AASP-MN News May 2015

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May 2015

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CONTENTSVol. 23 No.5

AASP of Minnesota is an association ofindependently-owned automo-tive service businesses and industry suppliers dedicated toimproving the state’s automo-tive service industry and thesuccess of its members.

AASP-MN News is the official publication of the Alliance of Automotive Service Providers, Minnesota, Inc. 1970 Oakcrest Ave., Suite 102 • Roseville, MN 55113 Phone:612-623-1110 • Fax: 612-623-1122 email: [email protected] • website: aaspmn.org. All rights reserved. To keep its readers better informed, AASP-MN News allowsits columnists to fully express their opinions. All views expressed are not necessarily those of the publication. AASP-MN News is published by Thomas Greco Publishing,Inc. Cover image © www.istockphoto.com.

AASP-MN BOARD MEMBERS2015 - 2016

PRESIDENTTom Gleason

IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENTJerald Stiele

SECRETARY-TREASURER Greg Kasel, AAM

COLLISION DIVISION DIRECTORJim Siegfried, AAM

MECHANICAL DIVISION DIRECTORWayne Watson

ASSOCIATE DIVISION DIRECTORKevin Martin

COLLISION SEATSJoyce WeinhandlWill Latuff

MECHANICAL SEATMars Overlee

STAFFEXECUTIVE DIRECTORJudell Anderson, CAE, AAM

OFFICE ADMINISTRATORJodi Pillsbury

MEMBERSHIP COORDINATORTom Kluver

PUBLISHED BY: Thomas Greco Publishing, Inc.

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PUBLISHER: Thomas Greco ([email protected])DIRECTOR OF SALES: Alicia Figurelli ([email protected])MANAGING EDITOR: Jacquelyn Bauman ([email protected])EDITOR: Joel Gausten ([email protected])ART DIRECTOR: Lea Velocci ([email protected])OFFICE MANAGER: Donna Greco ([email protected])

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MECHANICAL DIVISION DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE ......................................6Caught in the Stormby Wayne Watson, AASP-MN Mechanical Division Director

21st ANNUAL AASP-MN GOLF OUTING REGISTRATION ..............................7

LOCAL NEWS ................................................................................8

NATIONAL NEWS ............................................................................11

COVER STORY ..............................................................................14Education and Networking: 2015 AASP-MN Meeting & Convention Highlightsby Jacquelyn Bauman

F.Y.I. ..........................................................................................17Aftermarket Trends

COMPLETE HEALTH, ENVIRONMENTAL & SAFETY SERVICES (C.H.E.S.S) ....18Clear Coats, Hardeners, Isocyanates and Skinby Janet L. Keyes, CIH, C.H.E.S.S., Inc.

CASH IN ON YOUR MEMBERSHIP!........................................................22CBIZ Payroll


June 16, 2015AASP-MN 21st Annual Golf Outing

3M’s Tartan Park Golf Course, Lake Elmo

ADVERTISERS’ INDEX

aaa Auto Parts ............................................................19AmeriPride ................................................................6Axalta Coating Systems..............................................OBCBuerkle Hyundai ........................................................9Choice Auto Rentals ..................................................20Dentsmart ..................................................................11Inver Grove Honda / Inver Grove Toyota ............................16Jack McClard ............................................................16Keystone ....................................................................3Lowell’s PCE ..............................................................21Meadowbrook Insurance ............................................18Maplewood Toyota ....................................................21

Mills Parts Center ......................................................3Morrie’s ......................................................................10Motorwerks BMW ......................................................IBCMotorwerks Mini........................................................IBCMPA..................................................................................................12-13PAM’s Auto ................................................................17Proven Force..............................................................20Rosedale Chevrolet ....................................................14Roseville Chrysler ......................................................10Straight & Square ......................................................4Toyota Group..............................................................IFC

UPCOMING EVENTS

For more information, contact the AASP-MN office at 612-623-1110or visit the Association’s website, www.aaspmn.org.


by Wayne WatsonAASP-MN Mechanical Division Director

Have you ever been caught in the stormbetween a customer and your employees? Ifso, we can agree it is not a fun position tonavigate through. It was Monday morning and we had avehicle that was completed on Saturday.While on the final test drive, the technicianexperienced a problem and did not feel com-fortable releasing the vehicle to the customer.The vehicle was held over the weekend. Theservice advisor that had worked on Saturdayand dealt with the customer had Monday off.Unaware that the customer was brewing withemotions, I walked right into a firestorm. From the get-go I sensed that the cus-tomer had turned on us due to lost trust. Helistened to our findings on Monday morning,but as soon as I had finished, he unleashedhis emotions. Long story short, over theweekend he had lost his trust in our staff. Aswe are all taught in situations like this, I just

