Boost Profitability by Capturing Body Repair Materials Billables

Experts from 3M, John Ascheman and Todd Mathes, emphasize the importance of using digital inventory and billing tools like 3M™ RepairStack™ to document materials usage in detail, align with insurance expectations, and improve billing accuracy.

May 23, 2025

To boost profitability in body repair shops, especially for medium- and heavy-duty trucks, it's essential to accurately track and bill for body repair materials like adhesives, seam sealers, and corrosion protection products. Many shops fail to recover these costs, impacting their gross profits. Templates and billable guides help standardize documentation and reduce communication gaps between technicians and office staff. Effective inventory management ensures repair consistency, minimizes delays, and prevents waste. Leveraging data and analytics allows shops to improve technician efficiency, identify missed repair steps, and optimize material use—ultimately enhancing both repair quality and financial performance.