Get Some Free Cosmetic Maintenance

1. Light scratches that can’t be detected when you run over them with your fingernail are most likely buffable. Many body shops will try to charge for refinishing when all the panel needs is a little rubbing compound and a buff; ask the body shop if they will provide this service for free with other services you’re paying for.

2. Headlamps become cloudy because the manufacturer’s UV coating has either worn off or just wasn’t very good in the first place; it’s a pretty common occurance here in Las Vegas. The quick lube stores offer to buff your headlamp, which can restore shine but it doesn’t restore UV protection–it does the opposite; ask your auto body shop if they can apply a clear coat to your headlamps…this is also something that you can ask for with other services, and it’s not very costly, in fact it can be free.

Collision

1. When you get into a crash, you have a lot of stuff to set up that you may not have much time to do. As a general rule, get the body shop to do as much of this as possible for you; a body shop can set up a rental, do claims assistance, obtain payments, and much more with direct communication to the insurance company; all of these things help free up your time and make the repair a much less stressful ordeal for you.

2. Avoid parking lot/drive by repairmen that will take money from you and leave your car in worse condition which often makes the repair more expensive because the body shop has to remove repair materials to perform the work properly. If you have someone approach you and tell you they can fix your car in your driveway or parking lot, beware because it’s most likely going to cost you a couple hundred dollars AND THEN you’ll be taking it to a reputable body shop to get it repaired correctly.

To put things into perspective, a hairdresser in Nevada has to complete a written and practical examination as well as have worked under a licensed hairdresser for a certain number of hours before he or she can become licensed. A body or paint technician can walk into a licensed body shop and perform any type of work without the supervision of a licensed auto body technician (once again, there’s no such thing), and be compensated at rates exceeding a $100,000 salary…not a small salary in any industry; this technician might be performing a complex procedure on a multiple types of metals, and not even realize that he or she is working on high strength steel with the wrong tools. Unqualified, untrained technicians are a common occurrence in the auto body industry.

To shed even further light on the aforementioned inter-industry discrepancy in licensure requirements, let’s look at a dentist. I hope I don’t sound like I’m trying to diminish the dental industry by giving this example, because I know that it’s quite literally a human life that’s at stake at times when a dentist is making decisions, prescribing medications, and performing procedures. A dentist in Nevada goes through rigorous testing, testing that I’ve witnessed myself, to become licensed. In fact, the testing is so difficult that a high failure rate is expected…not because the varying state boards don’t want more dentists, but because they only want good ones entering the industry. With the collision industry, consider the safety of drivers and the rapidly changing technologies in the auto industry–a properly repaired vehicle becomes more important than a properly repaired tooth. A person with an improperly repaired tooth isn’t nearly as dangerous as a car with an improperly installed frame rail or b-pillar; many lives are at stake when a car is repaired.

The collision repair program at our local college, CSN, is unofficially being shut down (all employees received a termination contract recently) because I’m guessing there’s just not enough demand for this type of education. Want to make the CSN body shop program relevant? Pass a law that requires body shops to employ licensed technicians and you’ll get an overwhelming response. Next, shore up the education requirements (no freebie classes any more) through proctored testing. I took a welding class at CSN and was impressed with the education I received; it will be a sad day when the body shop program is discontinued.

Can we expect body shops to develop technicians from within and create the rising generation of technicians? For the time being, body shops should be nurturing their technicians through existing continuing education programs like I-CAR, ASE, and programs provided by OEMs. I think that these continuing education programs should have to attain accreditation with a Nevada Collision Repair Board (does not exist), which will push I-CAR, ASE, and other educational institutions to provide more practical training and technical knowledge for our industry.

The changes to our industry that I’ve proposed in this article are not without shortcomings.  There are ethical issues, moral dilemmas, and stakeholders that could be shorted if it’s not done properly: How many shops would be put out of business with a law change requiring education? – If there were to be a collision board, paired with laws that empower them, there would be a lot of shops put out of business. Who does this really cater to? – With a large percentage of uneducated employees (after all, aren’t they in this industry because they’re good with their hands?) we’re definitely singling them out, if unintentionally. Even in the face of all these potential issues, the reality is that cars are becoming more and more complex. The technologies of today won’t even exist in tomorrow’s world so we’re going to have to embrace educational changes which can be done by requiring, and promoting professional and practical education.

~Jim

The team here at Automall Auto Body loves having lunch and good times in the arcade on a weekly basis. Our auto body shop isn’t just a body shop, it’s a place for people to meet for education (at our training center) and fun!

