Fix Auto USA Participates in Southern CA I-CAR Career Fair

PublishedMarch 22, 2023

California-based Fix Auto USA locations recently participated in a Universal Technical Institute career fair put on in conjunction with the Southern California I-CAR Committee and the Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF), held in Long Beach, CA.

The March 9 event brought together more than 200 eager, local students and quality-driven automotive industry employees to make connections and provide education for career opportunities in the collision repair field. Four owners who collectively own more than 20 Fix Auto USA locations in the Southern California region attended the event to share

TX Student Named Grand Prize Winner in Annual FutureTechs Rock Awards

PublishedMarch 8, 2023

Taeler Coverdale, a collision repair student at Universal Technical Institute in Houston, TX, has been named the grand prize winner in TechForce Foundation®’s 2023 FutureTechs Rock Awards.

TechForce created this prestigious award to honor aspiring technicians and recognize students with a promising future in the transportation industry. Learn more about the 2023 grand prize and category winners here.

“This is amazing! I’m in utter shock right now,” said Coverdale upon learning she is this

From the Desk of Mike Anderson: My ‘Wish List’ of Changes to Improve the Collision Repair Industry

Written by Mike Anderson, Autobody News
Published March 8, 2023

Once a year or so, I compile my “wish list” for the industry, the changes---in some cases, long-awaited changes---I’d like to see happen to help our industry. As always, I challenge you---whether you represent a collision repair business, an insurance company, an automaker, an association or an industry vendor---to find a way to contribute to making these 10 wishes become reality.

Wish No. 1:

OR Students Ready for Auto Body Career with Surprise Gift of Required Tools

Written by Les Zaitz, Salem Reporter
PublishedMarch 3, 2023

Three students in the auto body program at the Career Technical Education Center in Salem, OR, recently got a surprising boost to launch their professional careers.

Daniel Mendoza, Julian Moran and Eddie Ceja were awarded a prestigious national scholarship that gave them each $1,000 worth of tools and a tool box. They also recently got a trip to the national Collision Industry Conference in Palm Springs, CA, where they were recognized on stage before 500 professionals.

The seniors are in their second year

IA School’s Mechanics Club Gets Hands-On with Collision Repairs

Written by Daniel Charland, Dyersville Commercial
Published March 3, 2023

The Beckman Catholic High School B-TECH/Mechanics Club attended an auto repair visit/demonstration day Feb. 24 with Southwest Tech at Auto Tech.

According to Steven Lueck, assistant principal at Beckman Catholic, the Mechanics Club is a fairly new, but large, club of students who have a strong interest in auto mechanics and like to be involved in hands-on activities.

“A year or two ago, several students started asking about possibly having classes regarding anything with diesel mechanics," Lueck said. "Instead of creating an entire class, we

Chief Automotive’s $75,000 In-Kind Donation Benefits Collision Schools Through CREF 

PublishedFeb. 28, 2023

Chief Automotive believes students need access to the right tools to learn how to become the best technicians they can be---and that’s exactly why it connected with the Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF) to donate $75,000 worth of rivet guns and subscriptions, which will benefit collision repair educational programs around the country. 

“Chief has been a supporter of schools all over the world for over 50 years. It has always been a core part of our business to support our future technicians,” said Mike Croker, director, product management for Chief Collision

Tesla Program Provides Career Path for High School Students

Written by Maria Merano, Teslarati
Published Feb. 22, 2023

Teslarecently highlighted the advantages and benefits of its Manufacturing Development Program (MDP), an initiative for graduating high school students that gives participants the financial resources, coursework and experience needed to qualify for a job at the company. 

Tesla rolled out its MDP for graduating high school students living in California, Nevada, New York and Texas, the four states that host a major Tesla facility. Tesla said the application process is easy, and includes a series of information sessions and interviews.

Students selected for the MDP

Shops, suppliers and other collision industry businesses around the country constantly lodge complaints about the lack of qualified help entering the workforce, but the Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF) works hard to connect businesses with future employees.

Half a dozen High School & College Transportation Student Career Fairs have already been scheduled this spring from coast to coast, providing industry employers with an ideal opportunity to get acquainted with thousands of incoming industry professionals.

“CREF’s Career Fairs offer a great forum for connecting collision industry employers with hundreds of students who have trained for entry-level positions and are prepared to begin their careers,” said CREF Program Manager Tiffany

CREF Opens Applications for 2023 Benchmark Grants

PublishedFeb. 14, 2023

Despite the ongoing demand for new talent in the collision repair industry, collision schools often struggle to attract and retain interested students due to a lack of updated tools, equipment and supplies, often caused by underfunded programs.

The Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF) seeks to alleviate some of those financial burdens on behalf of the instructors educating the industry’s future workforce by filling those gaps through its 2023 Collision School Career Readiness Benchmark Grants. Completing CREF’s ...

Collision Repairers Should Invest Now in ‘People, Capacity and Innovation’

Written by Abby Andrews, Autobody News
Published Feb. 8, 2023

Auto body shop owners and managers must be aware of and ready to face the long-term effects of the COVID pandemic, said Sean Carey, president of SCG Management Consultants, in his Jan. 26 presentation, “The New, New Normal and the Impact to the Claims & Collision Industry,” part of CIECA’s webinar series.