listened and took notes. When the customerfinished venting, I invited him to come downto the shop for a visual inspection. Now, about the emotions an owner haswaiting for an irate customer to arrive at hisfacility...Not my favorite! This waiting timeseemed like an eternity. Fortunately, thesetypes of situations happen very rarely and itcan make you think about the last time ithappened. My focus now was to gather mythoughts about the conversation and create agame plan with the guiding rule – honesty –and keeping an open mind. When the customer arrived, we movedout into the shop to have a look at the vehi-cle. We started by looking underneath the ve-hicle, talking about the test we ran and ourfindings. The customer may not have real-ized it, but I was working from the notes ofour conversation, deflating every misconcep-tion he had about the situation. What I did

not realize was the extent of the emotionaltear he was on. There was no winning this battle. Hehad no intention of leaving as a happy cus-tomer or understanding what was going onwith his vehicle; in fact, his goal was to putme in a position where I needed to picksides. His side was that he had been shang-haied. The reality is that, for some reason, helost trust. Unfortunately, we may never reallyknow why. One thing is for sure – this cus-tomer put me in a bad position: taking hisside or my employees’ side. In reviewing the event, there was noth-

ing my employees did wrong and nothing forwhich I could hold them accountable. Mak-ing the decision to hold a vehicle over theweekend because they felt something wasnot right was a very good decision on theirpart. My point to this whole story is, some-times the customer is wrong and you need toside with your employees. They are the oneson the front line, day after day, doing the bestthat they can. Do they make mistakes fromtime to time? Absolutely! When that happensyou need to hold them accountable and learnfrom it. But when no mistakes are made andgood decisions come about, then you need topat them on the back and tell them howmuch you appreciate them, even if it meansyou are left with an unhappy customer. Remember, “You’re only as good as thepeople around you.”

Caught in the Storm

AASP News6 May 2015

MECHANICAL DIVISION DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE

Diamond Collision CenterWebster, WI

Harwood’s Body ShopDelano

Shyd’s Body Shop New Ulm

The Flasher Scope & Scan DiagnosticsJordan

Welcome New Members:APRIL 2015



21st Annual AASP-MNGolf Outing

Tuesday, June 16, 20153M’s Tartan ParkLake Elmo, MN

12:00 pm Shotgun Start Check-in 11:00 am - 11:30 am

Four person scramble$110 per golfer/$440 per team

AASP-MN 21st Annual Golf Outing RegistrationJune 16, 2015 – 3M’s Tartan Park

Name: _____________________________________________ Company: ____________________________________________

Address: _________________________________________________________________________________________________

City/State: ________________________________________ Zip: ___________________________________________________

Phone: ____________________________ Fax: ____________________________ Email:________________________________

1st Player: _________________________________________ Company: _____________________________________________

2nd Player: _________________________________________ Company: _____________________________________________

3rd Player: _________________________________________ Company: ____________________________________________

4th Player: _________________________________________ Company: ____________________________________________

Payment Options:_____ Check in the amount of $440 for your team or $110 per golfer

_____ Credit Card: _____ Visa _____ Mastercard _____ Discover

Credit Card Number: _____________________________________________ Expiration Date: ____________________________

Signature: ________________________________________________Billing Zip Code: _________________________________

Return to: AASP of Minnesota, 1970 Oakcrest Ave., Suite 102, Roseville, MN 55113Phone: (612) 623-1110 – Fax (612) 623-1122 – email: [email protected]

Fees Include:• 18 Hole Green Fees• Golf Carts• Contestsa Closest to the Pina Longest Putta Longest Drivea AND MORE!

• Prizes• Social Hour / light Dinner

Exciting Contests & GreatPrizes!


AASP News8 May 2015

LOCAL NEWS

AASP-MN AWARDS $15,000 IN SCHOLARSHIPS The Alliance of Automotive Service Providers of Minnesota(AASP-MN) awarded $15,000 in scholarships to help post-sec-ondary automotive students pay for tuition during the 2015-16school year. The scholarships are in the amount of $1,000 perstudent and were made possible by a successful fundraising drivewithin the AASP-MN membership, as well as a generous dona-tion from the Minnesota State I-CAR Committee. All recipientswill be entering the second year of a NATEF-certified automotiveprogram based in Minnesota. Congratulations to this year’s recipients! • Carver Brownlee, Hibbing Community College, Hibbing – Automotive Service Technology • Justin Cole, MN State College – Southeast Technical, Winona – Auto Body Collision Repair • Isaac Connolly, Dakota County Technical College, Rosemount – Auto Body Collision Repair • Joshua Firanek, Dunwoody College of Technology, Minneapolis – MOPAR College Automotive Program • Sarah Koepsell-Schmieg, Dakota County Technical College, Rosemount – GM Automotive Service Educational Program • Robert Lemke, Ridgewater College, Willmar – Automotive

