“Where Are The Technicians?”

Between 2022 and 2025, there will be a demand for more than 60,000 new collision repair technicians. In 2022 alone, that number is north of 18,000. While that mirrors typical average growth for all occupa ons, according to the Bureau of Labor Sta s cs, there’s a problem. Unlike other industries that have a consistent pipeline of talent, there’s nobody to fi ll the body shops. According to the TechForce Founda on’s 2021 Technician Supply and Demand Report, just over 4,500 students completed post secondary collision programs in 2020, a 12 decrease from 2019. And while the technician shortage has been a point of worry for many years, the pandemic exacerbated it. Pre-COVID projec ons by TechForce suggested just over 15,000 new technicians would be needed in 2021. That jumped to 25,000 a er COVID as the industry, just like every other, experienced “The Great Resigna on.” Behind ba ling insurers, a shortage of qualifi ed technicians ranked as the biggest challenge facing shop operators, according to the 2021 FenderBender Industry Survey. “It’s been a problem that nobody has addressed as it should be for years, and now it’s really out of control,” says Mary Mahoney, Enterprise’s vice president of the replacement and leisure division. “I feel for the shops because they need technicians now. They needed them last week, last year.” The switch can’t be fl ipped overnight. There aren’t 18,000 technicians ready to enter shops tomorrow. But what does the training landscape look like? In an eff ort to understand the progress being made and the current roadblocks s ll ahead, FenderBender spoke with stakeholders across the industry. From OEMs to technical schools to rental car companies and more, we sought to see what new programs are popping up and how established programs are planning to combat the industry’s most pressing need.

Addressing Industry Roadblocks

What are the roadblocks that the industry faces in recrui ng students into the collision repair industry and trades in general? While there are many small reasons to point to, all industry stakeholders believe the percep on of collision repair within the school administra ons plays a big role. From principals to teachers to counselors. To Sco Kaboos, for too long the industry has go en schools’ “D” students. But that’s not a viable op on anymore. “We don’t need your ‘D’ student. These cars are too complex. Our system has shoved everybody into one li le box but not everybody fi ts in that box,” says Kaboos, Honda’s Na onal Assistant Manager of its collision repair training division, adding that four-year colleges are not the only op on for successful students.

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Continued from Page 32 Comba ng that way of thinking is a major point of concentra on for the Collision Repair Educa on Founda on, especially with counselors. Counselors serve an infl uen al role in students’ post-high school decision making, and up un l this point collision repair isn’t on their radar na onally, says Brandon Eckenrode, CREF’s execu ve director, adding most s ll see collision repair as dark and dingy. And if counselors do recommend the a ermarket, it’s o en for the mechanical industry, he says. CREF is hoping to change that. In 2022, CREF will be a diamond sponsor at the American School Counselor Associa on’s annual na onal conference in Aus n, Texas. That will allow Eckenrode and his staff me to present to counselors from around the country. “We hear from the associa on that they understand that they need to embrace technical educa on,” Eckenrode says. “They want more resources to help students learn about the industry.” Eckenrode hopes that tangible interac on will be a launching pad to more recogni on. The need for a percep on change also extends to the students. While counselors may not be pushing the industry, students aren’t naturally fl ocking to it either. Programs like the Universal Technical Ins tute admit it has been tough to get students interested in the fi eld. The school is currently in the midst of upda ng its training aids and marke ng curriculum to fi t the younger genera on. “We just need to evolve our approach,” says Anthony Pham, president of UTI’s Long Beach campus. That means ge ng more involved on social media pla orms like TikTok. It also means doing away with the word “mechanic” and replacing it with technician. Enterprise is going a step further. Instead of saying technician, or collision repair, the company has rebranded the program as collision engineering. Mahoney sees the change as an accurate refl ec on of the job today. With the complexity of vehicles and the emphasis on technology, it has become a form of engineering. While the tle changes seem small, it all adds up to further legi mize the career path like it hasn’t been before. “We can build the best training in the world but if nobody knows then we are was ng our me,” Mahoney says. That’s why part of Enterprise’s ini a ve includes funding for an aggressive marke ng campaign. “Everybody is talking about the problem but nobody is inves ng in trying to recruit,” she says. The goal of the campaign, which markets the industry as “where Silicon Valley and Motor City collide,” is to “get bu s in seats,” Mahoney says. Specifi cally, Mahoney is keying in on groups females, veterans and career changers, which she feels are underrepresented parts of the industry. “Part of the problem is people don’t understand this is a good career opportunity,” she says.

