Toronto, Ontario -- On October 23, more than 70 body and paint technicians, trainers and other collision industry figures converged at Pfaff Autoworks in Markham, Ontario for the Efficiency Edge Training Workshop.
"A large percentage of the industry is behind the times when it comes to repairing modern vehicles," said Jeff Pabst, president of Pfaff Autoworks. "That's why it was important for us to hold this training open house."
During the event, which was co-presented by Collision Repair magazine, attendees moved through a rotation of demo stations covering topics from dent repair and metal finishing to paint correction and glue-pulling techniques.
"All the vendors have done excellent sessions — and I really did see all of them," added Pabst. "I was particularly partial to the ones covering glue pulling."
“With all the new technology coming into this industry, there’s always stuff to learn at these events," he added.
These sessions were led by trainers from leading suppliers, including 3M, PPG, BASF, SATA, RUPES, Evercoat, Flatline, Titanium Tools, Caruk & Associates and Area22 Training.
"This is a great place to have a training event," said Kelly Roberts of BETAG Innovation, who had led a session focused on damage assessment and panel repair using traditional, PDR and more modern approaches. "It is a very well-equipped business with many talented techs."
"I've had a lot of fun here, added Robert Gargaro of Titanium Tools and Equipment, whose presentation focused on paintless dent repair.
The workshop also included a raffle, with prizes provided by the sponsoring companies. After Pabst drew their names from a hat, Kevin Kazama, Owen Dale, Jen Tam and Riz Patel were declared the winners.
