U.S. House of Representatives passes Health Insurer Antitrust Exemption Repeal
Automotive Service Association
The U.S. House of Representatives has passed H.R. 3962, the "Affordable Health Care for America Act" in a vote of 220-215. H.R. 3962 contains a provision that repeals the antitrust exemption in the McCarran-Ferguson Act for health insurers. The provision excludes property and casualty insurers.More

I-CAR introduces concept for role-based training curriculum
I-CAR
Based upon two years of feedback received from the collision inter-industry, I-CAR, the Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair, outlined a realignment of its curriculum that defines a framework for industry training based upon an individual’s role and level of experience and responsibility. "Since late 2007, I-CAR has worked with individual members of the inter-industry across segments to fully understand their training needs," said Tom Moreland of AkzoNobel and current chairman of the I-CAR International board of directors.More

Michelin introduces 'smart' jumper cables
The Detroit News
Winter's coming. That means stocking up on deicer fluid for the windshield washer reservoir and digging out the old snow scraper and jumper cables. Or you might want to buy a new set of jumper cables because the technology has just taken a big leap forward. Developed with feedback from collision repairers, CCC ONE allows collision repairers to manage their business with a single platform.More

Ford says inflatable seat belt improves safety, comfort, too
USA Today
After about a decade of engineering, Ford is ready to roll out a technology that will improve safety for rear-seat passengers: inflatable seat belts. The belts expand like an air bag in the event of a crash and distribute the force of the impact across a wider area of the passenger's chest. The belts, covered in a softer webbing than regular seat belt material, may also make back-seat passengers more willing to buckle up.More

Eliminate waste to build a better production process
ABRN
Waste may be right under a shop owner's nose, but it takes a concentrated effort to find and eliminate it to save production time and boost the bottom line. "Collision repair, like most industries, is full of opportunities to eliminate waste. For many, it is simply a matter of being able to see it so we can take action to eliminate it," says consultant Brad Sullivan of The Body Shop @. "In a collision repair shop, an example of value would be bolting a new fender onto the vehicle or applying the paint. A simplistic way to think of waste is any activity that a customer would not be willing to pay for, such as – for example, moving vehicles in/out of the building, writing supplements, searching for parts or tools and returning incorrect parts."More

CCC Information Services enhances benefit for ASA members
Automotive Service Association
The Automotive Service Association (ASA) is pleased to announce that CCC Information Services has renewed its agreement to offer qualified ASA members in the collision repair industry a 25 percent discount, up to a maximum of $500, off the implementation of the standard CCC ONE Total Repair Platform program.More

When should you let an employee make a mistake?
Harvard Business Publishing
Learning to ride a bike — learning anything actually — isn't about doing it right. It's about doing it wrong and then adjusting. It's not about being in balance, it's about recovering balance. And you can't recover balance if someone keeps you from losing balance in the first place. That challenge — timing the catch just right — is the central challenge we face as managers. It's the sweet spot between micromanagement and neglect. Allowing for failure, while ensuring the safety of our employees and our companies.More

ASA provides legislative, division updates at 2009 ASRW
ASRWnow.com
Representatives of the Automotive Service Association (ASA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) were on hand Nov. 6 in Las Vegas for an afternoon press conference to discuss new initiatives, goals and partnerships involving the two organizations. The press conference was held during ASA's International Autobody Congress and Exposition (NACE) and Congress of Repair and Service (CARS) events – co-located as part of the second annual Automotive Service and Repair Week (ASRW) – at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center Nov. 4-7, 2009.More

The connected car
Inc. magazine
At ground level, electric cars like GM's Chevrolet Volt – due to be launched in November 2010 – are pretty much everything the U.S. economy is banking on. The cars promise innovative engineering and a resurgence of the American auto industry. They mean an America that is manufacturing things rather than just bundling financial instruments. Cosmically, electric cars mean green technologies that will migrate to China, India, and Brazil, where they will allow for Western styles of personal freedom yet not threaten to overheat the earth.More

Report: GM plans plug-in electric Cadillac Converj based on Chevrolet Volt technology
USA Today
General Motors' electric car stable will include a street version of the Cadillac Converj luxury concept shown in January at the Detroit auto show, says a report in the Detroit News. The News says the Converj, based on extended-range electric car technology being used for Chevy's Volt, was in the Caddy production plan shown to GM's board. Converj would be at least the third vehicle using the plug-in  technology -- the car runs on the plug-in charge for up to 40 miles, then a gas engine drives a generator (but not the wheels) for a couple hundred more.More

GM may repay some fed aid in '09
Bloomberg News via The Detroit News
General Motors Co. Chief Executive Officer Fritz Henderson has the board's backing, and the automaker may repay some of its $50 billion in U.S. bankruptcy aid this year, Chairman Ed Whitacre said. "It's conceivable we could pay back some of the loans before the end of the year," Whitacre said. He declined to commit the company to an initial public offering next year. GM is working to rebuild its image after filing for Chapter 11 protection June 1 in the wake of $88 billion in losses since 2004.More

Porsche sales up 15 percent
The Associated Press via Forbes
Porsche Cars North America said its October auto sales rose 15 percent, boosted, in part, by the market launch of the Panamera model. Total sales rose to 1,642 last month from 1,427 in October 2008. For the first 10 months of the year, sales tumbled 29 percent to 15,952 compared with 22,503 in the same period last year.More