friday – mcrs trade fair and meet & greetas collisionweek reported in august, safelite has...

2014JULY

MONTANA COLLISION REPAIR SPECIALISTS | WWW.MTCOLLISIONREPAIR.COM

TRADE FAIR • NETWORK WITHYOUR PEERS • SEE WHAT IS NEW

How safe is your shop? Are we facing more dramatic changes?Do we have more questions than answers? MCRS will beworking to help us find the right answers to the tough questionsbringing a new and innovative meeting format to the SUMMERMEETING IN GREAT FALLS, AUGUST 22 AND 23 ATTHE HILTON GARDEN INN.

The Friday afternoon MCRS Trade Fair brings new and excitingtechnology. Vendors will be exhibiting Friday afternoon 3:00-9:00 P.M. The Friday evening Meet and Greet will be held inthe Trade Fair. “Bring your technicians; all your employees,”says Jeramy Myers, Chairman of the Trade Fair, “this is a greatopportunity for your entire shop to network and see updatedindustry information.” The Meet and Greet offering hors’doevres,beer and wine, is hosted by Denny Menholt.

Saturday, the meeting tackles one of the most importantchallenges to today’s collision repairer. Safetyand compliance.As an industry we have more questions than answers to thecomplex compliance issues facing you every day. It is difficultto find the answers and potentially devastating if you do nothave them. OSHA has accepted an invitation from Paul Flores,

Meeting Focuses on Safety - OSHA is Guest SpeakerGeneral Manager, Ricks Auto Body Missoula and MCRS BoardMember to speak to our industry at this meeting. In addition, toOSHA, we will have a presentation by Brandon Thomas of GMGEnvironmental regarding Isocyanate Exposure.

To complete the message, Richard Turner, PPG, will be teaching a‘Training Implementation’ class in the afternoon. How we make thiswork in our business. It is not an option!

We look forward to seeing you in Great Falls at anotherMCRS blockbuster event!!

FRIDFRIDFRIDFRIDFRIDAAAAAY – MCRS Y – MCRS Y – MCRS Y – MCRS Y – MCRS TRADE FAIR TRADE FAIR TRADE FAIR TRADE FAIR TRADE FAIR AND MEET & GREETAND MEET & GREETAND MEET & GREETAND MEET & GREETAND MEET & GREET * Meet Your Vendors * See The Latest

* Bring Your Employees * Network With Your Peers

Minnesota shop owner shares his story of being proactive with OSHAGerry Bosak of HAAS Collision Craft in St. Paul, Minn., tells shop owners how they can avoid being finedby OSHA. Bosak wrote: “A few years ago, I contacted OSHAs free consulting unit. They sent out inspectorsto go through my business and let me know of any problems we’d have if the real inspectors showed up.They went through the shop with a fine-tooth comb and let me know of all the violations we’d face in a realinspection. This service was free, and the only requirement was that I correct any problems in a reasonableamount of time. I found this to be very helpful. The only problem was once I got on their list, it was a longwait before they came out, maybe four or five months.”

According to the OSHA Web site, state OSHA consultation programs generally are listed in the stategovernment section of the telephone directory under Department of Labor and Industry. A complete listingof all OSHA consultation programs may be found in the OSHA booklet #3047 (1996 revised), “ConsultationServices for the Employer,” or on the OSHA home page, (www.osha.gov) under “Directory.” I found the OSHA consultation Webpages (www.osha.gov/ashprogs/consult.html) and (www.osha-slc.gov/OshDoc/Fact_data/FSNO97-04.html) very informative.The State Directory Listing can be found at (www.osha.gov/ashdir/consult.html).

