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DCR Systems Partners With Metro Toyota to Operate Dealer-Based Collision Repair Facility

Turnkey On-Site Facility an Industry First

CLEVELAND, April 13 -- Mentor-based DCR Systems ( http://www.dcrsystems.net/ ) has reached an agreement to design and operate a full-service collision repair facility in concert with the Metro Toyota auto dealership in Brook Park, Ohio. The deal marks a first for DCR Systems as the newly founded company executes an aggressive program to supply similar turnkey facilities to dealerships nationwide, and follows its recent opening of a model collision repair facility in Mentor, Ohio.

According to the agreement, Metro Toyota will construct a 12,000-square- foot collision repair facility and outsource the dealer-based function to DCR Systems, which will be responsible for supplying equipment, tooling, staffing, technician training and certification, management and day-to-day operations.

Design plans for the collision center have been completed and the City of Brook Park recently granted final approval for construction, which will begin immediately. When completed the Metro Toyota Accident Repair Center will have the capacity to facilitate 200 cars per month using the latest advancements in collision repair techniques, tooling, equipment and process-driven design.

According to Metro Toyota co-owner and general manager, Ken Schneider, the collision repair facility will allow the dealership to become a single-source contact for all customer automotive needs, from sales and service to parts and accident repair.

"From our perspective, having DCR Systems manage this operation will enable us to enhance our overall customer offerings," Schneider commented. "DCR's knowledge of collision repair is far superior to anything we've seen. We found that the advantages of outsourcing to an organization with such expertise far outweighed the risks involved in building our own operation and relying on unproven and untested hires we bring in to manage the function."

DCR Systems president, Michael Giarrizzo, Jr., said his company's recently launched program to design and operate the patent-pending, turnkey collision repair facilities has caught the attention of auto dealers, fleet managers and insurers. "These industry segments are constantly seeking ways to better service the customer, and our process presents a strategic change to attain that objective," he noted.

The DCR process utilizes "lean manufacturing" principles in its approach to collision repair that employ task-specific, highly trained technicians working with cutting-edge equipment and tooling. The model is designed to streamline workflow and enable the repair operation to become dependable and offer consistency in guaranteed quality and vehicle delivery.

"The DCR model can be summed up in two words: Quicker and better," commented Schneider. "The process takes the individuality out of the work and relies more on a team approach to get the work done."

"Our system is all about putting consistent quality control back into the process and enabling the dealership to fully meet the needs and expectations of existing and potential customers," said Giarrizzo.

DCR Systems Backgrounder: DCR Systems ( www.DCRsystems.net ) was founded by the Giarrizzo family, a well-respected name in the collision repair industry through the operation of Cleveland-based JSI Collision Centers which they established in 1946. JSI grew from a single location to a four-store chain in northeast Ohio with annual sales of $12 million, and was twice recognized by the industry as "Collision Business of the Year" for its customer service and standardized operating procedures. The business was acquired in 1999 by Sterling Autobody Centers and four years later grew to 39 locations. In 2001 Allstate Non-Insurance Holdings Inc. acquired Sterling, and Michael Giarrizzo Jr. took the position of Chief Operating Officer for the Sterling division. While Giarrizzo led operations, the company grew aggressively by establishing an additional 21 "greenfield" stores in just two years.

Giarrizzo subsequently left his position in 2003 to start DCR Systems with a team and a vision of pioneering a needed change in the collision repair industry. The business model has a natural fit of returning a collision repair offering to dealers seeking to retain loyal customers by providing ancillary customer care services.