NCIA pushes bill to law, auto body repair in Nevada changed for good

A significant percentage of vehicles that are totaled will now be deemed repairable which not only will please customers who have recently been, in these difficult economic times, forced to purchase a vehicle when they may already be living at their limits–putting them in extreme financial difficulty. Just because an airbag deployed and pushed the vehicle $500 over the legal limit in the past, the insurance company is forced to dutifully offer the customer the ability to retain salvage or accept payment for their vehicle (less applicable deductible). Today this arbitrary threshold is starting to seem a little less arbitrary with the electronic components now being excluded from the equation. Some in my circles have estimated that nearly 10% of vehicles today that are totaled would now not be considered a total loss, which presents the body shop industry with more work and has potential to create more jobs. Perhaps the newly changed law isn’t yet the summum bonum but who knows, maybe our local economy will benefit a little from this?

I was given the opportunity to sit on a panel of interviewers-one from Friendly Ford and the other from Henderson Chevrolet-on location at the school’s body shop classroom. There is something to be said for young students who are ambitious enough to actually seek employment aggressively during the interview process. One of the students told me that he had already tried to call me, to which I responded that he should leave me a message next time. He responded, “I did…[but] I’ll call you 100 times if that’s what it takes to get ahold of you.” Isn’t that somewhat refreshing to hear these days? As we interviewed the students, we often looked at each other wondering how it is that these high school students were so mature.

How great of a program they have for their students at SECTA High. I mean, you don’t just develop a culture of polite kids that are able to create a feel of concierge service without a true going concern for above-board service starting long ago. I find myself scratching my head right now (in between typing sentences) wondering how I can develop the same professionalism and attention to customer-service-detail at my body shop. I’ve graduated from two universities that don’t come anywhere close in terms of creating that inviting of an environment…and we’re talking about a high school here, not a nice restaurant.

I suppose we were considered special guests. Whatever the case may be I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, although I’d like to include the entire school this time: I’m really impressed with SECTA High!

Also refreshing is the fact that the I- CAR® Professional Development Program™ is turning out to be a great program for us locally, which is becoming more polished as a direct complement to the I-CAR vision to provide relevant training to each technician.

Yeah, that’s right an Arcade! We have put together an arcade for our employees to privately enjoy during their break time or on the weekends. However, that doesn’t leave you out of the picture; we invite you to schedule private use of the arcade for groups larger than 10. You’ll enjoy pool, air hockey, and some of the classics including Track & Field and Kung Fu Master.

Use the Contact Us form to schedule private use of our arcade.

I-CAR is the Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair; it is a non-profit organization that seeks to provide appropriate training for the various technical professionals in the industry, including but not limited to non-structural, structural, refinishing, and electrical/mechanical technicians as well as estimators/appraisers. One of our very own shop owners is the Chairman of the Las Vegas I-CAR committee, which means that he’s heavily involved in serving the local body shop industry and has put in hundreds of hours in service to this community. The Automall Autobody staff has also put in countless hours helping with setting up and administering classes for the teachers employed by I-CAR. Almost every month, a few classes are held at the Automall Autobody Training Center, which allows the shop to become exposed to various insurance agents and other body shop personnel who come to our training center to learn. Our commitment to educate ourselves and others is evidenced by the plethora of certifications we hold in our fields of expertise.

This coming 2011 is going to be a shining year for Automall Autobody because we will learn about and understand our customer, and because we’ll maintain a constant focus on improving (I disagree with changing just for the sake of changing).

We plan on spending a little time this season thinking about what we can do for our customers, and then do something else that no other shop will…do it.

Merry Christmas, and a big thanks to all of you who have been so supportive this year! Your referrals are the best pat on the back we can ever receive.

(http://www.mortgagesolutions.co.uk/mortgage-solutions/news/1932270/tme-2010-customer-relationships-night-stands?WT.rss_f=Home&WT.rss_a=TME+2010:+Have+customer+relationships+not+one-night+stands)

Education, quality, organization and cleanliness are the key foci going into 2010, and we’ll eventually be benchmarked as a standard for these principles for the local auto body industry of Las Vegas and Henderson. Las Vegas auto body repair and Henderson auto body repair will change forever because of our consistent and simple approach to becoming the leader in auto body repair.

Thanks to all of you, our loyal customers, for making it possible to expand amidst the difficult economic circumstances. We hope to make you proud this year.

~Jim