Page 75 - Australian Paint & Panel Nov-Dec 2020

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SHOP SIZE: 3800m2
STAFF: 25
TYPE OF WORK: All types OTHER SERVICES: Recalibration CARS PER WEEK: 40-50
OEM: No
JUDGES’ COMMENTS
SAM STREET
Fred has such passion and enthusiasm
for the business and he works his backside off. The new expansion has
been well thought out and cohesively integrated – and bonus points for the calibration business.
JUDGE POWELL
A well-managed repair shop with
minimum support staff, but full of the latest equipment – great formula for
success. Good to see Fred is so pro-active about the future by investing in his own ADAS Scanning and Recalibration system.
U
LEFT TO RIGHT: Fred Sleman in the recalbration area. The paint shop just after lockdown – little emptier than usual.
new fencing, and now his premises are crammed with cars.
The new workshop, which opened in February is used for repair planning, estimating and customer handover as well as housing the recalibration cen- tre. There are offices for three estima- tors and two parts staff and there’s a whole new parts area - which will still need expanding as the business contin- ues to grow. Each part has a photo of the car it belongs to on it. The techni- cians know how to find it as it will be in the rack which has the last digit of the job number.
5 Star uses both iBodyshop and Akzo- Nobel’s Carbeat workshop planning sys- tem - as a great deal of planning is need- ed when you can have up to 150 cars on site. There are two production meetings per day to ensure everything is running smoothly. While Sleman is staffing up (a tricky task as we know) the facility is ca- pable of repairing 40-50 cars per week. That’s a big jump from before where it was 20-25 cars per week – albeit pretty heavy smashes.
Selman has invested in a consultant to evaluate how they can improve work- flow so that they can raise production to 60-70 cars per week while still main- taining the high quality of repairs of which he is proud.
On the calibration front we’re proud to say it was a presentation at Paint & Panel L!VE in 2019, followed by a meeting with Suncorp where the subject was dis- cussed which inspired him to start re-
searching. This was with a view to fully understanding how his business could ensure safe calibrations without the workflow disruption of taking cars to the dealership.
“I thought to myself should I just worry about today or should I be pro- active?” Sleman said - he’s not one for ‘wait and see’.
Sleman sees a number of business op- portunities and benefits from offering recalibration as a service. He has set up a separate company, Five Star Calibra- tions and gone into business with his brother Ronnie.
“As well as the convenience of being able to recalibrate the vehicles Five Star Panels repairs we have already un- dertaken recalibration for other repair- ers. This is a new revenue stream for the business. There are also opportuni- ties with government agencies and fleet companies,” he said.
As well as the investment in equipment there was a hefty time investment in training. Fred and Ronnie spent around two full weeks training with Hella.
“There is a huge issue of liability around ADAS – many people don’t un- derstand that a unit needing adjust- ment is not going to let you know by tripping a fault code that can be picked up by a diagnostic unit.” Fred says.
Fred also addresses other issues around building a business with integ- rity, he is fully committed to having a
diverse workforce and understands that sustainability is not just about recycling bumpers.
Now he’s worked up this head of steam what’s next? I-CAR Gold in 2021 for sure. Potentially one new shop a year and like, other Victorians who suffer chills in the winter, he may have his eye on a location in the Gold Coast.
SHOP STATS