a passion than a career.

ter than others.”

Tyler said he enrolled in the Kingwood Park Auto Collision program at the beginning of his sophomore year. “[Throughout my schooling] I have faced many challenges, as well as accomplishments along the way,” he explained. “My greatest triumph so far has been on the non-structural repair side; it came almost naturally to me.”

Tyler said his biggest challenge has been refinishing, especially learning to paint.

“But with the guidance of my [collision repair] instructor, Jeff Wilson, I am getting better with each project I complete,” he added. “My favorite project I have worked on so far would have to be the BMW hood that I completed nonstructural repairs on, and then painted with Louisiana State University colors.”

Wilson said that the words “dedication” and “commitment” define Tyler perfectly.

“This young man has a gift when it comes to anything non-structural—metal forming came naturally to him,” Wilson explained. “He picked it up within a few months of his first year in a three-year Collision and Refinishing proKingwood Park High School collision repair instructor, gram here at Kingwood Park Jeff Wilson, said metal work “came naturally” to High School.”

Tyler LeJeune (pictured here).

Wilson added that Tyler “While I have made some money also serves as an officer for the school’s racing, it’s the love of going fast and Skills USA chapter. the thrill of the race and the chase that “He is a gear head at heart, but has kept me in it,” he explained, “I has a passion for making vehicles look enjoy learning about every aspect of like they are moving a hundred miles motors, like what makes them faster an hour, yet sitting still,” he said. “He and what setups make them work bet- has a bright future ahead of him and

will definitely succeed in this industry after graduation.”

Due to age restriction, Tyler said he hasn’t been able to work at a body shop yet, but he looks forward to own-

ing and running a custom shop “that produces cars such as the ones that filled my childhood.”

Tyler added that he is very involved in the Kingwood Park High School marching band.

“I am the tenor captain of the second-ranked drumline in our division for the state of Texas,” he said.

Tyler said he plans to attend college after graduation and obtain a degree in criminal justice, with a minor in musical education.

“I want to pursue a career in criminal justice because, in addition to building cars in my future, I would like to become a member of law enforcement,” he explained.

In additional to building cars, Tyler also plans to become a member of law enforcement

For more information on Kingwood Park High School, visit www.humbleisd.net.

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Gerber Collision & Glass Opens Second Location in Glenwood Springs, CO

Boyd Group announced the acquisition of a second collision repair center in Glenwood Springs, CO, which previously operated as Professional Auto Body & Frame. This shop has serviced the Glenwood community, the largest city in Garfield County, for the past 36 years. The new Gerber location is located at the northern end of State Highway 82. In the win-

ter months, this highway offers the sole eastern access for drivers traveling to the popular resort town of Aspen. “With only eight miles separating our Glenwood Springs locations, we are able to create strategic synergies while servicing the two major highways that run through the city,” said Tim O’Day, president and COO of the Boyd Group.

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Continued from Cover

Industry Associations

around the country that will influence the future direction of this industry, specific to new vehicle technology (telematics, (ADAS) advanced driver assistance systems, autonomous vehicles and the connected car).”

ASA-MI President Ray Fisher told us, “Many folks see legislation as a negative, and I understand that, but what I don’t understand is when someone does not take the opportunity to remove ‘gray areas’ that legislation may provide and turn it into a positive.

I would like to see our industry professionals here in Michigan understand what has been done for them over the last few years by ASA Michigan by being supportive as a member and seizing the opportunity to be properly reimbursed according to the law. In 1974, the State of Michigan enacted the Motor Vehicle Service & Repair Act to protect consumers. We updated the law in 2016, but the law actually stipulates that the technician is the expert here in Michigan, and often times during negotiation, tactics are used that may go against the law here in Michigan; I want to see the repair industry abide by the law.

“For example, if you performed an operation on a vehicle, such as ‘PreScan’ and/or ‘Post-Scan,’ the MVSRA requires that you have that documented on your final invoice, no exceptions.

In accordance, these procedures vary by vehicle manufacturer and so too does the time necessary to perform such functions. I mentioned earlier about being a member, but if we are not around, who will do it for you? Happy New Year and let’s start it off together as the professionals that we are!”

Tony Ferraiolo, President of the Auto Body Association of Connecticut (ABAC), agreed that legislation is imperative, but the CT association will place a lot of emphasis on educating legislators in its state.

“We are working on educating the state agencies, legislators and representatives on the importance of OEM repair procedures and recommendations, and to recognize who should make repair decisions,” he said.

The North Carolina Association of Collision and Autobody Repair (NCACAR) is a newer association that has been making a huge difference in its area and hopes to gain momentum in 2018.

According to NCACAR President Brian Davies, the association wants to “make a statement in our industry by

CIC Seeks Input on Issues, Value of 2017 Meetings

The Collision Industry Conference (CIC) is asking the industry and CIC Meeting attendees to participate in a brief survey by visiting www.research .net/r/VXMSYQC. The objective of the survey is to determine the current top issues impacting the collision repair industry as well as to measure the value of CIC Meetings, which took place at various venues throughout 2017. Results of the survey will help guide the direction of CIC in 2018.

The survey is open to anyone interested in providing input to CIC. It asks all respondents, from their individual perspectives, to list the top three issues of concern as it relates to the collision industry.

Guy Bargnes, current CIC Chairman, explained, “We ran a similar survey at this time last year as we prepared for the bi-annual CIC Planning Meeting. The results were both

encouraging and insightful.

The 2016 survey responses were used to shape the structure of CIC Committee activity and the content of CIC Meetings.

“The current survey is designed as both a brief scorecard on how we did in 2017 and a request to those interested to list their current concerns, which we will use to guide CIC action in the coming year.

“We are all aware of the staggering pace of change in our industry, so I hope that everyone with a stake in CIC will take a couple of minutes to complete the current survey. It will assist not only CIC and the many committee members and participants, but also the entire collision repair industry.”

The next CIC meeting will be held Jan. 17–18, 2018 in Palm Springs, CA. Complete meeting details are on the CIC Website: www.ciclink.com/

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UPDATED DAILY

20 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

submitting (and passing) legislation in the state that has a positive effect on the collision repair industry. One of our main goals from the beginning was to become one of the strongest associations in the U.S., and I believe this would help put us with the greats.”

Increasing membership is another important goal for many associations.

Risley noted, “ASA also resolves to grow our membership in 2018 by delivering the most relevant and current tools, resources, information and training to the collision and service repair industries.”

Petra Schroeder, Chair of the Women’s Industry Network (WIN®), said, “Our 2018 goals are all about our members. Increase membership, increase actively engaged members, create a connection to lapsed members, expand our local presence, create member connection tools and broaden industry events’ presence. All of this will be supported by a complete change of our technology platform to manage WIN’s day-to-day operations, so that our valued Board and committee volunteers can focus on strategic outcomes.”

Many associations also see a lot of value in encouraging cooperation amongst shops and other industry part-

ners.

ASA-MA/RI Executive Director Stephen Regan hopes the affiliate chapter will be able “to convince as many industry stakeholders as possible that cooperation will bring more success to all of us, rather than competition and confrontation. If we spent more time seeking common ground through cooperation and less time seeking individual advantages through denial of repair information or insurer steering, for instance, we would all be better off for it.”

Auto Body Association of Texas (ABAT) President Burl Richards agreed, adding, “Every shop should share their successes and failures with others. That in itself will lead to strengthening our industry and educating all of us on a daily basis.”

With these associations at the helm of changes in 2018, the New Year should be exciting for everyone in the industry. My personal resolution for 2018 is to attend as many industry events as possible and meet more industry professionals face-to-face, but if I don’t make it to your area, I’d still love to hear from you with feedback and suggestions to make 2018 the best year yet! Happy New Year!

Continued from Cover

Year in Review

Brian Davies, President of the North Carolina Association of Collision and Autobody Repair, said, “2017 was our first full year of existence. It is a broad statement, but we made ourselves relevant to the collision industry in North Carolina and made a significant impact by bringing the collision industry closer together, learning how to work together, and helping each other improve while improving the industry in North Carolina. Another big move was being accepted as an affiliate member to the SCRS. With their support, we all feel more confident knowing we have others all over the U.S. that have our back. In addition, having the support of the largest U.S. paint manufacturer, PPG, has been invaluable, and without them, we would not be where we are now.”

The Women’s Industry Network (WIN®) has surpassed its goals, but continues to focus on growth.

“After a very successful and exciting 2017, it is challenging to focus on just one thing… besides encouraging, developing and cultivating opportuni-

ties to attract women to collision repair, the WIN Board of Directors considered how we might move our organization to the next level of impacting women,” said Petra Schroeder, WIN’s Chair.

“We reflected on our industry-atlarge and surveyed our board leaders, our members and our sponsors to assess their satisfaction with their WIN affiliation. This was followed by a board retreat to reflect on our current position and to dream about WIN’s contributions to our industry in the future. Finally, we charted the course to get there through our 2018–2020 strategic plan. It sets out a bold and ambitious vision for the members of WIN and all women in the collision repair industry. It will also provide direction for the ongoing growth and sustainability of our organization in a rapidly changing industry.

“In our first strategic plan (2008– 2011), we envisioned a 500-memberstrong national network, recognized as a key contributor to our industry’s success. We surpassed the 500-member mark in 2016. In addition to ensuring that we continue to provide value for our growing network of members, the new plan looks beyond our membership to identify ways that

WIN can have a greater impact on industry diversity and sustainability.”

Education, for both repairers and consumers, was also a major area of concern for many associations.

According to Auto Body Association of Connecticut (ABAC) President Tony Ferraiolo, “I think the best thing our association did in 2017 was bring educational meetings to our members. We also took a stand on photo estimates, informing consumers and shops that, in our state, the customer has the right to have their vehicles physically inspected in person by a licensed appraiser if they choose to [do so].”

Ray Fisher, President of ASAMI, shared, “There were many things that were quite memorable in 2017, but the one that I think stands out for the collision repair industry here in Michigan is the session that we created from scratch, titled ‘The Relationship between Structural Repair and Vehicle Calibration.’ The reason that it stands out was because it came about from a conversation at the PF3 Paint Supply Open House and [came to] fruition within a few months. The training was intense, and it combined collision and mechanical technology

and teachings, creating awareness for not only what is ahead, but also what is on the road currently. I am proud that ASA represents the professionals within the automotive independent collision repair industry, and I think it is important to keep that attribute at the forefront as we move into the future.

Today, not only is our reputation of craftsmanship at risk, but the lives of our customers and their families are in our hands every time we make a decision to repair a vehicle. I believe that 2017 served as a ‘wake-up call’ to the repair industry reflecting on this very point via a major settlement. Just as the cardiologist does what their previous or their required annual training taught them to do during open heart surgery, the technician also has to apply their knowledge to repair the vehicle properly within the guidelines of the vehicle manufacturer to ensure safe and proper repairs. I understand keeping the cost of repairs down—that is the art of negotiation between two businesses—but it should never be used to pressure anyone to compromise proper and safe repairs being performed by the expert.”

Burl Richards, President of the Auto Body Association of Texas See Year in Review, Page 22

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 21

Continued from Cover

Industry Associations

around the country that will influence the future direction of this industry, specific to new vehicle technology (telematics, (ADAS) advanced driver assistance systems, autonomous vehicles and the connected car).”

ASA-MI President Ray Fisher told us, “Many folks see legislation as a negative, and I understand that, but what I don’t understand is when someone does not take the opportunity to remove ‘gray areas’ that legislation may provide and turn it into a positive.

I would like to see our industry professionals here in Michigan understand what has been done for them over the last few years by ASA Michigan by being supportive as a member and seizing the opportunity to be properly reimbursed according to the law. In 1974, the State of Michigan enacted the Motor Vehicle Service & Repair Act to protect consumers. We updated the law in 2016, but the law actually stipulates that the technician is the expert here in Michigan, and often times during negotiation, tactics are used that may go against the law here in Michigan; I want to see the repair industry abide by the law.

“For example, if you performed an operation on a vehicle, such as ‘PreScan’ and/or ‘Post-Scan,’ the MVSRA requires that you have that documented on your final invoice, no exceptions.

In accordance, these procedures vary by vehicle manufacturer and so too does the time necessary to perform such functions. I mentioned earlier about being a member, but if we are not around, who will do it for you? Happy New Year and let’s start it off together as the professionals that we are!”

Tony Ferraiolo, President of the Auto Body Association of Connecticut (ABAC), agreed that legislation is imperative, but the CT association will place a lot of emphasis on educating legislators in its state.

“We are working on educating the state agencies, legislators and representatives on the importance of OEM repair procedures and recommendations, and to recognize who should make repair decisions,” he said.

The North Carolina Association of Collision and Autobody Repair (NCACAR) is a newer association that has been making a huge difference in its area and hopes to gain momentum in 2018.

According to NCACAR President Brian Davies, the association wants to “make a statement in our industry by

submitting (and passing) legislation in the state that has a positive effect on the collision repair industry. One of our main goals from the beginning was to become one of the strongest associations in the U.S., and I believe this would help put us with the greats.”

Increasing membership is another important goal for many associations.

Risley noted, “ASA also resolves to grow our membership in 2018 by delivering the most relevant and current tools, resources, information and training to the collision and service repair industries.”

Petra Schroeder, Chair of the Women’s Industry Network (WIN®), said, “Our 2018 goals are all about our members. Increase membership, increase actively engaged members, create a connection to lapsed members, expand our local presence, create member connection tools and broaden industry events’ presence. All of this will be supported by a complete change of our technology platform to manage WIN’s day-to-day operations, so that our valued Board and committee volunteers can focus on strategic outcomes.”

Many associations also see a lot of value in encouraging cooperation amongst shops and other industry part-

I-CAR, ASE Present Annual Master Technician Award

I-CAR® announced it has awarded the I-CAR Platinum™/ASE Master Collision Repair & Refinish Technician of the Year award to Kurt Money of Shotwell’s Auto Body in Santa Rosa, CA. Money has more than 42 years of experience as a collision repair technician. He was selected from hundreds of individuals who hold both I-CAR Platinum recognition and ASE Master Collision Repair and Refinish certification for demonstrating superior commitment to the industry and the importance of training. The award was presented on Nov. 15 at the annual ASE Technician Awards banquet in San Diego. He has been an I-CAR live and hands-on instructor for more than 25 years and won two Instructor of the Year awards during that time.

He was recognized in 1998 as 3M/ASE Collision Repair Technician of the Year. He is currently a technician at Shotwell’s Auto Body and is Platinum Recognized as a Steel Structural, Electrical and Mechanical, Refinish, Aluminum Structural, and Non-Structural technician.

Money has always enjoyed working on cars. He opened up the Utah Val-

ley Trade Tech class catalog one day, and auto body was the first thing he saw. He hasn’t looked back in more than 40 years.

“No two accidents are the same—the work is different every day,” Money said. “The cars are changing with new metals and materials, and I love coming to work every day and doing the work.”

Learning has been important to Money his entire career.

“When I started, I just learned from the guy next to me. I would ask why things worked a certain way and couldn’t get an answer. I don’t want to do work just because I’m told that’s the way—I want to know the reason. Training and education have given me those answers. It’s what people need,” Money stated.

“I-CAR is thrilled to recognize the value Mr. Money places on continuing education and technical knowledge, along with his unwavering commitment to the industry and to I-CAR,” said I-CAR CEO & President John Van Alstyne. “It is a testament to the quality of his work and his ability to pass knowledge and skills along to other technicians.”

22 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

ners.

ASA-MA/RI Executive Director Stephen Regan hopes the affiliate chapter will be able “to convince as many industry stakeholders as possible that cooperation will bring more success to all of us, rather than competition and confrontation. If we spent more time seeking common ground through cooperation and less time seeking individual advantages through denial of repair information or insurer steering, for instance, we would all be better off for it.”

Auto Body Association of Texas (ABAT) President Burl Richards agreed, adding, “Every shop should share their successes and failures with others. That in itself will lead to strengthening our industry and educating all of us on a daily basis.”