Service Technology • Grant Lieser, Hennepin Technical College, Brooklyn Park –

Automotive Service Technology • Laura Martinson, Ridgewater College, Willmar –

Automotive Service Technology • Dylan Merten, St. Cloud Technical & Community College, St. Cloud – Automotive Service Technology • Phanit Phoutthaphaphone, Hennepin Technical College, Brooklyn Park – Automotive Service Technology • Carlos Sanchez Cortes, Dakota County Technical College – Automotive Service Technology • Jesus Sanchez Palomares, Hennepin Technical College, Eden Prairie – Auto Body Collision Repair • Joshua Schmitt, St. Cloud Technical & Community College, St. Cloud – Automotive Service Technology • Ismael Vences, Hennepin Technical College, Brooklyn Park – Auto Body Collision Repair • Andrew Vodak, Ridgewater College, Willmar – Auto Body Collision Repair Thirty-seven students from 15 schools applied for the scholar-ships. Applications were reviewed by a committee of industryrepresentatives, with consideration given to scholastic achieve-ment, education and career goals, financial need and written rec-ommendations. The scholarship awards are the centerpiece of AASP-MN’sAutomotive Education Fund, which was established to providefinancial resources to support automotive students, enhance auto-motive programs and raise awareness of career opportunities inthe independent automotive service industry. AASP-MN ANNOUNCES ITS 21st ANNUAL GOLF OUTING AASP-MN invites all collision and mechanical industry pro-fessionals to attend its 21st Annual Golf Outing, Tuesday, June16, 2015, at 3M’s Tartan Park Golf Course in Lake Elmo. Over150 members, their employees, industry vendors and others areexpected to enjoy the day of golf and socializing. Play will begin at noon, followed by a social hour, light din-ner and awards presentation. The cost to participate is $110 pergolfer or $440 per foursome. See page 7 for registration informa-tion. Golf holes are also available to sponsor for $350 each. For

additional information, contact the AASP-MN office at (612)623-1110 or 800-852-9071 or online at www.aaspmn.org.

2015 SKILLSUSA CONTEST WINNERS ANNOUNCEDAASP-MN Executive Director Recognized

The Minnesota SkillsUSA competition for collision repair andautomotive service technology were held Saturday, April 11 atHennepin Technical College, Brooklyn Park. The competition al-lows high school and college students to demonstrate their abilitiesand talents in collision repair and automotive service. AASP-MNvolunteers were out in force to help plan, organize and judge thecompetition. Congratulations to the following SkillsUSA contest winners:

Auto Refinishing TechnologyHigh School Division1st Place- Joe Walter, Intermediate District 2872nd Place- Nick Niesen, Intermediate District 2873rd Place- Angelique Frank, Hennepin Technical College, Brooklyn Park

College Division1st Place- Harrison Reget, Dunwoody College of Technology2nd Place- Dillon Roggenbuck, Dunwoody College of Technology3rd Place- Joe Wright, Dakota County Technical College

Collision Repair TechnologyHigh School Division1st Place- Joe Walter, Intermediate District 2872nd Place- Nick Niesen, Intermediate District 2873rd Place- Angelique Frank, Hennepin Technical College, Brooklyn Park

College Division1st Place- Benjamin Meister, Dunwoody College of Technology2nd Place- Steven Anderson, South Central College3rd Place- Dillan Roggerbuck, Ridgewater College, Willmar

Automotive Service TechnologyHigh School Division1st Place- Nathan Olson, St. Cloud Technical & Community College2nd Place- Wyatt Swanson, Duluth Denfeld High School3rd Place- Nicholas Chambers, Duluth Denfeld High School

College Division1st Place- Kenneth Bye, MN State College, Moorhead2nd Place- Austin Rikhus, MN State College, Moorhead3rd Place- Tanner Haglund, St. Cloud Technical & Community College

During the awards ceremony on April 12, AASP-MN Execu-tive Director Judell Anderson was honored as a “Friend of SkillsUSA 2015” for her support of (and participation in) theevent over the past many years. When presenting the award, JenPolz, Executive Director of SkillsUSA Minnesota noted, “Judellis truly a friend to so many in our organization and so well re-spected for her work on behalf of the automotive industry acrossthis state. It is my pleasure to present her with this award.”

“PREPARING FOR AN OSHA INSPECTION” WEBINAR Automotive repair shops, both collision and mechanical, areon Minnesota OSHA’s list of facilities for programmed inspec-tions. That means OSHA may show up unannounced. This webi-nar presents the most frequently cited and most commonly foundOSHA violations in automotive repair facilities. Viewers are ad-vised what to do if OSHA shows up, how to prepare ahead of


May 2015 9AASP News

time, what to do during an inspection and how to identify potentialproblem areas in their own place of business. AWAIR programs andGHS are explained.

