Page 90 - Australasian Paint & Panel magazine Nov-Dec 2021

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BEST COUNTRY REPAIRER NSW
PAINT&PANEL NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2021
GEOFF RICHARDS PANELBEATING
SIMPLY A TOP NOTCH REPAIR FACILITY, EXTREMELY WELL RUN BY THE FAMILY AND THEIR HAPPY TEAM.
Walking into the beautiful, bright customer area and you are greeted with a cheery smile. Either side of the recep- tion are offices and a meeting room, in- cluding the ‘engine room’ where the three Richards sit, as son Lewis is learning the management ropes.
There’s a really nice ‘smoko room’ which also doubles as a training room and a lovely outdoor area with BBQ.
The workshop has a beautifully simple and logical layout and is well lit, spacious and has all the latest equipment. There’s an R&I Zambesi paintshop with prepbays and a booth fitted with an IRT arch to supplement the old booth and mixing room from the original shop.
The wash bay has a partition to divide it from the rest of the workshop. Todd re- members years of washing cars outside in the rain and cold and so says it’s a dream come true to have it inside. There’s a massive car park, smoothly concreted around the side and out the back.
We can’t pick a fault with this one.
G
EOFF RICHARDS PANEL BEAT-
ing is a state of the art repair centre in Dubbo that boasts I- CAR Gold accreditation as well as Holden/GM and Tesla approvals. The facility is five years old but still looks brand, spanking new. The outside has modern kerb appeal and is painted a cheery red, white and blue. Apart from having cre- ated a really great working environment for their staff, husband and wife business owners Todd and Tracey Richards, who took over the helm in 2010 obviously value, appreciate and are proud of their team. “They all earn their money,” Todd said,
“We have the best staff, we’re blessed.” Todd Richards grew up in the first shop premises which his dad started when he was four back in 1974 and his
earliest memories are of panel beating. The business has grown along with the town, whose population has pretty much doubled since Todd was a lad. “We have clients whose great grandchildren are com- ing to us to get their cars repaired - our cli-
ent base is always growing.” he said.
In the old shop they wasted a lot of
time moving cars in and out, and Todd undertook extensive research to ensure the new premises would have an effi- cient workflow. And talk about stepping up a gear or two. They went from repair- ing 15 cars a week to 40 cars per week. Those jobs aren’t car park dings either, there are plenty of unwanted animal en- counters. They moved from a shop that was 400m2 to the new premises that is 1450m2 and the team of 10 that they brought over has grown to 21.
As well as all of the I-CAR online training Todd sent his panel technicians to Brisbane for the practical welding tests and for Tesla welding training. He also sends his painters to PPG’s Sydney training centre every quarter (COVID permitting) to ensure they are up to date with their skills. The business always has apprentices learning too.
In addition to their loyal following of customers the business also undertakes a lot of fleet work. Todd sees becoming part of the Tesla approved network as an investment in the future and you can certainly see why Tesla selected them.
ABOVE: Customer service officer Samantha Anderson
LEFT: Cheery yet corporate exterior.