“We are now in the ‘COVID tail,’ starting to see issues cropping up,” Carey said.

The

NY Auto Body Students Benefit from Wreck/Rebuild Program

PublishedJan. 31, 2023

The auto body wreck/rebuild program continues to benefit Alfred State College (ASC) students in Alfred, NY, preparing for their career with hands-on education experiences.

Under the guidance of instructors CJ Tremper and Brad Smith, students in the auto body program enhance their skill sets by fixing wrecked vehicles to gain insight into what it is like to work inside a live collision shop. Currently there are six cars in the shop being repaired.

Student Mikal Smith enjoys being part of this program.

“I like being hands-on," Smith said. "We have lectures and go

Average Length of Rental Still Increasing, But at Slower Pace

PublishedJan. 31, 2023

Enterpriseon Jan. 31 reported the average Length of Rental (LOR) in the fourth quarter of 2022 was 18.7 days, a one-half day increase over the quarter before it---a typical annual pattern, brought about by winter weather, animal accidents and holiday travel.

When compared to the same quarter the year before it, LOR was up 1.7 days in Q4 2022. That is an increase, but not as high as Q3 2022’s results, which showed a three-day increase year over year, and less than the 3.9-day increase observed in Q4 2021 compared to Q4 2020.

Louisiana recorded the highest overall LOR of any state at 22.3 days, a one-day increase over

WyoTech's $16M Expansion Brings a Need for More Instructors

PublishedJan. 19, 2023

WyoTech, a leading U.S. automotive, diesel and collision trade school, seeks new instructors, following the construction of a new $16 million, 90,000-square foot expansion to its Laramie, WY, campus.

Completed in November 2022, the expansion allows the school to increase its capacity to 1,200 students.

Between 2018 and 2021, enrollment at WyoTech increased by 2,300%, prompting the need for additional space. The school's current student enrollment is 850 students.

With this expansion, WyoTech is seeking new instructors to join its team and help provide the highest quality education to its students. The school is looking

Collision Engineering Program Expanding to a 7th School

PublishedJan. 18, 2023

Enterprise Holdings, through the Enterprise Holdings Foundation, on Jan. 18 announced a strategic partnership with Ford Motor Company Fund to support the growth of the industry-leading Collision Engineering Program (CEP). 

The new industry partnership will expand the CEP to a new college that will become the seventh school to offer the two-year apprenticeship model, founded by Enterprise Holdings Foundation and Ranken Technical College, to attract and develop entry-level talent to fill essential roles within the collision repair industry. 

The Ford Fund will offer scholarships to CEP students to

TSTC Graduate Comes Back to Teach in Auto Collision and Management Technology Program

PublishedJan. 10, 2023

William Graham, of Teague, TX, began teaching in October 2022 in Texas State Technical College’s auto collision and management technology program at the Waco, TX, campus.

Graham is a graduate of Teague High School and TSTC’s auto collision and management technology program.

Recently, Graham talked about his new role and what he hopes students can learn in the program.

What factored into your pursuing auto collision and management technology at TSTC?

I grew up in a mechanic shop with my dad. The first job I landed was at a body shop that a friend

Romans Group Releases 2021 Profile of Collision Repair Marketplace

PublishedJan. 9, 2023

The Romans Group announced its 16th annual white paper, A 2021 Profile of the Evolving U.S. and Canadian Collision Repair Marketplace, is now available.

The pinnacle year for the collision repair industry was 2019, with an all-time high total addressable market (TAM) of $38.3 billion. Repair facilities were flush with repairable vehicles and had the manpower and parts to service the demand.

The recovery years of 2021 and 2022 were and continue to be awkward and choppy, as the collision repair industry attempts to bounce back within the constructs of numerous macro industry challenges and opportunities, U.S.

Event for Large Collision Repair Businesses Focuses on Labor Shortage, State of Consolidation

Written by John Yoswick, Autobody News
Published Jan. 6, 2023

During consultant Vince Romans’ annual presentation on the state of consolidation within the collision repair industry at the MSO Symposium in November, he noted there were currently 19 private equity firms or other investor

5 Trends That Changed the Auto Repair Industry in 2022

PublishedDec. 28, 2022

CCC Intelligent Solutions, Inc., recently took a look at the factors that had the biggest impact on the collision repair industry in 2022, many of which were financial.

Inflation

Inflation---perhaps one of the words that best defines 2022. At the close of 2021, many were hoping we had seen the worst of rising inflation as supply chain issues were getting better, whether it was the lower cost of shipping goods or automakers predicting improved supplies of semiconductor chips. But then Russia invaded Ukraine and the cost of oil and other raw materials shot up.

Overall inflation hit a forty-year high

Jaguar Land Rover Joins I-CAR Sustaining Partner Program

PublishedDec. 15, 2022

I-CAR® (the Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair) on Dec. 15 announced Jaguar Land Rover has joined I-CAR’s Sustaining Partner™ Program, designed to fund the various initiatives that drive I-CAR’s vision that every person in the collision repair industry has the information, knowledge and skills required to perform complete, safe and quality repairs for the ultimate benefit of the consumer.