MONTANA COLLISION REPAIR SPECIALISTS | WWW.MTCOLLISIONREPAIR.COM | JULY 2014 | PAGE 2

Past President:Bruce HalcroCapital Collision CenterHelena, [email protected]

PresidentMike MitchellMitchell’s Crash RepairGreat Falls, [email protected]

Vice-PresidentBrad MeuliA&D Auto Body RepairBozeman, Montana406- [email protected]

Secretary-TreasurerPam CayerNorth Star Auto BodySydney, [email protected]

MCRS BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2014Director:Paul FloresRick’s Auto BodyMissoula, Montana [email protected]

Director:Todd LittonAmerican Auto BodyBillings, [email protected]

Director:Jeramy MyersFlawless Auto BodyGreat Falls, [email protected]

Director:Matthew McDonnellBig Sky CollisionBillings, [email protected]

I challenge you to make

your life a masterpiece.

I challenge you to join

the ranks of those

people who live what

they teach, who walk

their talk.

—T—T—T—T—Tony Robbinsony Robbinsony Robbinsony Robbinsony Robbins


Industry News

In 1952, Hank Gabel got out of the service and went towork for a body shop in Billings, Montana. It wassomething he liked and was good at. In August 1964, hestarted his own shop, Hank’s Body Shop, Inc. With hiswife Betty at his side, they built a 50 year legacy business.Hank’s Body Shop has been built around the customer.“We have always taken that extra step,” says Donna Gabel,“we now have generations of families coming back to us.”

Dale, Herb and Donna grew up in Hank’s Body Shop andcontinue to manage the business today. Dale and Herbstarted working at the shopwhen they were young boys,and when Betty retired, Donnacame in to the business. It hasalways been a family affair.Hank, Betty, Dale, Herb &Donna have always maintainedthat our customer satisfactionis top priority and the core forbuilding the solid and respectedreputation the company wearsso well. Imagine the changeswe have seen in vehicletechnology and the industry over the last 50 years!

Currently, Hank’s has 15 employees. 3 body techs, 2painters, 2 painters helpers and a full time detailer & partsperson. Dale and Herb both write estimates using Audatex.Donna manages the front office, handling administrativeand bookkeeping. They have been a long time Sikkensuser, with two downdraft paint booths and a prep booth.For frame repair, Hank’s has two Chief EZ Liners withthe Velocity Measuring Systems.

Hank’s Body Shop works hard to have good relationships.“It is important that we work with the insurance companiesso we can take good care of our customer,” states Herb.This shop has a few DRP agreements. Agreements thathave workable terms that make it a win- win for everyone,the customer, the shop and the insurer. This shop staysconsistently busy. Repeat customers and word of mouth(the old fashioned way of doing business) keeps buildingmore business. Due to the hail storm this spring in Billings,they are overwhelmed with business. “When the hail hit,”says Donna, “we had 100’s of customers that we had notseen in years.” Most of that loyal customer base is waitingtheir turn to get their cars repaired. As busy as the shopis, Betty Gabel has come back to help. She is still takingcare of these lifelong customers.

HANKS BODY SHOP

Hank’s is a founding member of the Montana CollisionRepair Specialists. Donna has served on the Board ofDirector’s and as Treasurer. Hank’s lives a strong andundeniable commitment to the future of the industry throughMCRS. They have been there for every meeting, everylegislative initiative and every conference call. “Donna Gabelhas been the glue-the cornerstone- of MCRS, through thickand thin,” Janet Chaney, Executive Director of MCRSproudly shares, “she is the one we all turn to.” In 2012,Donna retired from the Board and has passed the baton tothe next generation. “I have loved being part of MCRS and

I believe that we do make adifference,” she reminds us, “workhard and use the tools that MCRShas built for you.”

Hank and Betty Gabel built a solidfamily business. While raising theirfamily in Billings; working in theshop- riding motorcycles-snowmobiles- camping, they instilledvalues, ethics and a morality in theirchildren, Donna, Herb and Dale thatprevails in Hank’s Body Shop today.

Hank’s Body Shop is celebrating their 50 YearAnniversary. We are all invited to their 50th party,

Thursday – August 14th, 3 - 8 pm.See you there!

CONGRATULATIONS HANKS BODY SHOP!

Dale, Herb, Donna,Hank and Betty Gabel- Hank’s Body Shop

Team

Herb, Hank and Dale Gabel

Celebrating 50 Great Years!


