The Mechanical Division Operations Committee met May 17 - 18, 2002, in Orlando, Fla. The first day of the two-day meeting was held at the Standard Motor Products (SMP) Electronics Business Unit. SMP manufactures engine management and temperature-control parts for domestic and imported cars and trucks for the automotive aftermarket.

Robert Gault, electronics business unit manager; Ron Nelson, product development group leader; and Arronne Camilleri, senior product/test engineer, provided the committee with a tour of their facility. The facility was very impressive and the staff was professional and knowledgeable. They were eager to answer our questions and were just as eager to ask us questions.

The 2002 Mechanical Division Operations Committee includes myself, serving as your division director, and Don Seyfer of Wheat Ridge, Colo., serving as the assistant division director.

Returning to the committee are Rick Allison, Eugene, Ore.; Rick Bigham, Lubbock, Texas; Dale Bright, Chino, Calif.; Aaron Clements, Augusta, Ga.; Earl Dohner, Brookville, Ohio; Todd Egge, Sioux Falls, S.D.; Charlie Elder, Tallahassee, Fla.; and Dave Hoefel, Albuquerque, N.M. New to the committee is Joe Torchiana, Torchiana Automotive in West Chester, Pa.

The two-day agenda was packed with issues and concerns that directly affect our members. Two topics that continue to be in the forefront are information availability and shop regulations. These are tough problems, and the solutions to these problems will continue to be addressed by the Mechanical Division Operations Committee and Bob Redding, Jr., ASA's Washington, D.C., representative.

As I reflect back on the operations meeting, I think about each individual who serves on the committee. The 11 members of the ASA Mechanical Division Operations Committee represent shops of varying sizes from across the United States. Each one has their own set of problems and concerns, yet each one came to join the others in achieving a common goal for the benefit of all. The committee works on behalf of all ASA mechanical members to advance and promote the automotive service and repair industry.

As I continued with my thoughts, a quote I have heard many times came to mind. Probably everyone has heard "No man is an island." But, there is more to the quote that is seldom mentioned, and it reads as follows:

No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main . . .

This is just an excerpt of a poem written by John Donne. It is as true today as the day it was written.

Each operations committee member could be considered an island. Eleven islands come together to begin plans for creating a continent. ASA provides the course for member shops to become part of this continent. One island can't weather the storm as well as islands that have become a continent.

The Motor Vehicle Owner's Right To Repair Act, H.R. 2735, received a significant boost when the Automotive Service Association's members gathered on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.

ASA members were in Washington, D.C. for their 2002 Annual Convention and spent one day meeting with senators and representatives from their states. A number of representatives were added as co-sponsors to the House legislation. Commitments for sponsoring legislation in the Senate were also obtained. A Senate version of the bill was introduced on June 13, 2002.

ASA Chairman Jim Keller delivered thousands of petitions signed by consumers, from repair shops in all 50 states to U.S. Congressman Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y.) at ASA's Capitol Hill Reception. Fifteen members of the U.S. House and staff from the House and Senate attended the reception.

H.R. 2735 now has 38 co-sponsors in the House, including the original sponsor, Congressman Joe Barton (R-Texas). ASA members are encouraged to contact their congressman and ask them to co-sponsor H.R. 2735. Contact information and a sample congressional letter are on ASA's Web site, www.asashop.org.

If your representative is not on the following list, please contact them and ask them to co-sponsor H.R. 2735.

On June 13, 2002, U.S. Sen. Paul Wellstone, D-Minn., introduced the Senate version of House Resolution 2735, "The Motor Vehicle Owner's Right to Repair Act."

"This legislation is proof positive that what is good for small business is good for the consumer," Wellstone said. "The big manufacturing companies are acting like a cartel, and it is hurting independent auto mechanics and car owners alike.

"In April, I met with a group of [Automotive Service Association] auto repair shop owners from Minnesota who told me that some auto manufacturers are effectively preventing them from working on newer cars. The last thing America needs is another industry where all the little guys - the small, independent businesses - are driven out. It is terrible for our communities that lose businesses and jobs, and reduced competition means higher prices for the consumer," Wellstone said.

