Clubnight at Perfect Autobody
(March 2009)
Words & Pictures by Stuart Perry
For our Monday Tech Evening in March, our Club was invited to Perfect Autobody Ltd in Sockburn, Christchurch. The Managing Director, Wayne Houghton, greeted a sizeable group of interested Clubmembers and kindly gave us an introduction to the business followed by a very detailed tour of the facility.
Perfect Autobody tenders through Insurance Companies to repair motor vehicles involved in collisions and can rebuild/realign a damaged vehicle to within 3% of the manufacturer's original specifications using a very specialised computer controlled alignment rig called a 'Car-O-Liner'. Gone are the days of bashing panels & stretching chassis to 'near enough' shape! They also have a high tech paint oven and can match paint colours with high accuracy.
Wayne gave us a detailed explanation of the latest versions of safety Airbags & Side Curtains employed in current vehicles. While their protection is undisputed and very welcome if you are involved in a collision, it came as a bit of a shock to learn of their replacement costs and the accuracy of installation & certification required to ensure their correct operation & compliance in service.
Wayne Houghton is also the Chairman of the Collision Repair Association, New Zealand's national association of vehicle repairers. The association looks after its members' interests by acting as a voice for the vehicle repair industry and ensuring that Association members are kept up to date with developments and processes in the industry, including industry standards and training.
Wayne also holds the sales rights to a material called 'Rhino Linings' which is a high-tech, polymer-based liner material that has waterproofing, sound-deadening, insulation and heavy-wear properties and can be used on buildings as well as in the motor trade. As it's name implies, it is as tough as old boots! As a demonstration, Rhino Lining was sprayed on old masonry blocks and, when set, we were invited to try and smash the blocks using a sledge hammer. As evidenced in the photos below, even our Club President had real difficulty in breaking the blocks through the Rhino material - and he did put some effort into it! We were told of a couple of intriguing uses of the product including the lining of Concrete Truck delivery chutes to prevent wear due to the course aggregate. Apparently, it extends the life of the chutes several times over. It has also been used by the American army in Iraq as a blast mitigation membrane on buildings and as a coating on fuel tanks - if a fuel tank is penetrated by a projectile, the Rhino Lining material closes back over the hole to minimise the amount of fuel loss.
All in all, a fascinating insight into modern vehicle repair techniques and other products employed by Perfect Autobody Ltd.
Many thanks to Wayne Houghton for the tour and to Nigel Humphreys for organising the event.
