After moving to a virtual format for 2020, AAPEX returned to the Sands Expo in Las Vegas for 2021, and the Autosphere team was there in full force to bring the latest exciting news and updates from the automotive aftermarket.
A one-on-one meeting scheduled with Mitchell 1 revealed insights into the company’s “Electrify Your Business” initiative, including two new features.
These include a new time management feature added to Manager SE as well as enhancement’s to Mitchell 1’s staple Pro Demand repair information suite in the form of advanced, fully interactive wiring diagrams.
According to Ben Johnson, Director of Product Management at Mitchell 1, these new advanced diagrams build upon improvements already incorporated into ProDemand and are designed to save technicians considerable time when dealing with complex electrical issues on today’s more advanced and electrified vehicles.
A key part of these new advanced wiring diagrams is the ability to streamline navigation within a specific set of diagrams or navigate from one set to another, as well as adding interactivity for connectors, grounds and splices.
Component names contained within the wiring diagrams are actually active links that can take the technician straight to the information needed, including location, connector views and replacement instructions.
A dropdown history also allows the technician to access the previous 10 diagrams viewed during a session, further simplifying navigation and saving time.
Another key update showcased by Mitchell 1 at AAPEX this year, was the new Technician Time Manager feature added to the company’s Manager SE shop management software solution.
Technician Time Manager enables technicians to clock in and out of labour operations, tracking their actual time spent on assigned work orders in the shop.
Each technician starts a job clock for a specific labour item and marks it as completed when the labour item is finished, pausing the clock for any breaks during that particular job.
Once the work is completed the Time Stamp automatically populates into the Actual Hours for that specific labour operation in the Manager SE repair order.
Technician Time Manager not only allows technicians to measure their actual productivity and hours spent on each labour operation but also helps the shop track keep track of labour margins and employee hours to help boost efficiency and ultimately profitability.
Additionally, because Manager SE is integrated with ProDemand it provides a complete 360-degree view of shop operations, enabling seamless transition from one suite of solutions to the next, helping the shop to maximize productivity and repair order efficiency.
