I-CAR continues to lead and drive the conversation on industry-wide topics, concerns, needs, solutions and advancements. This article comes from I-CAR and was first run in the I-CAR Collision Reporter publication. View it at I-CAR.com/CollisionReporter.
The collision repair industry is one of continuing change – new models, changing technology, innovative materials, and evolving repair processes – and new technicians are entering the field every year. These younger technicians approach learning differently than generations past – they are social media-savvy, texting via their cell phones to communicate, and they are working on vehicles that are much more complex than ever before.
I-CAR’s Driving the Conversation panel takes us “behind the curtain” to engage directly with young techs on the front lines of today’s repairs, learning key elements/topics/trends of the collision repair industry through their lens. The panel was made up of Victor Ortega, 24, Gerber Collision & Glass; Dustin Schultz, 25, Glenbrook Automotive Group; Joseph Sindoni, 23, Caliber Collision; and Cody Whittington, 26, Capital Body Shop.
Tell us about the career path that has led to your role today.
Ortega: When I was in high school, I really didn’t know what I wanted to study at college, and I really struggled with what I wanted to do after graduating. My job today offers such a great opportunity. People don’t know how much money you can make by doing hands-on work. You can support a family doing this as a career, and it’s fun.
Schultz: I went to Anthis Career Academy for a body shop education. I enjoyed it so much I ended up getting a job at Glenbrook Dodge. I began as a detailer, washing cars, and then I was promoted to paint prep. Over the next few years as my responsibilities increased, I was ultimately promoted to painter.
Now I’m on the career path that I want. Actually, when I first came into the business, I thought I wanted to be a body technician, but I went the painter route, which is really interesting.
Sindoni: Following high school, I pursued the college route. I was into athletics and also wanted the college education. I went to York College in Pennsylvania and graduated in 2019 with a degree in Intelligence Analysis. I thought I might go into government work.
My mom and brother were already working inside the collision industry, and one thing kind of led to another.
I had an opportunity to get into an apprenticeship program within a month and a half of my graduation. I began that in June 2019, and graduated last December. Since then I’ve been moving around in my follow-up apprentice role working with technicians of all types. It’s been definitely beneficial to work with other technicians to experience their point-of-view, which I enjoy.
Whittington: I always really enjoyed working on cars. I went to Nashville Auto Diesel College, a technical, vocational school, and spent a year there. My first job – I never did an apprenticeship – was at a small shop and I bounced around to smaller shops until I felt comfortable enough to apply at a bigger shop. Now I’m in a place that is committed to training, tests and growth, and I’m pretty happy here. I enjoy doing this every day.
What one factor or turning point inspired your career choice?
Ortega: Growing up I watched my uncle work on cars, and it just inspired me. I decided that’s what I wanted to do, maybe teach those same skills to my kids one day. That’s how I made my career choice.
Sindoni: As I was growing up I was into athletics, like wrestling, and I also worked on a farm.
I didn’t really grow up working on cars like some do, but when I began I quickly realized that I enjoyed it, working with my hands and the satisfaction that came out of it. Taking a car from where it is initially, and turning it into something that looks like it just came out of the factory, that’s just a good feeling. That was the turning point for me.
Whittington: I took a six-month break from collision repair and worked in a factory, building machinery on an assembly line. That’s when I learned that being an auto tech is what I really wanted to do. I like working on cars and I like the random jobs, doing different things every day and the challenges that I see.
Tell us about the technician role you play and what an average day looks like.
Ortega: I try to be the first person here in the morning. I’m a morning person, so I come in, turn on the lights, turn on the compressor, see my cars, the paint, and what I have to deliver that day. I just try to prepare myself before the eight a.m. “huddle.” When it’s time to meet, we all gather around – there are six body techs, including myself, an Estimator, the Production Manager, and the Parts Manager. We go over the cars and what’s on the list for delivery that day, which cars are still in repair, and what parts that may be missing. Then we get to it!
