Tom Bergeron, manager of State Farm's Vehicle Research Facility, joined Plasnomic's Plastic Repair Alliance Council to advance standardized practices for repairing automotive plastic and composite materials. This addition strengthens the council's representation from major insurers working with collision repairers, automakers and suppliers to develop consistent repair methods and training standards.
- Tom Bergeron from State Farm's Vehicle Research Facility joined the Plastic Repair Alliance Council, bringing over 30 years of industry expertise in plastic, composite, and carbon-fiber repair
- Plasnomic was founded to address the collision industry's need for consistent information, training and standards for repairing increasingly used automotive plastic materials
- The council includes major insurers—State Farm, Allstate, GEICO, Allianz and Intact Insurance—working alongside collision repairers, automakers and suppliers
- Plasnomic is developing a centralized platform for plastic-repair information and a Plastic Repair Excellence Center in Dallas for research, training and repair operations
- Bergeron's work includes evaluating plastic-repair products and developing repair processes with automakers, adding valuable technical perspective to standardization efforts
Tom Bergeron, manager of State Farm’s Vehicle Research Facility, has joined Plasnomic’s Plastic Repair Alliance Council, adding another major insurer to the group working to expand the use of automotive plastic repair.
Founded by automotive repair industry veteran Mario Dimovski, Plasnomic was created to address a growing gap in the collision industry: consistent information, training and standards for repairing the plastic and composite materials increasingly used in vehicles.
The organization brings insurers, collision repairers, automakers, suppliers, researchers and training organizations together to develop and validate repair methods, share technical information and promote safe repairs when parts can be repaired rather than replaced.
Bergeron's work managing State Farm's vehicle research centre, which regularly dismantles pre-release vehicle models to help automakers identify security flaws, provides an rare, high-level perspective to the council.
“Tom brings extensive technical knowledge and an important insurer perspective to the council,” said Dimovski, president of Plasnomic and head of the Plastic Repair Alliance Council. “His practical experience in plastic repair research, OEM processes and training will add real value to our work.”
Plasnomic’s work includes technical research, repair standards, education and certification, as well as initiatives focused on recovering and recycling automotive plastics.
Bergeron was a founding team member of State Farm’s Vehicle Research Facility. His early work included evaluating plastic-repair products on bumper covers. During more than 30 years in the industry, he has worked with automakers to develop and refine repair processes and has built expertise in plastic, composite and carbon-fibre repair, structural repair, refinishing, aluminum welding and glass repair.
Bergeron’s appointment strengthens the council’s insurer representation, which includes State Farm, Allstate, GEICO, Allianz and Intact Insurance.
The council also includes representatives from collision repairers, plastic-repair specialists and suppliers, including Mario Dimovski of Boyd Group, Ryan Gafford of Caliber Collision, Roberto Sticca of CSN Collision, Daryll O’Keefe of Fix Network, Charles Canning of Halo Group, Kurt Lammon of Polyvance, Peter McAninch of Plastrepair, Frank Phillips of 4Plastic Global, John Morrissey of Plastfix, Dave Flokart of BETAG, Rebecca Miller of 3M, Tom Wolf of SEM/PPG and Leonardo Gomez of Mirka.
Plasnomic is developing a centralized platform for plastic-repair information and standards and a Plastic Repair Excellence Center in Dallas for repair operations, research and training.