With these associations at the helm of changes in 2018, the New Year should be exciting for everyone in the industry. My personal resolution for 2018 is to attend as many industry events as possible and meet more industry professionals face-to-face, but if I don’t make it to your area, I’d still love to hear from you with feedback and suggestions to make 2018 the best year yet! Happy New Year!

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Continued from Page 21

Year in Review

(ABAT), said, “The most memorable things ABAT did in 2017 were related to Todd Tracy, who allowed us to visit his law firm in Dallas. It was unlike anything we had ever seen, with hundreds of wrecked vehicles in warehouses at his facility. It was eye-opening to see the amount of time and expertise that was being used to inspect these wrecked vehicles. Then, we invited him to speak at our tradeshow.

His presence was met with a little resistance from the industry, but once everyone heard the message, ‘Repairing vehicles has consequences, so you better follow OEM guidelines,’ it was a message well-received, and I believe it made us all better for it.”

For the Automotive Service Association (ASA), the most important experience in 2017 was related to legislation.

ASA Executive Director Dan Risley shared, “We have invested several thousand man hours representing our members and the industry in Washington D.C. We have been working tirelessly with legislators, other industry

partners and the OE’s on new vehicle technology relative to telematics, (ADAS) advanced driver assistance systems, autonomous vehicles and the connected car. ASA has been extremely vocal and visible representing the best interests of the collision and service repair industries. Our goal is to ensure that our members continue to have access to the information necessary to repair their customers’ vehicles without having to enact legislation. As cybersecurity and data ownership continue to take center stage, we are ensuring that the independent repairer is part of the solution and equation.”

A lot of momentum was begun and carried through into 2017, and 2018 is gearing up to be an even bigger year for the collision repair industry as these associations and others continue to educate members, expand their offerings and fight for the rights of shop owners and consumers.

Autobody News looks forward to continuing to bring you all of the latest association news in 2018. Happy holidays!

www.autobodynews.com

Tesla Strikes New Partnership with OCC’s Auto Tech Program

by Staff, WSYR-TV/LocalSYR.com

Onondaga Community College in NY has reached an exciting agreement with the electric vehicle maker Tesla.

The partnership will lead to an internship program to train technicians to be able to service these unique vehicles.

OCC President Dr. Casey Crabill says, “I think it’s a wow factor.

I really think that it takes our automotive tech program and broadens it out.”

Tesla is just as excited to be able to train more people to work on their electric vehicles.

“Whenever we expand, we need a ready workforce.” Says Kate Burson, Northeast Market Development Lead for Tesla.

Tesla is looking for a change in New York State statute to allow them to grow around the State.

Right now, the company is capped at only 5 brick and mortar locations in all of New York, and that’s what they have and all of them are Downstate.

Legislation is pending in committee in both the State Assembly and Senate to raise the cap by 15 shops and calls for geographic provisions to allow Tesla to open here in Syracuse.

Dr. Crabill says as soon as legislation passes to up the cap OCC is ready to accept students into the auto tech program that will lead them to the internship with Tesla.

She adds that could be as early as next Fall.

www.autobodynews.com

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www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 23

Shop Secrets and Strategies

Stacey Phillips is a freelance writer and editor for the automotive industry.

She has 20 years of experience writing for a variety of publications, and is co-author of “The Secrets of America’s Greatest Body Shops.”

She can be reached at sphillips.autobodynews@gmail.com.

CCC VP Discusses How Company’s Digital Solutions Meet Modern Consumer Needs with Stacey Phillips

Over the last several months, CCC has introduced a variety of digital solutions to the collision repair industry.

These include shop management tools such as CCC ONE Engage and CCC Direct, and the cloud-based CCC Secure Share solution. Autobody News reached out to Mark Fincher, CCC’s vice president of market solutions, to learn more about CCC’s initiatives and how the company is meeting the needs of the modern consumer.

As a leading provider of softQ: ware tools and technology, what is CCC’s primary client base?

A:

CCC focuses on building solutions for customers in four dedicated markets, which include insurance carriers, collision repairers, parts suppliers and most recently, we’ve added auto manufacturers—OEMs. There are three key pieces to our business. First, is the network of stakeholders who we help connect. Next, is our single, unifying platform that seamlessly connects all of our customers with one another and the data and service providers they want to work with to drive additional and differentiated value to their business and the consumers they serve. Lastly, are our suites of market-specific solutions that help users of CCC transact. Through these connections and solutions, CCC can not only help drive process efficiency and transparency, but we also glean meaningful insights that we can deliver back to users to help them make better business decisions.

tailor the solution to their business goals.

They might add tools to help them manage their DRP programs with the Perform package, or the CCC ONE

(l to r) Mark Fincher, Jacob Ku, Brian Sinnett and Paul Schwandt at the CCC booth during the SEMA show held in Las Vegas, NV

Repair Workflow solution that offers full management capability to manage their entire shop process.

We recently added CCC ONE Engage, which gives shops the capability to receive appointments through our consumer-facing website www.carwise .com, and CCC Direct, repair management tools that help shop owners and managers implement and manage standard operating procedures and view the health of their business.

Since we launched our core platform in 2008, we’ve provided client updates at least every two months and continue to enhance and expand our solution while ensuring we don’t stray from our simple and intuitive design.

We continually invest in our core platform and deliver new solutions to collision repairers. Our intent is to create more efficiency, improve productivity and at the end of the day, help repairers deliver better customer service to their consumers.

Q: Our company’s core solution is How has the customer experiA: estimating. All of our 22,000+ Q: ence shaped some of your comrepair facility customers use CCC pany’s initiatives?

Can you give us an overview of CCC’s digital solutions?

ONE estimating software at a minimum. As their businesses grow, they can add on additional modules. That’s key to the CCC ONE platform. Hence the name—CCC ONE—everything is in one place. It’s all one application, and shops can purchase multiple features based on their needs. Rather than offering a “one-size-fits-all” approach, customers have a range of options to

We have made significant inA: vestments to enhance the customer experience. We want to equip repairers to serve the new modern consumer. A big part of this is recognizing how customers interact with companies and have certain expectations. Accenture has coined the term “Liquid Expectations” to describe this

24 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

new phenomenon. Let me explain. A company like Amazon and a collision repair facility are two completely different businesses. However, customers start to form certain expectations of how easy it should be to do business with a specific company. Those expectations are fluid, or “liquid,” and flow over to other experiences like collision repair.

As a result, CCC has been making significant investments over the past two years to help body shops deliver a more modern customer experience that today’s consumer expects.

We believe this will add the most value to collision repairers and help them work more efficiently in their businesses.

Can you tell us about some of Q: the initiatives CCC has taken to deliver a more modern customer ex-

perience and how it will help with customer satisfaction?

We’ve been doing that through tools like CCC ONE™ Touch, A: which we launched several years ago and is available to the majority of our customers at no additional charge. The product allows an estimator to write the estimate at the vehicle with the consumer. Since then, we’ve been expanding that functionality to allow customers to sign all their documents on a tablet once the estimate is complete.

We recently added a new functionality we call CCC Direct. Estimators can now complete all the prior damage inspection on a tablet with the customer present, so documentation can be completed right at the car.

We’ve offered CCC ONE Update Plus for more than four years now.

This gives a shop the capability to send text and email messages to consumers, and we continually enhance the product by providing richer experiences for the consumer. Consumers See Repairers of Choice, Page 50

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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.

Recent ‘Who Pays for What?’ Survey Looks at Scanning, Frame, Mechanical Operations with John Yoswick

More shops are charging and getting not differentiating between pre- and paid for post-repair “health scans” of post-repair scans,” Mike Anderson of vehicles than they are pre-repair scans, Collision Advice, co-creator of the but both procedures are increasingly “Who Pays for What?” surveys, said. being done and being paid for, accord“So while a direct comparison to preing to recent “Who Pays for What?” vious results isn’t possible, it’s intersurvey findings. esting to note that in 2016, more than The first of the 2018 quarterly one-third of shops said they had never “Who Pays” surveys, which is focused asked to be paid for any vehicle scan. on refinish operations, is being conThis year, only about 12 percent of ducted throughout the month of Janushops said they have never asked to be ary. Click here (https://www.crash paid for a post-repair scan.” network.com/collisionadvice) for more Among those shops that have neinformation or to take the surgotiated to be paid for pervey. forming these scans, 64 Each of the quarterly percent are paid “always” or surveys, conducted by Colli“most of the time” by the sion Advice and CRASH eight largest auto insurers to Network, focuses on a differperform the post-repair scan, ent aspect of collision repair. and 51 percent are paid “alOne of the 2017 surveys ways” or “most of the time” Mike Anderson looked at frame and mechanfor scanning the vehicle preical operations, including vehicle repair. A year earlier, only about 41 perscanning. Nearly 800 shops across the cent of shops said they were paid country responded to that survey, “always” or “most of the time” for eiwhich asked shops what procedures ther pre- or post-repair scans. they bill for, and about how frequently In terms of other frame and meeach of the largest auto insurers pays chanical labor operations, about 51 for those procedures. The surveys, percent of shops say they are paid “alwhich have been conducted since ways” or “most of the time” to pres2015, consistently find that more than sure test and purge a vehicle cooling 85 percent of participants say they are system when necessary as part of a reusing the surveys to improve their port, yet more than 40 percent of business. shops acknowledge never having Last summer’s frame and me- billed for this not-included procedure. chanical “Who Pays for What?” surAnderson said it’s become increasvey found that about 1-in-5 shops said ingly important to check the OEM re-

to initialize an electronic check-valve.

So the labor time for this may vary based on whether this procedure can be done manually, versus requiring a scan tool.”

The “Who Pays for What?” surveys have found that while ALLDATA continues to be the most widely used source of OEM repair information for collision repair shops, the automaker websites and I-CAR’s “Repairability Technical Support Portal” have gained in usage over the past two years

The cooling system procedure was among those for which more shops reported being paid regularly compared to the previous year’s survey (a 5.9 percentage point increase).

More than 40 percent of shops said State Farm always pays for this procedure when it is necessary, performed and billed for; among the top

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About 51 percent of shops report being paid “always” or “most of the time” for “pressure test / purge a vehicle cooling system,” up from 45 percent in 2016, yet the “Who Pays for What?” survey also found that more than 2-in-5 shops say they’ve never billed for that procedure when it was necessary and completed

they have never charged for (so perhaps haven’t performed) a pre-repair vehicle scan, compared to only 1-in10 shops who said they have never charged for a post-repair scan.

“In previous surveys, we asked more general question about scanning,

pair procedures in relation to testing and purging cooling systems.

“Many automakers are now using electronic check-valves on their cooling systems,” he said. “You can’t just manually bleed those cooling systems any more. You need to use a scan tool

26 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

eight largest insurers, Progressive is the least likely to pay for the procedure, but still 28.5 percent of shops reported that Progressive pays for it “always.”

Anderson said it might be easy to overlook a seemingly simple “not-included” procedure, like disconnecting and reconnecting the battery, on estimates. But what sometimes seems like a basic operation from the estimator’s perspective can turn into a project out in the shop. If the technician must remove trim panels to gain access to the

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battery, that adds more “not-included” time to the job. There also can be other model-specific procedures that must be followed when a battery has been disconnected. On some Toyota

ing on a vehicle.

“Every vehicle manufacturer says you must disconnect the battery for welding,” Anderson said. “Some shops believe that if they’re using a ‘memory

Two-thirds of shops sublet out wheel alignments, according to “Who Pays for What?” surveys, but among those who perform them in house, almost 70 percent bill for them using a flat-fee while the rest use estimating system time billed at the shop’s mechanical rate

trucks, for example, reconnecting the battery also requires correcting the steering angle neutral point.

That’s why it’s a procedure that was asked about on the “Who Pays for Survey?” While 80 percent of shops nationally are paid “always” or “most of the time” to disconnect and reconnect the battery when it is necessary and included on the invoice, about 10– 12 percent of shops acknowledged they have never even negotiated to be paid for this procedure. This is despite the fact that it is clearly often required by the automaker, such as when weld-

saver,’ that is sufficient. That’s not accurate. You still need to disconnect the battery cable. Once again, it is important to research the OEM procedures on battery disconnect/reconnect.”

Interestingly, the survey found some variation by region in the billing/payment practices for the procedure. In the Midwest, more than 20 percent have never charged for it, and only 64 percent are paid “always” or “most of the time.” But in the Northeast, 88 percent are paid “always” or “most of the time,” and only 5 percent have never charged for it.

The survey did find some uptick in shops’ research of OEM repair methods. Nearly half (48.8 percent) of shops responding to the survey said they research OEM procedures all or most of the time; this was up from 42.7 percent two years ago. Only 18.2 percent of shops said they either “never” or “only occasionally” research OEM procedures, an improvement from two years earlier when more than 25 percent said they rarely or never did.

According the survey data, ALLDATA remains the most popular source of OEM information, but I-CAR’s “Repairability Technical Support Portal” and the automaker websites have each seen a steady increase in usage over the past two years, with nearly half of shops now reporting they use those sources.

“Some shops think if they fix the same type of vehicle frequently, they don’t need to check those procedures every single time,” Anderson said.

“But at one point last year, when you replaced a quarter-panel on a Ford Mustang, the procedure required replacing the roof as well. Today, Ford has a sectioning procedure. So it’s important to research the procedures every time because things change.”

Anderson said that while he is

pleased to see more shops researching the proper repair methods, “at the end of the day, this should still be done 100 percent of the time.”

Shops can take the current “Who Pays for What?” survey (or sign up to be notified about future surveys) at https://www.crashnetwork.com/collisionadvice. The four different surveys, conducted one at a time per quarter, each take about 15–25 minutes, and should be completed by the shop owner, manager or estimator who is most familiar with the shop’s billing practices and the payment practices of the largest national insurers. Individual responses are not released in any way; only cumulative data is released.

At the website, shops also can download the results of previous surveys, reports that break the findings down by region, by insurer and by DRP vs. non-DRP. The reports also include analyses and resources to help shops better understand and use the information presented.

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www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 27

Product Innovation Former Body Shop Owner Invents Photo Estimating App with Ed Attanasio

Ryan Taylor, 37, has 20 years of experience in the collision repair industry—which means he started his career when he was a teenager.

In fact, he said, he opened his own shop in Vancouver, Canada with a little knowledge and a passion to succeed when he was just 17.

“I started fixing dents when I was 14 and left home at 16,” Taylor said. “I began working for a dealership doing entry-level tasks in a service depart-

Ryan Taylor, a former body shop owner, invented Bodyshop Booster in 2009, an app that streamlines the estimating process for both customers and shops

ment, and after a while I began a little operation in the back of the dealership doing PDR and minor collision repair on cars, and it grew from there.”

Taylor was waiting for school to start at the University of Victoria to pursue a business degree, but in the interim he decided to further pursue his modest business.

“I needed a facility, so I got one, and then when the time came for me to go to school, I thought, ‘Why do I need a business degree [when] I own a business?’ So, I never did get that business degree, but things worked out anyway,” he said.

The lack of a college degree didn’t dissuade Taylor, because by 2010, he had eight locations performing collision repairs and a catastrophe-response division performing hail PDR throughout Canada. In addition to the shops, the niche he and a partner developed involved repairing large fleets for car manufacturers in huge numbers, ranging from 500 all the way to 20,000.

In 2014, Taylor had an opportunity to sell the business and began working on Bodyshop Booster, a concept he began back in 2009 when he started using it at his shops.

“We were looking for a tool that would give us a competitive advantage and provide convenience for our customers,” Taylor said. “The best way to describe it is Netflix vs. Blockbuster.

For the average person today, to get an estimate from a body shop, you have to do it during business hours and take half a day off from work. So it’s a big commitment to get an estimate, but it really does not have to impede the [repair] process by using our very intuitive photo estimating app.”

