National Windscreens invests in ADAS

National Windscreens plans to invest £1m to meet growing UK demand for Advanced Driver Assist Systems (ADAS).

The plans will include investments in cameras and sensor calibration (CSC) technology that is used as part of ADAS. It will also see National Windscreens ensure all of its 108 fitting centres meet the required workshop conditions for accurate calibration of most camera sensors at the time of a windscreen replacement.

As well as this, National Windscreens also plans to invest in bespoke equipment to accurately carry out calibrations from early 2016, and to make pre-booking and calibration-only services available.

The company’s technical manager Tim Camm has commented the company’s research indicates use of ADAS will increase and that the company is investing to anticipate the demand.

He said, ‘Equipping centres with ADAS calibration tools and training staff in how to correctly use the new technology is a costly exercise, but our research indicates that use of ADAS is only going to increase. Accordingly we have taken the decision to implement a national programme of investment in equipment and training in anticipation of the growing demand for quality calibration.

‘The safety of UK drivers is paramount and we are confident that our robust approach to ADAS will be valued by all of our customers.’

National Windscreens have also announced they are working with Thatcham Research to draft an ADAS Approved Code of Practice, with a further rise in demand for the system anticipated by 2020.

Camm added, ‘ADAS is developing very quickly.  Unsurprisingly, luxury models were the first to adopt the latest technologies, but we are now seeing it trickle down to practically all makes and model of vehicle. It is anticipated that by 2020 more than 40% of new vehicles will have at least two types of driver assistance system – driven by the desirable Euro NCAP 5 star rating.’