CollisionCast

Focus Advisors is a mergers and acquisitions firm specializing in the collision repair market and helping MSO owners achieve maximum value through a strategic exit. President Chris Lane and Senior Associate Madeleine Roberts Rich join the CollisionCast to discuss how collision repair business owners can help prepare for a sale.

An Abra location in Minnesota participated in a program that gives hands-on collision repair experience to public school teachers so they can apply what they learn to their own teaching. Danyell Wendland, an Abra operations manager, discusses how the program went and what the goal was.

Donald Trump has long been an EV critic. How might his newly close ties to Elon Musk influence his position on EV policies and regulation? And how might proposed tariffs affect the auto parts supply chain? For insight, we talk with Abey Abraham, managing principal at consulting firm Ducker Carlisle, where he leads the company's automotive and materials practice.

There are many ways to pay for the things you need in your shop, including financing. Paul Knowlton, an automotive service and collision repair equipment sales executive from Huntington National Bank, sat down with FenderBender to discuss why someone should consider financing, even if they have the cash on hand.

As insurers tighten their purse strings and adopt more stringent policies, shop owners must navigate this evolving landscape with adaptability and resilience. As Tiffany Menefee, president of Pronto Body Shop in El Paso, Texas, notes in her December column, by focusing on strong customer relationships, meticulous documentation, and strategic business practices, repair shops can weather the storm a...

Weeks after the recent Longshoreman strikes, we had a conversation with Ryan Mandell, director of claims performance for Mitchell International, Inc. He discusses how these events are impacting the collision repair industry and how to prepare for more logistical complications that may arise.

According to Drew Bryant, owner of DB Orlando Collision and monthly FenderBender columnist, one of the most persistent and damaging myths in the world of auto repairs is that insurance companies are on the consumer's side. In his October column, he talks about the illusion of trust and how collision shop owners and consumers must work together to demand fair treatment and high-quality repairs. In...

Like many professionals, you probably thought about gathering the knowledge you gained during your time in the collision industry and passing it on to the next generation. If you want to know more about that transition, listen to Brian Pierce, the head of the collision repair program at Rosedale Technical College in Pittsburgh. He has valuable insights into being and becoming an instructor.

Tom Wolf, director of strategic accounts and OEM aftersales at PPG Automotive Refinish, joins the CollisionCast to discuss why it's important to research refinishing considerations that may affect ADAS. It's a step that should be undertaken during repair planning, and PPG is one of the sponsors of the inaugural FenderBender and ABRN Best Repair Planner/Estimator Award. Check out MORE CollisionCast...

The industry is constantly evolving through technology, often lacking the training or educational tools to maintain success, along with facing a shortage of young professionals entering the field.    Collision repair associations across the country help meet those needs.    For this CollisionCast, we speak with Megan Mueller, the founder and president of the Mountain States Collision Repair Associ...

Mary Mahoney, vice president of the Replacement & Leisure Division at Enterprise Mobility, and Matt Ebert, founder and CEO of Crash Champions, join the CollisionCast to talk about recruiting for the collision repair industry and the Collision Engineering program. The Collision Engineering program will be the primary beneficiary of the upcoming Crash Champions Golf Outing, Dec. 5 at Monarch Bea...

The Collision Repair Education Foundation (CREF) made an impact at the recent American School Counselor Association (ASCA) conference, where school counselors considered alternative career options for the students they guide.

The I-CAR Academy curriculum is designed to prepare entry-level technicians for a collision repair career. I-CAR Director of Product Management Jesus Guerrero talks about how the Academy, with guided hands-on learning and gamification in five foundational learning areas, helps new hires become productive technicians.

AI is making an impact across all sectors of business, including collision repair. FenderBender speaks with Ryan Taylor, the founder and CEO of Body Shop Booster, to learn more about what he is doing to develop AI for collision repairers and how AI can impact the industry.

As the world is forced to adapt to climate change, it should spark interest among collision repairers on the matter of hail repair. FenderBender speaks to Dr. Stefan Liess, a climate researcher from the University of Minnesota, and Mo Kayeni of Elevated Hail Repair to learn more about the future of hail and whether collision repairers are up to the task.

In this episode, the team at Ratchet+Wrench, a sibling publication to FenderBender, interviews Sara Fraser of Haas Performance Consulting to dispel the myths about Gen Z workers and discuss five traits that make them among the best workers in the workforce.

Drew Barnes and Heather Sebben of the North American Council of Automotive Teachers discuss what NACAT is and how it serves the automotive industry. They are approaching their 50th anniversary of operation and plan to celebrate it at their annual conference this summer.

Data security and privacy may seem hard to achieve, but there are solutions to those issues in collision repair. Pete Tagliapietra, the managing director and founder of DataTouch, explains what data pumps are, how they operate, and what DataTouch is doing about it.

How shops approach repair planning is often not optimal for where collision repair is headed, with added repair cost and complexity. Although much of repair planning is currently focused on identification through the pre-scan, it needs to move to data-driven repair recommendations, says Sam Poradish, director of automotive intelligence at asTech, one of the sponsors of our inaugural Best Repair Pl...

The tech shortage is impacting many trade industries, including the collision repair industry. Eddie Hightower, the senior vice president of sustainability and social responsibility at Caliber Collision, shares how their Technician Apprentice Program (TAP) is making a difference in addressing the issue not only for their repair centers but also across the industry in the U.S.

If something is expensive to buy, it’s likely even more expensive to repair. This certainly applies to EVs. Kevin FitzPatrick, the senior vice president of North America operations at Opus IVS, explains why this is the case and how quickly one should get certified to repair them.

The Women's Industry Network provides great networking and connection opportunities for women in the mail-dominated collision repair industry. WIN 2024 Conference Chair Blair Womble and member Kim Frasher talk about what attendees can expect at the conference, May 6-8 in Newport Beach, California. For more information, check out the website at thewomensindustrynetwork.site-ym.com. Check out more C...

The first impression of your business often starts with your phone call-handling process. In this episode, FenderBender Columnist Drew Bryant, owner of DB Orlando Collision Center, expands on his February column and talks about why it's essential to implement a call auditing process that is regularly reviewed by the administration against defined standards. Check out MORE CollisionCast episodes on...

Events out of your control can happen that will keep your shop closed, such as storms, fires, and more. You may be covered to repair your building and replace its contents, but how will you keep the business afloat if you are unable to operate? David Willett, the chief underwriting officer at Spark Underwriters, shares how shop owners and operators leave themselves exposed to loss without this cov...

As new-car dealerships pull back from collision repair, are you developing relationships with local car dealers to ensure their customers come to you when they need your services? FenderBender Columnist Drew Bryant, owner of DB Orlando Collision Center, expands on his January column and talks about what makes for a relationship that’s beneficial to both the dealer and independent collision repair...