What`s Inside This Issue

2016 Summer Edition
Friction
Current News and Views from AUTEC Car Wash Systems
Dual Side-by-Side Bays Featuring AUTEC EV-1’s!
Dual AUTEC’s working side-by-side.
Cars in line for both bays!
Carey Grieb and son, Kenton Grieb, are
owner/operators of GLASS HOUSE CAR WASH.
Carey explains "one of the main reasons that we
decided to do an AUTEC INBAY EXPRESS again
was our experiences with OUR customers over
the past 10 years since the installation of our first
AUTEC. We have customers who drive 10 plus
miles and who will wait in line for our wash.
When we ask them why, they say 'your car wash
gets our car clean. It's that simple.'
The second reason we chose AUTEC is the
professionalism of the whole AUTEC team, from
the answering of the phone all the way through
the whole organization. They are a very professional group and you can tell they are there for
the customer and that means a lot to us. The customer service and technical support are very professional. They bend over backwards to help us.
“Your car wash gets our car clean!”
It's important to know that AUTEC is just a phone
call away, ready to help us and give us the answers we need in our day-to-day operation. I've
been doing business for 50-plus years, AUTEC is
leading the list of businesses that are top shelf,
top quality type businesses. We like doing business with people like that who are professional
and can take care of our needs," Grieb concluded.
Back in 2004, AUTEC supplied the EV-1 automatic for the Grieb’s Merriam, Kansas site.
Fast forward to 2015 and an all new site in
Independence, MO with a double AUTEC INBAY
EXPRESS in AUTEC’s new glass structure. The
Griebs and Glass House Car Wash are experiencing great success providing customers with
unprecedented cleaning performance that keeps
them coming back for more.
1-800-438-3028
2500 West Front Street • Statesville, NC 28677
website - www.autec-carwash.com • email - [email protected]
What’s
Inside
This Issue:
•Glass House Car Wash
Again Chooses AUTEC
•Tamiami Ford & Tamiami
Hyundai Florida Dealerships Feature AUTEC
•Summit City Chevrolet in
Fort Wayne, Indiana
Houses AUTEC AES-260
•Nissan of Guam Replaces
RYKO with AUTEC
•Virginia’s Mercedes-Benz
of Alexandria Replaces
Broadway with AUTEC
•AUTEC Shine Express
Polisher Showcased at
New Detail Center in
Brunei
•Blue Marlin Car Wash
Prepares for Second
AUTEC Double Installation
2016 Summer Edition AUTEC FACTS & FRICTION
Message
From
AUTEC’s
President
Tamiami Ford
Featuring AUTEC’s AES-220 Soft Touch System...
Two Florida Dealerships Choosing AUTEC
Featuring
AUTEC’s
AES-220
Soft Touch
The Summertime
is here!
AUTEC has successfully attended
and exhibited our latest car wash
offerings at the National Auto Dealer
Association’s convention in Las Vegas
and more recently at the International
Carwash Association’s convention in
Nashville. Both shows were extremely
well attended and our car wash offerings were hugely successful.
We were very fortunate at both conventions that many of our existing
customers were in attendance and
their success stories are always good
to hear. We know that in our manufacturing business that our successes
are achieved by our customers’ successes, so we are always glad to see
old friends and customers and to
hear their success stories with their
AUTEC car washing systems.
Most gratifying to me was the number of customers who were at the
shows primarily to solidify orders for
future sites duplicating their current
successful sites with AUTEC equipment. This issue of Facts and Friction
showcases Glass House Car Wash
with their second AUTEC site – and
this time, they chose a double installation. Success breeds success – for
us and for all of our representatives.
As long as we continue to help our
customers become successful, so will
we be successful!
Tamiami Ford was the first location to incorporate AUTEC’s state-of-the-art car wash system
with its opening in January 2012.
AUTEC’s superior wash quality is evident
with each and every vehicle washed at both
the Tamiami dealerships.
Good Luck and Good Selling!
Tom Hobby
AUTEC President
PAGE 2
At the Tamiami Ford site, AUTEC’s car wash
system is installed in a bay where hand
washing had previously been done.