Schultz: I work with two other painters, and we rotate different paint days. Some days I come into work and I prep right away, masking everything up, and then get in the (paint) booth and get it ready for the person painting that day. On paint days, we have a morning meeting and you are assigned the cars you’ll paint that day. I or someone else will get our paint coats ready, make the paint, and by the time that’s completed, you are ready to get started painting cars for the day.
Sindoni: I’m currently in a non-structural role. I want to get into a structural role over time, and then from there do the actual repairs. For me it starts off with an auto tear-down and analysis of the real problems that need to be fixed. A good number of times we’ll give the job to somebody else in the shop who is really good for the required fix, and they’ll get it to where it needs to be. Then I’ll put it back together. I will be involved with the repair, but just not doing the (specialized) work that someone more experienced must do. I’m definitely interested in learning; I’m just not at that level yet to do what they do.
Whittington: I started off as a non-structural technician and then moved into a structural role. Now I transition back and forth. We actually have a guy here that does all the framework structural work. But I’m the only other tech in the shop that does framework, so I do all my structural and non-structural work. I’ll pull the job in, tear it down, set it up on clamp, pull it…I do everything from beginning to end here, and I enjoy it!
Why do you feel ongoing education is important to the work you’re doing today?
Ortega: Ongoing education is important because cars are changing every year. Automobiles have a lot more computer technology, more sensors, and sometimes you don’t know what that computer or sensor connects with. It can really help you avoid a headache, and that’s why I feel like education really helps you, and makes things easier and your job a lot more efficient. That way, you’re not wasting time because you are on commission; you want to get the cars in and out with the best quality repair possible. That education really helps.
Schultz: Ongoing education is so important because you want a quality repair, and you want it to be right, and you want it to look good. For me, ongoing education surrounding paint is important; learning proper techniques, even learning tips from other painters. (Education) is always ongoing. It’s not like you are ever going to stop learning, and I do enjoy that about the job. It’s not like, “Alright, I’ve learned everything I can; I am the best.” It’s good to be humble – you don’t know everything.
Sindoni: Even with the disassemblies, I’m learning that I definitely need that continuing education. Every day I’m learning and I’m growing. Having educational resources at your fingertips is awesome.
Whittington: Yes, you need that ongoing education. Now (repairs) are more complicated – in addition to welding, now we’re looking at bonding and riveting. We know ongoing education is needed. You can’t just put a torch to something and pull it back out and get it where you wanted. You have to follow process and have the procedures, know what materials to use, where to glue, weld, spot weld, all those things. These cars, they’re changing every day. I can tell how much change there’s been from when I started to now, for sure.
In a social media world, it might seem intuitive to do an online YouTube-type search for a repair, yet the results can be catastrophic. Give us your take on the “let’s search it on YouTube and learn.”
Ortega: Maybe if it’s something simple like how to take off a door handle – a quick little video. But as far as repairs, no. Pictures can be deceiving; videos can be deceiving. What you don’t see is that there could still be waves, or someone paints over rust and there’s still more to fix. You have to do all the proper prep work to ensure high quality, that things have been done correctly, so the rust doesn’t come back – that rust can still grow.
Schultz: When I started working on cars, friends outside the shop would come to me and ask for repair help. They had gone the “YouTube” route, and I would say, “This is not a good, quality repair.” I think it’s so important to have quality repairs, and those other (social media) options, at best they are temporary. They may look good, but quality isn’t there and it does not meet OEM specs. When it’s not OEM, factory repair-based, you won’t get the proper result. You can’t expect it to last the way it should.
If the proper steps haven’t been taken to prevent rust from spreading, it can lead to a failure of some type. A lot of those (social media) videos don’t show the aftermath; they just show you a quick little video to get your mind thinking, “I could do that.” But if you want a really good professional quality job, I recommend taking it to a body shop that really knows what they’re doing with body work and paint.
Sindoni: Definitely not to be used as your final reference, for sure. There’s definitely no OEM-approved training on YouTube.
Whittington: We sometimes see this when we price out something and the customer goes on YouTube thinking they might do it themselves and save money. They’ll see maybe somebody sanding down the repair with an electric grinder and piling on filler. They think it’s that easy but it’s not really. Thankfully I’ve never run in to someone who is trying to use social platforms like YouTube to find repair procedures or a shortcut on fixing a car structurally.
