Top-Notch Speakers to be Featured at BodyShop Business Waterborne Conference
Attendees of the BodyShop Business Waterborne Conference to be held Aug. 13-14, 2009 in Huron, Ohio, will be treated to presentations from some of the collision repair industry’s most progressive and innovative minds. Mark Clark, a 30-plus year industry veteran and owner of PBE Systems in Waterloo, Iowa, is one of the foremost leading experts
MARCH COVER STORY: Rally for Retail
Trying to change your posted door rate that insurers control might be as silly as wishing for wings to fly. Creating retail list prices, however, could establish a baseline for negotiation and show insurers just how much of a discount they’re getting.
Two Shops Expand Despite Tough Economy
A restoration shop and a car dealership are both investing in collision repair shops to boost their businesses. When a Pottstown, Pa., Chevy dealership and its accompanying body shop went up for sale last year, Wheels in Motion restoration shop owner Mike Yannessa saw the body shop as an opportunity he couldn’t pass up. The
Deep-Clean Interiors
U.S. Products’ new COBRA-H series of extractors is designed for the professional auto detailing industry and provides instant 212-degree (F) heat at the wand tip at 100 psi. Use it to deep clean auto carpets, upholstery and floor mats. This is a low-moisture extractor, so carpets dry quickly, and its powerful, two-stage vacuum and patented
Registration Open for I-CAR 30th Anniversary Celebration in Washington, D.C.
I-CAR will host its 30th Anniversary Celebration at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C., July 28-31. Online registration for the event is now open at www.i-car.com/meetings. The I-CAR 30th Anniversary Celebration will recognize individuals from the past and present who have dedicated themselves to I-CAR and educating others, helping to lead the collision industry
The Best of Times
Within the past couple months, the largest insurance company in the world was bailed out by the government, one of the largest investment banks in the world filed for Chapter 11, and an investment house that was considered an American icon was purchased to save it from financial demise. But still, I believe these are
CARSTAR Opens 10th St. Louis-Area Location
A new CARSTAR franchise was recently opened in Columbia, Mo., at 431 N. Main St. The 5,000-square-foot shop will offer auto body repair, detailing, paint touch up and towing and will use waterborne paints. It is the 10th CARSTAR location to open around St. Louis, Mo. Columbia shop owner Charlie Eilers has also been running
Laying it on Thick
Sprayed-on bedliners, once the realm of only a few manufacturers, are now available from many different sources as very basic systems to incredibly elaborate ones.
Connecticut Repairers Win Unanimous Supreme Court Decision on Steering
The Auto Body Association of Connecticut (ABAC) today announced that it won a significant victory in its pending lawsuit against The Hartford Fire Insurance Company, with the Connecticut Supreme Court unanimously upholding a lower court certification of the class action. ABAC, along with three Connecticut auto body repair shops, allege that the insurance company