By Becca Butler

More than 125 builders competed in the inaugural SEMA Battle of the Builders competition, where they battled their way onto a nationwide TV special and gained the recognition of more than 2 million viewers around the world.

While builders begin to sign up for the 2015 competition, past participants commented on what the program meant to them:

“To be selected as part of an elite few is something you cannot put a name to. Think of it as a nobel prize of the automotive community.”

—Bisi Ezerioha

“Being in the Top 10 is unreal. You’re competing with the best of the best. Everybody that’s anybody is here.”

—Bobby Alloway

“It’s about as pristine as it gets if you win the SEMA Battle of the Builders.”

—Dale Dondel

“I’m honored to be selected. I never thought I’d be here.”

—Jeff Kinsey

“You can’t really put it into words what it’s like to be part of the top 10.”

—Mike Ring

“We’re very proud and honored to be a part of Battle of the Builders.”

—Sherif Yassa

Open to vehicles from all market segments, contestants can enter the 2015 SEMA Battle of the Builders at www.semaignited.com.

Find out more about some of the 2014 competitors and hear what they have to say.

By Becca Butler

More than 125 builders competed in the inaugural SEMA Battle of the Builders competition, where they battled their way onto a nationwide TV special and gained the recognition of more than 2 million viewers around the world.

While builders begin to sign up for the 2015 competition, past participants commented on what the program meant to them:

“To be selected as part of an elite few is something you cannot put a name to. Think of it as a nobel prize of the automotive community.”

—Bisi Ezerioha

“Being in the Top 10 is unreal. You’re competing with the best of the best. Everybody that’s anybody is here.”

—Bobby Alloway

“It’s about as pristine as it gets if you win the SEMA Battle of the Builders.”

—Dale Dondel

“I’m honored to be selected. I never thought I’d be here.”

—Jeff Kinsey

“You can’t really put it into words what it’s like to be part of the top 10.”

—Mike Ring

“We’re very proud and honored to be a part of Battle of the Builders.”

—Sherif Yassa

Open to vehicles from all market segments, contestants can enter the 2015 SEMA Battle of the Builders at www.semaignited.com.

Find out more about some of the 2014 competitors and hear what they have to say.

	The newly remodeled SEMA Garage will be unveiled at the kickoff reception for the 2015 Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Conference.

By Monika Earle

The newly remodeled SEMA Garage will be unveiled at the kickoff reception for the 2015 Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Conference, Sunday, August 30, from 6:00 p.m.–9:00 p.m., in Diamond Bar, California.

Held annually the evening before the PWA Conference, the kickoff event for this year will be hosted by the SEMA Garage and will include tours of the facility, in particular a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the newly renovated emissions lab complete with new AVL testing equipment.

Visitors will tour the SEMA Garage to see the product-development tools available first-hand.

SEMA manufacturers are invited to join PWA Conference attendees at the event, where they will learn how the SEMA Garage helps manufacturers develop products faster, more efficiently and cost effectively.

One of SEMA’s key initiatives is to assist members in navigating and streamlining the emissions process, and the ribbon-cutting ceremony will give attendees a first-hand look. Visit the SEMA Garage website for further details.     

In addition to touring the new SEMA Garage emissions lab and training center, attendees can enjoy refreshments, music, giveaways and a chance to meet industry celebrities.

To learn more about the event and to RSVP, visit www.sema.org/pwa-reception.

For those interested in bringing a vehicle to display during the event, please submit an image of your vehicle to Rachael Salazar.

	The newly remodeled SEMA Garage will be unveiled at the kickoff reception for the 2015 Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Conference.

By Monika Earle

The newly remodeled SEMA Garage will be unveiled at the kickoff reception for the 2015 Performance Warehouse Association (PWA) Conference, Sunday, August 30, from 6:00 p.m.–9:00 p.m., in Diamond Bar, California.

Held annually the evening before the PWA Conference, the kickoff event for this year will be hosted by the SEMA Garage and will include tours of the facility, in particular a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the newly renovated emissions lab complete with new AVL testing equipment.

Visitors will tour the SEMA Garage to see the product-development tools available first-hand.

SEMA manufacturers are invited to join PWA Conference attendees at the event, where they will learn how the SEMA Garage helps manufacturers develop products faster, more efficiently and cost effectively.

One of SEMA’s key initiatives is to assist members in navigating and streamlining the emissions process, and the ribbon-cutting ceremony will give attendees a first-hand look. Visit the SEMA Garage website for further details.     

