Getting the Most from HVLP Spray Guns
Whether your shop is located in an area of the country that requires your painters to use HVLP spray guns or you just purchased them to save money, your painters need to
make several changes in reduction and technique to get the best job from this technology.
An Ounce of Preparation
A prevalent problem in paint shops across the country is topcoat peeling. Though there are several possible causes for this problem, the most common cause is also the most
obvious: poor preparation.
Simply Success: Richard Cossette
Name: Lehman’s Garage, Inc. Location: Minneapolis, Minn. Owner: Richard Cossette Established: 1917 Square Footage: 66,000 (four shops) Number of Employees: 85 (four shops) Repair Volume: 907 cars per month (four shops) Average Repair Cost: $1,400 Success. It means different things to different people, but one belief is often associated with it – it’s difficult to
One Man’s Ad Plan
Every year, when my paternal relatives gather for a reunion, Aunt Shirley tells the embarrassing story of when I – just back from gymnastics camp – decided to do a cartwheel on the picnic-table bench. After losing my balance, I knocked a pitcher of fruit punch into my grandmother’s lap and landed bottom-first in a
Get It Straight: Alignments
Customers these days are pickier than ever about the work performed on their vehicles – and alignment isn’t an exception. If customers aren’t satisfied with how their cars ride, steer and handle after driving them out of your shop, you’ll likely see those customers again – for the redo.
Waterlogged: Submerged Vehicles
Repair of water-damaged vehicles is done daily across the United States, which makes it quite possible that your shop may someday be – if it hasn’t already been – involved in
estimating, and possibly the salvage and restoration, of a vehicle that’s been submerged in water.
Insider Trading
The collision-repair industry is big business.
In 1995, shops averaged an annual gross-sales volume of $415,168.
With shop profits soaring that high – even higher at Dun &
Bradstreet’s "Top 100" facilities – owners are as much
businessmen as they are technicians, estimators and managers.
And just like any other business leaders, shop owners are interested
in efficiency, profits and success.
An Alliance Of Abilities: CTA
These four business owners have formed a partnership called Collision Team Automotive, Inc. (CTA)
A Current Of Cash
Cash flow. It’s the name of the game in any body shop. That is, in any body shop that wants to stay in business.
Coming Up Corvettes
Name: Jerry’s Custom Paint & Collision Center Location: Gresham, Ore. Owners: Jerry and Lori Geiszler Established: 1979 Square Footage: 10,000 Number of Employees: Nine Repair Volume: 60 cars per month (25 percent restoration) Average Repair Cost: $2,000 – collision $12,000 to $15,000 – body and paint restoration Jerry Geiszler has restored so many "American Dream