Skilled trades (on average, not all, but for the most part) have lost the love for their trades. For the most part they trade time for money.
Body shops bread and butter are the insurance jobs. The insurance companies use an agreed upon (OK dictated) door rate (based on equipment/salaries/ regional average). The body shop estimator estimated the hours to do a job, the insurance adjustor cuts it back then the flat rate tech need to do it in that (or less) time. The margins in that business are getting smaller and smaller every year: material costs, workmen’s comp, national standardised rates, ‘greener’ equipment and environment issues. Never the less the insurance companies pay the rent… so who comes first.
At the same time bodymen are fickle they are now used to a fast paces environment and get bored when a job lasts more than 3-4 days so the foreman rotates jobs to keep his staff happy.
There are 2 ways to handle this depending on how your relationship with the owner/manager was established. 1, visit on a regular basis or 2, ask if they can accelerate you job. Hell they want to get it out of there, unless you told them ‘no rush’. If you did we all know that was just a ploy to get a better deal cause we know you cant wait to go screaming down than interstate……
Denis