The move builds upon Jaguar Land Rover’s longstanding training partnership with I-CAR, which provides customized training programs to Jaguar Land Rover’s Authorized Repair Network facilities throughout North

Fix Network World Launches First Auto Glass Apprenticeship Program in U.S.

PublishedNov. 16, 2022

Fix Network Worldproudly announced the approval of the Fix Network Apprenticeship Program (FNAP) in the State of Washington for automotive glass technicians.

The Washington State Apprenticeship and Training Council voted unanimously in October at its quarterly meeting to approve the workforce development program. This Registered Apprenticeship is governed by standards outlined under WAC 296-05-009 and covers training at Speedy Glass centers in Washington and Oregon.

FNAP will be the first automotive glass apprenticeship of its kind in the U.S. The program’s goal is to elevate the quality of

TechForce Report Highlights Extended Decline in Supply of New Technicians

PublishedNov. 4, 2022

The supply of new entrant technicians from automotive post-secondary education programs in the U.S. dropped 11.8%, to 28,866, in 2021, widening current and projected shortfalls of professionals needed to service the nation’s automotive fleet, according to TechForce Foundation’s 2022 Transportation Technician Supply & Demand Report.

The supply of program graduates (completions) slipped 2.6% and 0.4%, respectively, in the diesel and collision repair segments, but has fallen by a combined 17% over the past five years.

The worsening technician supply picture---with combined completions dropping from 48,208

CIC Panel Addresses Technician Talent Pool

Written by John Yoswick, Autobody News
Published Nov. 2, 2022

A panel discussion at the Collision Industry Conference during the 2022 SEMA Show on Nov. 1 in Las Vegas, NV, focused on "talent pool” issues, with collision shop representatives---among others---sharing things they are doing to recruit, train and retain new employees.

The CIC Governmental Committee discussed opportunities and challenges related to collision repair shops offering vehicle safety checks for consumers, including review and potential

It’s not uncommon during discussions within the collision repair industry about the technician shortage for body shop representatives to point to what they see as the inadequate entry-level skills of students completing auto body training programs.

Educators and others speaking at this spring’s Collision Industry Conference (CIC), however, offered their own perspectives on the issue.

“We do not have a recruiting problem. We have a retention problem,” Virginia Oden, a trade and industrial education program specialist with

From the Desk of Mike Anderson: When it Comes to Auto Body Shop Technician Compensation, Something Has to Change

Written by Mike Anderson, Autobody News
Published Nov. 29, 2021

Something has to change.

I’ll tell you up front: I’m going to be repeating those four words a number of times as you read through this article.

Something has to change.

I have a family member who graduated from high school and went to work for Amazon. He is now 21, making more than $100,000 a year. He has stock options and they pay 100% of his health insurance. And they pay for all of his college. That’s

Collision repair owners and managers across the country say hiring technicians and high turnover rates have become critical issues in their businesses.

Employee engagement may be the key to solving these problems, according to Dustin Peugeot, owner of the Matrix Trade Institute, and Kevin Wolfe, owner of LeadersWay.

Peugeot and Wolfe recently discussed how to “Crack the Code” to technician recruiting, and offered innovative solutions for shops to maximize the efficiency and retention of current employees. Their presentation was held as part of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) Repairer Driven News Series during SEMA360.

Wolfe cited a Gallup poll conducted in June

Just over two decades ago, Marlene Spence entered the Autobody Repair & Paint Program at Honolulu Community College in 1997 and earned an Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree two years later.

Fast forward to 2020, and Spence is now teaching as a lecturer in that same program to help train the technicians of the future.

When prospective collision repair students ask Spence about the importance of attending an auto body program, she tells them that it will provide the knowledge they need to work at a body shop.

“If they come to college, they won’t have to start as the guy who sweeps the shop or washes the car or moves the car,” said Spence. “Instead, they can start with an entry technician position with better pay.”

This is

When Nick Notte speaks to students across the country who are considering a job in the collision repair industry, he often shares his personal experience.

The current senior vice president of sales for I-CAR (Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair) always had an interest in cars. He was able to turn that passion into a lifelong career and is now around vehicles every day.

“The feedback you get from these kids is tremendous,” said Notte. “You can truly change their minds and convince them that collision repair is a good way to go.”

Formed in 1979, I-CAR is dedicated to providing the information, knowledge and skills required to perform complete, safe and quality repairs. The not-for-profit organization provides a variety of educational and

More than 35,000 collision repair jobs will be available across the nation over the next seven years, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

Randy Bobzien, automotive product manager at Lincoln Tech, said that to help meet this demand the school is assisting students build career skills while working with employers to find the best candidates for their body shops.

“One of the biggest challenges facing many employers is finding ways to overcome the skills gap---the gap between the skills they need in their workforce and the abilities of job applicants,” said Bobzien. “We want to educate employers and students alike that with the right training, that skills gap can be overcome.”

Lincoln Tech began offering