Thur, 10 Jul 2014

AAAAAuto Glass Steering Contruto Glass Steering Contruto Glass Steering Contruto Glass Steering Contruto Glass Steering ControoooovvvvvererererersysysysysyContinues in ConnecticutContinues in ConnecticutContinues in ConnecticutContinues in ConnecticutContinues in Connecticut

Local NBC affiliate investigates allegations of steering in violation ofnew law.

In a report published earlier this week, NBC Connecticut, based inWest Hartford, examined allegations of steering in the auto glassrepair and replacement industry in violation of a new, more stringent,anti-steering law passed last Summer that took effect January 1.

In June last year, Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy signed into lawHouse Bill 5072 which banned auto insurers and third partyadministrators from steering auto glass repair exclusively to their ownnetworks.

Public Act 13-67 states that an insurance company cannot requirethat glass repairs "be performed in or by a specified facility." Insurers,as well as their third-party claims administrators, are also prohibitedfrom telling a policyholder that going outside of their repair networkfor repairs will result in delayed repairs or "a lack of guarantee for theautomotive glass work."

In addition, claims representatives would be required to tell claimants,"You have the right to choose a licensed glass shop where thedamage to your motor vehicle will be repaired. If you have apreference, please let us know."

The initial report by NBC Connecticut details the experience of oneauto glass insured, Steven Petrauskas, in June this year who felt hewas steered away from a shop he had used previously for glasswork when a Safelite Solutions employee made an appointment tohave his work done at Safelite Auto Glass location instead of theglass shop he requested.

In a follow up report the next day, the station spoke with the owner ofan independent repair facility who reiterated many of the concernsexpressed by the consumer. The reporter also detailed a statementthe station received from Safelite that blamed the event on humanerror saying, “Our policy is to honor customer preference. SafeliteSolutions routinely monitors calls, performs audits, coaches our staffand takes any necessary corrective action to assure that our policiesare being followed. We take complaints very seriously and activelyinvestigate them. Regarding Mr. Petrauskas, we have confirmed thatthe customer service representative mistakenly thought she wasscheduling Mr. Petrauskas with Plymouth Glass. It is not evidenceof systemic steering. It was an unfortunate error, which we havetaken steps to correct.”

As CollisionWeek reported in August, Safelite has filed a lawsuitseeking to overturn provision in the new law that it believes violatesit rights. The lawsuit, filed on July 26 in U.S. District Court, claimsthat section PA 13-67(c)(2) is an infringement of Safelite's First andFourteenth Amendment rights because it "requires Safelite topromote other glass repair shops" and restricts its ability to providethe consumer with "truthful, accurate information about the benefitsof their insurance policy."

At the time, Safelite sought an injunction to stop the new law cominginto effect this year. After a hearing on the injunction in December,the court denied the request concluding that law “…is rationallyrelated to the State’s goal of protecting consumer choice andpreventing steering.”

This ruling allowed the law to come into full effect on January 1.

Safelite’s suit continues and based upon the court’s schedule for thecase could come to trial next year.

According to NBC Connecticut, the state is investigating the steeringallegations contained in its report.

OSHA Launches Interactive Website to Help EmployersBetter Comply with Recordkeeping Rule

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently unveiled a new interactive web tool to help usersdetermine whether injuries and illnesses are work-related and recordable under the OSHA Recordkeeping rules.

The OSHA Recordkeeping Advisor is an interactive tool that simulates an employer’s interaction with a Recordkeeping rulesexpert. The Advisor relies on the users’ responses to questions and automatically adapts to the situation presented. Responsesput into the program are strictly confidential, and the system does not record or store any of the information. The Advisorhelps employers determine:

• Whether an injury or illness (or related event) is work-related

• Whether an event or exposure at home or on travel is work-related

• Whether an exception applies to the injury or illness

• Whether a work-related injury or illness needs to be recorded

• Which provisions of the regulations apply when recording a work-related injury or illness

“The Recordkeeping Advisor was developed to better help employers understand and comply with their responsibilities toreport and record work-related injuries and illnesses,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and HealthDr. David Michaels.