TAMIAMI FORD and TAMIAMI
HYUNDAI are two of the newest Florida
automobile dealerships to showcase
AUTEC’s impressive car wash systems.
Tamiami Ford was the first location to
incorporate AUTEC with the wash opening in January 2012. The solid, stainless-steel construction of the system was
a primary selling point, complemented
by AUTEC’s reliable service and excellent wash quality. When the time came
for a wash at the Hyundai store, AUTEC
was chosen once again. August 2014
marks the date that Tamiami Hyundai
started washing cars with the AUTEC.
Both locations feature an AUTEC
AES-220 Soft Touch Car Wash System,
distinctively designed for auto dealers.
The Ford store installed the AUTEC in a
bay previously used for hand washing
cars. AUTEC prides itself on helping auto
dealers improve customer satisfaction by
providing superior wash quality and also
by reducing the time and labor spent
washing cars. The Tamiami Hyundai car
wash was a new construction and very
well-received. Their new equipment washes
a vehicle in a single one-minute pass!
The Hyundai site was unique in that
they needed to meet some noise abatement requirements. BlueMar, AUTEC’s
factory-certified service partner, designed a bay long enough to allow for
the operation of the wash and the doors,
AUTEC FACTS & FRICTION
Page 3
Tamiami Hyundai
Featuring AUTEC’s AES-220 Soft Touch System...
Happy with their Decisions/Wash Results
2016 Summer Edition
Summit City
Fort Wayne, Indiana Welcom
Dealership/AUTEC a W
Featuring
AUTEC’s
AES-220
Soft Touch
Tamiami Hyundai started washing its vehicles with AUTEC’s AES-220 Soft Touch Car Wash
System in August 2014.
Summit City Chevrolet houses AUTEC’s AES-260 So
Manager John Garcia says AUTEC builds a much b
as well as some special door controls to
make the doors operate as required. The
doors close during the wash cycle and
open when the wash is idle. This proved
to be a successful configuration for a
very specific need. Point being, every car
wash installation is not cookie-cutter.
AUTEC and BlueMar offer creative solutions to meet the needs of your business.
AUTEC’s NEW
ENTRY SYSTEM CANOPY
AUTEC’s AES-220 Soft Touch Car Wash system, distinctively designed for auto dealers,
reduces the time and labor spent washing
vehicles.
The wash lines are long at Summit City
Chevrolet as each and every vehicle gets an
AUTEC clean with its state-of-the-art stainless
steel system.
AUTEC prides itself on helping auto dealers
improve customer satisfaction by providing
superior wash quality.
Summit City Chevrolet and AUTEC together
are a winning combination evidenced in
every vehicle that emerges from the wash.
BENEFITS OF CANOPY:
• Greets customers with an obvious place to
stop and make their car wash transaction
• Adds a decorative, aesthetic appeal to the car
wash entry area
• Ties in the entry system to the car wash
• Provides lighting for entry system area at
night and sunshield/shade during the day
• Provides additional protection from the
elements for the entry system
• Provides enhanced safety and security around
the entry system
• Includes a height clearance bar
• Includes a highly visible message area on top
• Allows mounting of cameras and/or RFID reader
• Standard colors: Grey, Black, Blue, Green,
Red, Oyster, Yellow
Custom colors available – Call for details
Look for more information coming soon!
Page 4
AUTEC FACTS & FRICTION
2016 Summer Edition
Summit City Chevrolet Nissan of Gu
Fort Wayne, Indiana Welcomes AUTEC...
Another Satisfied Customer...
Dealership/AUTEC a Winning Combination AUTEC Replaces Old RYK
Featuring
AUTEC’s
AES-260
Soft Touch
Summit City Chevrolet houses AUTEC’s AES-260 Soft Touch Car Wash System. Dealer & General
Manager John Garcia says AUTEC builds a much better machine than the other manufacturers.
The wash lines are long at Summit City
Chevrolet as each and every vehicle gets an
AUTEC clean with its state-of-the-art stainless
steel system.
Summit City Chevrolet and AUTEC together
are a winning combination evidenced in
every vehicle that emerges from the wash.