In addition to touring the new SEMA Garage emissions lab and training center, attendees can enjoy refreshments, music, giveaways and a chance to meet industry celebrities.

To learn more about the event and to RSVP, visit www.sema.org/pwa-reception.

For those interested in bringing a vehicle to display during the event, please submit an image of your vehicle to Rachael Salazar.

SEMA Show exhibitors have begun to announce their product debuts, demonstrations, vehicle unveils and more via the Online Media Center.

• Performance Automatic, Booth #71004, has added a new transmission overflow tank to its line of transmissions and components. This tank comes complete with an easy-to-operate drain valve, mounting hardware, clamps and rubber hose. It’s made of a polished aluminum canister and is useful in keeping your transmission fluids from escaping.

• Innovative Creations, Booth #36113, announces the release of their new Magnum License Plate Light, which features bright LEDs that have been tested to last in mud, rain and snow. The Magnum universal license plate light is easy to install, can be used with any standard license-plate mount and works with any replacement or stock bumper.

• Chariot Concepts, Booth #38221, announces its TruStack Tire Dolly—high-capacity platform dolly that offers a stable way to fetch, stow or display barrel-stacked tires.

• Mishimoto Automotive, Booth #21655, introduces its fan shroud kit—an electric fan shroud setup that eliminates the stock mechanical fan. It mounts directly to the stock radiator and gives the user total control over coolant temperatures.

SEMA Show exhibitors have begun to announce their product debuts, demonstrations, vehicle unveils and more via the Online Media Center.

• Performance Automatic, Booth #71004, has added a new transmission overflow tank to its line of transmissions and components. This tank comes complete with an easy-to-operate drain valve, mounting hardware, clamps and rubber hose. It’s made of a polished aluminum canister and is useful in keeping your transmission fluids from escaping.

• Innovative Creations, Booth #36113, announces the release of their new Magnum License Plate Light, which features bright LEDs that have been tested to last in mud, rain and snow. The Magnum universal license plate light is easy to install, can be used with any standard license-plate mount and works with any replacement or stock bumper.

• Chariot Concepts, Booth #38221, announces its TruStack Tire Dolly—high-capacity platform dolly that offers a stable way to fetch, stow or display barrel-stacked tires.

• Mishimoto Automotive, Booth #21655, introduces its fan shroud kit—an electric fan shroud setup that eliminates the stock mechanical fan. It mounts directly to the stock radiator and gives the user total control over coolant temperatures.

SEMA Show exhibitors have begun to announce their product debuts, demonstrations, vehicle unveils and more via the Online Media Center.

• Performance Automatic, Booth #71004, has added a new transmission overflow tank to its line of transmissions and components. This tank comes complete with an easy-to-operate drain valve, mounting hardware, clamps and rubber hose. It’s made of a polished aluminum canister and is useful in keeping your transmission fluids from escaping.

• Innovative Creations, Booth #36113, announces the release of their new Magnum License Plate Light, which features bright LEDs that have been tested to last in mud, rain and snow. The Magnum universal license plate light is easy to install, can be used with any standard license-plate mount and works with any replacement or stock bumper.

• Chariot Concepts, Booth #38221, announces its TruStack Tire Dolly—high-capacity platform dolly that offers a stable way to fetch, stow or display barrel-stacked tires.

• Mishimoto Automotive, Booth #21655, introduces its fan shroud kit—an electric fan shroud setup that eliminates the stock mechanical fan. It mounts directly to the stock radiator and gives the user total control over coolant temperatures.

By SEMA Editors

	The OEM Collision Repair Technology Summit will focus on emerging trends in vehicle construction and technology and how both of those aspects influence vehicle repairability and collision industry preparation.

The Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) added schedule topic details to the website landing pages for the upcoming OEM Collision Repair Technology Summit, which will be held Thursday, November 5, during the 2015 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. The summit will focus on emerging trends in vehicle construction and technology and how both of those aspects influence vehicle repairability and collision industry preparation. The program is designed to put SEMA Show attendees in a room with innovators in automotive structural design and technology, providing one of the most unique networking and learning opportunities available to the collision-repair industry.

This year, the program will provide three different segments, which can be selected individually or collectively as part of the Repairer Driven Education (RDE) Full Series Pass.

The sessions will feature companies and individuals with rich histories of producing sophisticated advancements in the automotive and collision-repair fields, and will highlight architectural and technological developments in modern vehicles, and how those advancements intersect with the repair process. Sessions will include:

OEM1 | Advanced Automotive Technology
9:30 a.m.–11:30 a.m.

