To date, 20 Kwik Fit Plus centres have been opened as part of parent company Itochu Corporation’s ongoing network-wide multi-million refurbishment and modernisation programme.
Each of the current 20 Kwik Fit Plus centres, located chiefly in the South East of England, employs one team of fully trained staff delivering traditional ‘fast-fit’ and a second team delivering mechanical services.
Each team is led by a supervisor and all work is overseen by a quality controller and manager. The mechanical services team also includes a centre-based Master Technician trained to the highest level recognised by the Automotive Technician Accreditation and specialising in the most complex electrical and mechanical repair work on company cars and vans.
Allied to the development of Kwik Fit Plus centres is a continuous programme of modernisation and refurbishment across the more than 600 centres in the Kwik Fit estate, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2018.
The increase in fleet business follows the company’s decision to further increase its focus on brake repair and replacement work, MoTs and all makes and models car and light commercial vehicle servicing.
Additionally, the increasing volume of mechanical work being undertaken at Kwik Fit centres is being further driven by an ever-growing focus on encouraging more fleets and small businesses to use centres for light commercial vehicle service, maintenance and repair jobs.
A growing number of centres are now capable of undertaking MoTs on Class 7 vans – those over 3000 kg up to and including 3500 kg DGW (design gross weight) – as well as MoTs on Class 4 vehicles, which includes LCVs up to 3000 kg DGW. Additionally centres have been ‘tooled up’ with a range of equipment including, five-tonne axle stands, wheel clocks, extensions bars and tyre cages to undertake work on the largest vans.
Furthermore, demand across the fleet sector for mechanical work being undertaken at Kwik Fit centres is being driven by a range of other factors, but notably the company’s price competitiveness, further improvements in customer service levels being reported as monitored by fleet customers and an extended opening hours policy when compared with traditional service outlets.
Kwik Fit fleet director Peter Lambert said: “Fleet manager and driver confidence in Kwik Fit’s ability to undertake mechanical work on vehicles in addition to traditional fast-fit work is growing rapidly and we expect that trend to continue in 2015.”