"ASA is pleased that Sen. Wellstone has agreed to take the lead in the Senate on this important piece of legislation," said Bob Redding, ASA's Washington, D.C., representative.

The legislation requires original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to provide access to service information, both emissions and non-emissions, to the independent repairer. ASA supports this legislation and encourages its members to contact their Senators and ask them to support this bill.

U.S. Sens. John Breaux, D-La., and Arlen Specter, R-Pa., have introduced Senate Bill 2184, a bipartisan bill requiring the U.S. Department of Labor to develop mandatory workplace injury rules.

In early April, the Bush administration announced it would produce voluntary guidelines for businesses to follow to prevent repetitive workplace stress injuries such as carpal tunnel syndrome. The administration is not interested in making the guidelines mandatory, a spokesperson said.

"We are serious about reducing injury and illness rates related to repetitive stress problems as quickly as possible," said U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine Chao in her testimony defending the administration's ergonomics plan before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on April 18.

Said Breaux, "We need to clearly spell out for businesses and for workers what the rules are. I think there is support for it, if we can be fair to both sides."

The legislation is receiving negative attention from industry representatives who want to see the Bush administration's ergonomics plan tested before it is implemented.

"Give the Labor Department's ergonomics plan a chance to work first before legislating," said Susan Eckerly of the National Federation of Independent Business.

According to the Small Business Legislative Council, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration will be given the opportunity to develop a new ergonomics rule similar to the one overturned in 2001. The opposition to a mandatory ergonomics rule is linked to determining whether an injury occurred in the workplace or outside the workplace.

ASA would like to see some kind of ergonomics ruling occur. "Our industry will benefit from taking care of its employees," said Robert L. Redding, Jr., ASA's Washington, D.C., representative.

If you are an owner, manager or employee of an ASA shop and want to further your business education, apply now for the Tom B. Babcox Memorial Scholarship. The winner will be awarded $1,000 toward their expenses to attend the 2002 Congress of Automotive Repair and Service (CARS) convention.

The scholarship is made possible by Babcox Publications working with the ASA Mechanical Division and the Automotive Management Institute (AMI). Applications must be received at ASA no later than Aug. 16, 2002.

New York State Assemblyman Daryl Towns, D-Brooklyn, recently introduced New York Assembly Bill 10435, The Motor Vehicle Owner's Right to Repair Act. The bill is similar to H.R. 2735, The Motor Vehicle Owner's Right to Repair Act, introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Joe Barton, R-Texas, and Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y.

Like the federal bill, the New York bill requires automobile manufacturers to provide service information to motor vehicle owners and independent repairers.

The Automotive Service Association (ASA) endorsed H.R. 2735 and has been instrumental in its grassroots effort to obtain co-sponsors for the bill. The bill has 37 co-sponsors to date.

"ASA supports New York Assembly Bill 10435," said Bob Redding, ASA's Washington, D.C., representative. "This is a step in the right direction for independent repairers and motor vehicle owners in New York."

Thursday, Nov. 7, 2002, will be Service Professionals Day at the Automotive Aftermarket Products Expo (AAPEX), marking the first day of ASA's Congress of Automotive Repair and Service (CARS). Both shows are being held during Automotive Aftermarket Industry Week in Las Vegas. AAPEX will take place Nov. 5-8, while CARS runs Nov. 7-9.

CARS attendees will automatically be registered for AAPEX at no additional cost. AAPEX organizers say they wanted to include CARS attendees in their show because it will provide shop owners and technicians firsthand exposure to the newest products and technologies available to the automotive aftermarket.

Annually, the ASA Mechanical Division hosts the Congress of Automotive Service and Repair (CARS). Stay informed about everything that's being planned for this event by subscribing to the free CARS News-Network. Subscribers will receive periodic e-mail updates as information about CARS becomes available.