The timing was right—The technology and the need for Taylor’s app fortunately converged.

“The rise of the photo applications started when some of the insurers (State Farm and All State, for example) came out with their own, and we saw that there were issues with many of them,” he said. “One of the main problems is the fact that customers inherently had no idea how to take a good photo with their phones.

Invariably, they take a photo from 2–3 inches away and then the people at the shop are trying to build an estimate based on these poor-quality photos.

What ends up happening is that the estimator will write a sheet that is lower than it should be. If you talk to any shop in this situation, you will hear their complaints about how low the estimates are based on these photos.

“Shops ask us all the time about what they should do when customers walk in and say that they just want an estimate. So, we instruct them to say, ‘I’ve got your VIN number and I’ll look up all your information, but to save time, did you use an insurance estimate app to settle the claim on your vehicle?’ Since we have their VIN number, the customer is going to be forthright in most cases. We then tell [shops] to explain to the customer that if we find more damage, we can supplement the claim. So we’ve opened up that conversation, and now the shop has the information it needs to do a fair estimate.”

Bodyshop Booster is all about making business easier, so Taylor created a “frictionless system,” he said.

“Since I am in Canada, I often use an example by comparing some shops with beaver dams,” he said. “You have

28 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.

a river flowing and there are beaver dams all along all the way. All that does is restrict the flow, so at the very bottom of the stream, you have a trickle where you should have a river.

It’s no different when customers are looking for an estimate. The shop is only open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and many people work; the customer has to drive to the shop and wait to get the estimate. All of these obstacles are being put in front of the customer and making the process more difficult. So, the concept behind Bodyshop Booster is to eliminate the beaver dams, resulting in a better flow of customers.”

From the very beginning, Taylor and his team have done everything they can to make the app easy for shops and their customers to use, he said.

“In just seconds, we can switch them over to Bodyshop Booster,” he said. “There are no downloads, passwords, you don’t need to go to the app store—it’s instantly in there within 2–

3 seconds. This tool uses a system called ‘guided discovery’ that takes the customer through the process of taking a series of photos of their vehicle in a way that [allows us to] accurately assess the damage. It allows us to evaluate the damage remotely and in most cases, we are able to get the customer in for a repair appointment without ever having to come to the store first.”

By using Bodyshop Booster, a shop can also qualify a customer quickly, Taylor said.

“A shop that uses our app can tell upfront from their photos whether it’s a job they want to do—such as a rust job, a restoration or a total loss,” he said. “By using the app, they can know right away and it allows them to cherry pick the marketplace. It becomes a very powerful tool as a result.

No one has ever used Netflix and then said, ‘I can’t wait to go back to Blockbuster.’ Bodyshop Booster is the Netflix of the collision business.”

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 29

H OND A TEX AS

Bankston Honda L e w is v i ll e

800-344-8611 972-219-0021 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 8-5 www.bankstonhonda.com

Fiesta Honda S a n A n t on io

800-727-8705 210-340-0831 Dept. Hours: M-F 8-5; Sat 8-5 hondaparts@safiestahonda.com

Cleo Bay Honda K i ll e en

877-253-6229 254-699-2478 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-5 parts@cleobay.com

Honda Cars of McKinney M c K in n ey

972-569-4276 972-569-4222 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 7-5 Gene.chenault@hendrickauto.com

Honda of Frisco F ri s c o

866-442-2711 972-731-3176 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 7:30-5:30 cedgar@mcdavid.com

AC U RA TEX AS

Autonation Acura Leag u e Cit y

800-749-6227 713-371-4700 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-6; Sat 7-5 hoehns@autonation.com

David McDavid Acura Aus t in

800-575-3553 512-401-5976 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 8-5 jraygo@mcdavid.com

David McDavid Acura Plan o

972-964-6044 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 8-5 dgrajczyk@mcdavid.com

30 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Please contact these dealers for your Honda or Acura Genuine parts needs.

T E X AS

TE XAS

LOU IS IA NA

C OL ORA DO

McDavid Honda Irving

Rusty Wallis Honda

Superior Honda

Ir vin g

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Harvey

Boulder

800-492-4464 972-790-6003

877-466-3272 214-328-3891

800-943-4227 504-368-5687

Dept. Hours: M-F 8-6 srichardson@mcdavid.com

Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 8-5 darryldotsy@rustywallis.com

Dept. Hours: M-F 7-5:30 parts@superiorhonda.net

800-274-0985 303-415-1528 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-2 parts@fisherauto.com

Honda of San Marcos

Wholesale Parts Direct

Walker Honda

Honda of Greeley

Au s t i n

A l exa nd r i a

G re el e y

800-234-4441 512-458-2910

318-448-8255 318-445-6677

888-903-1101 970-506-2795

Dept. Hours: M-F 8-6 sales@wholesalepartsdirect.com

Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-5:30 hondaparts@walkerautomotive.com

Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-7; Sat 8-4:30 parts@hondaofgreeley.com

San Ma rco s

866-392-1313 512-392-1313 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 9-5 csmith@hondasanmarcos.com

Howdy Honda

O K LAHOM A

Mile High Honda

N EW MEX IC O

A u stin

Don Carlton Honda

Garcia Honda

877-941-6513 512-443-4300

Tu l s a

A l bu qu erque

800-722-2379 918-622-9670

800-677-6632 505-260-5002

Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 7-3 partsmgr@howdyhonda.com

Kelly Grimsley Honda Od ess a

844-453-5594 432-334-6632 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-12 april@kellygrimsley.com

Russell & Smith Honda

Dept. Hours: M-Sat 7-6 hondaparts@doncarlton.com

Fowler Honda No r m a n

866-369-5376 405-573-5719 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-9; Sat 8-4 parts@fowlerhonda.com

Hou st on

Fenton Honda of Ardmore

800-833-0180 713-663-4266

Ard m o re

580-226-1000

Dept. Hours: M-F 8-6; Sat 7-4 ggregory@russellsmith.com

Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 7:30-2 travis.pierce@fentonmotors.com

T E X AS

LO UIS IANA

Mac Churchill Acura

Acura of Baton Rouge

Fo r t Wo r t h

B a to n R o u ge

888-824-9634 817-806-0571

866-733-2861 225-756-6166

Dept. Hours: M-F 6-7; Sat 8-5 jguin@macchurchill.com

Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-5 dlavigne@acurabr.com

Sterling McCall Acura

Walker Acura

Ho u st on

M e ta i r i e

713-596-2337 713-596-2338

800-359-8555 504-465-8555

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Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-2 parts@walkeracura.com

OK LAHO MA

Don Carlton Acura of Tulsa

CO LO RADO

Flatirons Acura

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888-550-7278 918-664-2300

800-648-4488 303-442-1767

Dept. Hours: M-Sat 7-6 acuraparts@doncarlton.com

Dept. Hours: M-F 7-6; Sat 8-5 parts@flatironsimports.com

Fisher Honda

Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 8:30-5 Jscott@garciacars.com

D en v er

800-548-4730 303-369-7800 Dept. Hours: M-S 7-6 lhoover@autotree.net

AR IZON A

Chapman Honda Tu cs o n

800-461-6744 520-202-5770 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-6; Sat 8-4 carlkeefe@chapmantucson.com

Earnhardt Honda Av on da l e

800-350-6537 623-463-4380 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-9; Sat 7-6 gluna@earnhardt.com

C OL OR AD O

U TAH

Mile High Acura D e nv e r

800-548-4730 303-369-7800 Dept. Hours: M-S 7-6 lhoover@autotree.net

Pikes Peak Acura C ol o ra do S pr in gs

800-456-9568 719-955-1715 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-6; Sat 8-4 joe_benson@pikespeakacura.com

Jody Wilkinson Acura Salt Lake City

800-234-0875 801-323-0492 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-5 rick@jodywilkinson.com

Mike Hale Acura Murray

800-292-4595 801-263-0202 Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 7:30-5 pgoold@mikehale.com

AR IZON A

Acura of Peoria Pe o r i a

866-347-4507 623-792-2559 Dept. Hours: M-F 7-6; Sat 7-5 dcavanaugh@vtaig.com www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 31

In Reverse

Gary Ledoux is an industry veteran with 48 years’ experience in the automotive and OEM collision parts industry. His column appears exclusively in Autobody News.

He can be reached at YesterWreck@yahoo.com

Training, Certifying and Standardizing in the 1920’s with Gary Ledoux

Training Providing a steady stream of automotive technicians, both mechanical and body, is a challenge today, not unlike the 1920’s. At least today we have ICAR, Automotive Management Institute, and others. In the 1920’s we had the “University of Uncle Sam.” On November 9, 1917, the Federal Board for Vocational Education authorized payment of funds to public school for the purpose of providing technical training, including that of auto and truck repair, for military personnel and the “University of Uncle Sam was born. In Los Angeles, for example, five highs schools trained 675 soldiers in twenty-nine different trades, including auto mechanics. After the war ended, many schools bought the equipment outright, including mechanics tools and equipment, and kept the classes going for the high school students. Thus, the advent of high school auto shop got a “jump start.”

Many educators saw auto shop as a way to keep boys interested in school and as such, encouraged and supported such curriculum. Auto shop, and related vocational classes became the domain of boys who were “good with their hands” rather than “college bound.” In some respects, it stigmatized those boys in the “auto shop” strata as something “less” than the college bound boys. On the other hand, it made high school more meaningful and pragmatic for those students who probably would not have gone to college no matter what their financial or social standing may be. In the 1920’s and 30’s, high school auto shop opened the door for many boys to something other than farming, or the drudgery of a factory job. It prepared many would-be mechanics, auto refinishers, auto upholsterers and future shop owners.

Prior to WWI the auto industry was focused on selling people their first car. It was sell, sell, sell, with not a lot of emphasis on maintenance and repair. When the war ended, auto dealers anticipated a return to the selling mentality but instead, the country went into a downturn and new cars were not selling. In what may have a been a first in what would be a recurring cycle throughout the years, dealers turned

their focus to servicing the cars they sold, both as a way to create revenue and to show customers how good their service was so that when they needed another new car, they would remember who took care of them. This created a need for even more repair mechanics, and more support for vocational training at the high school and secondary school level.

High school auto shop evolved into to pre-auto-shop classes at the junior high school level and post-highschool auto shop night classes for those people not ready for secondary school but seeking a better understanding of auto mechanics. As cars got more sophisticated, educators broke auto mechanic classes into several distinct categories including engine rebuilding, transmissions, electrical and so forth.

This, it was thought, would better prepare a young mechanic for what they would likely find in the real world of auto repair if they worked for a large garage or auto dealer. A full page newspaper ad for a large Washington, D.C. garage in the late 1920’s reveals 11 different departments including body and fender, paint, auto upholstery, electric, tire, battery, blacksmith, general repair, and more. Both Ford and Chevrolet encouraged their dealers to departmentalize for greater efficiency and customer service. This likely gave rise to the dealer body shop.

Despite all the classes and varying regimens, one thing the schools didn’t teach, was business management. Graduates of these automotive schools, and those that took auto shop in high school were prepared to work a wrench or a spray gun, but not a pencil or an adding machine. Business classes were virtually non-existent.

This created a long-standing problem whereas many mechanics and body men went to work for large garages and after they became adept, decided they would strike out on their own and start their own business. Working a wrench or a hammer and dolly is not the same as running business, paying bills, meeting payroll, and dealing with customers. Subsequently, many failed.

True business management training for the collision repair industry would need to wait until February 1983 when the

32 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

ARMS training was established.

Certified Technicians Today, in the 21st century, the issue of licensed or certified body technicians continues to periodically bubble to the surface of the industry kettle. The trouble is, there is no universally accepted way of denoting who is, and who isn’t a qualified, competent mechanic or body technician.

ASE offers testing for mechanical as well as body technicians and is generally perceived as valid inasmuch as an industry standard for testing goes.

But no law exists that says everyone, including industry people and consumers, has to accept ASE testing as valid.

I-CAR is the training arm of the industry and is generally accepted in the collision repair industry as a premier training entity providing technicians with a “Platinum” status for completion of prescribed training. However, there

is no law that codifies the training and designates that someone completing the training is qualified to perform safe and complete repairs. I-CAR training provides the knowledge, but not necessarily the skill.

But the concept of licensing, or certifying mechanics or body men or shops to ensure competency is nothing new. As far back as pre-WWI when the idea of the personal chauffeur/mechanic began to wane and the independent auto repair industry was in its infancy, anyone and everyone who thought they could repair a car was getting into the business. Some were competent or at least gave the repair an honest try. Many were inept, and some were just simply con-artists. This soon led to a public outcry for honest and ethical “garagemen” and competent mechanics who could make a satisfactory repair. Legislators and industry observers agreed something needed to be done, and the move was on to li-

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cense or certify auto repairers.

At first, it seemed that everyone was behind it. But along with certification went unionizing. Mechanics calculated that if they unionized, then became certified, they could command higher wages. Garage owners and car dealers quickly made the same calculation. The garage owners and car dealer owners quickly used their influence to kill the first attempt at licensing or certifying. By the mid1920’s the issue was dead… for the time being. The issue of certification, not technicians but shops, would not gain much traction for almost 100 years when the OE’s began certifying shops that met their criteria.

Standardizing Repair Costs

As the independent repair network began to evolve in the 1920’s, the public perception of the auto repair business was not so savory. Many mechanics and garages were honest and provided value, some did not. And those that didn’t gave a black eye to everyone.

Garage service managers and auto-maker engineers and service related executives wanted to clean up the industry and reform the motorist-mechanic relationship. To do this, standard times were established for standard procedures. In effect, “flat-rate time” was invented. Advocates thought that customers seeking to have work done, should be able to go into a shop, be quoted a price, have the work performed, and pay the price quoted. Ad-

vocates calculated that this simple procedure would remove motorists worry and anxiety when having their car repaired and thus, provide a more friendly and cordial atmosphere.

The basic concept was sound.

The problem was, who would create the flat-rate times? Ford Motor Company established some of the first flat rate times for their dealership mechanics. These were based on elaborate time-motion studies in controlled settings, removing brand new parts on brand new cars and replacing them with other brand new parts on the same brand new car. No time allowance was made for rusty bolts, broken bolts or other work impediments.

Ford also created some flat-rate times for body repair with a similar

problem – but worse. It was easy to remove a fender or running board that was brand new and clean. It was quite a different job when the parts were mangled and twisted.

As with anything new, some people liked the system, some did not.

Good mechanics who could meet or beat the times had no problem. Other, less talented mechanics simply moved to another garage that did not use flatrate time. Some garages lost half their work force when flat-rate times were implemented.

Training, certifying and standardizing – concepts that started in the 1920’s and may have changed over the years, but still challenge the auto repair industry, both mechanical and collision, today.

33 Months Jailtime For Embezzlement in North Central MN, Funds Used to Support Car Restoration Hobby

The former controller of a Blaine metalstamping firm was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison for embezzling nearly $1.2 million from his company, the U.S. attorney’s office said.

John Burwood Robinson, 50, from Crystal pleaded guilty in August to one count of mail fraud and one count

of filing a false tax return in conjunction with a scheme to embezzle funds from his employer, North Central Stamping & Manufacturing Inc. He was using the money to fund a car-restoration hobby, federal officials said.

Robinson, who worked at the company for 25 years, was sentenced

Nov. 30 by Senior Judge Paul Magnuson in the U.S. District Court in St. Paul. The scheme appears to have begun when North Central promoted Robinson to the role of controller in 2003. As part of the job, he managed the company’s bank accounts and bookkeeping records but soon began

siphoning money from the firm.

According to prosecutors and plea documents, Robinson used the money to “pay for his own personal expenses, to fund his hobby of buying and restoring automobiles and automobile parts, and to pay for a storage facility to store the automobiles and parts.”

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Historical Snapshot

—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.

Database Enhancement Gateway Got its Start 10 Years Ago with John Yoswick

20 Years Ago in the Collision Repair Industry (January 1998) One insurance company is not only calling for the use of non-deployed airbags from salvaged vehicles, but is actually selling the units to repair shops.

