NOT JUST A HUMBLE HAND TOOL

TAKE FUTURE REPAIRS INTO YOUR OWN HANDS

HAND TOOLS ARE JUST AS IMPORTANT IN TODAY’S COLLISION REPAIR INDUSTRY AS HIGH-TECH SYSTEMS; THEY ARE AN ESSENTIAL FOUNDATION FOR ANY TECHNICIAN AND REPRESENT AN EXTENSION OF THE TECHNICIAN’S HANDIWORK.

While it can be all too easy to get caught up in the recent changes in advanced high tech automotive repair systems (and rightly so), it’s important to remember that hand tools have also seen their fair share of progress. After all, it’s been nearly two million years since humans first invented the hammer. Hand tools are just as important in today’s collision repair industry as high-tech systems; they are an essential foundation for any technician and represent an extension of the technician’s handiwork.

According to this year’s U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, service technicians still rely heavily on tools such as wrenches, pliers and sockets and ratchets even as they also embrace computer-based diagnostic and electrified systems.

Collision Repair magazine recently sought the opinions of Canadian shop owners, managers, apprentices, technicians and painters to get their insights on the continued use of hand tools in automotive repair.

Of the auto shop owners and managers polled specifically, 50 percent said that it was reasonable to expect a new apprentice to purchase their own tools, and only a third of those polled said that hand tools would be provided to new technicians. As a result, hand tools remain an asset. While there is a need for speed and efficiency when it comes to automotive repair, there is also a need for traditional knowledge and skill.

Tech may continue to change, but these pages will help you find the right tools to take the future into your own hands.