OSHA’s Injury and Illness Recordkeeping page links to the Recordkeeping Advisor and other guidance materials to helpemployers understand and comply with Federal recordkeeping and reporting requirements


MCRS Legislative Manual

Are you using the laws in place to help you in yourbusiness? MCRS has a Legislative Manual that hasall the Montana laws relating to collision repairersand copies of the Advisory Memorandum’s that havebeen released to the insurance industry by theMontana State Auditor’s office.

This is an important tool to have at your deskwhen you need to use it. Please call or emailJanet Chaney to get a copy of this importantdocument. Email: [email protected] cell 480-720-2565. This is free to MCRSMembers. $25.00 to Non- Members.

You can get a copy of the Montana statute at theMCRS website. www.Mtcollisionrepair.comClick Legislation

Reach OutTo Your Legislator

“The sun never sets on having your say!”, is what theMontana Legislative website says.

Go to http://leg.mt.gov/css/to find your Representative with all theircontact information.

Now is time for collision repairers to reach out to theirMontana State Legislators. The importance of you gettinginvolved with your Representative is important to yourfuture and the future of the industry. In the current climate,it is more important than ever to build a professional andstrategic base for your business.

Currently, MCRS is staying actively involved in legislativehappenings in Helena. We are always looking out for thebest interests of the collision industry in Montana.

Representative Gordy Vance, a champion of the collisionindustry, will join us at the Great Falls Meeting, August 23.He will bring us up to date on Capital news.

Go to http://leg.mt.gov/css/

Representative Gordy Vancespeaks to MCRS.

Representative Vance hasbeen an important andintegral part of MCRS

success in Helena

* LABOR HOUR TRENDS: The average total number of labor hours per claim rose againlast year, according to data from CCC Information Services, but it still remains below pre-recession levels. In 2007 and 2008, claims averaged more than 23 labor hours (23.5 and23.2, respectively) according to CCC, but fell to their lowest recent level (22.3 hours) in2010 and 2011. The average nudged up .1 hour each of the last two years, hitting 22.5hours per claim last year, but remains one hour lower than in 2007. Data from MitchellInternational shows a similar recent trend, up .3 hour in 2012 from the prior year, andthen up just under .1 hour in 2013.


* MORE ALUMINUM PICK-UPS FORECAST: Shops gearing up to repair the newFord F-150 pick-up hitting showrooms later this year may be heartened by a new studyby Ducker Worldwide that predicts that by 2025, 75 percent of all pick-ups will havealuminum bodies and closures. It should be noted that the study was commissionedby the Aluminum Association, and the steel industry will no doubt continue its efforts tofind new ways to reduce the weight of steel used in vehicle production.

Industry Roundtable at CIC in Portland focuses on Changing Industry

Mark Allen, of Audi, told collision repairers they are responsible for ensuring vehiclesare repaired to respond properly in a subsequent accident.

Dave Gruskos, of Reliable AutomotiveEquipment, offered an overview of someof the newer technology issues thatcollision shops face.

Portland, Ore.—The most recent “RepairerRoundtable” was not limited, as it has beenpreviously, to just collision repair shoprepresentatives. That was by design andbenefited the discussion, according to Aaron Schulenburg, executive director of theSociety of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS), which hosted the meeting in Portland,Ore., in April.

“For this particular meeting, because of the topic, we felt it was important to bring insome outside perspectives,” Schulenburg said. “So we reached out to OEMs wehave close business relationships with and invited them to come and participate inthe discussion.”

Since it was launched several years ago, the “Repairer Roundtable” has been heldseveral times each year to give shops a meeting where “repairers set the agendaand had the conversations important to the industry,” Schulenburg said. The meetingshave had little structure but lots of open discussion.

In Portland, however, SCRS chose to focus the discussion on one topic: the “impactof automotive technology on collision repair.” The association also chose for the firsttime to frame the discussion by starting with a presentation. Dave Gruskos, of ReliableAutomotive Equipment Inc., offered a look at some of the increasingly complextechnologies collision repairers face on the vehicles they are repairing.

