In a perfect world, the customer would drop off his or her damaged vehicle, and a technician would then tear down the vehicle and work with the estimator to create accurate blueprint. Next the blueprint would be forwarded to the insurance company and parts would be ordered. In this perfect world, the insurance company would pay immediately and the parts would arrive all correct and undamaged. The technician would repair the vehicle. Soon, the vehicle would be returned to the happy customer. But the world is not perfect. There are insurance company and parts problems that we have to deal with on daily basis. In the real world, these issues cause delays. A woman was recently rear-ended in her 2006 Volkswagen Jetta. The car was in shop for three weeks, and the adjuster and insurance company took nearly five days for the initial inspection and required used parts for the repair.

               The used parts arrived damaged, and the re-inspection of the auto parts and approval of OEM parts took another five days. That’s the real world and includes DRP’s and their unique program requirements, which may include instructions to write what you can see, then build a supplement with proper documentation. Alternative parts requirements or timing requirements, so how do you create blueprints in the real world? The answer depends on each shops individual situation. Perhaps you write an estimate to conform to a DRP requirement. The next step should be to have the qualified technician tear the vehicle down, to the point where all damaged is visible, then create the blueprint. Repair the vehicle the by the blueprint, not the estimate, and build the supplement to meet the blueprint figure. Perhaps the customer arrives with a drive in insurance estimate, the first step would then be to tear down the vehicle to the point where all damaged is visible, then create the blueprint. Then negative with the adjuster while waiting for the supplemental auto parts. Don’t begin the repair until the blueprint is complete, all parts are in and the insurance approvals have been obtained.

                 A blueprint is much more than an estimate it’s a complete and accurate representation of everything required to restore the vehicle to pre-loss condition. Have been written by adjusters or shop estimators. They could have been created under DRP or for a drive in estimate, and we see them every day. So we write estimates for a variety of legitimate reasons, but problems arise when try to repair the vehicle according to the estimate. To write a complete and accurate damaged age analysis, or blueprint the repair, we should understand that the damaged analysis should be part of the repair, not the sale. Shop estimators should focus on selling first and damaged analysis second. There are time that writing an estimate is required, but if we try to sell first, then perform the damage analysis, we’ll be in a better position to create a blueprint, Repairing the vehicles from a blueprint will result in reduced cycle time and improved compensation for all involved. Next, the qualified technician and the estimator should begin the crucial process of generation a complete list of all operation, parts and materials required to restore the vehicles to pre-loss condition. The technician and estimator should have conversations to make sure everything is listed; molding on blend panels should be removed to determine if clips are required. Don’t forget fluids, removal of urethane coatings and adhesives, welding damage and all of the other little things that will add up to a lot of paid operation.

                                                                                   - Body Shop Business Magazine