INDUSTRY PEOPLE
A major hot rod project is one of the diverse jobs undertaken in the workshop.
Plymouth to Palmerston North took five weeks with trips
almost every day. Such is the Farrington’s dedication and
enthusiasm. experience but also to have the gear available is crucial.
Those are the three components that make it work:
experience, equipment and conditions.”
“Manawatu Muffler Centre is primarily automotive,” says
Colin, “so, more the ‘mum and dad’ cars; sometimes they
fail a WOF and need a new muffler or repairs, but also, too,
there are the specialty cars such as hot rods and racers
and collectible cars that people are rebuilding. There are
very few shops like ours left where people can fabricate a
complete system on a classic car, so those skills are few
and far between. We have two guys who do that, and the
breadth of work done here is extensive. Their focus is to remain as the best muffler business
around. They have no plans to expand in terms of
increasing staff. Vanessa, though, has plans to increase
the clientele through Musket Mufflers’ website presence,
and has come up with multiple ways a potential client can
access their website and make initial contact.
Over on eBay (Australia) the company opened an account
in 2014.
There, they list parts that direct the customer back to
their website. Vanessa knows what parts are generally
needed and what’s in stock, and knows that the boys
can fabricate quality parts up in a matter of a day. Then
shipping options are as wide as the client needs. A drop-
down box reveals that a customer could be anywhere in
the world and Musket Mufflers can deliver within days.
“We only have 10 or so parts listed on eBay, yet in stock
we’ll have hundreds of parts, so it’s only a little snippet,”
she says.
With the website working as it is, Colin explains they’ve
made the business relatively visible and the parts easily
lead a potential client back to them.
“Generally speaking, Manawatu Muffler Centre will take
care of day-to-day automotive repairs. The client base is
everyone from a private car, to cars that are in the range
of half-a-million bucks.”
There’s a staff of nine, including Colin and Vanessa.
Colin’s background is diesel mechanic by trade. Staff
retention is high, and Colin explains that as much of the
work is specialist, it keeps staff invigorated and keen to
refine their skills.
“The guys here have probably put in over 20 years
each. That fabrication of pipe-bending and welding in
quite confined spaces requires a reasonable amount of
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CAM December 2018
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