Gruskos noted, for example, that some new Mercedes-Benz headlamps and taillightsinclude dynamic curve illumination and other technologies that require the units becalibrated after installation. Hook a battery charger to the negative terminal of somePorsche batteries, Gruskos said, and you’ve immediately burned out a $3,000component.

He shared a diagram showing the location of all the electronic components on aparticular vehicle, noting that there are some behind virtually every panel on thevehicle.

“When you put a heat light on a panel to dry some paint, this is what’s behind whereyou’re putting that heat lamp,” Gruskos said. “Even if you think that infrared light is notaffecting what’s behind it, it absolutely is. There are actually discussions going on at(U.K. research facility) Thatcham right now about the issue of heating side airbags.”

Gruskos also noted that vehicle designs are increasingly transferring energy froma crash into adjacent panels. Those panels may look undamaged and maytherefore end up (if the vehicle is totaled) being sold as used parts, but they maynot respond properly in a subsequent accident.

“I recently watched a guy take a Magnaflux spot-check kit to where the beam ona used door was spot-welded in,” Gruskos said. “He sprayed it with developer,and around every one of those welds, you saw all the tiny little cracks. You couldn’tsee it when you first looked at the door. But there’s no way that those componentswere not affected.”

Gruskos asked who knew that most automotive adhesives designate atemperature to which they should be pre-heated before they are applied. Of about80 people in the room, only about five hands went up.

During the discussion that followed Grusko’s presentation, Mark Allen, collision programspecialist for Audi of America, said the stakes are too high for collision repairers and allthe parties involved in collision repair to not follow the procedures spelled out by vehiclemanufacturers using the designated tools, equipment and products.

“You’re professionals. You’re responsible for people’s lives,” Allen said. “We allwant that customer. Insurance companies can’t sell the next policy, I can’t sell thenext car or parts or service, and you can’t sell that next body job to a corpse. Sothe procedures, the tools, the equipment — they are all key. Key to your survival.Key to your customer’s survival. Key to my customer’s survival.”

Some of the discussion centered around the fact that many automakers requirespecific brands or models of equipment in order for a shop to qualify for their shopcertification program. One automaker representative said his company requiresequipment and procedures it has tested to ensure repeatable results, and it can’tcrash-test vehicles repaired with 20 different versions of equipment.

But Minnesota shop owner Roger Bonn said various OEM equipmentrequirements make it challenging for shops that want to do repairs correctly. Hisshop is located in a city with a population of about 100,000.

“There’s no way, even though I’m one of the leading shops in the community, that Ican purchase and afford all the equipment from all the manufacturers,” Bonn said.“We need the auto manufacturers’ help somehow to standardize this to a pointwhere we can safely fix your customer’s cars without them having to drive 100 milesto another community. If (an automaker) doesn’t have the wherewithal to test allthese tools, how is a small business like mine able to buy all these manufacturer-specific tools to fix all these different cars? That’s what I struggle with.”

Schulenburg acknowledged there are no easy answers to that issue, but said hebelieves repairers hold the key.

“We expect the OEMs come up with an answer on how we get tools, or weexpect someone else to take care of it,” he said. “At the end of the day, the marketneeds to determine what it needs to fix these cars the right way. It’s the insurers’responsibility to respond to the market pricing. I think we need to look internallyand if there are costs associated with these things, the market needs to determinehow to recover those costs. I don’t think we can look to others to find that solution.”

Roger Wright of Sterling Autobody Centers suggested that one solution might beworking with other shops or a third-party to rent or jointly purchase expensive butinfrequently used equipment. Gruskos said his company is, in fact, starting to renthigh-end tools, such as the one needed to extract rivets on BMW 5-series vehicles.

“You can’t spend $13,000 on a tool you use once a year,” Gruskos said.

Schulenburg closed the meeting by saying future Repairer Roundtables will returnto a repairer-only format.

“But I’ve got to say, inviting in the OEMs and some of these outside representativesfor this discussion has made a really big impact on the quality of the discussionwe’ve had,” Schulenburg said.

