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Letter to the Editor
Thursday March 27
Ford Opens Paint and Body Technology Center
Ford Customer Service Division (FCSD) has cut the ribbon on its new Paint and Body Technology Center (PBTC), its latest effort to improve the quality and timeliness of the information provided to the collision repair industry.The facility includes over 5,000 square feet of shop floor space housing an array of state-of-the-art equipment, including an electronic laser measuring system, computer-assisted paint booth and a 27-foot frame machine.
“The Center will allow us to thoroughly research and test new repair materials, equipment and techniques,” said John Hughes, FCSD’s refinish paint technical specialist. “That, in turn, will help with the development of collision and service repair procedures, as well as technical service bulletins.”
Creation of the PBTC was a joint effort between Ford and several other key players in the collision repair industry – Akzo Nobel, BASF, Chief Automotive Systems, DuPont, Lord Automotive Adhesives, PPG and Sherwin-Williams – all of which contributed not only developmental ideas, but some of the materials, equipment and funding to run it for two years. “Each of the partners in this project is dedicated to improving the collision repair process, and that’s the main reason we’re able to open the doors,” said Hughes.
In addition to the shop floor, the Center includes ample classroom and meeting space that the companies can use to conduct training and product demonstrations for employees and industry members.
Serving as a kind of collision repair test lab, the PBTC should improve Ford’s ability to properly define customer paint and body concerns, with the hoped for result being better repair instructions to collision technicians, and a superior service experience for owners of Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles.
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