December/January 2022

DECEMBER/JANUARY 2022 AFTERMARKET 47 good for business, as it means customers will drive away happy and inclined to come back next time. As far as we’re concerned, it’s only a matter of time before the DVLA introduces mandatory calibration checks as part of the MOT, as well as VMs building them into warranty conditions.” Comprehensive Training is key as well, as Adam observed: “We offer a comprehensive ADAS training course that covers operations, calibration techniques and the implications of incorrect alignment, through our LKQ Academy. On completion of the programme, technicians will have developed specialist knowledge of both dynamic and static calibration, and will be able to accurately calibrate camera and radar-based driver assist systems. “Garages can also take LKQ Academy courses on marketing and customer service, to ensure they take full advantage of the body repair opportunity, and meet and exceed their customers’ expectations every time. Based on three calibrations per week, with each taking 30 minutes and costing the customer £150, we calculate that it would take less than six months for garages to break even after investing in the Bosch DAS3000 + Starter Kit 2.2 Professional. Garages that don’t want to buy equipment outright can lease it from us instead.” He added: “Key components of the course include an in- depth introduction to ADAS, sensors, and its relationship to vehicle alignment, as well as guidance on when to calibrate, and insight into future technology and industry developments.” For more information, visit www.lkqacademy.com Significant growth As far as Martin Brown, Technical Director at Repairify Innovations is concerned, this really is a growth area: “As a Repairify company, asTech is committed to enabling bodyshops and SMR centres to benefit from the significant growth opportunity presented by ADAS, as more affordable cars have ADAS systems fitted as standard. By employing our remote diagnostic and calibration equipment and services solutions, businesses can avoid moving vehicles to a main dealer. This saves costs and minimises environmental impacts, reduces key to key times and provides a consistent quality of repair that meets the demands of the new UK-specific Insurance Industry Requirements (IIR) for the safe and accurate repair of ADAS-equipped vehicles. “In the UK, as our patented device linked to OEM tools is rolled out to bodyshops and SMR centres, asTech’s aim is to provide the industry’s first end-to-end solution in partnership with Audatex. This means our ADAS-trained technicians can remotely support businesses to conduct ADAS calibration, OEM scans, diagnostics and resets, maximising their income stream.” The company recently launched what it categorised as the industry’s first ADAS pay- as-you-calibrate initiative, that intends to remove all upfront costs of purchasing ADAS equipment. Repairers pay as they use the equipment, based on a certain number of calibrations per week. In addition, to support its digital ADAS offering, asTech is introducing access to its remote service for a monthly fee. Customers get access to UK ‐ based technicians, a chat function, a helpline for technical expert support, OE tools, and more. Richard Taylor, European Business Development Director for asTech, said: “This proposition is designed to enable repairers to conform with IIR requirements launched in April 2021 and will allow our customers to provide services to their customers without heavy upfront equipment costs, supporting them in developing their teams and offering additional services to generate new income streams.” Martin Brown added: “With the introduction of our pay- as-you-calibrate initiative, all the upfront costs involved in buying ADAS equipment are removed, and repairers only have to pay for the service they use based on the number of calibrations they conduct per week and a small monthly fee for the remote service.” ADAS recalibrations are an increasingly important part of crash and body repair” ” ESAB Robust Feed U82 ESAB’s Robust Feed U82 wire feeder accepts 200-mm and 300-mm wire spools and is designed to work with ESAB’s Aristo 500ix and Aristo Mig 4004i Pulse power sources for MIG/MAG, pulsed MIG, flux cored and TIG welding, as well as carbon arc gouging. Its PreciDrive wire drive system delivers better arc starts and stops without backlash or play in the gears and features a 4-wheel drive system. 38 mm drive rolls offer more gripping area and provide more pushing force without deforming soft cored and aluminium wires, a common source of feeding problems. It handles solid wires up to 2.0 mm and cored wires up to 2.4 mm and feeds wire at speeds of 0.8 to 25.0 m/min. esab.com Touch Up Paint Factory Touch Up Paint Factory (TUPF) offers paint pens, paint pots and aerosols available in over 250,000 colours for small scale repairs. These come in a range of configurations depending on the colour and job in question. The pens are a new product in the UK market. TUPF’s ‘All in One’ paint formulation mixes the custom colour base, allowing users to achieve a repair in less time compared with traditional two-stage products. For larger repairs, TUPF offers a range of aerosol products from single cans of colour coat, to full packages that include 1K epoxy primer, grip coat, 1K and 2K clear coats. www.touchuppaintfactory.com