Comprehensive repair planning leads to more efficient touch time and greater profits.

Within the modern collision repair environment, striving for efficiency and profitability within the repair process are top of mind. In reality, however, problems can surface and, if left unchecked, can exponentially increase through each stage of the repair and over the course of time.

Initial estimate

“One of the biggest efficiencies in modern collision repair processes, lies in the initial estimate,” explains Mark Crossland, National Field Technical Manager, Field Operations, CSN Collision Centres. “He notes that comprehensive estimates and detailed repair plans are crucial to a successful, efficient and profitable repair.

“Without them,” he says, “shops face delays due to supplements, and waste time justifying decisions and providing documentation later on.”

That’s why, notes Crossland, “accuracy is essential in everything we do. A poor initial estimate complicates the scheduling of future work, as it hinders the accurate forecasting of incoming hours. It often leads to last-minute and questionable repair decisions.”

Structured processes

Structured processes are essential for accurate estimates and repair plans. Crossland explains: “Top [collision repair centre] performers implement Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for every major operation, including estimating and repair planning. Providing SOPs empowers staff to make sound decisions and manage their time efficiently. For those without written SOPs, starting with one for estimating is an excellent first step,” he says.

Crossland notes that modern vehicle collision repairs have become so complex, that shops and technicians need to have SOPs in place in order to perform accurate estimates and repair plans. By creating these Standard Operating Procedures and having quality control checks in place at every stage of the repair process, expectations are set right from the very beginning, and should something go awry during the process, it can be quickly and easily identified, allowing for improvements to be made and problems to be minimized going forward.

Vehicle complexity

The complexity of modern vehicle construction and engineering, also means that collision centres today must adhere to OEM repair procedures for each vehicle that comes in for repair. Crossland explains that a reason why inefficiencies result, and touch time is negatively impacted, is due to OEM repair procedures not being sufficiently researched prior to fixing the vehicle.  

When this happens shops often fail to bill for all necessary operations, leading to a greater risk of supplements which impacts touch time, repair efficiency and ultimately profitability. They can also cause delays due to backordered parts. “Comprehensive Advanced Repair Planning effectively eliminates repair delays once the vehicle is in the shop,” says Crossland, and if estimating and repair planning is conducted properly from the outset, delays in the repair due to back orders should only be justified when damaged safety components are discovered.

Staff capacity

Furthermore, besides accurate estimates and repair planning, collision centre management teams need to understand their technician and office staff capacity. “Knowing how many hours your technicians can produce and what workload your estimators can handle is critical,” states Crossland. This is particularly important considering a repair plan can take many hours. “If you don’t understand what your staff are capable of handling, you will soon find yourself lacking work or buried in Work In Progress (WIP).”