San Diego, California — June 20, 2017 — Jack Rozint, Vice President of Sales and Service at Mitchell International, saw a significant challenge rising out of today’s quickly developing and increasingly complex vehicles.
“One of the key tools in fixing these complex vehicles is diagnostic scanning, but there is not a reliable diagnostic solution for the collision industry today that supports a range of vehicle brands/models,” said Rozint. “The OEM scan tools available are limited to their own brand data and are expensive, making them cost prohibitive for repairers that fix multiple makes/models. On top of that, there is no diagnostic tool that supports the collision repair claims process. The data from the diagnostic scan is difficult to understand, there are no standard methods for repair facilities to integrate scanning into their workflows and systems and there is no standard for file documentation related to diagnostics that meets the needs of repairers and carriers. Repair shops need a tool that delivers data in an easy-to-understand way that can be seamlessly integrated into the collision repair workflow.”
To work out a solution to these problems, Mitchell is collaborating with Bosch Automotive Service Solutions in North America to deliver the Mitchell Diagnostics system. A statement from Mitchell says it’s the first comprehensive diagnostic system designed specifically for the collision repair and automotive claims markets. The Mitchell Diagnostics System is expected to be available by June 30, 2017.
In today’s rapidly changing automotive industry, collision repairers must quickly and accurately assess vehicle damage while providing accurate estimates and decreasing repair cycle time. Mitchell Diagnostics plans to provide an end-to-end diagnostic system that combines appraisal and collision repair workflow applications with Bosch’s most advanced aftermarket scan tools. This should contribute to increased productivity, a smoother repair process and enhanced levels of customer service.
“We researched a wide variety of scan tools on the market and found that the Bosch scan tools provide best-in-class coverage and modern technology, and are backed by great service and support,” said Rozint. “In addition, Bosch scan tools have a combination of features that provide outstanding capabilities for collision repairers, including a tool that can do Electronic Control Unit reprogramming, as well as optional accessories, such as a target system for recalibrating Advanced Driver Assistance Systems and a Tire Pressure Monitoring System kit. We are excited to partner with Bosch given its leadership and expertise in this market.”
The patent-pending Mitchell Diagnostics System validates that the VIN on the scan report matches the VIN on the vehicle from which data is pulled. This scan report can then be used to support collision repair billing, and offers both carriers and repairers a record showing that the vehicle had a clean scan at the completion of the collision repair process.
“Mitchell’s reputation and success among information providers for being a leader in advanced repair technologies made it the ideal choice to bring diagnostic solutions to the collision repair industry,” said Stefan Schmitt, Vice President of Engineering and Product Area Diagnostics at Bosch Automotive Service Solutions. “Working with Mitchell will integrate our scan tool directly into the workflow applications used by collision repairers and insurance carriers, which will assist in the diagnostic portion of collision repairs.”
The system may be used to add scan reports to any of the industry’s major estimating, collision repair management and claims processing systems. These scan reports can be saved as PDF documents and dropped into a folder used for vehicle damage images by the user of the Mitchell Diagnostics system. A statement from Mitchell says that customers who utilize Mitchell Estimating advanced estimating system and RepairCenter shop management software will benefit from enhanced integration capabilities.
“One of the challenges we have is documenting, confirming, and getting compensated for the scanning that we do in-house,” said Bill Lawrence of 1st Certified Collision Group, a multi-site collision repair operation in Southern California. “With the Mitchell Diagnostics system we’ll be able to demonstrate via validation documentation that the work was performed on the vehicle with the VIN matching the insurers’ claim, and we can easily attach that to our repair order and the carrier’s claim file.”
For more information on Bosch, please visit bosch.com. For more information on Mitchell International, please visit mitchell.com.