ALUMINUM EVERYWHERE ALUMINUM EVERYWHERE ALUMINUM EVERYWHERE ALUMINUM EVERYWHERE ALUMINUM EVERYWHERE ::::: Are You Prepared for the Changes Are You Prepared for the Changes Are You Prepared for the Changes Are You Prepared for the Changes Are You Prepared for the Changes

Coming Your WayComing Your WayComing Your WayComing Your WayComing Your Way


Good morning!

Starting Monday, July 14, 2014, the Job Summarypage in PartsTrader will include a new Insurer Viewtab. The current Job Summary has been useful forrepair shops who wanted to quickly review the currentstatus of parts; this new feature will take that a stepfurther to provide the details and sourcing historycommonly requested when an insurance review isperformed for a claim. In this view, you will be ableto see a summary showing:

• The summary range of (insurer) cost for the repairjob parts (your buy price is not displayed on this view)

• The range of delivery times for parts that werequoted as available

• A summary showing the type of parts actuallyordered

• An expandable history for each part required forthe repair.

To learn more, go tohttp://partstrader.us.com/jobsummary

To experience this new view first-hand startingMonday:

1. Log in to PartsTrader

2. Click on the Order Confirmed tab*

3. Under the Action column, select View Job fromthe drop-down menu under More… for any job you’dlike to use as an example

4. The Job Summary screen will appear

1. The first screen you will see is the summarythat has been available, showing status of parts

2. Click Insurer View tab to view the history

3. On the Insurer View tab, click the plus sign tothe left of any part to view the history and detailfor the selected part.

If you have any questions about this new feature, pleasecontact our Customer Care team at 855-932-7278.

Thanks, and have a great weekend!

The PartsTrader Team

* While the Job Summary can be accessed for a job onany tab within the PartsTrader screens, the most detailwill be available from jobs that are at/near the end ofthe parts sourcing process. When first introduced, thejob part history will be available for jobs started withinthe last 60 days.

Parts Trader Update - July 12, 2014

Aaron Schulenburg,Executive Director SCRS

MCRS received this information from SCRS. The followingtwo paragraphs are Aaron Schulenburg’s editorial notes onthe Parts Trader information below.

The only purpose for the program to show an “insurerview” of “The summary range of (insurer) cost for therepair job parts (your buy price is not displayed onthis view)” and “a summary showing the type of partsactually ordered” would be so that the insurer has theample opportunity to pressure the shop over parts choicesbased on part prices. The shop’s cost is irrelevant (andhence why it is not displayed) because it has no bearingon the insurer (until they do away with list pricing andmove to a cost-plus environment). The only number thatmatters is the lowest list price, and this gives the visibilityto ensure that they can watch that your members makethe “right” decision.

I have begun receiving more reports in a variety of marketsthat State Farm is now calling shops on a claim by claimbasis and asking why the “most competitively priced part”wasn’t selected. Are you hearing this from your members?


Business Name: ________________________________________________________________

Owner’s Name: ________________________________________________________________

Address: _____________________________________________________________________

City/State/Zip: _________________________________________________________________

Phone:(_____) _________________________ Fax:(_____) _____________________________

Email Address: ________________________________________________________________

Type of Business: ______________________________________________________________

Join the Montana Collision Repair Specialists! Full Member Dues are $300.00 per year and affiliateMember Dues are Effective $250.00 per year [effective 1/1/2013]. Please fill out the following form and mailto: MCRS | P.O. Box 1168 | Sidney, Montana, 59270.

Membership Inquiry Form

For information call Janet Chaney at 480.720.2565

Newsletter Published by Montana Collision Repair SpecialistsExecutive Director: Janet Chaney | Phone: 480.720.2565 | Email: [email protected] | Website: www.mtcollisionrepair.com

Address: Montana Collision Repair Specialists | P.O. Box 1168 | Sidney, Montana 59270

All Rights Reserved ©2014 MCRS.

Montana Collision Repair SpecialistsP.O. Box 1168Sidney, MT 59270

friday – mcrs trade fair and meet & greetas collisionweek reported in august, safelite has...

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