Riding the ABAT Train of Thought

by Alana Quartuccio

There’s only one platform a collision repairer needs to stand on to get on track with industry training – and that’s the ABAT train of knowledge.

ABAT always delivers the goods, especially when it comes to education. Hundreds of Lone Star State repair professionals flock to the Texas Auto Body Trade Show year after year because they know it gives them access to national level education without having to make the trek out to SEMA in Las Vegas.

Speaking of not wanting to trek out of state, Texas itself is not exactly easy to navigate. The second largest state in the US, it can take 10-12 hours to drive the 773 miles east to west and 13 to 16 hours to drive the 801 miles north to south. Collision shop owners can barely find time to leave the shop for a few hours let alone take a lengthy road trip or plane ride several times a year to fill their minds with new knowledge.

That is why ABAT is all about bringing opportunities right to one’s doorstep – with just a few clicks!

ABAT’s ongoing webinar series allows collision repairers the opportunity to learn about new resources, tools and information without ever having to leave the shop.

“We know how busy and stretched everyone is,” ABAT Executive Director Jill Tuggle acknowledges. “ABAT has really been leaning into these webinars to keep the momentum going. It’s a crazy time in the industry right now but we’re seeing a lot more engagement, more conversations and interest in the association; it’s needed more than ever right now.”

Earlier this year, the webinar series kicked off with one of the most talked about topics of today –  AI. Attendees heard from Sergio Palma of CARMIC.ai,  who educated the audience on the many ways AI can be used to assist a collision repair business, especially in the office.

Over the summer, ABAT brought in industry expert and technical educator Jason Bartanen (Collision ProAssist) to educate the auto body community about BackBay, a technician-focused portal he designed to help technicians obtain easy access to the resources they need, even allowing them direct access to the manufacturers who make the products they use.

Most recently, ABAT welcomed Oscar Alanis of Partly to present “Where Is Your Shop Losing Money?” The webinar gave attendees plenty to think about when it comes to the repair process. A shop may do a great job with a repair, but still could be leaving money on the table due to holes in the process.

Alanis based his entire presentation on one word: leakage. “Good shops do good repairs, but money can leak a little over time as the car moves through the process.”

He examined 150 shops across Texas of all different types of sizes and models and found that leaks happen everywhere. “One in five repair orders are affected by a supplement or a parts return, which adds one-and-a-half to two days to the average 14 days cycle time.”

A part return, for example, can equal a loss of $168. “That is money being left on the table,” Alanis noted.

He pointed to the loss of time when setbacks with parts return occur, which is a huge detriment to not only the shop, but also the customer. For the shop, it equates to a loss of revenue. “The time you spend waiting isn’t making you money. It affects cycle time, which affects cash flow.”

Alanis identified the five areas of the repair process where leaks are most common: intake and qualification, repair planning, parts ordering, production and payments and reconciliation.

Photos that don’t tell the real story automatically set up delays in the process. He urged against the use of traditional handheld cameras, suggesting one’s phone should be the camera option of choice. “If an insurance company can’t see the damage correctly, they will fight it. Having to send more photos adds more time.”

Photographing the process is essential, not only for documenting but also for quality control along the way. “Photos can help the owner see what is happening in the shop. It makes repairers accountable if something is not being done correctly.”

Alanis pointed to the necessity of doing a 100-percent teardown to make the repair planning process as smooth as possible. “The leak here is with operations that may have been overlooked because you didn’t spend the time doing research.”

With structural repairs, for example, he absolutely stresses the need to inspect and make sure you are not missing hidden damage the shop could be billing for.

“Parts procurement could be a real headache when the wrong part shows up. You open the box, try to put it in and it doesn’t fit. Now you have to reorder and everything is on delay.” He recommended mirror matching to help with securing the correct parts.

Communication goes a long way in keeping the shop’s production streamlined.

“Everyone in the shop needs to know what is going on at all times,” he recommended. “Get everyone on the same page so you can figure out right from the start what needs to be dealt with that day.”  Figure out what the goal is and what needs to be accomplished. This will help so much with work flow as you will be focused on what matters.”

Alanis considers the payment and reconciliation area to be the hardest to manage. Leaving files open for more than five days can be problematic. “It’s a bad thing to leave files open for too long. If the file has been open for a month, something is wrong with that file. You have to be on top of it at all times. Making sure files get closed gives you an idea of how much money the shop is making. It also helps to learn if customers are happy. It’s helpful to go over files every single week. Don’t leave it for a month.”

If the repair process doesn’t begin properly, everything can easily go downhill, according to Alanis. “If the intake is wrong, there will be gaps in the estimate. Wrong parts will be ordered. If wrong parts come in, the cars will sit in the bays. If something goes wrong at the beginning, you may not feel it right away, but you will feel it.”

This month, ABAT will host a succession planning webinar, “Same Industry. Different Clocks” on November 17 from 10am to 11:30am presented by Matthew DiFrancesco (High LIft Financial). The discussion will walk shop owners through three real client journeys – one exiting immediately, one five to 10 years out and another 10-plus years out – to show what each owner faced and the lesson learned.

Tuggle says plans are in the works for more webinars before the year is out and definitely at the start of 2027.

Want to learn more about ABAT and its educational webinars? Be sure to visit abat.us for details.

Want more? Check out the November 2026 issue of Texas Automotive!