What do You Define as Production Detailing?

[dirtdestroyer]

After reading quite a few posts using the words "production detailing" it has become evident that some define the term differently than others. Mike Phillips talks about doing high quality production detailing: http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...ality-production-detailing-mike-phillips.html and in classes seems to talk about single step corrections as production detailing, 2 steps as quality detailing and 3 steps as show car.

Others such as FUNX725 and Pureshine seem to define production detailing more as the slop n glop Mike refers to in the article.

Personally I've used the term more in line with the use of "quality production detailing" in Mike's post. Out of curiousity how do you define production detailing and what would you use to describe your packages geared towards DDs in general?

 

[215Detailing]

In my area (City) most use products (Polish) with fillers, they do rotary work, very quick turn around. Detailing as quick as possible mostly hand wash or wax jobs, cheap products, cheap tools cheap labor, just to make rent and put a few dollars in pocket.
Most shops you pull up and they immediately start hand washing, some may use a pressure washer to knock off some debris, no foam cannon or gun, no vehicle walk around, they grab towels and start washing then rinse and start drying,then start waxing no claying some do not even know what claying is....sorry for my ranting

 

[dirtdestroyer]

In my area (City) most use products (Polish) with fillers, they do rotary work, very quick turn around. Detailing as quick as possible mostly hand wash or wax jobs, cheap products, cheap tools cheap labor, just to make rent and put a few dollars in pocket.
Most shops you pull up and they immediately start hand washing, some may use a pressure washer to knock off some debris, no foam cannon or gun, no vehicle walk around, they grab towels and start washing then rinse and start drying,then start waxing no claying some do not even know what claying is....sorry for my ranting

That makes me shake just thinking about it. Thanks for your input 215.

 

[HUMP DIESEL]

I think it is also defined as only doing the minimal amount to get a certain result. In most aspects it means spending a couple of hours on a car to get it shiny and clean and the interior would be cleaned, maybe light shampoo.
Remy Doyle talks about some of this in his book.

HUMP

 

[FUNX650]

Others such as FUNX725 (and _______) seem to define production detailing more as the slop n glop Mike refers to in the article.

To be perfectly honest:
I say you're quite misguided, in stating
I said anything of this nature.

With that out of the way...
From what; from where; and how...
Did you base this assessment?
From something, or another, found in here?... :

A potential customer contacted me this morning asking for the pricing of an interior detail.
This person says they paid for a full interior detail at my local competitors and she wasn't satisfied with their job. They left the dashboard dirty.
Now they are having to pay for another detail just to correct the errors of the first.
That's why Im trying to teach people that the other guys $40 detail cost more in the long run.

Xtreme Auto

This local competition sounds like a
"production detailing" facility:

-Speed
-Price
-Quality

Why does it always seem true, that this "type" of a
service provider cannot offer but 2 of the 3?

Bob

Most of my business is production detailing, it is where most start to build a client base because the target market is alot bigger. That being said there is a difference between someone doing premium production detail work and some guy cleaning cars and calling it detailing. As much as I absolutely love detailing classic cars and the odd exotic, my bread and butter are soccer moms and guys with trucks. It's just what my local market dictates.

The reason you can't have speed price and quality is because quality takes more time than someone rushing. I would rather take my time and charge a little more so that people get Value, Price and Quality. It's easy to charge more if the value of the work is there.

It would be nice to:
rather take ones time, and charge a little more...

But in true "production detailing" terminology:
That ain't gonna happen too often.

And when a 'value surcharge' appears to have been added...
"Production-Detailing-Customers", invariably, move on to next lowest-costing facility.


Bob

I think we are using 2 different definitions of production detailing to be honest. When I say production detailing what I mean is services preformed on a DD. a package

Two different definitions? Maybe so.

The time it takes to perform those services/packages, figures greatly in my definition of "production detailing"...
To the same degree, as time figures at any "production" job.

The factors of what it takes to have a production facility,
Basically: In one door and out the other...with profits bring determined (and is laid out very well)...by the practices of: Henry Ford, Kaisan, Just-In-Time, et al.

Bob

 

[dirtdestroyer]

FUNX725 you said that a job where the dash wasn't even properly cleaned sounded like work produced by a production detailer. Sloppy would define a job like that hence the inference. I also said "seem to" rather than stating my interpretation as fact, for good reason.

You are welcome to make your definition more clear here if I happen to be incorrect in my statement but when someone says a job where the dash isn't even cleaned is production detailing it does imply that they believe production detailing is poor work where people cut cornrs such as the one mentioned. Again if you were meaning to say something else, please do so. I understand you factor in time but that's a pretty broad open ended definition. We all have processes to reach a specific result regardless of the level of detailing.