Objectives• Understand what to expect if you get an OSHA inspection.• Understand the components of an AWAIR program.• Be able to explain the requirements of OSHA’s recently revised Right to Know and explain those requirements to your employees.

• Know the most frequently cited OSHA standards for auto repair in MN.

• Develop a checklist of actions to take once you are back in your shop.

Take Aways (A $500 Value!)• OSHA inspection checklist of the most frequently cited

standards so that you have a scorecard of where your weaknesses might be.

• Sample building inspection form, highlighting the most important items to check monthly.

• Chart of new symbols under Right to Know (Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals).

• Discount on CHESS subscription services (SDSLinks and Safety Flash Cards).

Contact the AASP-MN office for more information at (612)623-1110 or [email protected].

BILL’S AUTO BODY SOLD TO FAIRWAY COLLISION CENTERExcerpt from The Forest Lake Times

After 37 years in business, Bill and Renee Waddell have soldBill’s Auto Body, Forest Lake, to Fairway Collison and Automo-tive, a Vadnais Heights auto repair business. The new ownerstook over on March 1, but the Waddells will stay on for a while toensure a smooth transition. The sale came after months of talks between Bill’s and Fair-way. Pam Caruth, who co-owns Fairway with her brothers, Kevinand Cary Lund, said that the Waddells approached Fairway be-cause they liked the way the Vadnais Heights shop treated its cus-tomers. “They wanted someone who would buy their business and

keep their legacygoing,” Caruth said.

The Waddellswant to spend moretime with their chil-dren and grandchil-dren and do moretraveling.

AASP-MN extends its bestwishes to Bill and

Renee in their futureendeavors.

continued on page 10

Bill’s Auto Body’s new owners Kevin Lund (left),Cary Lund and Pam Caruth are taking over thereins from founders Renee and Bill Waddell.


LOCAL NEWS

10 May 2015 AASP News

THANK YOU TO OUR 2015 SPONSORS!

Recently, AASP-MN asked for sponsorshipsupport from its Associate members and other in-dustry vendors to help support the Association’s ed-ucational programming and other activities in 2015.Sponsorships help AASP-MN deliver the qualityprograms members expect, and keep registrationfees affordable. To date, the following companieshave made sponsorship commitments:

GOLD SPONSORSAuto Value Parts Stores & APH

Axalta Coating SystemsP.P.G. Automotive Finishes

SILVER SPONSORSaaa Auto Parts

CBIZ AIAHertz CorporationInver Grove Ford

LKQ/KeystoneLowell’s Performance Coatings

Meadowbrook InsuranceMidwest Parts Advantage

Mitchell InternationalO’Reilly Auto PartsPAM’s Auto, Inc.

Suburban ChevroletUnited Fire Group

PROGRAM SPONSORS3M

AASP NationalAutoshop Solutions

BoschCARQUEST

CBIZ AIACBIZ Payroll

Dent ImpressionsIDENTIFIX

HOSPITALITY SPONSORSAmeriPride Services

BASF Automotive RefinishChoice Auto Rental

Dentsmart PDREnterprise Rent-a-Car

Net DrivenNorton AbrasivesPro Paint Metro


AUTO CARE ASSOCIATION APPLAUDS FTC SETTLEMENT WITH BMW-MINI OVER

MAGNUSON-MOSS WARRANTY ACT VIOLATION The Auto Care Association applauded the settlement recently an-nounced by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) against the MINIDivision of BMW violation of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. Asa result of official complaints to the FTC by the Auto Care Associa-tion and other organizations, the FTC has charged that BMW’s MINIDivision violated the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act by telling con-sumers that BMW would void their warranty unless they used MINIparts and MINI dealers to perform maintenance and repair work. “It’s against the law for a dealer to refuse to honor a warrantyjust because someone else did maintenance or repairs on the car. As aresult of this order, BMW will change its practices and give MINIowners information about their rights,” said Jessica Rich, director ofthe FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. The order also: • Bars BMW, in connection with the sale of any MINI Division good or service, from representing that to ensure a vehicle’s safe operation or maintain its value, owners must have routine maintenance performed only by MINI dealers or MINI centers, unless the representation is true and BMW can substantiate it with reliable scientific evidence. • Requires BMW to provide affected MINI owners with information about their right to use third-party parts and service without voiding warranty coverage, unless BMW provides such parts or services for free. The Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act contains a provision thatprohibits companies from requiring that consumers – in order tomaintain their warranties – use specific brands of parts or specifiedservice centers, unless the part or service is provided to the consumerwithout charge.

AUDAEXPLORE ADDS OPTION FOR FEATHER, PRIME AND BLOCK

AudaExplore, the US business unit of Solera Holdings Inc., is in-troducing a new feather, prime and block functionality it hopes willhelp create more precise, transparent estimates for collision repair fa-cilities and insurance companies. The new functionality allows colli-sion repair professionals to itemize feather, prime and block labor inthe estimate to better delineate repair and refinish processes.

