Automotive Collision and Refinishing Technology
Automotive Collision and Refinishing Technology
Experience a career as an Automotive Collision & Refinishing Technician at Highland Community College Technical Center (HCCTC).
Full-time students may plan to enter the workforce after completing 18 months of coursework. Students will gain hands-on experience working on anything from minor parking lot dents to a totaled Ford Mustang. We have state-of-the-art down-draft paint booth, computer alignment equipment and an extensive inventory of power tools.
Graduates of the Automotive Collision & Refinishing Technology program have job opportunities in auto body repair, painting, estimating and collision damage estimating.
The Automotive Collision and Refinishing Technology program aligns with the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). CIP Code 47.0603: Autobody/Collision and Repair Technology/Technician. A program that prepares individuals to apply technical knowledge and skills to repair, reconstruct and finish automobile bodies, fenders, and external features. Includes instruction in structure analysis, damage repair, non-structural analysis, mechanical and electrical components, plastics and adhesives, painting and refinishing techniques, and damage analysis and estimating.
Certifications: Students in the Auto Collision program complete OSHA10 training and are eligible to earn the I-CAR Refinish Technician Pro-Level One and Non-Structural Technician Pro-Level One certifications. They may also take the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) Entry-Level Collision Repair & Refinishing certification tests in the areas of Mechanical and Electrical, Non-Structural Analysis and Damage Repair, Painting and Refinishing, and Structural Analysis and Damage Repair.
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ACR Technology Course (53 Credits Total):
*This course is recognized by the Kansas Board of Regents as Common or Support course within the program.
3 Credit Hours
This course is the first in a four-course sequence covering all aspects of painting and refinishing auto body surfaces. The course will cover safety and health issues, surface preparation, metal treatments, equipment, and paint specifics.
4 Credit Hours
This course is the first in a four-course sequence covering all aspects of non-structural analysis and damage repair for automobiles. The course will cover safety issues, vehicle construction, industry opportunities, and auto body repair techniques and materials.
2 Credit Hours
This course is the first in a four-course sequence covering all aspects of structural analysis and damage repair for automobiles. The course will cover measuring, damage analysis, safety, frame repair, unibody analysis, and welding.
3 Credit Hours
This course is designed to enhance skills in auto collision repair through creating detail and unique products using airbrush and pin striping techniques and fiberglass fabrication.
1 Credit Hour
This course will explain job/site safety and precautions for job/site hazards; determine the uses of personal protective equipment (PPE); identify the safety equipment and procedures related to safe work practices and environment; identify fire prevention and protection techniques; explore Hazardous Communications (HazCom) including Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDA).
3 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: ACR 105
This course is the second in a four-course sequence covering all aspects of painting and refinishing auto body surfaces. The course will cover protective equipment, shop operations, and specific painting principles and procedures.
4 Credit Hours
Prerequisites: ACR 115
This course is the second in a four-course sequence covering all aspects of non-structural analysis and damage repair for automobiles. The course will cover trim and hardware protection, glass, outer body, metal work, welding, safety, cutting, plastics, and adhesives.
2 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: ACR 125
This course is the second in a four-course sequence covering all aspects of structural analysis and damage repair for automobiles. The course will cover safety, frame inspection and repair, structural damage, unibody repair, welding techniques, and cutting procedures.
3 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: ACR 125
This course is designed to give students the skills needed to fabricate panels using sheet metal in order to create a finished product by replacing or repairing existing parts.
3 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: ACR 155
This course is the third in a four-course sequence covering all aspects of painting and refinishing auto body surfaces. This more advanced course will focus on application procedures and techniques for auto body painting.
3 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: ACR 165
This course is the third in a four-course sequence covering all aspects of non-structural analysis and damage repair for automobiles. This advanced course will cover trim and hardware, glass repair, outer body, mechanical and electrical components, safety protocol, intermediate welding skills, and plastic and adhesive repairs.
3 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: None
Damage analysis and estimating covers the process of analyzing the vehicle following a collision event looking at preexisting conditions as well as collision related damage. The process of gathering customer information, vehicle information, insurance coverage information, vehicle damage, parts options, parts pricing, labor operation pricing, and other related charges and arriving at cost of repairs is the core of the course.
3 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: ACR 175
This course is designed to allow students to use knowledge gained in sheet metal repair, welding, plastic repair, and painting to obtain skills in working on fleet and commercial vehicles, using tools and paint specific to the industrial field of collision repair.
4 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: ACR 205
This course is the final one in a four-course sequence covering all aspects of painting and refinishing auto body surfaces. This course will focus on advanced aspects, techniques, and procedures for a variety of auto body painting and refinishing applications.
4 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: ACR 215
This course is the final one in a four-course sequence covering all aspects of non-structural analysis and damage repair for automobiles. This course will focus on advanced aspects, techniques, and procedures for non-structural damage repair.
3 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: None
This course teaches systematic approaches to determining the extent of collision damage to all areas of the vehicle. After analyzing the damage, the process of converting it into an estimated cost of repair is presented in principle along with hands-on practice and application. This courses will use a computer database to complete the estimate. In addition, to completing estimates students will learn to communicate with customers as well as insurance companies.
3 Credit Hours
Prerequisite: ACR225
This course will focus specifically on auto mechanical and electrical systems and will cover inspection, diagnosis, service, and repair of system problems or damage.