The Players The OEMs

Kaboos is envious of Japan. As Honda’s Na onal Assistant Manager of its collision repair training division, Kaboos had the opportunity to visit Honda’s headquarters in Japan, which includes two four-year, Honda-run universi es. At the university, students spend the fi rst two years learning all the mechanics of a car before spending the last two years in a specializa on like collision repair and refi nishing that puts students on track to become technicians the minute they graduate.]

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Continued from Page 33 Kaboos sees it as an ideal model, but one that he doesn’t think will make its way to the U.S., at least any me soon.

“It’d be wonderful if we could do that, I’m not just not sure,” he says. “This is such a diff erent culture … the acceptance just isn’t there.” If it’s ever going to happen, progress would need to be gradual. Kaboos has been leading the charge in Honda’s progress, establishing the manufacturer’s fi rst brick-and-mortar hands-on training program in conjunc on with a Chicago-area community college, which resumed its second round of classes in October a er an extended hiatus due to COVID. Previously, Honda had done any and all training online. For now, Kaboos is focused on relaunching the program a er the long break, but hopes the program can expand to more ci es and community colleges soon. “If you look at other manufacturers like Toyota or Audi, they have hands-on training. It just makes the program much more robust. That was the next step for us,” Kaboos. BMW has also made addi ons to its collision repair program. While it’s had the STEP program since 1997, the program has been largely focused on the mechanical side. The training centers were 90/10 mechanical work. But in 2019, the program went through an expansion, which included the building of a collision-specifi c program in Spartanburg, S.C. In 2022, the program will be expanded to loca ons in Woodcliff N.J. and Ontario, Calif. These loca ons operate 90/10 in favor of collision repair, and will put technicians through a 36-week program. BMW is also making eff orts to speed up its training program. On the mechanical side, the company established the FastTrack program, which puts students at several Universal Technical Ins tute (UTI) loca ons through a 12-week program that gets them ready to work in a dealership or cer fi ed shop. Gary Uyematsu, na onal technical training manager at BMW, says they hope to create the same for the collision repair industry. “100 percent we’re looking at a FastTrack program for collision,” says Uyematsu, adding that the candidate pool will need to increase before that gets added. BMW is also adding a program in 2022 that will allow shops to enroll their body and paint team in mechanical classes.

Technical schools

While OEMs providing training is helpful, they are most o en training students who are already enrolled at a community college or technical school. Top among BMW’s partners is UTI, which is one of the largest feeder programs for collision repair techs. According to TechForce Founda on’s 2021 Technician Supply and Demand Report, several of the top ten schools that graduated the most techs last year were UTI loca ons. The UTI collision repair program is currently a 51-week program with three specialized training paths. The program is a product of several industry rela onships with the likes of Axalta, 3M, Chief Collision and I-CAR.

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Continued from Page 34 Pham is the president of one of those UTI loca ons, located in Long Beach, Calif., and sees the program as a way to jumpstart a technician’s progression. There doesn’t need to be slow mul -year growth that sees the employees rise from washing cars to becoming a fully capable tech. “Five or six years of slow growth can happen in a year here,” Pham says. Pham also sees room for massive growth for his campus and the Houston campus, the other UTI loca on that is massively focused on collision repair. As a rela ve newcomer, having joined the organiza on in January 2021, Pham has spent the me looking to improve processes in the organiza on. Already successful before Pham’s arrival, he has been careful not to change too much. With the collision repair program, Pham’s been keen on con nuing to get the school’s name out there. The organiza on has hosted countless open houses, they’ve a ended the Long Beach Grand Prix and gone into high school classes, all with the hope of ge ng more people into the training program.