“The benefit for repairers and insurers is certainly trackabilityand accountability. From a repairer perspective, they want to be ableto track this as a separate operation and they want to be able to allo-cate paint time versus repair time and replace time,” said Rick Tuuri,vice president of industry relations for AudaExplore. “It’s more dis-creet within the estimate and it will give you the ability to account formaterials used in the feather, prime and block process as well as thetime.” Prior to this new functionality from AudaExplore, repairers whowanted to account for a feather, prime and block operation separatefrom the repair labor would have had to make an additional manualjudgment time entry. The new system, however, prompts the estima-tor to assign a portion of the overall repair time to feather, prime andblock when repairing any paintable panel within the AudaExplore es-timating platform. Doing so will identify the feather, prime and blocklabor as a refinish operation, applying the refinish labor rate to thatportion of the time, and the system will allow the estimator to assign aspecific materials rate to feather, prime and block operations. Users of AudaExplore’s estimating platform will see the newfunctionality implemented in a release scheduled for May.

AMI ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR SCHOLARSHIP Application Deadline is June 15

The Automotive Management Institute (AMI) is accepting appli-cations for the annual $1,000 Tom B. Babcox Memorial andBodyShop Business Magazine scholarships and Emil Stanley MeritAward. The scholarships will be applied toward the recipient’s expensesto attend the 2015 Congress of Automotive Repair and Service(CARS) and International Autobody Congress & Exposition (NACE)events in Detroit, July 23-25. CARS and NACE are sponsored byASA and offer an educational lineup of AMI seminars, technicalcourses and industry sessions, an exposition displaying the latestequipment, products and services and technology available to today’sautomotive service and collision repair professionals. To request a scholarship application, call AMI at (817) 514-2900, ext. 129, or complete an application online atwww.amionline.org. Applications must be received by AMI on or be-fore June 15. The scholarship recipient will be notified by AMI on orbefore June 20.

NATIONAL NEWS

May 2015 11AASP News


AASP News12 May 2015





With an association so committed to your personal successas business owners, it is no surprise that the 2015 AASP-MN An-nual Meeting and Convention held from April 15-17 at theCrowne Plaza Minneapolis West was such a rousing success.With seminars covering topics from streamlining administrativeprocesses, management strategies and marketing techniques totechnical presentations on HVAC repair and aluminum, as wellas numerous opportunities for networking and socializing withindustry peers, there truly was something for everyone.

The event opened on Wednesday night with the first techni-cal seminar, Diagnosing the Top Automotive HVAC Problems,sponsored by Auto Value Parts Stores and led by Peter McArdleof Standard Motor Products. This seminar taught attendees theins and outs of repairing a variety of different air conditioningunits.

“OEMs are constantly trying to abide by government stan-dards to increase fuel efficiency,” McArdle explained. “As a con-sequence, fixing A/C units has become a bit trickier.”

This four-hour session covered new HVAC technologies,how to identify common problems and how to fix them in theshop. Participants of this course received a certificate, signifyingtheir successful completion and education on this topic.

The conference hosted an assortment of classes that coveredall aspects of running a shop, from the technical seminars to im-prove functions on the shop floor to management and administra-tive presentations that facilitate procedures in the office.

Ron Kuehn of Collision Business Solutions presented threetimes throughout the event, demonstrating Template Estimatingon Thursday and Simple Cycle Time Solutions and Building aTeam Administrative System on Friday. The seminars were spon-

sored by Axalta Coating Solutions, and addressed procedures thatcan be cumbersome and cause confusion, comebacks and disor-ganization in the shop, especially as technology advances theway that it does.

“It’s much harder to play this game today than it was 20years ago,” Kuehn explained at the beginning of his first seminar.“By the end of this, you should be able to take back at least twoor three things to improve your shop’s daily functions.”

Also presenting at the conference was Bill Haas of Haas Per-formance Consulting. CARQUEST sponsored his three seminars:Chemistry Lessons for a Multi-Generational Workforce and Mar-keting Automotive Service to Generations X and Y on Thursdayand Selling the Value Nobody Can Compete With on Friday.

For his Thursday classes, Haas broke down generational dif-ferences and how to both manage and market to different groupsof people, especially the most confusing generation of them all –millennials. But as easy as it is to complain about the work ethicand motivations of this group, Haas effectively shut down thistype of negativity.

“They want very different things in very different ways,” ex-plained Haas. “It’s not wrong, it’s just different. There just needsto be middle ground.”

In Selling the Value Nobody Can Compete With on Friday,he explained how to perfect front office processes to provideabove and beyond service that will create satisfied customers thatcontinue to come back to your shop.

