June 21, 2012—3M recently donated $882,800 worth of repair supplies to 676 secondary and post-secondary school collision programs through the Collision Repair Education Foundation.
The Education Foundation said the product donation included items such as Meguiar’s sanding and finishing discs, headlight and spot repair kits, pistol grip rotary polishers and vinyl tape packages.
“3M continues to be committed to all segments of the collision repair industry and through the help of the Collision Repair Education Foundation we are able to help a lot of great schools, instructors and students,” said Mark Algie, automotive aftermarket division business development manager for 3M. “We value what these schools are all about and what they do to prepare the next generation of techs, estimators and I’m sure some owners for our industry. We will continue to provide resources that will give these schools the ability to enhance their individual programs and prepare their students for a career in our industry.”
Chris Northup, chairman of the Education Foundation’s board of trustees, said 3M has donated roughly $900,000 annually through the organization since 2009.
“Through the letters we receive back from collision instructors, it is apparent that they are extremely grateful and overwhelmed by 3M’s generosity and willingness to assist them in providing up to date materials for their school’s collision programs,” Northup said. “This will only benefit the collision students’ technical education, and collision repair businesses will be able to hire these well-trained students as productive, capable and efficient employees from day one on the job. On behalf of the board of trustees, the staff and the collision school programs nationwide that have benefited from these product donations, thank you to 3M for continuing to support the organization at such a high level.”