Collision Industry Conference (CIC) attendees 15 years ago had a chance to compare three salvage decklids that a shop ordered from three different suppliers and brought to CIC for review

At the Collision Industry Conference in Las Vegas, Earl Cameron of Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI) said his company has been selling airbag units to repairers from SGI’s salvage vehicles for about a year. SGI insures all of the 860,000 vehicles in the Canadian province. Like insurers in other provinces, SGI meets regularly with auto dealer and repair shop associations to reach agreements on REITs, repair practices, etc. But unlike most other insurers that sell salvage vehicles whole, SGI dismantles its salvage vehicles and sells parts, including airbags.

“Because of our unique position of having these parts available, because of the concerns of controlling our claims cost, when we met with the repair industry, we made an agreement that for vehicles where the airbag had been deployed, we would provide recycled airbags that we were in possession of for the exact make and model of that vehicle, including color match,” Cameron said. “We started that at the

end of 1996, and it was well-received by the repair industry. What we are trying to do is repair as many vehicles as possible. The more total losses we have, [the more] our costs go up. The more vehicles we repair, the happier our customers are, and certainly the happier the repair industry is. It’s a win-win situation.

“One of the other reasons that we wanted to use these up is that the airbags that were undeployed had been sold, and SGI had no way of knowing where they were going, whose vehicle they went on, and whether the customer actually knew they were getting a used or undeployed airbag. So by doing this, we provide the airbag to the repairer. The industry acceptance of that is because we’re providing the airbag, we know which vehicle it came off of, how many miles are on it [and] what type of accident it was in.

That was the control they wanted from us to make sure they weren’t getting an airbag that may have been damaged or not properly stored.”

Cameron admitted that his company has not done any crash testing of vehicles in which the undeployed airbags were installed.

– As reported in Collision Expert.

No major U.S. auto insurers have moved toward calling for the use of salvage airbag modules.

15 Years Ago in the Collision Repair Industry (January 2003) Auto recyclers had to cringe at the results of a Collision Industry Conference (CIC) committee’s latest demonstration.

As it did earlier this year, the CIC “Parts and Airbags Committee” had a local shop order the same type of part—in this case, a decklid with taillights for a 1990 Honda Civic— from three different salvage yards. The shop was asked to use yards it normally does business with, and not to disclose that the parts were being used in a CIC demonstration.

All three of the parts that arrived and were displayed at CIC would pose challenges for the collision repairer, according to Jeanne Silver, co-chair of the committee. One was a 1998 Honda decklid, which would’ve fit the

34 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

vehicle, but was not the same model year or newer as required by some insurers. It also took two business days to arrive at the shop, and while the auto recycler described the part as [being] in “good condition,” many at CIC described it as having “light damage.”

One of the other parts, which arrived the day after it was ordered, was in good condition but was even older (1997), arrived with no taillights, and was identified on the invoice as a 1998 part with taillights and hinges (also missing).

Based on the lack of a VIN sticker and its significantly lower mill thickness of paint, the third part was determined to be an OEM service replacement part that had been previously repaired. Also described by the salvage provider as being in “good condition,” the decklid had a damaged taillight, and collision repairers used such words to describe the overall

condition as “moderately damaged” and “junk.” On the upside, it arrived at the shop just two hours after it was ordered.

Silver said any number of problems with the decklids – their age, condition missing parts – could’ve created cycle time delays for the shop.

– As reported in Autobody News

10 Years Ago in the Collision Repair Industry (January 2008) Three collision repair associations are jointly launching what they foresee as a key tool in helping the industry improve the accuracy and fairness of the estimating databases.

After more than a year of planning and development, the Database Enhancement Gateway (DEG) is going live with its website, providing a single place for anyone in the industry to submit requests for reviews of labor times or operations in any of the See Retro News, Page 42

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Product Innovation

Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.

Wreck Check Car Scan Centers Owner Gets his ‘I Told You So’ Moment with Ed Attanasio

by Ed Attanasio

For many years, he was telling anybody who would listen that too many shops were doing sub-par and highly unsafe repairs all over the country.

Industry leaders and many shop owners thought he was either the boy who cried wolf or the little chicken who announced that the sky was falling, but Rocco Avellini isn’t easily discouraged. So, he started a business called Wreck Check Car Scan Centers, which offers a second opinion for customers who suspect that their repaired vehicles weren’t properly fixed during the initial repair process.

To say the least, after a while, certain body shops started hating the man while the industry as a whole kept telling him that these shoddy and dangerous repairs were rare exceptions, rather than the norm. But now, with the recent John Eagle/Honda court decision—which awarded a couple $31.5 million after being badly burned by an improper repair—the tables are beginning to turn.

It was Avellini’s “I told you so” moment—now, he believes people will start to trust his claims that improper repairs are more common than one would think. He presented his findings in 1999 when addressing the California Senate, but no action was taken. In fact, the state president of the California Auto Body Association, industry association leaders and politicians, except for Senator Joseph Dunn, were not interested, he said.

“If the collision industry acted at the time of the Senate hearing eight years ago, the Eagle/Honda accident would not have occurred,” Avellini said. “Instead, the collision industry was more interested in serving the insurers rather than their customers. Years ago, when I was a founding member and chapter president for the Mid Cities chapter of the California Autobody Association, I would tell the members and officers at other organizations, including SCRS, that this was a bad situation that was going to get worse. All of them told me that these unsafe repairs were the exceptions and that only a few rogue shops were doing them. But now their tune is

changing, because it’s evident that not only small shops are involved. Large shops, collision centers and enormous MSOs with 200-plus shops are also just as guilty as some of the tiny independents out there.”

Rocco Avellini, the owner of Wreck Check Car Scan Centers, has been telling people that sub-par repairs are a serious problem. Now, after a recent court decision, more and more people are starting to agree with him

Avellini, 66, has worked in almost every aspect of the collision repair and insurance industry, starting as a body man in the late ‘60s, an insurance adjuster and Nation Property Manager, equipment sales rep and owner of an auto restoration company and a body shop (Rocco’s Collision Center in southern California) for many years. When he found out about the Wreck Check software 26 years ago, he instantly saw the need for a company that protects consumers from improper collision repairs. In 1997, Avellini founded Wreck Check Car Scan Center (WCCSC) after meeting Wreck Check founder Jim Lynas. The concept of WCCSC is to have a location where the consumer has a place to get the “Ultimate Second Opinion” regarding the completed collision repairs to their vehicle.

“I have inspected more than 20,000 vehicles in my collision, insurance and post-repair inspection life, and to be honest, things are getting worse, so maybe this recent case will start to change things,” he said.

“But I believe it will fade over time, the same way it did with aftermarket parts several years ago. After we started uncovering the abuse in the collision industry, we received a ton of press, and I thought that the insurers would become more proactive about making sure that collision re-

36 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

pairs would be done in a safe and proper fashion and according to manufacturers’ specifications. But it never happened. I believe that in an ongoing attempt to control costs, the insurers are just creating new ways to achieve cost-cutting, and ultimately the repairers are left with the same, if not more liability. Repairers must remember that an insurer has no standing in the collision repair process and their only duty is to indemnify their insured and make them whole.”

There is never a shortage of work for Avellini and his 45 licensees nationwide, he said.

“WCCSC is growing every year as more shop owners, estimators and other collision professionals see that this is a trend rather than a fad,” he said. “Diminished value and shoddy repairs have been an issue for a long time, and until people really start pushing the envelope like we do, it’s going to be the same result. But, at least some

of the fence-sitters and naysayers are now changing their tunes, especially after this recent court decision.”

Avellini was telling people way back when that pre- and post-collision repair vehicle inspections were necessary—not just something to do once in a while.

“We were scanning cars when no one was talking about it, so this is a good thing,” he said. “But too many shops still aren’t doing them, which exposes them to potential problems down the road—like getting sued. The problem is that because of the continued effort by insurers to control costs, a shop owner cannot afford a quality control person to oversee the repairs as the vehicle enters each department.

We tell people that these inspections should be considered on a more frequent basis, especially when dealing with extensive damage that may include structural damage and SRS deployment.”

One of the main issues is that many body shops are forced into doing poor quality repairs in order to placate their insurance partners, Avellini said.

“When is enough, enough? If you take 10 hours to do a 20-hour job and cut corners along the way, it’s on you— not the insurance company,” he said.

“As much as the insurance companies will tell you they are, auto insurance policies are not HMO policies. They are full indemnity policies, which mean that the owner of the vehicle has a right to be made whole.”

What would Avellini say to a shop that is currently cutting corners and knows it?

“Years ago in a chat room, I told the other shop owners that there is no more sitting on the fence,” he said.

“You’re either with the insurance companies or against them. If you don’t repair these cars correctly, especially in this post-repair inspection world, you’re setting yourself up for getting caught and possible financial liability.

I have been fighting this for more than 25 years now, and it’s finally coming to a head, but it will be good only if it leads to major changes in the collision industry.”

Six Detroit Cops Charged With Extortion for Taking Bribes From Repair Shop Owners

by Violet Ikonomova, Detroit Metro News

A half-dozen current or former Detroit police officers have been charged with extortion for taking bribes from auto repair shop owners in exchange for referring stolen and abandoned vehicles recovered in the city to their shops.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says four retired officers have pleaded guilty to the charges and are awaiting sentencing while two current officers have been indicted.

“The charged defendants should have put the people of Detroit first, rather than lining their own pockets,” U.S. Attorney Daniel Lemisch said in a release.

Current DPD officer Deonne Dotson, 45, has been indicted on six counts of extortion, while officer Charles Wills, 52, is facing four counts of extortion. Retired officers James Robertson, 45, and Martin Tutt, 29, pleaded guilty to two counts of extortion. Retired officers Jamil Martin, 46, and Anthony Careathers, 52, pleaded guilty to one count of extortion.

Each extortion count carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

According to the Detroit Free Press, former officer Martin admitted to taking a $500 bribe in 2014 from an auto body shop owner in exchange for referring an abandoned vehicle to that shop for repairs. The paper reports that Martin’s plea deal said he would locate abandoned vehicles through his role as a cop, have them towed, and tell the car owners about where they could send their vehicles for repairs. Under the plea agreement, he faces 24–30 months in prison.

Robertson, who the Freep reports admitted to accepting two $1,000 bribes, and Tutt, who admitted to taking two $500 bribes, also face 24–30 months in prison. Careathers, who admitted to pocketing one $1,500 bribe, faces 18–24 months.

The retired officers will be sentenced in the new year, while the current officers are due to be arraigned tomorrow.

“While these allegations are

troubling, we are relieved that this [is] bringing closure to a long standing issue that has plagued this department,” Detroit police Chief James Craig said in the joint-agency release announcing the charges.

Last year, six Detroit cops were suspended for allegedly taking bribes from a tow company owner in exchange for funneling him work, that included towing stolen cars. It’s not clear if the officers accused of extortion involving auto body shops are the same officers at the center of the towing allegations.

Two months ago, ex-Detroit police deputy chief Celia Washington, who resigned in March, was indicted for accepting bribes for helping the owner of multiple towing companies get more business from the police department.

The owner of the towing companies was unnamed, but local towing mogul Gasper Fiore has been charged as part of the public corruption probe as well.

We thank Detroit Metro News for reprint permission.

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 37

Stacey Phillips is a freelance writer and editor for the automotive industry.

She has 20 years of experience writing for a variety of publications, and is co-author of “The Secrets of America’s Greatest Body Shops.”

She can be reached at sphillips.autobodynews@gmail.com.

Product and Process

Mitchell Products Created to Help Shops Deliver Proper, Safe Repairs with Stacey Phillips

Ten years ago, when a new automo- ple to think that a machine is going to bile was introduced to the market, the be evaluating the images. What I ask repair of that vehicle was essentially people is, ‘Would you prefer a mathe same as the previous year’s model. chine that has actually been proven to “That’s no longer the case,” exbe more accurate in photo-based plained Jack Rozint, vice president of image processing and has been trained sales and service at Mitchell Internaon 500,000 similar types of damage, tional. “New model vehicles are now or a human that may be new to the inlikely to include computers and elecdustry and has never seen a damaged tronic systems that weren’t previously panel exactly like the one you are suboffered, and this means that new repair mitting?’ procedures are required. With We have been working the overriding challenge of with a company called the complexity of vehicles, at Tractable. The project grew Mitchell we recognized the out of that company looking need to provide our customers for good applications to with the latest vehicle inforapply artificial intelligence, mation to help them deliver especially with photo analyproper and safe repairs. It is sis, and how that might relate Jack Rozint, our number one focus.” to the automotive claims vice president of As a result, the company process. The first iteration sales and service at Mitchell has introduced a variety of came out in the form of reInternational products over the last year, viewing damaged panels and particularly focusing on OEM repair helping decide whether the panels procedures and how these are inteshould be repaired or replaced. grated into Mitchell’s suite of products.

There are pros and cons to it, but Concurrently, the company is moving I think that overall, it’s going to help its product suite to the cloud. [facilitate] more efficient processing “With applications in the cloud, of claims, which ultimately benefits we give customers a greater level of everybody. flexibility that is much easier to work With the changes in digital with than any desktop-based applicatechnology and using the cloud, tion—while we find greater scalabilwhat is the learning curve for shops? ity and an integration capability,” he said.

At Mitchell, we see that as our Autobody News talked to Rozint challenge: How do we build about Mitchell’s latest initiatives and more powerful applications that are how the company is helping body easier for our customers to use? That shops deliver proper and safe repairs. is really the ultimate goal of any good What are some of the new technology company. You want to products Mitchell has intromake something that is intuitive and duced over the last year? easy to learn, but you want it also to be very powerful, flexible, scalable We had three industry firsts this and extensible, so that’s our design year. In addition to the Mitchell principle in everything we are doing.

Diagnostics system and Mitchell Cloud Mitchell Diagnostics is a perfect Estimating, we had what I believe is example because it helps customers the first artificial intelligence platform address repair issues with complicated for the industry—Mitchell WorkCenvehicles. Because the application is in ter™ Assisted Review. the cloud, it allows us to share data With Assisted Review, we use arand information. We can enable a tificial intelligence—machine learn- process that is more efficient for those ing—to review photos of damage and repairing cars and processing claims. give advice and guidance to humans It’s so easy to use that virtually anyto help them with claim reviews. It’s body with just five minutes of training pretty interesting and exciting, al- can go out and do a pre-scan or a postthough it’s a little scary for some peo- scan on a vehicle. You can do it with-

Q:

Q:

out even opening the hood and without getting dirty. It’s a very simple and easy-to-use product. If you have the training and the willingness, it has the capabilities to do some amazing things—such as the recalibration of a Ford F-150’s lane departure system.

With Mitchell Cloud Estimating, we show users a four-minute training video, and we’ve seen them watch two minutes of that video and then start writing estimates. Then we come back a couple hours later, and they have written three or four estimates and are having a great time.

There is literally no formal training required because anybody who is familiar with any estimating system can sit down with the new cloud product and get up to speed quickly.

That’s a big deal, because there are people coming into the industry who don’t have 20 years of experience writing estimates.

Our goal is to put together the solutions that have depth and features underneath, and at the same time include a user interface that is intuitive, easy to understand and use and doesn’t require a lot of training.

Congratulations on the recent Q: launch of Program Freedom.

What are some of the benefits you can share about this initiative?

I’m really excited about ProA: gram Freedom. The complexity in our industry continues to grow almost exponentially. As a result, carriers are attempting to process claims more efficiently, because the insurance industry is competitive like never before. They are constantly looking at ways they can improve their policy holders’ service more cost effectively, and that leads to pressure on the collision industry to deliver more efficiently. Now we’re trying to de-

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The 2,940-square-foot Mitchell Technical Research Center in San Diego, CA

recalibrating computers, bonding techniques, riveting, substrates, etc. It’s getting more complicated to repair vehicles today, which is requiring more training, equipment and tools.