Danny Sanchez of Autoshop Solutions demonstrated Track-ing Internet Marketing on Thursday and Stand Out from theCompetition on Friday. Both of these presentations highlightedthe impact of technology, social media and the Internet on shops’

Education and Networking: 2015 AASP-MN Annual Meeting &

Convention Highlights

by Jacquelyn Bauman

COVER STORY

Shops networked while enjoying casino-style card games at the AASP-MNIndustry Dinner and Casino Party.

Guests were entertained by Bob Stromberg’s anecdotes at the AASP-MNLuncheon.



productivity. He discussed the upcoming “mobile-geddon” onApril 21, where any website that is not mobile ready (i.e., re-quires pinch zooming, difficult to click links, etc.) will drop inranking on Google.

“There is a lot shop owners can do to get business from theInternet if they just take a few steps to see what they’re doing andhow they can improve,” he stated. He personally critiqued thewebsites of those in attendance, giving them tips on content, lay-out and functionality.

Aside from his seminars, Sanchez also participated in the In-dustry Roundtable and Speed Networking session where industryprofessionals led small-group discussions on particular issuessuch as loaner car management, email management and cyber se-curity, just to name a few. After talking to the experts, guests par-ticipated in speed networking where they got the chance tointeract with their industry peers.

During the break for lunch, members were given a legislativeupdate from Executive Director Judell Anderson and were intro-duced to new President Tom Gleason. After a thorough report onthe Association’s finances and many initiatives, guests weretreated to an entertaining and inspirational keynote by BobStromberg. Stromberg went through old family photos and nos-talgic stories, relating the work of the automotive industry to thatof his grandfather and his paint-by-number set. The anecdotes re-ceived lots of laughter and plenty of applause at the end, remind-ing those in attendance that though you may just be painting yourone color, you are part of a bigger picture.

After lunch, Josh Dye of Convene LLC presented FailingFearlessly: How Failure Propels Us Forward, Shawn Collins of3M demonstrated Dispelling the Common Myths about Alu-minum Repair and Dennis Begley of CBIZ AIA led Developing aBusiness Continuity Plan.

Failing Fearlessly, sponsored by AASP National, featuredDye sharing his own personal failures and how they have helpedhim change his worldview and succeed in the long run.

“Whenever we encounter a challenge, whether it be in ourpersonal or professional lives, the problem is just a symptom ofthe real issue,” he explained. “Our future strength comes fromour present problems, but only if we slow down and learn fromthem.”

In the 3M-sponsored Dispelling Common Myths about

Aluminum Repair, Collins explored different thoughts about aluminum repair that are currently pervasive in the industry, butthat may not actually be true. This included welding, heat distri-bution and the frequently-heard, “aluminum repair isn’t difficult,it’s just different.” By performing repair techniques live on a realaluminum hood, Collins pinpointed a number of important fac-tors when working on this substrate.

For Developing a Business Continuity Plan, sponsored byCBIZ, Begley broke down one of the most important aspects ofowning a business that most don’t want to face: what occurs inthe event of the business owner’s death.

Asking the big question, Begley addressed the audience. “Ifyou don’t have a plan, will the business survive your loss?”

He outlined a number of different ways that this can be pre-vented depending on the business’ and the business owner’s situ-ations.

When the seminars were over, guests of the event partook ina happy hour and vendor display, where an immense amount ofnetworking took place. With a number of tabletops displayingeverything from business insurance to rental cars, this relaxed en-vironment provided the perfect place to get information pertinentto owning a repair shop. With new connections made, the funmoved over to the industry dinner and casino night where atten-dees were treated to a variety of classic card games includingTexas Hold ’Em and Blackjack. Upon arrival at the event, indi-viduals were given $5,000 in chips. At the end of the night, theyconverted chips they won at the tables to raffle tickets, which of-fered prizes from Twins tickets to I-CAR classes.

Friday closed out the event with the final seminars from RonKuehn, Danny Sanchez and Bill Haas, as well as EmploymentPractices: Do’s and Don’ts by Megan Beckman of CBIZ Payroll.After three days of extensive education and networking opportu-nities designed to improve business, it is no wonder why so manypeople left feeling motivated to take their business to newheights.

“Year after year, without fail, members who take the time toattend this event rave about the quality of educational program-ming available,” beamed Anderson. “We have to thank our spon-sors, who are so instrumental in making that happen. And, ofcourse, there’s always a lot of conversation and good times to behad. We’re already looking forward to next year!”

Above left: AASP-MN Executive Director Judell Anderson; The 2015-2016 AASP-MN Board of Directors. (L-R): Outgoing Board members Mike Cox andDan Sjolseth, and current Board members Will Latuff, Wayne Watson, Kevin Martin, Jerald Stiele, Jim Siegfried, Mars Overlee, Greg Kasel, Tom Gleasonand Joyce Weinhandl.