John Garcia, Dealer & General
Manager of SUMMIT CITY CHEVROLET,
recalled an AUTEC Car Wash at a dealership where he worked years ago and
“it was a really dependable wash,” he
noted. So when he began shopping
around for a car wash to add at Summit
City Chevrolet, AUTEC was on the short
list of manufacturers to be considered.
Mr. Garcia continued, “in doing the
legwork, it became apparent that AUTEC
builds a much better machine than the
others. The dual arm support, stainless
steel construction was very impressive
versus the single, aluminum arm support
of another manufacturer. The AUTEC has
lived up to its reputation as it has been
very reliable since being installed.
We wash cars for all service visits
and we allow customers to wash their
cars themselves during dealership business hours. We use the RFID function
where we put the RFID tag on our customers’ windshields so that the AUTEC
recognizes them when they drive up.
We definitely use the car wash as a closing tool. It’s very positive for business.
We focus on becoming our customers’
dealership for life. What’s important to
them is their experience both during the
sale and after it.
Our service people love the AUTEC
too. It gives us the ability to expedite deliveries much faster than hand washing.
The beautiful island of Guam, located in the northwest
its tropical beaches and home to one of AUTEC’s newe
“Our old Ryko machine was in need
of constant maintenance and repair,”
noted Dan Aponik, Service Manager of
NISSAN of GUAM. “So we made the
decision to replace the machine,” he
continued. “Frank Russo of FJR Enterprises, LLC is a regular vendor with us,
so the timing of him becoming a factorycertified AUTEC sales and service
provider was perfect. Knowing that Frank
would be readily available to support the
product had a big influence on our
decision. His company has a great reputation on Guam and with us.
The new AUTEC AES-260 machine
is about twice as fast as the old Ryko...so
this means we can process more vehicles
every day. The employees love the new
machine because it is much faster and
does a better job than the old one. No
more need to have someone assigned to
pre-scrub the vehicles before they go in.
Customers are just happy that the new
machine is up and running and has
practically no down time compared to
the old one. The only time we have to
take it offline is for regular routine maintenance and cleaning.
Frank Russo and Todd Mason,
AUTEC’s master installer, were awesome.
They guided us every step of the way
and quickly answered any questions or
concerns we had or would get answers
from AUTEC within 24 hours.”
AUTEC FACTS & FRICTION
Page 5
2016 Summer Edition
y Chevrolet Nissan of Guam
Page 5
mes AUTEC...
Another Satisfied Customer...
Winning Combination
AUTEC Replaces Old RYKO with AES-260
Featuring
AUTEC’s
AES-260
Soft Touch
Featuring
AUTEC’s
AES-260
Soft Touch
Soft Touch Car Wash System. Dealer & General
h better machine than the other manufacturers.
John Garcia, Dealer & General
Manager of SUMMIT CITY CHEVROLET,
recalled an AUTEC Car Wash at a dealership where he worked years ago and
“it was a really dependable wash,” he
noted. So when he began shopping
around for a car wash to add at Summit
City Chevrolet, AUTEC was on the short
list of manufacturers to be considered.
Mr. Garcia continued, “in doing the
legwork, it became apparent that AUTEC
builds a much better machine than the
others. The dual arm support, stainless
steel construction was very impressive
versus the single, aluminum arm support
of another manufacturer. The AUTEC has
lived up to its reputation as it has been
very reliable since being installed.
We wash cars for all service visits
and we allow customers to wash their
cars themselves during dealership business hours. We use the RFID function
where we put the RFID tag on our customers’ windshields so that the AUTEC
recognizes them when they drive up.
We definitely use the car wash as a closing tool. It’s very positive for business.
We focus on becoming our customers’
dealership for life. What’s important to
them is their experience both during the
sale and after it.
Our service people love the AUTEC
too. It gives us the ability to expedite deliveries much faster than hand washing.
The beautiful island of Guam, located in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, is distinguished by
its tropical beaches and home to one of AUTEC’s newest installations at NISSAN of GUAM.
“Our old Ryko machine was in need
of constant maintenance and repair,”
noted Dan Aponik, Service Manager of
NISSAN of GUAM. “So we made the
decision to replace the machine,” he
continued. “Frank Russo of FJR Enterprises, LLC is a regular vendor with us,
so the timing of him becoming a factorycertified AUTEC sales and service
provider was perfect. Knowing that Frank
would be readily available to support the
product had a big influence on our
decision. His company has a great reputation on Guam and with us.
