FEATURE GET YOUR LEARNING ON AT THE 2023 SOUTHEAST COLLISION CONFERENCE!

In this fast-paced, ever-changing collision repair industry, it’s important to invest in ongoing training to keep up with the times, and the Southeast Collision Conference (SCC) offers a great opportunity to do exactly that! Round out an informative week of industry events, which begins with meetings of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) and Collision Industry Conference (CIC) – see agendas for those events, happening April 12 and 13, on page 20 – by heading a few minutes north to the Meadow Event Center in Doswell, VA for two full days of education and exhibitions on April 14 and 15.

Hosted by WMABA and the Carolinas Collision Association, SCC 2023 promises to defy all expectations. With a full slate of training sessions through WMABA’s Collision P.R.E.P. (Professional Repairer Education Program), you’ll want to bring the whole shop along for all the interactive education geared toward estimators, body techs, managers and more, featuring some of the industry’s favorite trainers who will be providing engaging educational opportunities for every level in the shop!

“These are amazing opportunities to hear directly from the top experts and vehicle manufacturers on many important topics such as electric vehicles and shop trends nationwide,” stressed WMABA Executive Director Jordan Hendler. “You cannot afford to miss this!”

“We’re very pleased with the all-star lineup of industry educators on the agenda for our second Southeast Collision Conference and our first year teaming up with WMABA,” CCA Executive Director Josh Kent agreed. “One of CCA’s biggest goals for 2023 was to include interactive classes that will engage the audience, and the Collision P.R.E.P. educational slate certainly covers that intention!”

As he delivers “Repair Planning Resources: Write

Your Strongest Sheet,” Danny Gredinberg of the Database Enhancement Gateway (DEG) hopes to help estimators “realize how much money they are leaving off the repair plan, especially when it comes to work they are performing and not being compensated for. Technicians are always held to a HIGH standard to perform quality repairs. As a repair planner, we need to hold ourselves accountable to capture those operations. We will show you the tools and resources out there that can maximize every repair plan put through your shop.”

During “Properly Identifying Labor Types and Rates,” John Shoemaker (BASF) will “illustrate the changes of vehicle design and how it has altered the labor types used in repair” as he explores “how to calculate labor costs, taking into consideration the additional training required to perform the repairs as well as the costs to invest in and maintain OEM certifications.”

Explaining the value repairers can expect to receive from attending “Repairer to Repairer: Stop Estimating and Start Repair Planning,” SCRS Secretary Michael Bradshaw (K&M Collision) explained, “The tone for everything that happens within a collision repair shop is set by the estimating and blueprinting processes. Quite simply, this is an area that virtually every shop across the country could improve upon and see positive effects across the shop.”

But that’s just the tip of the iceberg…SCC 2023 features 10 educational opportunities plus a plethora of fun on the trade show floor that you won’t want to miss. Turn to page 24 for more information about all this year’s happenings, and check out the full Collision P.R.E.P. schedule on pages 26-27!

Register for the show and the classes at southeastcollisionconference.com. H&D