Effective estimates, advanced production techniques and leadership are all key topics to help the collision repair industry face future challenges. Axalta Coating Systems is pleased to support the industry and address these topics with several key speakers and sponsorships at the International Autobody Congress & Exposition (NACE) and the Congress of Automotive Repair and Service (CARS). NACE | CARS will return to Detroit, Michigan on July 21-25 at the Cobo Center. The tradeshow will feature numerous opportunities for technical training, business education, demonstrations, networking and technology showcases for stakeholders, owners, managers and technicians in the collision and service repair industries.

On Wednesday, July 22, from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. in Room 140E*, Jonathan Purifoy, Axalta Business Services Director, will present Leader Care: The Health of a Leader. This course discusses the importance of identifying a support system to help nurture and strengthen leaders. Through images, videos and a compelling narrative, attendees should feel refreshed, encouraged and motivated to continue to lead their teams.

Steve Trapp and Scott Wheeler, Axalta Strategic Accounts Managers-North America, will co-present two courses. The first, entitled Implementing Effective Estimating and Repair Planning Teams, takes place on Thursday, July 23 from 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. in Room 140F*.

“This course enables either movement to or refinement of the specialized Repair Planner role to support the current CSR/Estimator model,” explained Trapp. “The CSR/Estimator team should be customer-focused and get an accurate view of the painted parts. The Repair Planner/Parts Coordinator should receive a complete repair plan and should be able to order all parts and verify part prices prior to submitting the final repair plan. We will discuss the roles and the changed processes that are intended to achieve less supplements and quicker cycle time, as well as incentive options to keep these teams working together to help ensure optimal profitability and customer satisfaction.”

The second course titled Advanced Production Processes to Reduce Length of Rental Times is on Friday, July 24 from 8:30 to 10:00 a.m. in Room 140A*. This course takes a unique view of production systems, taking the 3P’s, Product, Process and People, of a successful business, and will suggest how to apply them to the collision repair industry.

“We will discuss ways to keep small damage small, as well as ways to refine processes that may be driving up the repair cycle time. Optimally, we want to reduce waiting and processing times,” said Wheeler. “We will review pre-production, production, and post-production processes to keep the vehicle flowing and help avoid delays or work-in-progress queues. We’ll also discuss the hiring and retention of the optimal mix of staff to help keep production flowing while optimizing labor and overall shop gross margins.”