Thursday, August 11, 2011

Do 5S don't be shameful

I recently bought a new car.  It is 2 years old and still has plenty of the original manufacturer's warranty left and is due a major service. It also unfortunately only came with one key so I need to get another one cut. So I go down to the manufacturer's local service dept to ask about having another key cut and the service done.
Behind the service desk a door opened onto the service bay.  What I could see where 2 work stations.  The far one looked great, a clean tool box with one or two items on the top of it.  The second the exact opposite, the tool box was grubby, the top was littered with tools, parts and packaging, what was what I could not tell.

Not the actual offending tool chest
In my own way I commented to the service desk on the work space.  Her comments were one the service technician had been here for 20 years and two the door should not be open. Neither of those comments are valid.
One, 20 years of working in a mess is not acceptable.  I am paying dealer rates for work not back street garage rates.
Two, a service department should not be something that is hidden away.  I was recently up at County Hills Toyota and was taken through the service department.  It was clean and organized, it worked as a sales tool.  I would be confident taking my car there, the other service shop I would feel like playing roulette on who would do the service work.  Many automotive companies, Toyota, Mini, BMW, Volkswagen, Porsche (and probably others) use their factories and factory tours as selling tools.  If you ever take a trip around Concours Body Shops you would be impressed like I was and know that this was a good place to have your vehicle worked on.
The downside is that I have to make a choice go local and feel I am playing roulette on the quality of work that will be done or 'waste' time and drive across town to somewhere I feel will do a far better job.

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