Littleton, Colo.--When Tom and Sheila Reagan decided to open a collision repair facility three years ago, they said their main objective was to focus on quality repairs. The couple soon realized, through a major direct repair program (DRP) relationship, that they would also have to pay close attention to repair cycle time and customer service indexes (CSI). They said they have been able to balance the two in their family shop, Concept Auto Body.
"I wanted to have more control over the type of work being done," Tom Reagan said. "I wanted to do quality repair and focus on that." At the time, he said, he believed he would have a lot of customer-pay work. "We landed a DRP, and it quickly changed our goals."
To accommodate the increasing work load, the Reagans said they expanded the shop into the adjacent vacant building after only one year, doubling the size of their shop to 12,000 square feet.
"You've got to put some faith in it," Tom Reagan said of his business. "Nothing ventured is nothing gained."
Sheila Reagan, the shop's co-owner and office manager, said she suggested to her husband--who at the time had more than 26 years of industry experience working as a painter, bodyman, and estimator--that he write down the best repair practices and procedures from former employers and implement them into their family business.
The shop's processes had to be streamlined in order to meet the demands of increased volume while focusing on quality repairs and meeting acceptable cycle times, Tom Reagan said. That is where the best practices gleaned from previous shop employers came into play, he said. "I took the best of the best and put them together."
Limit supplements with complete teardowns
Tearing down the cars completely when they come in the door greatly reduces the amount of supplements written in the shop, said Reagan, who conducts most of the shop's estimates. That procedure reveals, to a great extent, the vehicle's damage, avoiding the additional time associated with the parts procurement and added labor of supplements, he said. "By doing this, we were able to limit our supplements to 13 percent," he said.
Pick the right vendors
Reagan said he's learned over the years that it makes more sense to rely on trusted vendors to manage his paint and material inventory. In the past, ordering commodities--such as clips and sandpaper--was a fire drill, all day long, every day, he said.
When the shop opened, he said he was spraying Spies Hecker but eventually switched to Sikkens because Akzo Noble's outside sales representative was persistent in pursuing his business. Having painted with Sikkens, he said he knew what the product's capabilities.
Akzo Nobel outfitted the Reagans' shop with two inventory cabinets, one for Sikkens wet materials, such as clear coat, and another for dry paint materials, both of which contain consigned inventory, Reagan said.
"The only time I get billed is when we pull a product from the cabinet," he said, which eliminates the need to call and request materials. Inventory is restocked once a week, he said, keeping their painter productive in the shop's Americure semi-downdraft booth.
Crest Net Sales, a fastener and clip supplier, has a similar setup, he said, with a cabinet. A sales rep makes regular visits and replenishes the inventory.
When choosing which franchise dealerships to purchase OE collision parts from, Reagan said he looks for speed, availability, and pricing. The major dealer groups that Reagan said he relies on are the Burt Automotive Network, which includes Burt-Kuni Honda, and AutoNation, whose Colorado dealerships are known as Go.
The preferred method of ordering the parts is through Collision Link, a feature that's integrated into his Mitchell UltraMate estimating system, he said.
Parts check-in
Whenever parts are delivered, they're always checked in, Reagan said. "Parts are one of the biggest reasons for missing an ECD (estimated completion date)," he said. During the teardown, all the bad parts are put in a pile and a photo is taken, he said. "When new parts come in, they're compared to the old, one at a time," he said. "If there's one left over, we're missing a part."
Quality control
Each body technician has a vehicle repair procedure check list, which requires a manager's approval before the vehicle moves on to the next stage of repair, Reagan said. Those steps occur before paint, after paint, and before delivery, he said.
"Techs have learned that the car will be inspected and it better pass QI (quality inspection) at the shop and at Progressive."
Important items to be checked before a vehicle is painted include: that all parts are primed prior to seam sealing; that all parts are checked for proper fit and finish; that all parts that are to be painted are with the vehicle; and that the sanding dust has been blown off the car before it moves to paint, he said.
Reagan said that after a vehicle is painted, the technician checks off items, making sure that all the welds are painted before the parts are reassembled; lights are checked for function and proper aim; all power options, such as power mirrors, etc., are functioning; and that all clips and fasteners are installed.
To keep control over quality of repair, Reagan said he performs most mechanical work in house. To accommodate mechanical repairs, he said he recently purchased a two-post Rotary lift that's much easier to use than jack stands.
When initially outfitting the shop with equipment, Reagan said he purchased a Chisum Freedom XLT frame rack because at the time Chisum had done a lot of trade advertising, had a good reputation for customer service, and made versatile equipment.
The rack is 20 feet long with three pulling towers that rotate 360 degrees, he said. "It has the best full-anchoring system I've worked with and is easy to set up." The Chisum rack is coupled with a Chief measuring system, he said, adding that he frequently updates the system with the latest vehicle measurements via a CD-ROM.
As the business continues to expand and evolve, the Reagans said they're setting their sights on eventually purchasing a building of their own with a storefront for more visibility to passing motorists.