Industry Stakeholders

While OEMs generally have the most funding and trade schools’ number one priority are programs like collision repair, other industry stakeholders are also contribu ng. One of those is Enterprise. In January 2021, Enterprise, alongside Ranken, launched the Automo ve Collision Engineering Pilot Program, a two-year program featured in three diff erent community colleges na onwide. The program follows the Ranken appren ceship system, which sees students rotate between eight weeks of classroom/lab experience and eight weeks of full-day work-based learning at a par cipa ng collision repair facility. A por on of the student’s pay for work completed at the shop is also subsidized by the program. Several independent shops as well as the Ford Cer fi ed Collision Network are par cipa ng in the program. “It’s the right thing to do to support the industry; to take a lead with a program everyone can par cipate in,” Mahoney says. The program’s advisory board includes execu ves from American Family, Caliber, Chief, Ford, GEICO, Gerber, the Hermanek Group, I-CAR, Professional Parts Group, Progressive, Repairify, the Society of Collision Repair Specialists and Service King. Enterprise also launched a new informa onal website in December that hopes to provide educa on to students interested in the career path. Mahoney, who has worked for Enterprise for 36 years, is hoping to duplicate the program out to more ci es once the current pilot has been tested. Enterprise received a $700,000 grant from the government to help fund the program and Mahoney says there are millions more in funding that other organiza ons should take advantage of to create similar programs.

So what can shops do?

While OEMs, trade schools and industry organiza ons have more resources — me, money and manpower — than individual body shops to invest in addressing the shortage, each industry stakeholder emphasized the massive role that body shops can play in their success.

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To truly combat the technician shortage in a meaningful way, all parts of the industry need to work together. “I think it’s a responsibility of every stakeholder in the industry to pay a en on to what’s going to happen in the next genera on or we’re not going to exist,” Kaboos says. And body shops are on the ground fl oor. Nearly every stakeholder FenderBender spoke with reiterated the importance of ge ng involved with local schools. Eckenrode recommends joining the local school district’s advisory board. Make an eff ort to meet the students. Talk to them in the classroom and invite them to the shop. COVID-19 made every school look closely at its budget, Eckenrode says, and it’s no secret that body shop classes cost exponen ally more than a math class. So it’s vital that administrators understand the importance of the classes. That doesn’t happen without local businesses having a presence. Eckenrode also says image plays a large role in the younger genera on’s understanding of the industry. The profession needs to look “visually a rac ve.” So if the local schools shop area looks run down, help it out. “If administrators can see a line out the door of shops that are wai ng for these students, you want to hope that they understand why they need to keep these programs around,” Eckenrode says. At a na onal level, CREF is in the early stages of a fundraiser that will fund a PSA campaign about the industry for students, teachers and administrators. In partnership with BASF and KTL Restora ons, CREF will be rebuilding a ‘69 Camaro to raffl e off at SEMA 2023. Other state associa ons have put together similar campaigns. The Alliance of Automo ve Service Providers Minnesota has helped fund MNCARS, an organiza on that promotes the service and collision repair industry in the state. The organiza on’s eff orts have contributed to more than 3,250 student enrollments in automo ve programs. The website includes powerpoint presenta ons to give to counselors and teachers, and le ers in fi ve diff erent languages that gives parents an understanding of the industry, all of which can be freely accessed for shops to use. If dona ng your me isn’t a realis c scenario, dona ng knowledge and equipment is equally valuable. Mahoney is looking to expand Enterprise’s program across the country, but the process of ve ng poten al schools is a me consuming process, so she needs help fi nding qualifi ed schools. Kaboos recommends donating newer cars to high schools and community colleges as o en those programs are forced to do restora ons because they can’t do anything else. “We can’t do this alone,” Mahoney says. “We need everybody to par cipate.”

Source: www.FenderBender.com - wri en by Paul Hodowanic