Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 35

FIXED OPS JOURNAL

RETIRE

continued from Page 34

shop of what is now AutoNation Nissan Pembroke Pines. Four years
later, they took their talents to JM Lexus.
Both men cite major changes in vehicle design and technology
during their careers, especially the shift from body-on-frame to unibody construction. That has made cars and trucks safer and easier to
work with, they say.
They acknowledge the days are over when a mechanic could take a
hammer and beat on a car. "You can't heat the metal and bend it to
where it would fit anymore," Gibbs says.
Their collision shop now uses the Car-O-Liner Vision electronic
measuring system. The veteran technicians, accustomed to working
with a measuring rod, say they initially worried that the computer system would delay their work.
"They want to tell me this thing is much smarter than I am," Gibbs
recalls. "But actually, I was only one brain fixing the car," compared
with the brains of the thousands of engineers who helped develop the
system, he says, adding: "The computer is precise."
John Buckland, JM Lexus' body shop production manager, says
Gibbs has "absorbed computers, embraced them, and is going to
preach about them to you like he was a 20-year-old. That's the wonderful thing that has kept the two of them right in the center of this."
Their close working relationship over 30 years has allowed Gibbs
and Hall to develop a rapport that enables them to complete each
other's sentences.
Working to restore vehicles in the body shop to pristine condition,
Gibbs says: "I'll try something new and ask Clem what he thought of it.
He would look and say, 'Hmm, that makes sense,'" or offer another view.
Brad Schafer, JM Lexus' director of fixed operations, says Gibbs and
Hall have achieved "an unmistakable rhythm" working together that
has enhanced their productivity and efficiency. Lexus has declared
them "elite" technicians.
The two techs still routinely generate 150 to 200 labor hours per
week, Schafer says. "Their old-school work ethic and dedication is an
inspiration" to their coworkers, he adds.
Bobby Glaize, who directs the JM Lexus body shop, says the pending
retirement of the tech team will create "a big hole for us to fill."
"These two gentlemen, they have never taken sick days, they do
quality work, and they are great statesmen for the company," Glaize
says. "I use them all the time as examples for younger workers."
Gibbs and Hall agree that the congenial work environment at JM
Lexus has helped keep them on the job past standard retirement age.
"I really hope all of the guys realize how lucky they are to be working
here," he says of his coworkers. "I really doubt you could find any other company in the United States that could do as much as this company does for you."
When Gibbs retires, he says he plans to give some of his tools to a
coworker. Gibbs, who never married ("I can't afford it") adds that he
wants to travel and manage rental properties he owns.
He says he also will give more attention to the 50 rabbits he keeps as
pets - "I won't give them away because I am fearful of how they will
be treated," he says - and tend to his mango, banana, coconut and
citrus trees.
For his part, Hall says he plans to play more golf in retirement, and
travel with his wife of 39 years. He adds that he plans to keep in touch
with Gibbs: "I know where his rabbits live." 

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JUNE 2017

PAGE 35


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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017

Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017
Contents
Editor’s Letter
Service Counter
Legal Lane
Web threads
Chitty’s law
Port of call
Richard Truett
Featured film
Wisdom of age
Future techs
Intake, outgo
Feedback
NADA numbers
Top 50
Guest comment
Five Minutes With
Shop Talk
Fixed in Time
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Intro
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Cover2
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Contents
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Editor’s Letter
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 5
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Service Counter
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 7
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Legal Lane
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 9
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 10
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 11
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Web threads
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 13
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 14
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 15
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 16
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 17
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Chitty’s law
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 19
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 20
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 21
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 22
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 23
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 24
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 25
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 26
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 27
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Port of call
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 29
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 30
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Richard Truett
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Featured film
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 33
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Wisdom of age
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 35
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Future techs
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 37
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Intake, outgo
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Feedback
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - NADA numbers
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - 41
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Top 50
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Guest comment
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Five Minutes With
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Shop Talk
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Fixed in Time
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Cover3
Fixed Ops Journal - June 2017 - Cover4
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