Paint calculation changes explained

Following industry ‘noise and confusion’ regarding the changes made to paint calculations, Audatex and its third-party data partner, AZT have issued statements to clarify the changes.

A statement from David Shepherd, regional managing director, Audatex UKSA, said, ‘In readiness for launching Audaenterprisegold 4.0 on 11 September 2017, we implemented updates to the paint calculation module within our software, which has led to changes in the calculation of the paint labour and material costs.

‘This update was introduced following a database update from our third-party data partner, AZT Automotive GmbH. The latest updates to its paint calculation system reflect the material mix and paint procedures used in modern repair practices, whilst also taking into account new vehicle models, materials and methods. Audatex’s paint calculation module now reflects the most up-to-date research in vehicle paint repair, as provided by AZT.

‘We would be more than happy to answer any questions you may have and investigate any individual cases where you are seeing a significant change in the calculation.’

A statement from AZT said, ‘The materials and methods currently used for repair paint jobs are the basis of the AZT paint calculation system. New vehicle models are regularly added to the system and values are updated frequently. New materials and methods are examined and are taken into account in accordance with their market importance.

‘In order to reflect the material mix and procedures used in current refinishing practice we updated our paint calculation system within the UK implementation 11 September 2017.

‘The update included a number of changes to the paint calculation eg recognising the increasing use of plastic, affecting: material costs; sundry materials; preparation times; and updated mix and match times.’

AZT Paint Preparation Times

  1. Preparation time for every part is defined by its paint stage/operation.
  2. Where there are two or more parts, the highest individual preparation time (WU) will be used for the calculation.
  3. In cases where only metal part(s) OR only plastic part(s) are painted, the appropriate data is taken from ‘main labour’.
  4. However, if metal part(s) AND plastic part(s) are painted, there is a distinction made between the ‘main labour’ and ‘composite labour’. To determine the appropriate data in each case, the following rules are applied:
  • Rule 1: The highest preparation time in the case of the actual painting job is to be considered as ‘main labour’ and the alternate material (metal or plastic) is evaluated as ‘composite labour’.
  • Rule 2: For identical preparation times, metal part(s) are always considered as ‘main labour’ and the plastic part(s) are evaluated as ‘composite labour’.
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