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(συγνωμη απο τους moderators δεν ηξερα που να το βαλω αν καποιοσ το βρισκει ενδιαφερον ...αν θεωρειτε offtopic παρακαλω διορθωστε με η μετακινηστε το ευχαριστω)
το παρακατω αρθρο ειναι απο τον Yvan Lacroix πρωην COE ..προσωπο τελος παντων της OPT optimum polymer tecκnoligies(παραγουσα των ONR, opto-lens, opti coat κ.τ.λ)
και τωρα εργαζεται για την LC lake country (παραγουσα pads αλοιφαδωρων)
Νομιζω ειναι πολυ ενδιαφερουσα αποψη και απευθυνεται τοσο σε επαγγελματιεσ του χωρο οσο ισωσ και λιγο σε car enthousistσ και εχει να κανει κυριως με την διαχειρηση προσδικιων ειτε του επαγγελματια ειτε του ιδιοκτητη.
Αν καποιος ενδιαφερετε μπορει να διαβασει αυτη την.......δικη του...... πανω απο ολα.........αποψη................
Yvan Lacroix
August 24, 2018
Paint correction , a different perspective.
When performing paint(clear coat) correction are we really working for the customer, or are we satisfying our egos?
As detailers our natural instinct is to convert the abused surface of the clear coat into a blemish free mirror like surface. But is that really what the customer wants, needs, or is that what we are imposing on them? Factory Clearcoat is a nonrenewable finite resource on every car on average it is only 50 microns thick. Every time we polish a car we are removing some of that very thin layer. When we “chase” a scratch, we are not just removing that scratch but also a lot of material around it. In doing so our quest for visual perfection is irreversibly damaging the clear coat. Paint experts ( actual paint, not paint correction experts) agree that polishing should only be to remove surface oxidation, no more. If the clear coat has a scratch that is 20 microns deep, and we remove it completely, we are left with a little over 50% of the original clear coat in that area, and if a scratch occurs there again, it’s the end of the line, no turning back. As detailers our quest for full esthetique correction is leading us to willingly damage customers cars.
How to change this, and why? I travel the world, and in every country I hear the same thing from the detailers “the customers in (insert country of choice here) are different, they demand perfection”. After telling them that I’ve heard the exact same words in every country I’ve visited, and that their customers are no different than any other detailers around the globe( I’m sure the day I teach detailing on another planet, it will be the same...) we discuss the following.
First is managing expectations, the customers are much easier to manage than our own. Detailers are fear stricken by social media peer pressure. The comment always arises “what happens when my customer goes to my competition and they see I’ve not removed all the scratches “, honestly when has this ever happened to anyone? As detailers we have all been constrained by a customers budget to not finish a car to our “standards”, when delivering the car to the customer we cringe, and the customer, well let’s just say they don’t see it like we do, they fall in love with their car and use phrases like, “better than new, it’s never looked this good, like the showroom”. Honestly we see things that others don’t see, and we should do our best not to spread this disease. At a stoplight we see 3 vehicles, a black one with buffer trails, a red one with wash marring, and a white one in need of FerreX. Most of the world at the same stoplight sees a Black BMW 3 Series, a Red Corvette, and a White Honda Civic . Let the innocent masses stay that way, don’t force them to live our horrors by showing them what we must endure for the rest of our lives.
Technology has helped us to better diagnose issues in paint, but also forced us to inflict damage to paint we would not have done before. When I started detailing to inspect our work, we took the car out into the sun. That was the best judge of our work, and also the same standard used by our customers. Then came the Brinkmann, shortly after that those of us with a little more profitable business bought a SunGun. With those we saw things that we couldn’t see in direct sunlight. Then high power LED lights rocked our world, making us shelve the other lights, and chase even more defects that the customer never saw before, nor could never see without a high powered light( show of hands, how many have shown your customers “the Light” only to regret it later..). As detailers we look at a panel with a very unique light source, perfect it using that as our gage, then turn the knife in the wound and go out and get a “better” light to find even more defects. It’s a downward spiral that’s leading us to damage our customers second largest investment, and for what in reality, the customer still uses the sun as their method of judging our work.
Second is customer education. When we stop beating our chests and trying to prove to the world we are the best at paint correction because we can take a swirled, scratched car, and sand, compound and polish into a surface that’s smoother then when it left the paint booth, we can humbly accept to do the job the customer deserves, not the one our egos want, we will have achieved something good. The first question you should ask a customer when they come to you is “why are you here?”( the second is “how are you going to maintain it, but that’s another essay altogether). Their answer will tell you a lot about there current understanding, and what they actually expect of you. Many times when a customer says “eliminate all scratches “ they actually mean, make them less noticeable from 5 feet away. If the customer actually wants you to remove all scratches, this is when education takes over. Taking 5 minuits to explain to a customer that such an operation is actually damaging their vehicle ( the operation was a success, but unfortunately the patient didn’t make it).
Showing them just how thin 5O microns is, explaining that the more paint we leave on the car now the longer it will last, and that removing more than 10 microns actually can cause permanent irreversible damage. This short exercise will save you hours in polishing, and gain your customers trust in you for life. Anyone with a buffer can do a 3 stage cut and buff to remove all the surface blemishes, but how much damage are they really doing in the process? Remember it’s not your fault the car is scratched, as the professional your goal should be to visually improve it, but without sacrificing its integrity.
We have all had the experience of polishing a car that starts off as rock hard paint, to end up with a panel so soft that if you breathe on it, it scratches. What has happened is that paint has been over polished, and will never be out of danger. Removal of the top 10 microns on many paints remove the layer that’s the most resistant to marring, and contains many of the UV blockers. As responsible professionals our goal should be to improve the surface, but not making it visually perfect, because that “perfect” to our eyes is actually severe damage to the paint.
Finally we have customer service. As a business owner one of the biggest components of true customer service is profits. If your not profitable, you will not be able to properly serve your customers. Buy reducing the time you polish the paint by not chasing scratches that only exist in the presence of a light equivalent to a 747 landing light you will be able to attain a better balance in your times and life. Working more than 8 hours a day in universally frowned upon around the world, yet detailers who do it are often seen as being great detailers. This is an unfortunate symptom of the detailing industry, one mostly driven by passionate technicians, not by business savvy entrepreneurs.
What does all this mean? In short if we take the time to properly evaluate the vehicle, council customers with what they need, not what we want, and work to preserve the paint instead of visually perfecting it, we will be happier entrepreneurs, with long term satisfied customers. Yes it's very satisfying to take a car that's all scratched and marred and turn it into a visually stunning rolling mirror, and we have all worked hard to learn to do that. As business owners we need to learn to put our expectations aside , and focus on the needs of our customers. By doing so we will not only have happy customers but also more time to enjoy life and the fruits of our labour.
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