As bumper substrate materials shifted to more plastics, so did Collins Collision, Bowman said.  Today the company remanufactures 15,000 steel bumpers a year and 30,000 plastic bumper fascias a year, and recycles nonrepairable cores that produce 1,650 tons of steel and nonvirgin plastic, which is then reused for nonvisible parts and insulation in new vehicles.

"Today's bumper covers are designed to have a high mortality rate," Bowman said, adding that the substrate material is about one half the weight and thickness of those manufactured a decade ago.  Today, approximately four out of every 10 are repairable, he said, leaving about 90,000 collected cores that are no longer usable.

"The plastics industry has developed a way to remove paint and recycle the TPO (thermo polyolefin)," said Collins Collision Products President Bob Petty.  Instead of paying for it to be hauled off to a landfill, the company is now paid about eight cents a pound, which offsets the labor to sort cores, he said.

The good cores are remanufactured and then sold to collision repair shops, Petty said.

The market viability is pretty good for a remanufactured bumper, Bowman said, adding that a bumper fascia in the $200 to $400 range is about 20 percent less than OE. 

"Out of every 10 collisions, six will get a new OE bumper and four an aftermarket or remanufactured one," he said.  The inventory of bumper fascias closely resembles Car & Driver's top 10 vehicles from 2001-2006, he said, adding that they have ample supply on hand to meet shops' current delivery demands.

Bowman said the company recognizes that the collision repair industry is like a three-legged stool supported by insurance companies, vendors, and collision repair shops.

"We try to make our leg as strong as possible," he said.  "With cycle times and everything else the shop faces, we try to provide them with a quality product in a timely manner.

"We really try to be partners with the shops and the insurance companies," Bowman said, adding that the company works with insurance adjusters and offers parts that will save everybody money.

Petty, who served three terms on the board of directors and two terms as national treasurer of the Auto Body Parts Association (ABPA), said he's come to notice the differences with the collision repair industry in the Rocky Mountain region compared with the rest of the country.

"Some markets are much more price-sensitive," Petty said.  "This Rocky Mountain region is very quality-conscious.  It's good for competition and raises the bar for better parts for the consumer."

Given the cycle time requirements of many DRPS, many shops would rather replace parts than repair them, Bowman said.  This is why a quality remanufactured OE part is so valuable to the shop, as it will also fit right the first time, he added.

"The quality of the core is everything," Bowman said, adding that they collect many of them when delivering a reman bumper, in addition to using key core suppliers in Las Vegas and Phoenix and making occasional purchases from OEMs in Detroit, tier one suppliers that sell bumper fascias with minor blemishes.

The plastic reman process begins with a sand blast, said Jim Stults, vice president of manufacturing.  The bumpers then move to a hot-water tank that softens the dents, he said.  It then moves on to the "block and fill" stage where cracks are hot-air welded and fillers are used if necessary.

Each bumper is then sanded to prepare for the first coat of primer, a water-based primer made by Transtar, Stults said.  The process is repeated three times to remove any blemishes, he added.

With steel bumpers, it's the same process, just a different substrate, Stults said.  Each bumper is straightened and measured for correct fit; in addition, hammer marks from the straightening process are ground off.

The bumpers are then stripped with a 50/50 solution of hydrochloric acid and water, cleaned, polished, then plated with trivalent chrome, which is more environmentally friendly than hexvalent chrome, which is high in carcinogens, Stults pointed out.

Before bumpers are delivered, they're wrapped in paper with a plastic lining and identified.  The bumpers are stored in an adjacent warehouse recently outfitted with special shelves by Lynch Material Handling to accommodate the fragile but bulky plastic bumpers.

Also housed in the warehouse are aftermarket radiators, A/C condensers, and cooling fan assemblies, as well as lighting products, side mirrors, bumper brackets, strips, absorbers, and remanufactured wheels, Bowman said.

The new shelving was key to quality control and handling, Bowman said.  If a fascia is mishandled or a box is resting on it, creases can be made, or it can even crack, he said.

That's why delivery is also critical, Bowman said, adding that the company delivers its own products in six cargo vans with special racking along the Front Range from Cheyenne to Pueblo.  A second production facility is located in Cheyenne, he added.