Vancouver, British Columbia — The prolific West Coast repair chain, Kirmac Collision and Autoglass, proudly opened the doors of its nineteenth facility in South Vancouver on Wednesday, fitted with some very fancy refinishing toys from PPG and Bellini Systems.
“We have been looking to open a location in South Vancouver for as long as I can remember,” Kirmac president Sean McIntosh told Collision Repair.
“Southwest Marine Drive is a very busy street and it’s very difficult to find a building with the appropriate zoning. We were finally able to find a site that worked for us, while also securing it for the long term. It’s a brownfield location, so we had to do a substantial renovation to bring it up to our specifications.”
If the fresh new building wasn’t exciting enough, McIntosh says the company’s latest facility is the second in Canada (but first in B.C.) to be equipped with a PPG Moonwalk paint mixing system.
“It automates the paint mixing process, allowing our technicians to focus on other value-add activities and increase dispensing accuracy. I’m looking forward to seeing the system in action and working with our team to adapt our processes,” said McIntosh.
Paired with the Moonwalk is a first for North American collision repair, as Kirmac has also managed to get its hands on a Revo-Up curing system from Bellini Systems.
“REVO-Up is the future, as our spray booth is fully electric for curing…it’s the EV of spray booths!” McIntosh declared.
“Much like the Moonwalk, this is an R&D project to see how the technology works and what we need to do to adapt our processes to take advantage of the curing speed. If it works like we think, our existing locations can be retrofitted. It’s great from a sustainability standpoint to be moving away from natural gas, especially in BC where we have Hydro power.”
Overall, McIntosh says he is excited for this new facility to exemplify the high-tech direction the company is headed in.
“This is a flagship location for Kirmac,” he said.
“It displays where we are headed in terms of technology and systems. We are looking forward to serving South Vancouver with expert collision repair and glass services for years to come!”
Kirmac Collision’s new facility is located at 732 SW Marine Dr, Vancouver, B.C.