Program Freedom is based on Mitchell’s cloud-based estimating and communications platform. Repair facilities can choose to share data via EMS or BMS and decide which data fields are shared with each partner. We think this is fundamentally critical to the industry.

In the past, shops have had the ability to share data with whomever they wanted. I believe the industry has benefited tremendously from being able to do that. At Mitchell, we think it should remain that way because it has worked well for the past 20 years, spawning innovation along the way.

That’s what Program Freedom is about at its core—it’s an alternative where you can continue to share data with program administrators and service providers on your terms, without the limitation of proprietary protocols and closed data networks. We’ve also made a commitment to the industry that we are not going to charge transaction fees for running your business using our data.

We believe Program Freedom offers collision repairers a higher level of control over their business data.

When one dominant provider has the ability to control business transactions and data, it creates an environment that stifles competition, pricing goes up, and service goes down. We at Mitchell wanted to provide an alternative to that.

Can you tell us about the new Q: Mitchell Technical Research Center?

We’ve had a technical research A: center for years in San Diego, only a mile and half from our main of-

fice. We recently moved it to a larger space. We manage all of our data inhouse. We build our own database for parts and labor and conduct time studies and research into repair methods and techniques. When new vehicles are introduced to the market, we take them to our tech center and use a very sophisticated 3D laser system to measure them. The car is put up on a hoist and scanned in detail, so we can generate super precise measurements.

We also have a training room at the 2,940-square-foot tech center where association meetings are held, such as the ones hosted by the California Autobody Association.

What can collision shops exQ: pect from Mitchell moving forward?

In the industry right now, it’s siA: multaneously challenging and

exciting because there is so much change. I’ve been in the industry for more than 30 years, and the pace of change is greater than anything I’ve ever seen.

It’s daunting at times for many people, and I understand that completely because repairs are getting more complicated. I also find it exciting because there is a lot of change. This gives us the opportunity to do things more efficiently.

We have a new management team in Mitchell’s Auto Physical Damage Solutions division, led by Debbie Day, plus some veterans who have been with the company for 20-plus years. We have a nice mix of people who have been at Mitchell a long time with a serious injection of new energy. There are some exciting things on the horizon.

We’ve been able to accomplish a lot this past year and have a lot more coming in terms of the latest generation of technology. Everything we do is to support collision shops in making proper and safe repairs.

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OE Shop Certification

Gary Ledoux is an industry veteran with 48 years’ experience in the automotive and OEM collision parts industry. His column appears exclusively in Autobody News.

He can be reached at YesterWreck@yahoo.com

OE Shop Certification Programs - American Honda with Gary Ledoux

Welcome to the first of what will be a series of articles on one of the hottest topics in the collision industry today, OE shop certification programs. For our first one, we spoke with Rossana Alvarez, Assistant National Manager for Collision Parts Marketing for American Honda.

ABN: Does your program have a specific name?

American Honda: The full name is ProFirst Certified Body Shop program, more often referred to as simply “ProFirst.” The program was introduced at the Northeast Trade Show on March 18, 2015 but the official launch date was April 1, 2015 to coincide with our fiscal year.

ABN: What is the main purpose of the program?

American Honda: As stated in our program term and conditions, the purpose of the ProFirst Certified Body Shop Program is three-fold:

■ Promote the correct, complete, and safe repair of Honda and Acura vehicles.

■ Provide support to those collision repair businesses who have demonstrated a commitment to a high level of customer care and satisfaction.

■ Provide Honda and Acura owners with a high level of confidence that their collision-damaged vehicle will be repaired in a complete and safe manner.

ABN: What are the program requirements?

American Honda: First and foremost the shop must be an I-CAR Gold Class shop or, as an alternative, be a VeriFacts VQ or Medallion shop. About 90 percent of our shops are Gold Class, about five percent are VeriFacts shops and five percent are both.

We also have some OE-specific training that must be completed and maintained. This includes six on-line classes, developed by Honda and administered by I-CAR that must be completed by at least one estimator,

and two steel-structural technicians or one steel structural and one steel nonstructural technician.

We have a rather lengthy tool and equipment list that the shop must have.

However, we do not specify a brand of equipment, only that whatever the shop has meets our specifications.

The shop must have a CSI system although we do not specify the provider.

We know there are several out there and some of our dealer-shops have their own and I know some of the MSO’s have their own. We simply feel that the shop owner or manager must be aware of how his customers feel about their experience with the shop.

We don’t have specific facility requirements but we expect the shop to be clean and professional looking and customer-centric where it needs to be.

ABN: What are the program benefits?

American Honda: Each shop receives the following:

■ Wall plaque which is replaced each year ■ Outdoor metal sign ■ Use of the ProFirst logo on the shop’s website and social media sites ■ Free access to Honda/Acura repair information ■ Free access to Honda/Acura parts catalogs ■ Their shop’s name listed as a search result on American Honda’s ProFirst Shop Locator, which is located on American Honda’s parts and service consumer web site (owners.honda .com/parts-service/), and American Honda’s collision web site (collision .honda.com) ■ Free access to a technical help line which will go all the way to Japan if necessary ■ Honda and Acura owners can have their collision-damaged car towed free to a ProFirst shop if the vehicle is still under warranty and under the Roadside Assistance program ■ Shops receive several free collateral advertising items including consumertargeted brochures, a poster, and window-clings ■ Shops have exclusive access to a Los-Angeles based vendor who can

40 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

provide various promotional items emblazoned with the ProFirst logo and the shop’s name.

■ Each shop receives the ProFirst Quarterly magazine free

As an adjunct benefit, for about two years, American Honda has been promoting ProFirst shops in two of the insurance industry’s leading magazines.

ABN: What shops are eligible?

American Honda: Both dealer-owned and independent shops are welcome as long as they meet the program requirements.

ABN: Must an independent shop be sponsored by a dealer? (If so has that caused any problems?)

American Honda: We went that route with a prior “recognized” program and yes, there were problems so we chose

not to do that again.

ABN: Are any shops specifically ineligible?

American Honda: Our program is limited to US shops and dealers. We occasionally get calls from shops or dealers in Canada. Honda Canada has their own program, also called ProFirst, but it is under their own auspices. Other ineligible shops include those that cannot or will not meet Honda’s requirements.

ABN: What is the fee for the program? / Does the program run on an annual basis?

American Honda: The annual fee is $2700. It is the same for both dealer and independent shops.

ABN: Do you inspect every shop and if so, who does the inspections?

See Certification Program, Page 43

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Continued from Page 34

Retro News

“Big Three” estimating databases.

“This is to help people who use these products when they have a question about a labor time, missing parts or inaccuracies that they feel are in a database,” said Lou DiLisio, an industry consultant who helped create the DEG. “This is for everyone in the industry: insurance companies, repairers, whoever uses the products.”

The DEG also announced at the recent Collision Industry Conference (CIC) that it has hired a full-time administrator to track and follow up on requests submitted. Aaron Schulenburg, who has experience as an insurance field appraiser and collision repair shop manager and consultant, has been named to lead the DEG. The DEG has been created and funded to date by three associations: the Automotive Service Association (ASA), the Alliance of Automotive Service Providers (AASP) and the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS).

Although users of the estimating databases have always been able to

submit “requests for review” to the database providers, the process has not always been simple or easily accessible.

The idea behind DEG, DiLisio said, grew out of an effort by March Taylor, a Hawaiian shop owner who died this past August and who had

In 2008, Aaron Schulenburg was named the first administrator for the Database Enhancement Gateway, about a year before he became executive director for SCRS

begun using the CIC website in 2001 to assist with the submission and tracking of requests for reviews to the three information providers.

“We’ve basically picked up where the efforts of March left us,” DiLisio said at CIC. “He would spend countless hours going through database inquiries, making sure they were valid

CIC Seeks Input on Industry Issues, Value of 2017 Meetings

The Collision Industry Conference (CIC) is asking the industry and CIC Meeting attendees to participate in a brief survey by visiting www.research.net/r/VXMSYQC. The objective of the survey is to determine the current top issues impacting the collision repair industry as well as to measure the value of CIC Meetings, which took place at various venues throughout 2017.

Results of the survey will help guide the direction of CIC in 2018.

The survey is open to anyone interested in providing input to CIC. It asks all respondents, from their individual perspectives, to list the top three issues of concern as it relates to the collision industry.

Guy Bargnes, current CIC Chairman, explained, “We ran a similar survey at this time last year as we prepared for the bi-annual CIC Planning Meeting. The results were both encouraging and insightful. The 2016 survey responses were used to shape the structure of CIC Committee activity and the content of CIC Meetings.

“The current survey is designed as both a brief scorecard on

how we did in 2017 and a request to those interested to list their current concerns, which we will use to guide CIC action in the coming year.

“We are all aware of the staggering pace of change in our industry, so I hope that everyone with a stake in CIC will take a couple of minutes to complete the current survey. It will assist not only CIC and the many committee members and participants, but also the entire collision repair industry.”

The next CIC meeting will be held Jan. 17–18, 2018 in Palm Springs, CA. Complete meeting details are on the CIC Website: www .ciclink.com/

and sending them on to the information providers, following up on them and getting back to the people who sent them in. All in all, it helped improve the accuracy of the database.”

The DEG has worked with the information providers to develop a common electronic form that all three will accept for request for reviews. The website will assist shops in submitting the necessary information, and responses and any responses or resulting changes will be tracked, published and logged.

– As reported in Directions. Ten years later, the DEG (www.DEGweb .org) has processed more than 11,500 inquiries. Schulenburg left his position with the DEG after about a year to become executive director of SCRS.

5 Years Ago in the Collision Repair Industry (January 2013) I-CAR welding trainers say one of the first and most important steps to good welding may be the most-often skipped: making some practice or test welds each time.

I-CAR’s Jeff Peevy said conducting some practice welds on the same type of material as on the vehicle helps ensure the welder is dialed in

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properly. The practice welds can be destructively tested—the only sure way to check if a weld is proper.

Clifton Meaders, a claims supervisor with California State Automobile Association (CSAA), said he has asked during reinspections of repaired vehicles to see the destructive test welds a technician made, but they rarely can produce them.

“That’s one of the things we see as well,” said Mark Olson of VeriFacts Automotive, which conducts in-shop technical audits and training. “The destructive tests are just not there. It’s not being done.”

– As reported in CRASH Network (www.CrashNetwork.com), January 14, 2013. Peevy is now with the Automotive Management Institute, and Olson is now with Vehicle Collision Experts, LLC (VECO Experts).

A 2017 “Who Pays for What?” survey (www.crashnetwork.com/collision advice) found that 22 percent of shops that perform and invoice for “set-up and perform test welds” say they are paid “always” or “most of the time” by the eight largest auto insurers; about three-quarters of shops said they have never asked to be paid for that procedure.

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Continued from Page 40

Certification Programs

American Honda: Every shop is inspected on an annual basis to ensure program compliance. Some shops question the need for an annual inspection. However, managers change, technicians change and so maintaining compliance is an on-going issue.

ABN: Is there an optimum number of shops you want to have and if so, how close are you to reaching that number?

American Honda: Based on our calculations and the number of Honda and Acura units in operation, our ideal number is 1,200 to 1,250. We have been at that number for several months.

We are still adding a few here and there but their placement is very strategic.

Mostly, when shops call or email us and want to get on the program we ask where they are and if they are Gold Class or a VeriFacts shop or not. If they are Gold Class or VeriFacts but we don’t need a shop where they are located, we will likely put them on a waiting list.

ABN: Have you had any shops drop out and if so, why??

American Honda: Yes, a few have dropped out. Some left because of a management change or ownership change. Some left because they joined the program for the wrong reason, thinking ProFirst was a DRP program.

And some just could not or would not maintain their Gold Class status.

ABN: Does Honda provide their certified shops with any brand-specific training?

American Honda: As stated above, Honda provides six one-hour, on-line classes administered through I-CAR. More are planned for a later date. The current classes include:

HON10e – Honda and Acura Service Information HON11e – Honda and Acura High Strength Steel Repair HON12e – Honda and Acura Restraints Collision Repair HON14e – Honda and Acura Electrical Collision Repair HON15e – Honda and Acura A/C Collision Repair

HON16e – Honda and Acura TPMS Collision Repair

ABN: Does Honda provide shops with any marketing or promotional materials?

American Honda: Yes as stated above.

And we will soon be introducing promotional videos that shops can have custom made with their own shop name, logo, and message to be run on their web sites or social media sites.

ABN: Does Honda have a field staff dedicated to this program? If so, what is their focus?

American Honda: We have ten field personnel spread across the US. Their main focus is to on-board new shops, provide support to existing shops, and provide administrative support for Honda’s national office.

ABN: Does Honda provide a magazine or other printed materials for their certified shops?

American Honda: We provide ProFirst Quarterly magazine, containing technical articles as well as profiles on ProFirst

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shops and other helpful information.

ABN: What has been the biggest challenge in establishing the network?

American Honda: When we first got started, shops considered the “certified shop” concept to be the domain of the more exotic European marques like Jaguar, Mercedes or BMW. They didn’t see Honda and Acura as being “exotic enough” or using exotic substrates to a point that warranted a shop certification program. Eventually they saw which way the wind was blowing across the collision industry landscape, and jumped on board.

ABN: What has been the biggest challenge in maintaining the network??

American Honda: We notify the shop 90 days in front of their expiration date. Under normal circumstance, and if all goes well, this should give them plenty of time to do what is necessary to complete the recertification process.

However, some shops fail to pay in a timely manner or have lost their Gold Class status or failed to keep up with their Honda-specific training. Many See Certification Program, Page 48

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SVP of BASF Coatings Discusses Changes Ahead for Collision Industry rience to vehicle owners.”

The all-female build was led by The BASF Automotive Refinish CoatBogi Lateiner, co-host of All Girls ings booth stayed busy throughout this Garage on the Velocity network. year’s four-day SEMA Show in Las Lateiner gathered more than 90 women Vegas, serving as the location for events throughout the country to build the 1957 ranging from exclusive autograph sesChevy Montage that was unveiled at the sions to the unveiling of an all-female BASF booth on Oct. 31. The Montage vehicle build. project was created to bring women in the automotive industry together to work on building a unique vehicle, giving some women their first opportunity to work in a garage next to another woman. The R-M Onyx HD fan-voted color, created by Lateiner with the help of BASF’s color experts, in addition to the fan-submitted color The booth also included new color name “Tenacious Teal,” selected by offerings, premium builds, business soLateiner, were also revealed at the lutions and KC’s Custom Colors by BASF booth.

BASF R-M, launched by KC Mathieu “I absolutely appreciate all of my of KC’s Paint Shop. Additionally, fans and everyone who helped make BASF exhibited the Time Merchant, a this happen,” Lateiner said. “BASF has been a huge supporter of this build from the very beginning.”

Autobody News reached out to Chris Toomey, SVP of Coatings Solutions at BASF, during the SEMA Show to learn more about BASF’s plans for the future and some of the industry changes he foresees.

Can you share information Chris Toomey, SVP of BASF Coatings, standing at the about your role at BASF and BASF Automotive Refinish Coatings booth at the SEMA the current focus of the comShow with the 1957 Chevy Montage pany?

1932 Ford Roadster by Goolsby CusI started my career at BASF in toms displaying a custom color devel2011 with a background in the chemoped with the BASF Color Ideation ical industry, and became SVP of process, and the Roadster, a 2017 Garia Coatings Solutions in 2014. Within Gold Car featuring BASF Coatings. my responsibility, there are two main Chip Foose’s Custom 1971 Ford focuses. One is providing paint for the Mach One Mustang, the most recent OEMs, and the other focuses on the creation by renowned designer/builder refinish business.

Chip Foose, was also unveiled at the BASF booth. The unique vehicle was a 2010 Mustang GT inside of a 1971 Mustang body, and featured Glasurit 90 Line.

