BY VICTOR ADAR
Some of the worst fears for car lovers would be that moment when a mechanic paints your car but fails to get the original colour. Sometimes it could be as a result of wrong colour code, or just careless work. As always the case, you would be told to give the paint a few days to dry up only to see no change. A promise that buffing will be done to make it look cool will follow, but still you are unlikely to get a flawless finish. You realise that you have spent weeks instead of three days to repair or paint your car when it is already too late.
It can be that bad. But a mid the gloom, there is huge need and opportunity as far as structural repairs is concerned as a new entrant joins the fray. Posh Auto Body saw just how big this market is and is really hot on the heels on changing the way things are done.
Its automotive capabilities touches the sky thanks to the Spanesi Collision Repair equipment that they have invested in, a big brand in the collision repair industry that has earned top spots in countries like Europe and America due to the popularity of its quality machines.
To measure upper body points on the car (the ones most commonly damaged in minor collisions), from the equipment, there is a provision from which pointers are hung and aimed at specified points on the vehicle body.
The systems offers various accessories, one of which includes a scanner that reads the vehicle’s identity from the bar code on the vehicle, which eliminates manual entry of the data and thus minimizes the possibility of error.
“It would not be good to pull all day long and finally get the specification for an SUV with a different wheelbase than the one on which you’re actually working,” says Theo Charalambous, head of technical stuff at Posh.
To him, what matters is the equipment that will drive gains when it comes to the business of repairing cars. It is about whether technicians can place their trust in a system that tells them whether the figures on the screen are true and that it is safe to complete the structural task and weld the components in place without test fitting the sheet metal.
Within the region as it turns out, the level of equipment available to carry out collision repairs is still not developed to acceptable standards. Further, the burgeoning post-repair inspection business has given customers another set of what can often mean setting critical eyes on shops’ structural repair work.
“The equipment that we have has the capability of 3 dimensional measurements and will tell you if that particular angle is correct, and one can then overhaul the suspension components on that corner of the vehicle with confidence,” says Charalambous.
To drive the point home, he cites flying a jetliner in a thunderstorm and you had to land at the Jomo Kenyatta Airport where he says that one would be required to rely on instruments as a guide in order to safely land the aircraft. It is about the idea of driving anything without visual references. It can be intimidating, especially with a cargo of passengers on board, but bottom-line is, these circumstances have applications in collision repair, particularly with the use of measuring systems in determining the dimensional accuracy of a structural frame of a vehicle.
With the repair equipment in place, technicians are relieved big time as there are extensions for the targets that will give access to virtually any part of the vehicle, including roofs and trunk apertures. Also super is a Bluetooth-enabled tram gauge that will “talk” with the system, which is helpful when generating a damage report. Some wheel alignment angles can also be read, including camber, which is commonly altered in a side collision.
Then there is Touch Measuring System that uses a laptop (a Dell was used for demonstrations at the launch, in this case) with an XP, Vista or Windows 7 operating system and an HP DeskJet printer. The Touch system is universal and can be used on any vehicle frame, can measure parts on or off the car, such as a salvage lower control arm where you cannot tell if it is good just by looking at it.
The system is operated by touching points on the vehicle with an articulating, flexible, precise robotic arm, which can be manipulated into any position or angle. It automatically reads and recognizes an extension or accessory attached to the arm as required. The arm will in turn measure anything within 6 feet of its central unit.
In another demonstration seen by this writer, the operator simply touched a location on the car, pressed the button on the end of the arm (which emitted an audible “beep” to let the tech know he had successfully measured that point), and moved to the next position.
One unique option of the Touch system is its ability to simultaneously work with the chassis straightening Jig enabling the technician to monitor the pulling or pushing of the chassis, live on the monitor. Once repair is completed a report can be generated showing before and after repair results.
Great systems such as this one helps break the psychological barrier that high-end vehicle care centres are a preserve for the wealthiest in town. That is not the case. Some would argue that you don’t have to take your treasured automobile to big centres like CMC to get the best paint as you can get the same quality from reputable paint shops and still get satisfied with the finish.
It is always challenging to see things in a different perspective but the guys behind Posh Auto Body know the difference. There is brisk business as vehicles now cross the borders coming all the way from Uganda and Tanzania. Although theirs is a garage with a bent for high end vehicles, it is open for anyone who can afford the services.
Posh Auto body is one business that will not grind to a halt as it enjoys the backing of Multiple Group, the group’s third investment valued at about Sh120 million, coming after Porsche Centre Nairobi Limited (the importer and distributor of Porsce vehicles that was opened in 2014). And preceded by investments made at RT East Africa that focuses on Man trucks & Buses as well as the assembly of Randon Trailers.
