Analysing the benefits of adding diagnostic and calibration services

As new cars coming off the production line are fitted with ADAS as standard, workshops, especially bodyshops, are seeing the opportunity for diagnostic and calibration work to be performed in-house rather than outsourcing to a main dealer or contractor.

One repairer that is taking advantage of this new work stream is Rye Street Group, which recently added diagnostics and calibration to its menu of services. Nick Ferris, group development manager at Rye Street Group, explains the benefits this new work opportunity is already delivering to the business, “We are always on the lookout for new revenue streams to tap into and one that we identified was diagnostics and calibration services. These types of jobs require specific tools and knowledge, so it is important to do the research and get tools in to demo them because there is only so much you can get out of peer reviews and reading about them online.

“Our needs and requirements included how these tools would help reduce key-to-key times and be efficient with the amount of space they take up. But, most importantly, we need the tools to enable us to keep up with the latest in-vehicle technology without having to constantly invest in new tools every year to 18 months.

“Our research led us to Repairify and its representative Gareth came to do a demo at one of our sites and showed us how quickly and easily the process could be. We invested in their digital ADAS calibration unit. The next logical step was to introduce a dedicated bay for ADAS calibrations and diagnostic work. The bay has allowed us to keep everything in one place instead of having to set-up a bay each time the work comes through.

“There have also been several benefits we’ve noticed since introducing the system. The first is how compact and easy it is to set up, which means our technicians can spend more time on work. The second is that because we have brought the services in-house it means we do not have to book a vehicle into a dealership to be recalibrated or employ a third party to do the work. This, in turn, means we reduce the key-to-key time of the job and do not have to pass additional costs for the work onto the customer. The third is the overall efficiency of the calibration because if there are any issues all the technician has to do is access the Repairify’s Dealer on Demand service, which helps make previously complex issues simple.

“With diagnostics and calibrations, there are always things to learn, and we are always looking to upskill our workforce. Gareth and his team provide the relevant training to our technicians, which ensures that they have the necessary knowledge and skills to use the digital ADAS unit and complete a right first-time calibration. In addition, with the knowledge the technicians have, it enables them to simply explain to customers what is being done to their vehicle if required.

“Overall, we know that the demand for diagnostics and calibrations services is going to increase, and we are happy that we have entered the market at the ground floor and have access to products and services that are constantly updated. This means our team is confident about calibrating any vehicle that comes into the workshop.” https://repairify.com/astech