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New DEG admin has background in luxury repair, seeks to expand usage of free estimating resource

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The Database Enhancement Gateway, a free resource connecting insurers and repairers to the three estimating services, announced Monday the appointment of a veteran luxury collision repairer as its new administrator.

Danny Gredinberg‘s LinkedIn profile and resume list more than a decade of auto body experience, including roles as a certified technician and an estimator, and specializes in European and aluminum vehicles. Credentials include I-CAR Platinum status and welding certifications as well as structural credentials for Mercedes and Porsche models. He also has experience on all Big 3 information providers CCC, Mitchell and Audatex.

The DEG, founded by the Automotive Service Association, Alliance of Automotive Service Providers and the Society of Collision Repair Specialists and inspired by the work of the late March Taylor, is a free, Web-based resource found at www.degweb.org.

Auto body shops and insurers can submit questions about the IPs’ estimating software — the platforms whose nuances and outputs are the base for nearly all physical damage claims — and P-pages directing how to use these programs. The DEG’s administrator then works with the IPs to quickly obtain answers, stimulate the development of new database line items and refine the existing estimate outputs. The focus on documentation and facts make it a middleman that insurers, shops and the IPs can accept.

“Danny really seems to be the ideal individual to assume the role of DEG Administrator,” DEG Joint Operating Committee member Ron Reichen (Precision Body & Paint) said in a statement. “I’ve had the opportunity to work with him directly in the past through other programs, and I think we all believe his technical aptitude and passion for advancing the industry are going to serve the industry well. Danny shares the same commitment and values of the DEG, and why it was created. It’s important to all of us for the DEG to continue its legacy in the spirit of March Taylor who began this work as a volunteer based on the premise of doing the right things, the right way for the right reasons.”

“I’ve always been a big advocate for the DEG,” Gredinberg said in an interview, and called it “definitely exciting” to become the administrator.

The DEG in a news release called Gredinberg “an experienced user” who “saw great benefit from submitting inquiries through the website on errors, inaccuracies or omissions found in the estimating data content.”

“It made a positive impact on what we wanted to accomplish,” Gredinberg said of his DEG inquiries, and insurers “recognized (the DEG) as well” as an authority. The DEG’s existence made the claims experience more transparent and “not a battle,” he said.

DEG hits 10,000th inquiry connecting repairers, insurers to estimating service IPs

“It’s an exciting time to be in the collision repair industry,” Gredinberg said in a statement. “The advancement of vehicle technology is evolving and changing quickly; from vehicle construction, advance driver assist systems, repair methods, tooling and training. We sometimes forget how challenging it can be to capture those dynamic changes to the vehicles in order to get the information out to the people working on the cars. The information providers rely heavily on the OEM’s for information, but there is a tremendous resource in having regular feedback from technicians and collision repair businesses who have the vehicle in front of them, and can communicate areas where the data may not align with the vehicle reality.”

Gredinberg said his primary task will be to get inquiries from users resolved and keep the site updated. “That’s what I’m here for,” he said.

His other goal is to make the industry aware the free resource even exists: “How do we get this to every shop out there?” he said, calling it a “huge, huge thing” to get the information out to the front lines.

Asked about tips for shops or insurers submitting questions to the site, Gredinberg noted that sometimes the answer might have been in front of a user all along, but “no submission is a bad submission.”

“Utilization is the key thing,” he said. The DEG wants as much traffic as possible — it means it’s helping more shops and insurers better use and understand the estimating services.

“We’ll get them an answer they need,” he said.

4-stage paint, steering angle sensors, unprimed bumpers: 5 more tips from the DEG

“I am really passionate about giving back to this industry, and being a part of actively helping to raise awareness and understanding of the information necessary to capture accurate repair procedures,” Gredinberg said in a statement. “The DEG isn’t about changing labor times, it’s really about helping to educate those using the system to facilitate feedback to those developing it and to get proper information to the collision repair industry in the most efficient way possible. I’m proud to be a part of the DEG who has a proven record of making a difference in the industry and to have the opportunity to work closely with great organizations like the Alliance of Automotive Service Providers and the Society of Collision Repair Specialists.”

Have a question about AudaExplore, Mitchell or CCC? Submit inquiries to the DEG here. Inquiries, like answers, are free. Contact Gredinberg at admin@degweb.org.

More information:

“Database Enhancement Gateway Announces New Administrator for the DEG”

Database Enhancement Gateway, March 29, 2017

SCRS DEG estimating tips page

Database Enhancement Gateway

DEG database

Images:

New Database Enhancement Gateway Administrator Danny Gredinberg. (Provided by Danny Gredinberg)

A screenshot of the Database Enhancement Gateway. (Screenshot from www.degweb.org)

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