OEConnection, the North American auto industry’s largest technology provider for OEM distribution networks, has acquired the Assured Performance Network, further broadening the company’s management of OEM certification programs for collision centres.
Assured Performance handles US collision repair certification for FCA, Alfa Romeo, Hyundai, Infiniti, Kia and Nissan, and Canadian certification for FCA, Kia, Nissan and Toyota. The company has provided OEM certification to more than 3,000 collision repair businesses across North America. In announcing his retirement, founder and CEO Scott Biggs said: “The company is in the best condition it has ever been with more certified repair providers than ever. It’s a perfect time for me to retire and for the company to go to the next level.”
Assured Performance is made up of three entities: a non-profit consumer advocacy organisation and certification entity, a legal cooperative and a management company. It provides various services, business improvement tools, education, and support, including business certification, certified network management, wholesale parts dealer certification, fleet cosmetic repair certification, consumer awareness and education, public relations, online locators and smartphone apps.
Assured Performance maintains strategic partnerships with some of the largest OEMs, suppliers, paint manufacturers and insurance companies, and the members of the network have the right tools, training, and equipment to offer their customers a Certified Repair and complete repair documentation. In 2020, it launched a patented repair documentation app, RepairDOC, which provides “a seamless and highly efficient method to electronically document every aspect of how a repair was performed, with what, and by whom.”
OEConnection’s business has a heavy focus on OEM parts and serves over 135,000 repairers and 30,000 dealerships worldwide, as well as 37 automotive brands. Genstar Capital bought a controlling stake in OEC in August 2019, with minority shares held by Ford and General Motors.
Eli Weiss, Genstar’s managing director, has previously said that Genstar’s investment focus in the software sector “is to identify companies operating in dynamic markets with opportunities to accelerate growth. We will aggressively identify key acquisitions and opportunities to broaden OEC’s product mix, expand its geographic footprint, and enter adjacent market segments.”
This latest acquisition by OEConnection comes on the heels of the addition of VeriFacts Automotive to the stable which, like Assured Performance, provides collision repair process consulting services across North America.
This article courtesy of John Huetter of Repairer Driven Education (RDE). Check out the website at: http://www.repairerdrivennews.com/.