I appreciate your participation and in no way is this thread meant to offend anyone.

 

[FUNX650]

FUNX725 you said that a job where the dash wasn't even properly cleaned sounded like work produced by a production detailer. Sloppy would define a job like that hence the inference. I also said "seem to" rather than stating my interpretation as fact, for good reason.

You are welcome to make your definition more clear here if I happen to be incorrect in my statement but when someone says a job where the dash isn't even cleaned is production detailing it does imply that they believe production detailing is poor work where people cut cornrs such as the one mentioned. Again if you were meaning to say something else, please do so. I understand you factor in time but that's a pretty broad open ended definition. We all have processes to reach a specific result regardless of the level of detailing.

I appreciate your participation and in no way is this thread meant to offend anyone.

I already have made my definition more clear:

The factors of what it takes to have a production facility,
Basically: In one door and out the other...with profits bring determined (and is laid out very well)...by the practices of: Henry Ford, Kaisan, Just-In-Time, et al.

When an individual task (cleaning a dash) is missed...You called it being sloppy, I didn't...while in the throes of meeting the time-frame allotted for getting the vehicle "in one door and out the other" (after all: this is a profit center!)...
To me:
That's similar to shutting down a production facility's line-of-operations to "fix" the problem...not cutting corners, as you say.

Time...is...Money : Time lost...is...Money lost!

Note:
I still find myself blushing every now and then...
But the days of my being offended are long past.

It's good to discuss...Not fuss & cuss!


Bob

 

[dirtdestroyer]

I never claimed you said it was sloppy only that such seemed to align with your view based on your ability to label the work as done by such a facility, I am saying it is sloppy (hard to disagree that not cleaning a dash during a detail is sloppy when it was promised isn't it?). Henry Ford wouldn't leave off a headlight. You determined the type of facility based on the description of the work, the work by description is sloppy in my eyes if things are being missed. therefore it seemed to me that such a description would meet your idea of what a production detail is unless you think it's not sloppy to miss work that has promised to be done.

Production lines have QA, if products are sent out with the criteria promised not being met QA has failed. Time is a financial factor regardless of type of detail hence why time effort and products used should dictate price. Nobody goes into detailing to not make money. If you define a production detailer as someone who follows the path of Ford et al., how would you be able to determine a production facility based on work not being performed? Shouldn't QA have caught that as it would in a Ford production line?

I'm only questioning to understand your view better, the view of others in the industry using the term better really. To me the guys that pump out work over promising and under delivering are not production guys as production implies a process being followed and following processes means not missing steps in the process.

Again I don't feel this question has a "right" or "wrong" answer, but rather many shades of grey. Discussion is healthy and I'm always open to other ways of looking at things.

 

[ViGi]

Production Detailing - One Step Polishing.
Wash
Clay
Duragloss 501
Can`t be more productive than this

As for interior I do Full Detail and Mini Detail
Diference 8 hours and 2 hours. In Full Detail`s everything is max cleaned.

 

[Legacykid]

My interpretation of production detailing is to make a car look like it came of the production line, such as a 1-2 step.

3+ steps to me would be show car. Which would be if necessary wet sanding, compound, polish, jewling

thats what I have gatherd, may be wrong

 

[PiPUK]

To me, detailing is summarised by some of Mike's thoughts - use the least aggressive product necessary. As soon as you routinely do otherwise, I would question whether you are (by the strict definition) a detailer.

In the UK, if you check out the main detailing forum, you will see that the majority work on the basis of what works fastest and cleans most effectively. Only the few will actually think that the fastest acting product is probably the most aggressive. These few are the detailers, the others are valeters (is that the same as 'production detailer'?).

I hope that the US community continues to take an interest in detailing as an art, rather than following the UK to making it a production line.

 

[TopThatDetail]

Production detailing to me is volume detailing.. For example car lots.

 

[PiPUK]

Production detailing to me is volume detailing.. For example car lots.

What we, in the UK, call valeting[/i[]. Of course everyone is a 'detailer' if you ask them...

 

[Bunky]

Production detailing is no more different than automobile manufacturing. It is usually a process (defined operational and quality standards). The level of quality is defined by the person defining and insuring compliance to quality requirements.

You have poorly made cars and you have well made cars..just depends on management. They both should include volume (repeated over time consistently). I would also believe it in involves a team - more than one person each doing specific tasks for efficiency..time is key in production costs.

So, production detailing could be passing it through a car wash and wiping down with some sealant to one step polishing.