AASP News

F.Y.I.

AFTERMARKET TRENDSFrom The Lange Aftermarket iReport

PARTS PROLIFERATION TSUNAMI A greater array and depth of products is required for the re-pair and maintenance of cars and light trucks on US roads during2015 than five years ago. This parts proliferation trend will con-tinue and intensify. Parts proliferation forces manufacturers, distributors, retail-ers and installers to inventory and purchase a greater array anddepth of vehicle products than ever before.

Six Major Takeaways• A greater array and depth of products is required for the repair and maintenance of cars and light trucks in the US during 2015 than five years ago. This trend will continue and intensify. • Three major factors are driving parts proliferation in the

car and light truck aftermarket: foreign nameplate growth, increasing vehicle age and advancing vehicle technology.

• The number of foreign nameplates on US roads increased nearly 18 percent over the past five years, with foreign cars and light trucks comprising a majority of vehicles in the repair-age sweet spot within the next few years.

• The average age of vehicles is growing at an unprecedented pace, with older vehicles (12 years and up) dramatically increasing their share of cars and light trucks on US roads. All this is causing aftermarket manufacturers, distributors and retailers to carry parts for much older vehicles than just a few years ago.

• Vehicles are becoming more complex. New technology is adding many part numbers to the aftermarket at the same

time that manufacturers, distributors and retailers must maintain parts inventories covering older cars in operation.

While parts proliferation does not necessarily favor one dis-tribution system over others, parts proliferation is inspiring vari-ous types of solutions for challenges associated with it. Overall,integrating levels of distribution as well as specializing in certainmarket segments or product groups are methods some distributorshave used to deal with growing parts proliferation.

DEALERS RETURN TO DIFM PRIME TIME• The Dealer DIFM slide is over and Lang Marketing expects

dealer “do it for me” (DIFM) car and light truck share will rebound over the next few years, passing 22 percent DIFM product share during 2017.

• Dealer service bay volume has already begun to recover, with dealers ringing-up a $400 million 2014 increase in car and light truck DIFM products at user price over the previous year.

• Lang Marketing expects an increase in the number of dealers nationwide as well as total dealer service bay count

over the next few years, providing the basis for continued DIFMshare

and dollar growth of products and services through dealer bays.

• Dealers are rapidly adopting an all makes, all years strategy

May 2015 17

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Primers, sealers and clear coats con-tain isocyanates. They’re an essential partof creating the hard protective coatingneeded for automotive paint. Isocyanatesare a well-recognized health hazard.They’re also, too often, a poorly-con-trolled health hazard.

Isocyanates can cause allergic skin re-actions and, even more dangerous, allergiclung reactions. A painter or prepper couldwork with the substances for years, gettingit on his or her hands when mixing orspraying, not wearing an effective respira-tor when shooting primer or clear, and

never develop any problems. And then, forreasons we don’t know, that person couldbecome sensitized. After that, only aminiscule exposure could cause a severeasthma-like reaction. If OSHA were to do air monitoring inyour facility for isocyanates, we’d bet a lotof money that levels would be well belowOSHA limits. But that doesn’t mean yourworkers are adequately protected. TheOSHA standard for isocyanates only regu-lates one type of isocyanate, a type nowfound only in very low amounts. AndOSHA doesn’t have a limit for skin expo-sure, even though skin contact could leadto respiratory sensitization. Several studies have looked at howmuch isocyanate exposure painters actu-ally have, by taking biological measure-ments (measuring the metabolites thatworkers excrete in urine or that show up inblood.) Studies have also measured howmuch gets on the skin, with and withoutgloves. The findings: • Skin exposure occurs during: - application of primers, sealers, and clear coats - mixing those products - nonspraying tasks that could have contact with paint that’s not fully cured. Wet sanding and untaping, in particular, resulted in measurable exposure. • Latex gloves offered little to no protection, but were the most often used type of glove. Isocyanates permeate through latex gloves, with no apparent damage to the glove. • Nitrile gloves thicker than eight mils seemed to offer good protection.

Based on these findings, nitrile glovescan protect hands. What about the rest ofthe body? There’s little good research on that.Some of the field studies have looked atisocyanate levels under coveralls, as partof evaluating skin exposure. But theredon’t seem to be enough results to report. One safety consultant sprayed clearcoats directly on spray suits mounted ontest cards and found that the isocyanatecould go through five of six suits. That’snot surprising. But it also may not be a re-alistic test. Three of the paint suits were

By Janet L. Keyes, CIH, C.H.E.S.S., Inc.

COMPLETE HEALTH, ENVIRONMENTAL & SAFETY SERVICES (C.H.E.S.S.)

