The manager of Wright Collision Center in Wexford, Bill Miko, talks about the facility’s recent decision to go green.

Tell me a little bit about Wright Collision Center.

We at Wright Collision Center offer our clients a variety of services from minor dent and scratch repair to heavy collision repair. We also have full glass repair and a replacement service. We take great pride in making every effort to give our clients a positive repair experience and to return their vehicles to them in pre-accident condition. We understand the importance of a quality, safe repair. Our staff is very experienced and highly trained to ensure that each vehicle is as good or even better than it was prior to the accident. We also have a state-of-the-art facility that we moved into in 2008. There aren’t many other shops like Wright in the Pittsburgh area.

What does it mean for a collision center to “go green?”

We use environmentally-friendly waterborne refinish products from PPG Industries and recycle the damaged parts that are removed during the repair process. We also do whatever we can to reduce waste from our facility.

Why did Wright Collison Center decide to make this change?

We feel that it’s our responsibility to be proactive in protecting the environment. Our use of waterborne finishes on our customers’ vehicles reduces the emission of volatile organic compounds (VOC) into the atmosphere by 80 percent. This move further helps us to do our part to improve the quality of our air and contribute to an overall healthier work environment. When we built our shop, we equipped it with all the necessary tools needed to accommodate the change to this new paint technology.

How long did the “going green” process take?

The process was very easy. Our staff attended a two-day certification class at PPG’s training center and after about a week of using waterborne basecoat, we were comfortable with the product.

What’s the biggest difference that customers can expect to see?

The use of the waterborne basecoat gives our painters the ability to provide our clients with a finish that matches the vehicle’s original factory finish because waterborne products are typically used by the manufacturers. Not only is the paint better ecologically, but it also allows us to give our clients a better factory color match in a shorter amount of time and gets our clients’ vehicles back on the road again.

First Published: May 15, 2014, 9:00 a.m.