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BODYSHOP INTERVIEW, KEN HAMMOND, BOUNDARY GARAGE
This month, Gary Brench talks to Boundary Garage's MD, Ken Hammond, about getting more cars through the door and attracting fleet work.
Q Describe your typical day and week.
A During the week, I usually start at 8am and finish at 5.30pm, and I’m also around on Saturday mornings. The workshop is usually open from 5am to 6pm, sometimes longer. I share my office with our accountant so I can keep a keen eye on our financial position. I monitor where the work is coming from, as well as workflow, throughput, labour sales and other targets. I’m involved in all sorts of things, but it’s predominantly a sales role. We all have to be proactive and I keep a close eye on returning questionnaires and general customer feedback. I support workflow by helping out in all areas so we remain flexible.
Q Do you enjoy your job?
A The role is an interesting and challenging one that requires energy and determination. It’s certainly not boring. I put my feet up at the end of the day and have a glass of red wine – two if it’s been a bad day. Retirement is certainly not on the horizon.
Q What are the main pressures at the moment?
A We are reliant on insurance company work, and claims are certainly down. We monitor this weekly and have seen a marked reduction in workflow; we find it difficult to rely on insurance work now. We support our insurance customers 100%, but ownership and direction of work is in a state of flux. Third party claims capture means we don’t get all the work. Higher policy excesses mean we often have to wait to start a repair while the individual customer saves up the money to pay the excess. I see many more damaged cars driving around these days.
Q How would you describe the relationship you have with your staff?
A I’m here to support our staff. Individual customers and clients have high expectations and we have to work as one team with the same goals. I speak with all our staff, from saying good morning to everyone, catching up on the football and what people got up to in the evening or the weekend, to being there as a friend when times are bad. I know them well and help them to make sure they are alright. We are a big family really; on average staff have been here 14 years – some much longer. They are naturally motivated, happy, high performing and work for each other. I’m part of that team.
Q What’s your main focus right now?
A Our focus is on finding ways to keep our shop full. How can we get more cars through the door? How can we get more contracts? We are looking at fleet work and have recently picked up local fleet contracts repairing commercial vehicles. These don’t require courtesy cars and they are opinion estimates, so we can offer a keen price. We are actively making this easier for fleet managers.
Q Are you working towards Kitemark accreditation?
A PAS 125 is something we are involved with and we will go to the local press once we are accredited. I can understand why many bodyshops are putting this on hold in the current climate. We see it as a way of attracting wider business connections – providing assurance to all potential customers. I think it’s a very difficult accreditation to get; it’s kicked the industry hard and exposed processes. I don’t think the momentum will continue and I believe we will be lucky to reach 500 accredited by June 2009. Some insurers are sitting on the fence. Unless they back it and put their weight behind it, how will repairers know it’s the right horse to back? I’m wondering how they will advertise it. LV, esure and Admiral are all prominent on TV, but will they share the BSI Kitemark with Joe Public? Unless they do, Joe Public will not be aware.
Q How have the staff reacted?
A I’ve had a better response from staff than anticipated. It shows that we care and it is the right thing to do. However, the paperwork is long winded – the Audatex/escribe link is a laborious task. Estimators are now doing five to six estimates a day and this will drop further as we comply fully with PAS 125. There will be a bottleneck in estimating and estimators will have to do longer hours or we will need to take on another one.
Estimators are now becoming more knowledgeable than engineers because they are closer to the methods; effectively they have the same role and therefore should have the same title – Vehicle Damage Assessor.
Q Is it difficult to see what’s over the horizon?
A This year will be lean because we have invested in training, hotels and capital expenses in our drive towards PAS 125, and I hope it’s worth it. Naturally, we are looking at all our costs. We were able to save 27% off our motor trade policy by using Loctons, supported by the ABP Club. They can discount further for repairers who have PAS 125 due to the reduced risk. I think it is difficult for anyone to see where it’s all heading. One thing’s for sure, it’s not going to get any easier.
Q Where should we be heading?
A You have only to look at Fortis. When our market is price driven – as motor insurance clearly is – you have to be operationally excellent. What many insurers do is clog the process with hurdles and hoops to jump though. This is costly for us to maintain and it takes us longer to deliver. Fortis allowed us to write our own contract. They don’t mess with the method of repair, but monitor overall costs. They understand what it's like to run a bodyshop.
The fact is that we need freedom and control to react to the many issues we face, to look after the customers and to produce work we can be proud of. I’m not saying that a few other insurers are not trying to emulate this, but Fortis lead the way. The result is that we subconsciously treat their customers differently. Communication is strong and everyone understands. We don’t have problems – we have solutions! Frankly, they are brilliant to work with and it runs like clockwork. It doesn’t cost them to do this either – it costs them less. So why aren’t many others following? My understanding of the insurance industry is about eight out of 10; generally, insurers understanding of the vehicle body repair industry is about five out of 10 – and therein lies the problem Fortis has solved!
Boundary Garage was established in 1972 and originally located in an old textile mill. It grew to two shops in Bury and Bolton and in 1983 became a limited company. In the 1970s and 1980s relationships with local brokers provided the bulk of the work. Land was acquired in Bury to develop a larger purpose built operation in 1991. Now employing 49 staff, Boundary Garage has 65 working bays, 120 parking bays, 60 courtesy cars and repairs 65 to 85 cars per week. It's an insurance approved repairer with four of the leading motor insurers, as well as looking after the accident management and vehicle repairs for local businesses and fleet operations. Ken Hammond previously worked for Manchester Computer Centre, where he installed stock control systems for automotive parts to dealerships UK-wide. He also spent some time selling cars, and it was through this he was asked to join Boundary in 1977 to help grow and develop the business.
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