Clear Coats, Hardeners, Isocyanates and Skin


nylon and one was polyester – all de-signed for comfort and to keep clothesclean, but not designed for chemical re-sistance. Another one, made from a “cloth-like fiber,” is advertised as passing theASTM F903 standard for chemical pene-tration, which tests if a chemical can getthrough seams or pinholes. But the manu-facturer made no claim of effectivenessagainst permeation, which measures if thechemical can move through the solid ma-terial. A Tyvek suit was tested; we don’tknow if it, too, failed. DuPont has statedthat Tyvek will provide protection againstisocyanate-based paints as long as the gar-ment doesn’t become soaked (so it proba-bly passes the penetration test, but not thepermeation test). If you expect a spray suitto be soaked with the primer or clear, acoverall made of a chemical-resistant fab-ric such as DuPont’s Tychem QC, TychemSL, Lakeland’s ChemMax or Kappler’sZytron is needed. The gist: we don’t know if the cover-alls commonly in use provide adequateprotection. You can do some evaluation onyour own though by looking at how muchoverspray or back splatter ends up on thecoveralls. If it’s a substantial amount, itwould probably be wise to switch to achemical-resistant coverall. But keep inmind that those usually aren’t as comfort-able to wear, especially in hot weather, asthe ordinary spray suits. A better idea:change work practices to try to minimizebody contact with the spray. And even ifspray suits don’t provide 100 percent pro-tection, they’ll still provide a lot more thanbare skin. What about the face? One study foundisocyanates on skin underneath half-maskrespirators. That may indicate that the in-side of the respirator became contami-nated (perhaps from handling it withcontaminated hands, or from leaving it inthe mixing room), or that the respiratorsdidn’t fit well enough to block the chemi-cal. That’s not the only concern with half-mask respirators: they don’t provide eyeprotection, which is necessary becauseisocyanates are strong eye irritants. In summary: • Cover bare skin. Don’t spray without gloves, arm and body protection. • Use nitrile gloves (never latex) for all mixing, spraying, and clean-up of primers, sealers, clears or any other products that contain isocyanates. • Use nitrile gloves for sanding freshly applied paint and for removing masking and tape.

• Wear coveralls, but make sure they don’t become soaked with paint products. • Airline respirators or powered air purifying respirators with loose- fitting helmets will provide the needed eye and face protection. If you stick with half-mask respirators, make sure they are carefully and correctly maintained. And remember that you still need eye protection with them.

If you have questions about workingsafely with isocyanates, spray painting,chemical exposures, OSHA inspections,OSHA grants or other safety or environ-mental issues, contact CHESS at (651)481-9787, toll free at (877) 482-4377, [email protected]. CHESS spe-cializes in helping small to medium sizedbusiness with occupational health andsafety issues. We have been providingservices to the automotive industry formore than 20 years.





to increase service bay volume and expand their service relationship to a wider circle of consumers with older vehicles as well as nameplates other than those sold by the dealer.

• Many dealers are becoming more flexible in service andproduct pricing, especially for older vehicles whose owners are often more price sensitive to vehicle repair than consumers with vehicles 5 years and younger (which traditionally formed the basis of most dealer service bay business in past years.)

• Dealer quick lane service coupled with a triage service strategy and extended service department hours are proving effective in pumping up dealer bay share and providing thebasis for a strong dealer DIFM recovery in the future.


F.Y.I.

continued from pg. 17

WHAT’S WRONGWITH THIS PICTURE?

Answer: Dirty respirator left in an open box (nextto a container of hardener, just in case we want toensure it is contaminated with isocyanates).



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Mitchell International Contact: Mitchell International Representative 800-238-9111

AASP members receive a 15% discount on anyMitchell RepairCenter TechAdvisor package. Visithttp://repaircenter.mitchell.com/Catalog/OEMRepair.aspx for more information.

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AASP-MN MEMBER BENEFIT PROGRAMS

CBIZ Payroll CBIZ Payroll is the recommended payroll vendor for pay-roll, timekeeping, 401K, COBRA, Flex and HR Solutions formembers of AASP-MN. We have designed a program specificallyfor members of the association, which includes:

• 20 percent discount off of our standard services pricing. This discount applies for all CBIZ payroll products and services except 401K. The discount is effective as long as you’re a member of AASP-MN.

We offer the following products and services:

• Payroll: Our payroll services are focused on providing you the highest-quality service at a fair price. We’re competitive with all of the major processors and usually can find ways to create additional efficiencies by integrating with your current systems.

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The system also provides a time-off tracking and request system that helps you monitor and approve absences.

• 401K: Our most popular 401K platform is fully integrated with payroll and has no administrative fees. We also have a wide array of full-service offerings for larger plans.

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For more information, please contact Carrie Hobrough, (612)436-4620 or [email protected].





Documents

AASP-MN News May 2015