“BASF offers our customers a complete partnership, starting from before the car is even built, through every repair or improvement it undergoes,” said Marvin Gillfillan, BASF Bogi working with BASF and her team to create the Vice President, Business Man- custom color for the Chevy Montage agement, Automotive Refinish.

“Our focus is to put customers first, imBASF is the largest chemical inproving productivity and profitability dustry supplier to the automotive into help deliver the best customer expedustry. We have a substantial amount

by Autobody News Staff

44 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

of time and money invested in various elements of automotive. We’re involved with the OEMs regarding topics such as light weighting, autonomous vehicles, energy reduction and processes. We are looking at how we can help the OEMs operate more efficiently and assist them as

they are developing the technology in the cars of the future. BASF conducts a lot of research and development on that side.

How does this relate to the collision repair industry?

There are probably three big impacts: First is the surface on the cars. You are starting to see the lightweight materials and synthetic materials coming in.

From a coatings standpoint, there are a lot of challenges in this area.

Second is the electronics.

I believe it’s going to apply to the industry overall as repairers become more specialized and familiar with high tech equipment on the vehicles.

There is going to be a different expertise required for that than what has existed traditionally.

Third is the business model. Technology, the use of Bogi Lateiner, co-host of All Girls Garage on the Velocity big data and integrated sysnetwork, gathered more than 90 women throughout the tems are all going to affect the country to build the 1957 Chevy Montage that was unveiled at the BASF booth at SEMA on Oct. 31

See Changes Ahead, Page 51

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www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 45

OE Shop Certification with Stacey Phillips

Stacey Phillips is a freelance writer and editor for the automotive industry.

She has 20 years of experience writing for a variety of publications, and is co-author of “The Secrets of America’s Greatest Body Shops.”

She can be reached at sphillips.autobodynews@gmail.com.

Audi Discusses Car Manufacturer’s Certification Program, Repair Procedures & Training for Collision Repairers Taking the time to mentally reinvest in your business, attend hands-on training and understand your shop’s limitations can all help you run a successful collision repair facility, according to Mark Allen, collision programs manager for Audi USA. During a recent Guild 21 podcast sponsored by VeriFacts Automotive, Allen shared insight on Audi’s certification program and the importance of staying up-to-date on OEM repair procedures.

Guild 21: Audi vehicles must be repaired by OEM-certified shops. What process do you recommend shops use to obtain equipment that is approved for use in the Audi certification program?

Allen: Volkswagen Group of America represents Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Ducati motorcycles, Lamborghini, Porsche and Volkswagen. The equipment we certify is relevant within the house of Volkswagen.

It’s important to understand why certain pieces of equipment are certified over others, and it all comes down to the culture of the company. It is what makes an Audi an Audi and a Ford a Ford. To say brand X should look, smell and taste the same as brand Y is not a realistic comparison.

The realism of it is that there is a process that goes on about once a year, and also during the development of crash repair procedures. I know it seems like other welders should work with our vehicles, but there is a very strict process that welders go through.

It’s the same with rivet guns. They are tested for strength and other parameters in Germany and then the research is submitted. The materials used to manufacture the vehicles are also factored in so that when the piece of equipment is checked, we are assured that it will do the job.

Guild 21: Can an Assured Performance Network shop be part of the Audi program?

Allen: In my opinion, there are three different types of certification. There’s the Audi program that is very much

driven by repair procedures and dictates the tools, equipment and training used during the repair. On the other end of the spectrum, there are subscription-based certification programs

one more part or one more part dollar. leased, goes to an Audi-certified reI don’t believe that is what we are pairer if they are in an accident—no about. We are responsible to take care questions asked.

If a vehicle is damaged in transof the general health and welfare of the motoring public and make sure the portation, it goes to an Audi certified repairs are done to meet a repairer. If there is a paint issue or warcertain standard so they have ranty issue, it will go to an Audi certithe same safety afforded to fied repairer. We put our money where them after the repair as the our mouth is. We make sure they go to those repairers. original structure. The parts are an organic side byproduct Guild 21: What are your thoughts of that. However, that should not be a reason why we have about the restricted parts for OEM sponsorship. It should be that certification? customer retention—the customer care that goes on. Some Allen: Yes, we restrict parts and probMark Allen, Collision Programs Manager for Audi USA of the best partners I have are ably have the largest catalog of rewhere manufacturers form a network, independently owned body shops that stricted parts based on technical but it’s not necessarily as stringent as serve our dealers. competencies required to do those reours. Then there are those I refer to as The network doesn’t just serve pairs and install those parts. I feel it is the “half-pregnants.” They are someour dealers. It is the practice and basic appropriate for our customers and if what between where the Audi program belief of Audi of America. Everyone someone who was not certified does is and where the Assured Performance who works for the company and has the repair, I couldn’t stand behind the shops are. either a vehicle assigned to them or structure, and would suggest rebrandWe try and pick partners who will work well with our dealers, and we predicate it on having the dealer form a relationship directly with the body Parts for Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Oldsmobile, Pontiac shop rather than us assigning it to them.

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Guild 21: Does Audi require dealer sponsorship to join the certification program, given the lawsuit against Mercedes for the alleged dealer extortion, and are there any thoughts about changing this?

Allen: We’re always looking at how to do the best job for our customers.

Our belief up to this point is that the dealer is in charge of their immediate area and is familiar with the customers there best. To have a sponsorship relationship between the dealership, whether it’s their own body shop or an independent repairer, is pretty important to give that level of care to the customer. We don’t just look at it as a program. Realistically, the repairer is a key player in it and should work closely with the dealer.

It’s not predicated on parts sales.

I tell everyone there’s nothing on my performance review that says to sell

46 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

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ing and retitling the car by the person who did that repair.

Guild 21: What frame machines are recommended by Audi?

Allen: There are three companies currently approved by the Volkswagen group: Celette, Car-O-Liner and Spanesi. These manufacturers all work closely with Audi and are involved in the process well before the car is released for sale. They have all of the CAD data and have shown that their measuring systems and frame systems can hold their measurements and tolerances in many different ways.

Guild 21: Can you tell us about Audi’s repair procedures?

Allen: As I explain to our incoming Audi of America employees, aftersales is kind of a misnomer. Manufacturers sell cars, service, parts and accessories, financing and a few other small products. Aftersales is where a lot of us live. When a vehicle is being developed, it goes through its initial engineering and clay modeling, and then moves into production. Afterward, a group of vehicles are moved

over to service engineering where the engineers promptly look at the vehicles. Collision repair engineers and technicians work together to determine and document the repair procedures as well as the specific tools that will be used.

Then the vehicle is crashed into a wall. We measure it to ensure the vehicle meets the same specifications as when the car was first built. An average of 150 cars are used to ensure the models meet the various international standards.

When a failure occurs, everyone looks at the repair scenario to determine what failed and how it should be fixed. Failure is how we learn. I don’t take it as a negative, but rather as an opportunity to move ahead.

That information is incorporated into the repair procedures, and when production changes are made by a manufacturer, shops are not notified about the updates. I encourage all shops to check for updates on a regular basis to stay informed about changes, because they often occur without notice.

Guild 21: What are the parameters for shops that want to take part in the training offered by Audi?

Allen: Training is an important part of Audi’s certification process. We currently have one training center up and running in Ashburn, VA, where we had over 450 seats available this year, and have filled 90 percent of them.

Hopefully, by the mid-first quarter of next year, we will have a second facility as well. We’ve had a capacity issue in the past, so we’ve only been able to allow technicians to be part of the program, but going forward we may be able to rethink that as capacity opens up. We currently share space with our sister brand Volkswagen. They utilize the facility about 50 percent of the time.

We also welcome insurance companies to come to our training facility.

We think it’s a healthy way to have a conversation about why you should do this and not that. We have quite a few folks who come through the program.

The GEICO insurance national training center is about four and a half miles away. Over the years, we’ve formed a good partnership with them where they will bring their estimators and managers to our week-long training, which consists of IIHS instruction as well. We show them the number of Audis and Lamborghinis we test and how the physical bodies are cut up. The ARIZONA

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technicians receive hands-on training and get to make mistakes. I don’t look at making a mistake as a negative. I look at it as a learning opportunity. It’s better for the tech to make a mistake at the training center than on a customer’s car.

Overall, we’re trying to take care of our customers in the best way possible and form a team that includes the technician, the body shop, the insurance company and of course, Audi America.

Guild 21: One of the challenges shops have today is being able to get insurers to agree with the OEM repair procedures—not just with Audi, but with other manufacturers as well. Do you have any suggestions on how collision shops can deal with that?

Allen: After listening to Todd Tracy [The Tracy Law Firm] and Erica Eversman [chief counsel at Vehicle Information Services] speak at SEMA, I think there are a least 42 million reasons someone would want to follow the OE repair procedures! I hope everyone knows where to find them. Those who participate in the OE See Audi Discusses, Page 48

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Continued from Page 46

Audi Discusses

roundtable—a group of OEM manufacturers who meet for collision repair purposes—review this information on a regular basis. We have a collision website that has access to every participating OEM’s repair procedures and their position statements. For those who aren’t familiar with the website, I encourage you to check it out: www .OEM1stop.com.

Todd Tracy made an excellent point during the SEMA show. He advised shops to research, document and photograph. Because influencers repair vehicles in a way that is incongruous with the OEM repair procedures, there needs to be notification given to the customer. Realistically, what I think should happen if aftermarket parts are outlined on an estimate or the final RO (repair order), is that it should say something like, “Audi as redesigned by xyz insurance company representative.” In these circumstances, I believe they should accept the liability for that vehicle.

If you are a technician who is coming up with a repair process that is

your own and does not follow the OEM repair procedures using the tools and equipment prescribed, do you think you have a better chance than the well-founded, well-funded group that crash tested the car? Probably not.

Most likely, I think you are going to wind up talking to Todd Tracy.

Guild 21: What are some of the things you would like to share with those in the industry about Audi?

Allen: First of all, moving forward as an industry we have to start looking at ourselves, and recognize that we can’t repair everything. I think shops have to look at what the large preponderance of their business is and take steps to ensure that we are doing good work for our customers, whether it’s repairing an Audi, a Ford or a Toyota. Whatever the brands are that come through your door on a regular basis, repair them to the very best and highest ability that you can. It may sound great that you have an Audi R8 V10 plus in your shop, but if you don’t know how to fix it, you are liable and potentially putting your customer at risk.

Know your limitations and pass that work on to the shops that focus on

those vehicles. If you take the time to build those relationships, they will most likely pass on vehicles that your shop is likely to repair. I think doing this would serve everyone much better.

I highly recommend taking the time to make a mental reinvestment in your business. Read industry publications and attend educational events like SEMA’s SCRS seminars, CIC, and the Northeast Show. Take advantage of the learnings offered and find out how others conduct business. The better we repair vehicles, the better we will be as an industry. As a result, I believe shops will start to say, “We are not willing to do it cheaper just because it’s cheaper, because that’s wrong. I’m willing to do it the right way for the right reasons and the right compensation.”

Your leading source for SOUTHWESTERN Collision Repair News! southwestern.autobodynews.com

Universal Technical Institute Names Jerome Grant as Chief Operating Officer

Universal Technical Institute, Inc., the nation’s leading provider of transportation technician training, has appointed Jerome Grant as Chief Operating Officer.

He joined UTI on Nov. 27 and reports directly to Kim McWaters, President and Chief Executive Officer of UTI. In this newly created role, Grant will lead the execution of key growth initiatives, which include increasing student enrollment, moving from a campus model of large destination campuses to smaller commuter campuses, diversifying program offerings and expanding industry relationships.

His initial focus will be on partnering with marketing and admissions leaders to develop and implement innovative strategies that will accelerate new student growth and meet strong industry demand for skilled technicians. He will oversee the company’s marketing, admissions and operations functions.

“Jerome is a strong leader and operator with a long record of implementing transformational change. As we innovate and invest in the future and focus on driving revenue growth, he is a great addition to the UTI

bench,” said McWaters. “He has a wealth of experience in adjacent industries that complements our team and, at the same time, brings unique perspective and expertise to the organization. He is passionate about the work we do and committed to quality education that produces strong outcomes for our students.”

“UTI has built a very strong brand and the company has significant growth potential,” stated Grant. “I look forward to working with the team to further the company’s leadership in transportation technical training, with a focus on driving long-term growth and profitability.”

Grant has more than two decades of executive leadership experience in post-secondary education, including digital strategy, strategic partnerships, marketing and technology. Previously, he was Senior Vice President, Chief Services Officer with McGraw-Hill Education, Inc. and served in multiple executive roles with Pearson Education, Inc. He holds a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in labor relations and marketing from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

48 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Continued from Page 43

Certification Programs

times when this happens, and the shop cannot rectify the situation in time, the shop expires and is removed from the program.

ABN: Do you have a website where consumers can find your certified shops?

American Honda: Yes, as mentioned earlier, our Shop Locator is on American Honda’s parts and service consumer web site (owners.honda.com/ parts-service/), and American Honda’s collision web site (collision.honda .com) These web sites also serve as a platform to help educate consumers on the importance of proper vehicle repair performed by qualified technicians.

ABN: What do you see for the future of OE certification programs?

American Honda: The collision industry is changing before our very eyes.

Going forward, certification programs will need to adapt in a proactive manner to the new challenges before us.

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www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 49

Continued from Page 24

Repairers of Choice

can find out more information about the shop, such as the hours of operation, directions or even click to contact their service advisor through simple links within the text or email messages.

We also launched CCC ONE Lobby so customers can check in for their visit using a digital kiosk when they first enter the shop. We’ve found this helps with the overall customer experience.

A consumer is only in an accident every seven or so years. Most people have a misconception of what a collision repair facility should look like, and they may think it’s going to be a painful process. We’re hoping to change that perception by helping shops modernize the process for customers with our digital solutions. What we’re finding is that it creates an entirely different experience for the customer that they weren’t expecting. Our plan is to continue to focus more and more in these areas to be able to create that modern customer experience.

Most importantly, customer satisfaction leads to referrals and return work. From an efficiency standpoint, these digital solutions will decrease the need to write everything down on paper and rekey it in later. Not only will it improve accuracy, but it also will help with first-time quality.

Q:

With the recent launch of CCC Secure Share, can you tell us how it will help collision repairers exchange data?

The CCC Secure Share netA: work was designed and developed out of a need from the industry

to really get a handle around Estimate Management Standard (EMS) files.

EMS was developed back in early 1990s by the Collision Industry Electronic Commerce Association (CIECA) and was used as a means for information providers to export data and allow shop management systems to import that data and eliminate the rekeying of information.

Over time, we’ve seen many new applications come into the marketplace, and they have continued to use that EMS standard. CIECA had the foresight in the early 2000s to develop the Business Message Suite (BMS), which creates a more flexible format that enables users of the spec-

ification to determine which data elements should be sent to the receiving party. The BMS is just a specification, but this specification combined with a secure cloud platform to transmit the data creates a secure data exchange with third-party application providers.

We announced CCC ONE Secure Share last September and started transmitting data to a number of application providers in April.

ensure data is transmitted quickly to ensure a smooth workflow for repairers.

We are making it easier to connect to our network, and we’ve built an entire application suite that allows application providers to manage all of their connections in one place.

Some app providers have talked about passing that cost along to their shops. We hope that the cost savings from Secure Share will keep them from doing that, and they will realize

The real benefit and the main reason we made the investment in developing Secure Share is to secure data.

With EMS data today, it’s unencrypted—it’s sitting on thousands of shop servers. Shops typically have to install what is called a “data pump” from an application provider and there is no restriction for that data being shared or sold somewhere else.

We’re able to secure that data using the BMS file format, so shops only have to share relevant information with their application provider through a secure mechanism.