The new AUTEC AES-260 machine
is about twice as fast as the old Ryko...so
this means we can process more vehicles
every day. The employees love the new
machine because it is much faster and
does a better job than the old one. No
more need to have someone assigned to
pre-scrub the vehicles before they go in.
Customers are just happy that the new
machine is up and running and has
practically no down time compared to
the old one. The only time we have to
take it offline is for regular routine maintenance and cleaning.
Frank Russo and Todd Mason,
AUTEC’s master installer, were awesome.
They guided us every step of the way
and quickly answered any questions or
concerns we had or would get answers
from AUTEC within 24 hours.”
With AUTEC’s AES-260 car wash system,
there’s no more need to have someone
pre-scrub the vehicles before they enter into
the car wash.
The new AES-260 machine is about twice as
fast as the old Ryko so this means we can
process more vehicles every day.
2016 Summer Edition AUTEC FACTS & FRICTION
PAGE 6
Mercedes-Benz of Alexandria
Virginia Dealership Chooses AUTEC...
AUTEC Replaces Old Broadway System with AES-220
Featuring
AUTEC’s
AES-220
Soft Touch
Luxury car owners have exceedingly high expectations and our AUTEC system provides the
cleaning performance required after a luxury service here at Mercedes-Benz of Alexandria.
MERCEDES-BENZ of ALEXANDRIA
had outgrown the capacity of its Broadway
car wash, according to Peter Collins,
General Manager. “The Broadway served
us well over the years, but when our contractor recommended we take a look at
the AUTEC Car Wash System, we took
his advice and started our research,”
Collins continued. “We found that there
are three or four common car wash
brands in use among Mercedes dealers,
of which AUTEC is one. We were very
impressed with AUTEC’s stainless steel
construction and felt this made the AUTEC
a better value.
We had to construct a new building as
our old building was not adequate to meet
the growing demands of our customer
provisions. There was a lengthy construction project that encompassed more than
the requirements for the car wash, but the
car wash was the driving force.
It was literally one year from the shutdown of the previous wash to the opening
of the AUTEC. Our city would not allow
driveway washing in the interim and a
neighboring car wash’s cleaning performance was so horrible, we were struggling
with how to return our customers’ vehicles
clean after a luxury service. So you can
imagine how pleased we were when we
could finally return our customers’ vehicles
with the clean they expect from us. Luxury
car owners have exceedingly high expectations and the AUTEC provides the cleaning performance required.
AUTEC’s factory-certified sales and
service partner, David Rennie with
Northeast AUTEC, is super-experienced
with the equipment and he was able to
adjust the equipment specifically for our
needs and provide our people with training for day-to-day checklists and adjustment necessities.
I’m thrilled that I no longer have to
answer for dirty cars returned to the customer. Customer satisfaction is where it
needs to be with clean cars at MercedesBenz of Alexandria.”
AUTEC Shine Express Polisher Takes Center Stage at New Detail
Center in Brunei
Two companies, worlds apart, were
brought together by technology, reputable performance, and upstanding
business principles. IRADS' motto is "be
ready, be prepared, be professional."
AUTEC is proud to have IRADS as a
customer.
From a website inquiry in late July,
2015 to an order in October, 2015 with
delivery in January, 2016, the IRADS
team is already enjoying the benefits of
having the AUTEC "robotic car polish"
in their "top-end car-care services"
center. Next in the plans at IRADS,
AUTEC's EV-1 flagship car wash featuring high pressure and touch free
washing capabilities. Congratulations
IRADS!
Above: Check out this great article featuring
AUTEC's new distributor and operator,
IRADS of Brunei, Darussalam on our AUTEC
website.
At left: The IRADS team visited AUTEC for
orientation and training at our Statesville, NC
Corporate facility.
2016 Summer Edition AUTEC FACTS & FRICTION
Blue Marlin Car Wash
PAGE 7
Louisiana Site Once Again Chooses AUTEC for Third Double Installation...