What advice would you give a young person just entering this business?
Ortega: I would suggest going to a shop and asking if they would allow you to job shadow for a day. That way you can get the full experience. I wanted to be a painter, but I came in and fell in love with the body side. Look for education, it comes in many different ways – reading magazines, for example, because they are always showing new technology.
Taking a community college course is also a good option. It can be less expensive than other educational options, and I loved going there. I really learned a lot and got a full experience of roles from body to paint work.
Schultz: If you’re a person who really likes hands-on work and likes cars, get any job you can at a shop. I was hired in the “wash bay” first (washing cars) and you just have to work as hard as you can to show (management) that you really want it – that you really want to do this and that you’re serious.
Just give it your all and prove to the manager or the boss that you really can do a good job and want to grow – express that to them. Also, know your worth, that you are able to do this. I made a lot of mistakes growing up in the paint department, and you will, too. So if you’re just starting out, expect that and don’t get discouraged when you make mistakes. Everyone does.
Sindoni: Get taught right and work with somebody, maybe get an apprenticeship. I worked in a shop for a month prior to my apprenticeship as a shop helper. It’s a good way to feel out the process to see if this is something you want to do and grow with. And it gives the shop an opportunity to learn about your drive; are you worth the investment to them? If so, they’ll put you into an apprenticeship like they did for me, where you’re really hands on, and doing jobs that are coming in and leaving on the schedule immediately as far as cycle times go. That’s the real world.
Bottom line, get focused, be committed to ongoing learning, and get into that small shop environment to learn and grow.
Whittington: Once you get into a shop, you’re going to start at the bottom, regardless of the school you went to. No matter what, you have to start as an apprentice. My advice would be to work for a small shop with a group of people you can feel comfortable asking for help – see that everyone is working together as a team, instead of a big production shop where everybody is crunched for time trying to meet the goals for the week. Just know that it won’t be easy. The pay is not that great starting out, and you’re going to break some things; but in my opinion it’s the only way to learn. For me, technical college was important and it helped me – but it didn’t necessarily guarantee that it would ensure a higher starting level for pay or anything like that. It gave me a solid foundation for the future.
What are some of the lingering negative perceptions out there that you’ve had to “set the record straight” for family and friends?
Ortega: One of the questions I get most often is “why did you pick such a dusty or dirty job?” But it’s not like that at all. You do a lot of sanding, but the shops are clean. There’s enough lighting, there’s ventilation throughout the shop, and there’s constant cleaning. Our shop also provides safety glasses and respirators to protect your lungs from all the chemicals and dust. It’s not a dirty job – it’s very clean. Not every day do you create dust or just do filler work. Some days, it could be a simple bumper replacement, so there’s no sanding to do at all.
Schultz: The only negative perception I’ve had is that it’s dangerous. You’re going to be exposed to a lot of fumes, a lot of paint products and harsh chemicals. But the truth is my shop provides all the required gear to protect me safely, including suits, gloves, masks, etc.
I will say to make sure you’re at a shop that provides protection. Where I am, we have nice air-supplied respirators and hoods, which provide us with fresh air. It’s not what people think.
Sindoni: I guess there are a few: that collision work can be hard on your body and that the pay is low, both of which aren’t necessarily true in the long-term. As far as family and friends, they’ve been more supportive, definitely intrigued in a sense that it’s all new compared to the friends I have who went the traditional college route. As far as being hard on your body, there are so many options available, such as equipment you can protect your body with and different ways you can go about a repair versus just putting pressure on your joints. It’s perception, not fact.
Whittington: I think the negative perception for younger techs is the pay, at the beginning, as they start up. In my opinion a lot of younger guys are looking to go into the oil fields or something for immediate “big money,” but the positive of collision repair is that you get in, do your time, and you’ll earn good money and make a good living for you and your family.
Watch the full discussion at https://youtu.be/dzfYyZ3fULk.
