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Business Lean

Managed Collision Repair

Editor Jason Stahl gives a recap of tips for reducing cycle time through improved shop management gleaned from his trip to the Sherwin-Williams A-Plus Network Vision Group in Phoenix.

3/9/2012 By Jason Stahl

Negotiating Claims: Refuse to Do It

Collision business owners are routinely and institutionally told by insurers that they must negotiate with them to an agreed price on repairs on property they don't own, even though they have no legal standing or credentials ...

9/30/2011 By Mike Orton

Build a Kaizen Engine

Unlike traditional business models, the kaizen engine is built so that when customers' needs are not met, it shuts down so that both only the needs will get delivered (not defects) and the root cause of the problem can be ide...

9/1/2010 10:38:28 AM By John Sweigart

Don't Get Lured into the Hype About SOPs

You might think creating standard operating procedures (SOPs) to standardize work is a good thing until you realize that no improvement is going on. Only once the need exists to find a better way to work will a work standar...

6/29/2010 By John Sweigart

Creating a Culture of Continuous Improvement

The concern about creating a kaizen culture is always the same: "I don't think my people will tolerate this level of change." But failed change usually results from failed management, not people's unwillingness to change. Cre...

5/10/2010 11:40:26 AM By John Sweigart

Tracking Lean Performance and Productivity

Most businesses track performance with accounting system financials. But body shops aren’t typical businesses. For us, the key number to know is the amount of resources required to produce a specific amount of value.

3/11/2010 11:08:48 AM By John Sweigart

Know Body Shop's Problems to Start Lean Transformation

Is someone trying to sell you slick lean “tools” before you’ve identified your shop’s problems? Fall into this trap and you may be very disappointed by the outcome.

2/9/2010 By John Sweigart

Developing a Lean Body Shop Business Model

Figuring out what problem you’re trying to solve in your shop is the first step toward creating a clear picture of where you want your organization to go.

1/18/2010 By John Sweigart

LEAN & MEANER: Know Your Next Move

“Learn by doing” doesn’t mean “learn lean.” It means “learn how to create the future,” and know which way to go next. And the key to that is to paint a clear picture of your future.

10/22/2009 By John Sweigart

LEAN & MEANER: Building a Lean Front Office

You’ll find that the greatest opportunity for eliminating waste in the collision repair business exists not on the shop floor but rather up front in the office. Here’s how to do it.

10/5/2009 10:56:52 AM By John Sweigart

EDITOR'S NOTES: Refining the Machine

Three sets of eyes bored a hole in me. I read in their glares that if I screwed up, I was going to get stomped. I started to sweat profusely but tried to will it away, knowing that moist fingers handling small LEGO pieces cou...

10/5/2009 By Jason Stahl

AUGUST COVER STORY: Eliminate Yourself!

I eliminated my role as production manager by becoming systems dependent, and now I have more time to work on my business, not in it.

7/31/2009 By Mark Miller, Jr.

LEAN & MEANER: Think Throughput

Developing a throughput mind is essential to successfully becoming lean, increasing the speed of your process and widening the gap between costs and sales.

6/25/2009 By John Sweigart

LEAN & MEANER: Change for the Better

With change comes resistance and pushback. But here are some ways, when implementing lean, to get everyone to trust that what you’re doing is a better way.

4/3/2009

No Magic Here

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again: There’s no one magic answer to how to ‘do’ lean, and no right way to do anything. Start by understanding what you need to improve and the rest will follow.

2/9/2009 By John Sweigart

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BodyShop Business is the ultimate information source for the collision repair industry. BodyShop Business is dedicated to empowering shop owners with the knowledge they need to run successful businesses. BSB provides not only business management information and market trend analysis but also technical content, breaking news and the latest products for collision repairers. We're committed to helping collision repair shop owners improve their efficiency, profitability and repair quality.