We believe this move will help protect the data for all stakeholders who have a vested interest in keeping this data secure. We also think that it will bring new innovation to the marketplace by making it easier for a new application provider to make one connection to Secure Share versus having to install hundreds or thousands of data pumps in collision repair facilities. A shop will have full transparency about what they are going to be sending. Then, if they stop doing business with a certain company, they can go into the Secure Share marketplace from within CCC ONE and terminate that connection instantly.

the additional benefits they will receive to scale their applications more effectively.

We gave the industry a little over 18 months to prepare and we said that we’ll forfeit any revenue the first year so application providers have time to budget. We understand that there are some up-front implementation costs to connect to us, so we waived the first year of fees to be able to help offset those costs as well as allow them time to budget. In April, we’ll be discon-

The real benefit and the main reason we made the investment in developing Secure Share is to secure data — Mark Fincher

has the reaction been since Q: theWhatlaunch of Secure Share?

We’ve received a lot of quesA: tions—mainly from the application providers—related to costs.

We decided not to charge the repair facilities for the significant infrastructure and tools that we built. We are going to be processing thousands and thousands of files a minute so as you can imagine, significant investments have been made to support this volume and

50 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

tinuing EMS and begin charging for Secure Share.

What are some of your future Q: plans, such as telematics?

We’re currently seeing changes A: in terms of vehicle technology.

Part of the impetus for us to launch our

new OEM market is to expand our network and help auto manufacturers connect into the network more efficiently.

Several years ago, we bought a company called Drive Factor that is focused on the telematics space. We’ve been investing in that technology and undertaking a number of initiatives to connect vehicles to the network while working with OEMs, insurance partners and repair facilities so they can gain access to the data more quickly.

There is a wealth of information coming from the connected car now.

As a result, we believe there is a significant opportunity for us to help utilize that information across our network and use that data to help all of the constituents of the ecosystem get better insight to how they can more effectively manage their businesses, and ultimately use that data to serve consumers better.

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Continued from Page 44

Changes Ahead

whole value chain of the collision industry once a car is involved in an accident. This includes the information transmitted up front until the car is finally delivered to a customer, and how that is managed and communicated.

What were some of BASF’s highlights during the SEMA show?

This year, we had two main focuses.

One of them is that we’re certainly promoting all of our brands more broadly than we have in the past— brands that fill the lower-cost niche in the industry. We tended to rely on, and still rely on, Glasurit and R-M brands, and now we are really bringing our full brand portfolio to the marketplace— Limco and Norbin.

The second thing is that we’re always very proud of our builds and our car unveilings, especially the allwomen build this year. It’s very exciting.

There is a need to have more people in the industry. We need more diversity; we want to raise the profile that there is a great place for women in

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itself—is to make the shop profitable.

We want to get involved in conversations with shops about what drives profitably—sometimes it’s operations, sometimes it’s human resources and sometimes it’s something else. We can play a role in all of this.

That means being integrated with all of the partners—working with the distributors and the shops to figure out how we can deliver solutions that the shops really require.

We have great products, but I think the biggest change to BASF in the last few years is driving to the shop what it is that it needs, and how we Women traveled from around the U.S. to Phoenix, AZ, to provide solutions for them. contribute their talents to the creation of the Chevy Montage Service levels, dependability, manufacturer level. This is not a surengagement with our partners—they prise. At some point, we are going to all build off the base of great products. reach the end point of consolidation.

This year, we’ve introduced cusWhat really needs to happen is a greater tom colors. We’re working with shop degree of integration between the difowners and car enthusiasts when they ferent value partners in the chain. I want a certain special color that is not think you’re going to see the manufacstocked, or they need help designing turers more closely integrated and see a color. We bring in BASF designers the distributors partner more closely from the OEM side and work with with the shops. them to design that perfect color, beAt the end of the day, our job— cause they are artists. and this is where BASF differentiates The trend is going toward custhis industry.

What types of changes do you foresee in the future?

Consolidation is happening all over the industry, and it’s going to continue to happen, whether it’s at the shop level, the distributor level or the

tomization. We’re seeing it with OEMs as well. It allows that specialization and helps drive retention and awareness by the industry.

What is your advice to collision repairers?

Choose your partners wisely. There are some companies that are very forward-thinking about this, and there are some companies that are a little late to the game. Collision shops really need to understand their own business model and how they need to evolve into what they want to become.

How are BASF performance groups helpful to repairers?

There are a couple of different levels. The first level is that they provide an opportunity for shops to get a perspective on their own data in a collective form. We share comparative data with them on what really good shops are doing and how they are driving efficiency, and help them understand and see where they may have opportunities. It’s really an opportunity for education development at a business level for shops to help them increase their performance.

For more information on BASF, visit https://www.basf.com/us/en.html.

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Live Oak Bank (“Live Oak”) recently announced it has officially launched a new lending division focused on financing for the automotive care industry.

The vertical marks Live Oak’s 16th industry-specific lending division and will concentrate on businesses that provide quick lube services, tire centers, service and maintenance shops, collision shops, paint and body shops, and select auto part franchises.

Live Oak Bank assembled a team of expert lenders to provide flexible lending solutions to current and prospective business owners within a variety of deal structures.

The team has extensive lending experience and knows how to value automotive care business assets, including capital needed to establish a strong business.

“The automotive industry is one of the largest in the U.S., yet owners of auto repair businesses may struggle to find financing options to help them grow or open their shops,” said Jason Lumpkin, general manager of emerging markets at Live Oak Bank. “Live Oak’s

mission is to meet the needs of underserved markets and give small business owners access to financing so they can achieve their business goals.”

As the nation’s second largest Small Business Administration loan lender, Live Oak offers clients across the country financing options that meet their unique business needs.

The automotive care lending team is equipped to provide customers with loans that support business acquisition, expansion, renovation, ground-up construction, bridge and permanent debt.

The team will be led by general manager Lew Woodbury, who brings 15 years of experience in the banking and financial services industry.

“Live Oak is excited to offer solutions to help automotive repair and maintenance business owners reach their full potential,” said Lew. “I look forward to leveraging my knowledge and experience in franchise lending to the automotive care industry.”

www.autobodynews.com

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 51

Continued from Page 14

Severity

use it as any kind of a measure.

What is important for a shop to Q: know in order to find out if the data is meaningful?

begin to form a normal distribution, which will have the majority within 68.3 percent of the individual data set when you create a range +/- 1 standard deviation around that mean.

Smaller or ‘skewed’ sample sizes may create flatter distributions with

Establish a ceiling value that is A: reasonable! Use a calculation result of the purported ‘mean’ plus the

standard deviation to identify an upper limit for the KPI. If the KPI monitor cannot provide you with a calculated standard deviation, simply calculate

Sample size matters! The data A: analysis is dependent on the amount and quality of data that you

have. Smaller sample sizes typically have wider variability. This reduces the validity of the data as a meaningful performance measure. For any arithmetic average to be meaningful, the sample sizes need to be larger than 1,000. For data sets where there are fewer than 1,000 individual values, you need to ‘test’ the data to determine the reliability of the calculated average mean as a representative KPI.

How can KPI data be tested standard deviation?

Q: using All of a shop’s data varies A: around a central value called the ‘mean.’ One test that can be used to as-

sess the reliability of a particular KPI is a standard deviation calculation. This determines how far a particular KPI can vary above and below a particular central value while still including the majority of all that data—68 percent.

In other words, if we calculate the standard deviation, we are saying 68 percent of all the data that you have— if the sample size is large enough— should follow a random distribution of data and be contained within one standard deviation above and below the ‘mean.’

The purpose is to understand how to use this to your benefit. Unless you consider the variability of the actual data analyzed, a mean might not tell you the whole story and may be highly suspect as a measure of a central tendency for any specific data set from a performance benchmark standpoint.

In addition to severity, this can also apply to CSI, cycle time, aftermarket parts usage, type of part usage, rental car data and any other KPI used to evaluate your business activity.

What if I just work on high-end Q: luxury cars? Does that affect the data?

Shops can identify the range that would include the 68 perA: cent majority of the data of a particular

larger variability and a wider numeric value range with all of the data.

Based on the idea that the data will naturally vary around a central point, it makes sense to consider where the majority—68 percent—of that data will fall. That happens to be one standard deviation away from the arithmetic mean. The standard deviation should be around 34 percent of the mean value. The wider or larger the magnitude of the standard deviation, the less reliable the mean is as a performance measure.

The point is that with this data, you’re being judged on something that you’re not [able to be judged] on. However, body shops will try to meet certain targets even if it doesn’t make mathematical sense. It’s important to understand the concept of sample size—how many cars your shop is being judged on.

I looked at the average RO data from 26 body shops over a 12-month period. The 2,858 ROs I reviewed represented every car repaired except for those that were parts-only with no labor, ROs that were detail only and all total losses. Every data set that was reviewed showed signs of significant skewness, which resulted in variability with a VERY large standard deviation value equaling 95—110 percent of the mean.

This implies that for this data set, severity is a poor measure of central value.

Q: Accidents are random events. It When a shop is told that their A: is only when enough occur— Q: severity is too high, what can more than 1,000—that they MAY be done?

How far above/below a KPI is too far?

to deflect a negative critique or unjustified demand, especially when it is beyond your control. I often ask shops if their DRP feels like they are playing whack-a-mole.

52 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

the dollar range yourself from YOUR actual data. Like it or not, KPIs are being used to make decisions about your business performance whether the KPIs are valid or not. Being able to discuss those variables in an intelligent way is crucial for you to be able

data set. In addition to this, is the FACT that some cars are just more expensive to repair than others. You do need to adjust the stated “severity” value in any KPI discussion to reflect this disparity between brands and models. An excellent tool for this is the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) online data that is the accumulation of virtually every insurer’s paid claim data and using a ‘base 100 scale’ clearly shows that some vehicle brands may in fact cost +150 percent to +200 percent more than others to repair. This would move the $3,000 average severity number discussed above to either $4,500 as an adjusted central number at 150 percent or $6,000 at 200 percent.

See Severity, Page 55

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www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 53

Industry Insight with John Yoswick

—John Yoswick is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon, who has a body shop in the family and has been writing about the automotive industry since 1988.

He is the editor of the weekly CRASH Network (for a free 4-week trial subscription, visit www.CrashNetwork.com). Contact him by email at jyoswick@SpiritOne.com.

Recent ‘Who Pays for What?’ Survey Looks at Scanning, Frame, Mechanical Operations More shops are charging and getting post-repair scans,” Mike Anderson of paid for post-repair “health scans” of Collision Advice, co-creator of the vehicles than they are pre-repair scans, “Who Pays for What?” surveys, said. but both procedures increasingly withareEd Attanasio“So while a direct comparison to prebeing done and being paid for, accordvious results isn’t possible, it’s intering to recent “Who Pays for What?” esting to note that in 2016, more than survey findings. one-third of shops said they had never The first of the 2018 quarterly asked to be paid for any vehicle scan.

“Who Pays” surveys, which is focused This year, only about 12 percent of on refinish operations, is being conshops said they have never asked to be ducted throughout the month of Janupaid for a post-repair scan.” with Ed Attanasio ary. Click here (https://www.crash Among those shops that have nenetwork.com/collisionadvice) for more gotiated to be paid for performing these information or to take the surscans, 64 percent are paid “alvey. ways” or “most of the time” Each of the quarterly surby the eight largest auto inveys, conducted by Collision surers to perform the post-reAdvice and CRASH Netpair scan, and 51 percent are Ed Attanasio work, focuses onwith a different paid “always” or “most of the aspect of collision repair. One time” for scanning the vehicle of the 2017 surveys looked at pre-repair. A year earlier, only Mike Anderson frame and mechanical operaabout 41 percent of shops said tions, including vehicle scanning. they were paid “always” or “most of Nearly 800 shops across the country rethe time” for either pre- or post-repair Attanasio sponded to that with survey,Ed which asked scans. shops what procedures they bill for, In terms of other frame and meand about how frequently each of the chanical labor operations, about 51 largest auto insurers pays for those propercent of shops say they are paid “alcedures. The surveys, which have been ways” or “most of the time” to presconducted since 2015, consistently find sure test and purge a vehicle cooling that more than 85 percent of particisystem when necessary as part of a repants say they arewith using Stacey the surveysPhillips to port, yet more than 40 percent of improve their business. shops acknowledge never having Last summer’s frame and me- billed for this not-included procedure. chanical “Who Pays for What?” surAnderson said it’s become increasvey found that about 1-in-5 shops said ingly important to check the OEM rethey have never charged for (so perpair procedures in relation to testing haps haven’t performed) a pre-repair and purging cooling systems.

Shop Showcase

So the labor time for this may vary based on whether this procedure can be done manually, versus requiring a scan tool.”

the least likely to pay for the procedure, but still 28.5 percent of shops reported that Progressive pays for it “always.”

Social Media for Shops

SEMA Show Goes On

The “Who Pays for What?” surveys have found that while ALLDATA continues to be the most widely used source of OEM repair information for collision repair shops, the automaker websites and I-CAR’s “Repairability Technical Support Portal” have gained in usage over the past two years

The cooling system procedure was among those for which more shops reported being paid regularly compared to the previous year’s survey (a 5.9 percentage point increase).

More than 40 percent of shops said State Farm always pays for this procedure when it is necessary, performed and billed for; among the top eight largest insurers, Progressive is

Media and Publicity for Shops Shop Strategies

Anderson said it might be easy to overlook a seemingly simple “not-included” procedure, like disconnecting and reconnecting the battery, on estimates. But what sometimes seems like a basic operation from the estimator’s perspective can turn into a project out in the shop. If the technician must remove trim panels to gain access to the battery, that adds more “not-included”

The Right Parts. A Perfect Fit.

Body Shops Giving Back with Stacey Phillips

Tips for Busy Body Shops with Stacey Phillips About 51 percent of shops report being paid “always” or “most of the time” for “pressure test / purge a vehicle cooling system,” up from 45 percent in 2016, yet the “Who Pays for What?” survey also found that more than 2-in-5 shops say they’ve never billed for that procedure when it was necessary and completed

My SEMA

with Stacey Phillips

vehicle scan, compared to only 1-in10 shops who said they have never charged for a post-repair scan.

“In previous surveys, we asked more general question about scanning, not differentiating between pre- and

“Many automakers are now using electronic check-valves on their cooling systems,” he said. “You can’t just manually bleed those cooling systems any more. You need to use a scan tool to initialize an electronic check-valve.

Shop Strategies

54 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

with Victoria Antonelli

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time to the job. There also can be other model-specific procedures that must be followed when a battery has been disconnected. On some Toyota trucks, for example, reconnecting the battery also requires correcting the steering angle neutral point.

That’s why it’s a procedure that was asked about on the “Who Pays for Survey?” While 80 percent of shops nationally are paid “always” or “most of the time” to disconnect and reconnect the battery when it is necessary and included on the invoice, about 10– 12 percent of shops acknowledged they have never even negotiated to be paid for this procedure. This is despite the fact that it is clearly often required by the automaker, such as when welding on a vehicle.

“Every vehicle manufacturer says you must disconnect the battery for welding,” Anderson said. “Some shops believe that if they’re using a ‘memory saver,’ that is sufficient. That’s not accurate. You still need to disconnect the battery cable. Once again, it is important to research the OEM procedures on battery disconnect/reconnect.”

Interestingly, the survey found some variation by region in the billing/payment practices for the pro-

cedure. In the Midwest, more than 20 percent have never charged for it, and only 64 percent are paid “always” or “most of the time.” But in the Northeast, 88 percent are paid “always” or “most of the time,” and only 5 percent have never charged for it.

The survey did find some uptick in shops’ research of OEM repair meth-

Two-thirds of shops sublet out wheel alignments, according to “Who Pays for What?” surveys, but among those who perform them in house, almost 70 percent bill for them using a flat-fee while the rest use estimating system time billed at the shop’s mechanical rate

ods. Nearly half (48.8 percent) of shops responding to the survey said they research OEM procedures all or most of the time; this was up from 42.7 percent two years ago. Only 18.2 percent of shops said they either “never” or “only occasionally” research OEM procedures, an improvement from two years earlier when more than 25 percent said they rarely or never did.

