Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F40
FIXED OPS JOURNAL
Compiled by Anisa Jibrell
Send suggestions for future
Shop Talks to foj@autonews.com
SHOP TALK
We asked fixed ops managers: What are you doing this year to
reduce the time and cost of reconditioning vehicles in your shop?
"With a dual-action buffer, you don't need as much
training to operate it, you're using less chemicals and
you're using less pads to perform the buffing, which
saves time and costs. Less cleanup, and you're not
buying as much. Not many shops do this sort of thing.
Probably 70 percent of them are doing the high-speed
buffing - you have to have a guy who knows what he's
doing. And still, even though you've got a guy who's
experienced, he will still burn the paint once or twice a
year and cost the company $1,000."
"We have lowered our average recon
time to 32 hours. We have four
techs who are dedicated to used-car
reconditioning. Late last year, we
split the team, so two techs come in
at 6 a.m. and work until 3. The other
two techs come in at 2:30 and work
until everything is done. The 30minute overlap allows for a
debriefing of what is being worked
on and what is waiting for parts.
Since all of the techs are
responsible for every vehicle
inspection, pre- and post-recon test
drives, this helps to reduce the
chance of something being missed."
ED ROBERTS
Fixed operations director
Bozard Ford-Lincoln, St. Augustine, Fla.
PAGE 40
APRIL 2018
PAUL BERMAN
Fixed operations director
Burnsville Toyota, Burnsville, Minn.
"We have a designated used-car reconditioning
department. Having the same technician doing the
majority of the used-vehicle inspections and repair
is the key. The same guy has been doing them for
20 years. He knows what we need to fix and what
we don't. We never sacrifice on safety items -
tires, brakes. But we do not need to make an
80,000-mile vehicle new, which some main shops
try and do. The used-vehicle manager has to trust
the personnel doing the inspections and repairs.
Having to show the manager what the vehicle
needs every time really slows the process down."
TONY PERKINS
Fixed operations director
Evergreen Ford-Lincoln, Issaquah, Wash.
"We've made an investment in the photo
booth. We take pictures [of used vehicles]
right away. Within 24 hours we try to get
our photos on the Internet, on our
website. Even if the car's not done, we'll
start getting calls and leads as long as
the pictures are up. We do between 50
and 60 pictures of every car."
"We measure the days it
takes to open and close a
repair order in the shop.
We try to keep that to
averaging about three days
max. We measure that at
each shop and hold them
to it."
DAVE WRIGHT
Fixed operations director
Shaheen Chevrolet, Lansing, Mich.
BOB CAWLEY
Fixed operations director
Horne Auto Group, Gilbert, Ariz.
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018
Contents
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - Intro
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F1
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F2
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - Contents
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F4
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F5
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F6
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F7
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F8
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F9
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F10
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F11
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F12
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F13
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F14
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F15
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F16
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F17
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F18
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F19
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F20
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F21
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F22
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F23
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F24
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F25
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F26
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F27
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F28
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F29
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F30
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F31
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F32
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F33
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F34
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F35
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F36
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F37
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F38
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F39
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F40
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F41
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F42
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F43
Fixed Ops Journal - April 2018 - F44
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