A couple of weeks ago, I was pulling my car out of a local parking garage when
I had one of those “D’OH!” moments. During a lapse in concentration,
I backed the car out at too sharp an angle, causing the front end to strike a
concrete column. The result was a shallow dent in the front right quarter-panel.
I also managed to tear the molding off the front, driver-side door. (Though I
define it as a “D’OH” moment, I promise you that “D’OH!”
wasn’t the word that came out of my mouth.)
Though I’d give anything to get back those three seconds (not to mention
my $250 deductible), the experience of getting my car fixed turned out to be a
rather enlightening one for me. Since becoming involved with the metal finishing
industry, I often find myself looking at objects in stores or on the streets and
speculating as to how they were coated. Needless to say, I was more than a little
intrigued with regard to the processes and technologies that would be used to
mend my vehicle.
While it’s important to note that there are some differences between finishing
and refinishing, I was amazed at the number of similarities between the two industries.
Some of my observations are listed below:
Color is critical. Three years ago, I would have told you that I thought that
parts came to collision shops pre-painted. I mean, black is black, right? Not
quite. As we all know, having a little leftover blue in the hoses on an automaker’s
paint line can mean that Monday’s black cars are considerably darker than
Tuesday’s black cars. Consequently, parts are shipped to collision repair
shops with only an e-coat primer. Ever curious, I asked one of the paint technicians
to give me an overview of how he selects the right paint color for the car. Expecting
him to say something like “I just eyeball it,” I was surprised when
he described a complex system of color-matching that rivals anything that goes
on in the metal finishing industry.
Cleanliness is just as important to refinishers as it is finishers. Never having
been in a collision repair shop before – and perhaps having seen a few too
many movies and television shows - I’ve always envisioned them as being dark
and a bit grungy. But the facility where I had my work done was as clean and well-lit
as any finishing shop I’ve seen.
Technology isn’t just for the big guys. Thirty minutes after getting a referral
from my insurance company, I found myself at the repair shop having the car looked
at. Ten minutes after that, my customer service consultant had generated the estimate
on her computer, submitted it electronically to my insurance company, ordered
a rental car for me and had entered an order for the necessary parts. The efficiency
of this system brings to mind the supply chain and order-fulfillment models used
by companies like Ford and GM.
Granted, just as every finishing shop isn’t the same, some collision repair
shops are better than others. Based on my experience, I’m inclined to believe
that I really lucked out by landing at a place staffed by such knowledgeable people
and furnished with some great technology. Though it came at a cost that I’d
prefer not to incur again, automotive refinishing no longer seems like such a
mystery to me.