According the survey data, ALLDATA remains the most popular source

Severity

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every single time,” Anderson said.

“But at one point last year, when you replaced a quarter-panel on a Ford Mustang, the procedure required replacing the roof as well. Today, Ford has a sectioning procedure. So it’s important to research the procedures every time because things change.”

Anderson said that while he is pleased to see more shops researching the proper repair methods, “at the end of the day, this should still be done 100 Continued from Page 52

The RIGHT

Texas

of OEM information, but I-CAR’s “Repairability Technical Support Portal” and the automaker websites have each seen a steady increase in usage over the past two years, with nearly half of shops now reporting they use those sources.

“Some shops think if they fix the same type of vehicle frequently, they don’t need to check those procedures

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An important point with these more expensive luxury vehicles is that within the HLDI data, it indicates [that] the more expensive cars to repair with additional technology and safety systems seem to have significantly LESS occupant injury costs.

Ronak created a sortable Excel tool to determine the severity weighted value of a shop’s work mix percentage by vehicle brand. After entering the severity value supplied by the DRP, it can be adjusted to a shop’s specific work mix. The weighted value will represent where the severity value should be adjusted based on the type of work mix you have using the insurance-provided data.

Tim Ronak’s SEMA presentation “Severity—Why It Does Not Matter and What to Do About It!” can be accessed online. The presentation was part of the SCRS Repairer Driven Education series.

For more information or to obtain a copy of the sortable Excel tool, email Tim Ronak: timothy.ronak@ akzonobel.com.

percent of the time.”

Shops can take the current “Who Pays for What?” survey (or sign up to be notified about future surveys) at https://www.crashnetwork.com/collisionadvice. The four different surveys, conducted one at a time per quarter, each take about 15–25 minutes, and should be completed by the shop owner, manager or estimator who is most familiar with the shop’s billing practices and the payment practices of the largest national insurers. Individual responses are not released in any way; only cumulative data is released.

At the website, shops also can download the results of previous surveys, reports that break the findings down by region, by insurer and by DRP vs. non-DRP. The reports also include analyses and resources to help shops better understand and use the information presented.

Mitchell 1 Has Enhanced Its Information Software

This new interface streamlines the user experience with an easy-to-use graphical design and intuitive workflow to help auto repair technicians work more efficiently. “We are delighted to introduce a new user interface in ProDemand that follows the same logic that auto repair technicians use when diagnosing and repairing vehicles,” said Gary Hixson, senior market manager for ProDemand at Mitchell 1. “This advanced search technology returns all of the repair information that technicians need in a single lookup, helping them improve both efficiency and accuracy.” The new interface takes repair information to a whole new level of intelligence with advanced search technology that scans the vast database of Mitchell 1 content and returns only the specific information the technician needs.

OEM and SureTrack® real-world information are more tightly integrated and returned together in a single location, with no switching between tabs or scrolling through long lists of articles.

The user selects a vehicle, enters a search term, and 1Search Plus returns information in a unique graphical layout, organized in the same flow that auto technicians use when approaching a diagnosis and repair. For more information visit: www.mitchell1.com.

www.autobodynews.com | JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS 55

BASF Customer Andrew Lee and Driven To Cure Receive State Of Maryland Award

BASF customer Andrew Lee and the charity he founded, Driven to Cure, recently received the William Donald Schaefer People Helping People Award from the Maryland Comptroller. The award was presented at the National Institutes of Health in Washington D.C. on November 17.

Andrew was diagnosed with a rare form of kidney cancer when he was 19. Now 21, Andrew chose to fight his cancer and raise awareness of rare kidney cancers by creating the charity. He has raised more than $400,000 and shared his story of hope to thousands with his Driven to Cure custom 2015 Nissan GT-R. “We’re honored to support Andrew and Driven to Cure,” said Dan Bihlmeyer, BASF Marketing Director, Automotive Refinish. “His spirit and determination are an in-

CIECA Calls for 2018 Speakers

CIECA is seeking experienced thought leaders and industry professionals to share their knowledge and expertise as it works with the industry to explore emerging issues, promulgate leading practices and advocate for the collision repair industry.

CIECA currently has the 2018 Annual Symposium and 2018 Monthly CIECAst speaking opportunities available for you to get involved.

CIECA events bring together all segments of the collision repair industry to discuss current trends, forecasting for the future, and how to prepare for the road ahead. CIECA’s goal is to offer content that will help with solutions to pain-points and challenges facing the industry at this very moment and in the coming year.

If interested in presenting at a CIECA event, please submit a proposal. http://www.cieca.com/info .php?pnum=85a0b123a93bda&pre view=1

spiration for all.”

BASF provided the custom DTC orange Glasurit paint with a pearl effect for the GT-R and has continued to support Andrew and Driven to Cure at various events including the Cars & Fight Cancer event October 14-15 in Virginia and at the SEMA Show n 2016.

“Andrew was chosen because of his amazing passion and commitment to raise awareness and money to help find a cure for rare cancers,” said Peter Franchot, Comptroller.

“His dedication and bravery are inspirations to all Marylanders. The work he’s doing brings hope and improves the quality of life for people around the world.”

The award, established in 2012, honors the public service of former Maryland Mayor, Governor and Comptroller, Schaefer. The award is presented to Maryland residents in each of the 23 counties and the city of Baltimore who demonstrate an unwavering dedication to helping others.

For more information visit: www .driventocure.org.

Polyvance Releases New Headlight Tab Repair Online Training Course

Polyvance’s new PR-03 Headlight Tab Repair course is an online training course designed to teach technicians and estimators how to repair broken headlight tabs with the nitrogen plastic welder.

The course is an interactive video-based training program that takes roughly one hour to complete.

The course will teach technicians how to evaluate whether a damaged headlight is repairable, how to identify the type of plastic from which a headlight housing

is made, how to fusion weld broken headlight tabs with the nitrogen plastic welder, how to finish a repaired headlight to original appearance, and much more. The course is broken up into small segments, and can be stopped and started whenever necessary.

Polyvance hopes this new course will help body shops repair these parts instead of replacing them. Shops that perform plastic repairs can reduce their cycle time, reduce their average cost to repair, and make increased profits by keeping the labor dollars in the shop.

The course is approved as part of I-CAR’s Industry Training Alliance and is redeemable for one I-CAR credit hour.

Those interested in the training course can sign up at polyvance.tortal.net. The price of the course is $99.00.

For the benefit of its clients, Polyvance has uploaded a promotional video that highlights a few of the repairs covered in the course.

The video can be found on their YouTube channel.

Contact Kurt Lammon at 800633-3047 for inquiries.

Auto Care Association Announces New Director, Data and Innovation The Auto Care Association recently announced the addition of Daniel Zenko as director, data and innovation under its strategic development department.

Zenko brings nearly two decades of expertise in data analysis and enterprise research to the association, having most recently served as the senior director of research operations at RainKing Solutions for more than 10 years.

During his time at RainKing, Zenko pioneered the company’s first research development department, which expanded to a team of more than 200 employees. Under Zenko’s direction, RainKing developed new and sophisticated data analytics tools for IT sales, and was featured on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest revenue growth USA companies five times.

His primary focus was on building

56 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

the research coverage universe, data analytics and quality assurance, as well as integration of internal data with external, vendor-provided data.

He also built the foundation of RainKing’s research design and processes, led the development of research tools, as well as the analysis, evaluation, and reconciliation of vendor data.

Before his role at RainKing, Zenko was the research director at Bigdough.com, a provider of financial markets intelligence (now integrated with Ipreo). Zenko was the architect of key research department workflows, where he created and led both data integration and quality assurance teams. Zenko designed a groundbreaking tool to measure trading commissions generated by asset management firms, with ranking and trading volume and trading commissions per each brokerage.

Zenko will bring his experience and skills to the strategic development team, where he will lead the Auto Care Association’s efforts in category management data collection and reporting, as well as revamping how the association’s members interact with its industry-leading data in real time.

Zenko will also play a key role in working with the association’s market Intelligence team to harmonize its in-house research and identify new industry data sources, in addition to leading the development of new member-facing research and analytics tools.

“Bringing Daniel on board with the association was an easy decision,” said Bill Hanvey, president and CEO, Auto Care Association. “His phenomenal track record of developing and implementing real-time data solutions for market intelligence-centric organizations made him a perfect fit for what we’re working towards at the Auto Care Association for our members.”

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AUTOBODY MARKETPLACE VACANCY NOTICE - AUTO BODY TECHNICIAN Precision Auto body Design (1278 Lincoln Ave SW/Huron, SD) is currently looking for a professional trained in repairing damage to vehicles. Prior experience in auto body repair and refinishing preferred but would be willing to train the right individual. Modern 15,600 square foot, air-conditioned shop with the latest equipment .. down-draft bake booth, PPG waterborne paint, Chisum 5-tower frame rack, Chief laser-lock measuring system, and all the equipment needed to repair the aluminum F150.

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Warning: Key Fob System Hack for Thieves to Steal Your Car

by Lynn Walford, Auto Connected Car News

Drivers with electronic key fobs— watch out!

Car thieves are using a system to collect your key fob signal, save it and use it later. It’s called a “relay attack unit or box.” People who park their cars outside their homes on public streets can have their key fob signals copied and saved, then amplified to gain access to the vehicle.

Thieves take the code and send it to the signal booster, and then the booster works on the car to open the doors or start the vehicle. If you have a key fob, it can be copied and used by thieves, says Tim Dimoff, President of SACS Consulting and Investigative Services, who reports that the two-box system copies the codes and then sends them to another person further away.

To secure your car, don’t use the key fob to lock it or unlock it—the signal can be copied. Use the button on the door to lock the car and read your car manual to see if standing near the door with the fob and then tapping the button on the door will unlock your car. To be extra sure, you can use a steering wheel or pedal bar lock on the vehicle.

As we reported earlier, if you live near a public street, you can keep your key fob in a tin, Faraday bag or the freezer. It will block the signal from going out into the street.

“The fact that thieves can not only open the car, but start it, is very frightening,” said Roger Morris from the National Crime Bureau (NICB).

The devices have been tested on 35 cars, and 18 vehicles were vulnerable.

In December 2016, NCIB reported on a series of unscientific tests at different locations over a two-week period. Thirty-five different makes and models of cars, SUVs, minivans and a pickup truck were tested. NICB partnered with NICB member company CarMax, because it is the nation’s largest used car retailer and has nearly every make and model in its inventory. Tests were also done at a new car dealership, an independent used car dealer, at an auto auction, on NICB employee vehicles and ones owned by private individuals.

The NICB was able to open 19 (54 percent) of the vehicles, and start and drive away 18 (51 percent) of them. Of the 18 that were started, after driving them away and turning off the ignition, the device was used to restart 12 (34 percent) of the vehicles.

AWDA Announces New Leadership With Three Officer Appointments

On Nov. 27, the Automotive Warehouse Distributors Association (AWDA), a community of the Auto Care Association, announced the election of several new officers to the association’s executive committee, who began their terms on Nov. 3.

Mauro Cifelli, vice president, sales & marketing, Vast-Auto Distribution Ltd., Montreal Quebec, has been named AWDA’s vice chairman. Previously, Cifelli served as secretary of AWDA and as a member of the Council of Governors.

Cifelli replaces out-going vice chairman, Don Bickle, Jr., president, Warehouse Inc., Hays, Kan. Moving into the position of secretary is William (“Henry”) Slack, CEO, Slack Auto Parts Co., Gainesville, GA. Slack served a three-year term on AWDA’s Council of Governors and is active on the Auto Care Association’s Emerging Technology Committee.

Tim Trudnowski, president, Automotive Jobbers Supply, Spokane, WA, has been named AWDA’s incoming treasurer. Trudnowski, a former AWDA Chairman, follows in

the footsteps of long-time treasurer Richard Beirne, Automotive Parts Headquarters. Beirne will remain on the AWDA Executive Committee as treasurer emeritus.

AWDA Chairman Bobby Segal, CEO, Automotive Supply Associates, Concord, NH, will continue in this position and complete his two-year term in November 2018, whereupon Cifelli will step into the chairman’s position.

In order to provide long-term consistency within AWDA’s leadership, both the secretary and treasurer positions are appointed by the board to open-ended terms.

Commenting on the new appointments, Larry Northup, executive director, community engagement, Auto Care Association, and liaison, AWDA, said, “All these individuals have a deep commitment to AWDA and the Auto Care Association, having served in many diverse capacities.

The vast institutional and industry knowledge they bring to the table will be invaluable as AWDA deploys its many resources for the benefit of traditional distribution and the auto care industry at large.”

NICB reports different devices are offered for sale to thieves. Some use different technology, and may work on different makes, models and ignition systems. More expensive models may have a greater range and better capabilities for opening and starting a vehicle.

While there may not be an effective way of preventing this kind of theft at this time, NICB advises drivers to always lock their vehicles and take the remote fob or keys with them.

Drivers should also be on the lookout for suspicious persons or activity, and alert law enforcement rather than confronting a possible thief.

It’s also a good idea to never invite a break-in by leaving valuables in plain sight. And once thieves get inside, they can easily steal a garage door opener and valuable papers, such as the vehicle registration, that could lead them to your home. So take the garage door opener with you and take a picture of your registration on your cell phone, rather than keeping it in the glove compartment.

This hack is different from the Nick Bilton signal amplifier hack, where the signal of the key fob is amplified to open the car door and steal expensive goods.

This is not the only way to hack into cars. Hacker/researcher George Hotz, who was stopped from testing his self-driving autonomous car system, released a car reverse-engineering tool/hacking device, “panda,” for $99. Comma.ai, a company founded

by Hotz, is offering software and hardware so that developers can use it to create their own car hacks and/or see how car software operates.

Using the cabana can reverse-engineer the raw CAN messages from a Honda with a live USB connection to panda. There is even a deeper hacking device called giraffe that pulls signals from the advanced driver safety systems and radar.

We thank Auto Connected Car for reprint permission.

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Hurricane Vehicle Replacements, Increased Advertising Drive Truck Interest

by Staff, Auto Remarketing

Jumpstart Automotive Media’s latest path to purchase report released Nov. 28 shows that in October, month-overmonth shopper interest was up 14 percent for full-size pickups and 11 percent

The 2018 Ford F-150. Recent data from Jumpstart shows the model saw shopper interest increase by 27 percent compared to last October. Photo courtesy of Ford

for three-quarter-ton and 1-ton pickup trucks. In addition to advertising that typically spotlights trucks during sporting events such as football games and the World Series, Jumpstart suggests that shopper interest in trucks this October was particularly strong due to remaining vehicle replacement activity stemming from Hurricane Harvey and Irma damage. “Between increased advertising focus, truck replacement needs and continued low fuel prices,

shoppers had many reasons to turn their attention toward pickups and SUVs during the month of October,” Jumpstart senior analyst of strategic insights Colin Thomas said in a news release.

“However, what’s curious today is that shopper interest continues to wane for smaller utility vehicles, which have been very popular for versatility, functionality and value.” Among trucks, full-size pickup trucks and both threequarter-ton and 1-ton pickups had the highest share of shopper interest in October. Full-size pickup trucks and 3/4 and 1-ton pickups saw interest increases of 4.8 percent and 1.8 percent, respectively, compared to the rest of the year. The Ford F-150 and Chevrolet Silverado led October’s truck interest with increases of plus 27 percent and 13 percent, respectively, compared to last year.

Larger trucks, such as the Ford F-250 Super Duty and RAM 2500, both had month-over-month growth in interest of plus 22 percent. Additionally, October was also the fourth consecutive month that share of interest declined for the subcompact SUVs/CUVs segment, which has seen a shopper interest decrease of 29 percent since June.

We thank Auto Remarketing for reprint permission.

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60 JANUARY 2018 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com