Two of their Three Sites Feature AUTEC’s EV-1 Evolution Systems
Success in any business requires the
ability to identify current and emerging
trends and being prepared to meet them.
When Dustin Richard, owner of BLUE
MARLIN CAR WASH in Houma, LA, recognized the demand for an express exterior tunnel wash in his market he had
three choices: do nothing, build an express
location himself, or build a custom wash
designed specifically to challenge the express exterior concept. He chose the latter.
Dustin and his brother Ryan and father
Henry have been in the car wash business
for over a dozen years, starting their foray
into professional car washing with a single in-bay automatic and four self-serve
bays. Five years ago the partners decided
it was time to expand and acquired a
prime piece of real estate on Houma’s
main thoroughfare with the intent of building their second Blue Marlin location, but
they were faced with a huge dilemma.
What type of wash should they build?
The town of Houma had no express
exterior tunnel and the partners knew it
was just a matter of time before a new
competitor entered their market offering
the service. But rather than build an expensive express wash that would require
increased labor and time commitments,
the Richards decided to build upon their
successful in-bay concept, developing a
hybrid model designed to meet the impending express competition head on
once it finally manifested itself.
“We didn’t have an express tunnel in
town at the time, and we were debating
going with an express tunnel or in-bay automatic, “ Dustin Richard says. “We tried
to get as close to middle ground between
the two as we could. We took the in-bay
route and tried to make it as close to an
express tunnel as we could to compete
with that market. We knew eventually there
would be an express tunnel somewhere on
our road. It was just a matter of time.
What the Richards built was a hybrid
of the typical in-bay automatic and express tunnel. The wash features two sideby-side AUTEC EV-1 in-bay automatic
units with a standalone wax arch, rinse
arch, and dryers. By installing standalone
arches and drying units, Blue Marlin is
able to begin washing a car while the previous customer is getting wax, spot-free
rinse, and traveling under the blowers, allowing for greater throughput capabilities.
The second Blue Marlin location was
successful from the moment it washed its
first car. The site routinely had lines eight
cars deep, as the local car washing public fully embraced Blue Marlin’s unique
concept. While the early success was
certainly a boon, the Richard’s firstmover advantage was short-lived.
Shortly after the second Blue Marlin
was built, the Richards’ predictions became a reality as an express exterior was
built in town. Not only was the new wash
located on the same road as Blue Marlin,
it was constructed right across the street
less than 100 yards away. While the express exterior competition did take a bite
out of Blue Marlin’s market share, it did
not totally devastate the site, in fact from
an end-user perspective the opening of the
new wash actually improved Blue Marlin.
“We were bursting at the seams prior
to the express exterior opening,” Richard
says. “People would drive off because
there were lines out to the street. Of
course, I wouldn’t say it was a good thing
that they moved in, but it wasn’t all that
bad. It made us more efficient. The customer no longer had to wait in a long line
to get their car washed. I am still consistently busy, but it is more manageable.”
The Richards are currently under construction on a third Blue Marlin location
that will take their hybrid approach to the
next level. The new site will feature AUTEC
equipment just like the second location,
but instead of a mixture of block and
glass the latest incarnation of Blue Marlin
will feature an all-glass enclosure.
Also differentiating the newest location from the others under the Blue
Marlin banner will be the addition of a
tire shiner option and the lengthening of
the wash bay by an additional 13 feet.
Blue Marlin#2 Featuring Side-by-Side AUTEC’s
Blue Marlin Site#2 in Houma, LA
Site#3 Install Ready to Roll
While Blue Marlin has been a success
at its previous two locations, and its third
location looks poised to become a favorite
of the community, this is likely the final expansion effort the Richards will undertake.
“After this one I think we are all set,”
Richard says. “There won’t be any more
room for another wash in town, and I
don’t want to go outside of Houma. To operate these washes the right way, you
have to make sure they are running 100
percent all the time. I just can’t imagine
spending the time on the road driving to
other towns to do what I am doing here.”
The people of Houma should consider
themselves lucky. They will soon have three
Blue Marlin locations that were custom designed to meet their needs and provide a
level of service tailored to local demand.
The above excerpt is from an article written by
Timothy Denman featured in the February 2016
issue of ‘Auto Laundry News.’