This will include panel discussions on both Structural Connectivity – Understanding the Future of Automaker Joining Techniques, and Tech Crunch – The Role of Programming and Diagnostics in Post-Repair Road Worthiness.

OEM2 | The Future of Aluminum in the Automotive Industry
12:30 p.m.–2:30 p.m.

OEM3 | The Continuing Evolution of Advanced Steels in Automotive Bodies
3:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m.

Both afternoon sessions will include detailed presentations on technological developments in each of the featured substrate markets, and then transition to panels of automakers known for their use of the featured materials to discuss real-world applications in vehicular structural design, safety and repairability.

More details on each segment are available by following the individual links.

Attendees are encouraged to register early, as space will be limited for each of these sessions.

Register now for the SEMA Show and SCRS Repairer Driven Education series, including the OEM Collision Repair Technology Summit.

By SEMA Editors

	The OEM Collision Repair Technology Summit will focus on emerging trends in vehicle construction and technology and how both of those aspects influence vehicle repairability and collision industry preparation.

The Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) added schedule topic details to the website landing pages for the upcoming OEM Collision Repair Technology Summit, which will be held Thursday, November 5, during the 2015 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. The summit will focus on emerging trends in vehicle construction and technology and how both of those aspects influence vehicle repairability and collision industry preparation. The program is designed to put SEMA Show attendees in a room with innovators in automotive structural design and technology, providing one of the most unique networking and learning opportunities available to the collision-repair industry.

This year, the program will provide three different segments, which can be selected individually or collectively as part of the Repairer Driven Education (RDE) Full Series Pass.

The sessions will feature companies and individuals with rich histories of producing sophisticated advancements in the automotive and collision-repair fields, and will highlight architectural and technological developments in modern vehicles, and how those advancements intersect with the repair process. Sessions will include:

OEM1 | Advanced Automotive Technology
9:30 a.m.–11:30 a.m.

This will include panel discussions on both Structural Connectivity – Understanding the Future of Automaker Joining Techniques, and Tech Crunch – The Role of Programming and Diagnostics in Post-Repair Road Worthiness.

OEM2 | The Future of Aluminum in the Automotive Industry
12:30 p.m.–2:30 p.m.

OEM3 | The Continuing Evolution of Advanced Steels in Automotive Bodies
3:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m.

Both afternoon sessions will include detailed presentations on technological developments in each of the featured substrate markets, and then transition to panels of automakers known for their use of the featured materials to discuss real-world applications in vehicular structural design, safety and repairability.

More details on each segment are available by following the individual links.

Attendees are encouraged to register early, as space will be limited for each of these sessions.

Register now for the SEMA Show and SCRS Repairer Driven Education series, including the OEM Collision Repair Technology Summit.

By SEMA Editors

	The OEM Collision Repair Technology Summit will focus on emerging trends in vehicle construction and technology and how both of those aspects influence vehicle repairability and collision industry preparation.

The Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) added schedule topic details to the website landing pages for the upcoming OEM Collision Repair Technology Summit, which will be held Thursday, November 5, during the 2015 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. The summit will focus on emerging trends in vehicle construction and technology and how both of those aspects influence vehicle repairability and collision industry preparation. The program is designed to put SEMA Show attendees in a room with innovators in automotive structural design and technology, providing one of the most unique networking and learning opportunities available to the collision-repair industry.

This year, the program will provide three different segments, which can be selected individually or collectively as part of the Repairer Driven Education (RDE) Full Series Pass.

The sessions will feature companies and individuals with rich histories of producing sophisticated advancements in the automotive and collision-repair fields, and will highlight architectural and technological developments in modern vehicles, and how those advancements intersect with the repair process. Sessions will include:

OEM1 | Advanced Automotive Technology
9:30 a.m.–11:30 a.m.

This will include panel discussions on both Structural Connectivity – Understanding the Future of Automaker Joining Techniques, and Tech Crunch – The Role of Programming and Diagnostics in Post-Repair Road Worthiness.

OEM2 | The Future of Aluminum in the Automotive Industry
12:30 p.m.–2:30 p.m.

OEM3 | The Continuing Evolution of Advanced Steels in Automotive Bodies
3:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m.

Both afternoon sessions will include detailed presentations on technological developments in each of the featured substrate markets, and then transition to panels of automakers known for their use of the featured materials to discuss real-world applications in vehicular structural design, safety and repairability.

More details on each segment are available by following the individual links.

Attendees are encouraged to register early, as space will be limited for each of these sessions.

Register now for the SEMA Show and SCRS Repairer Driven Education series, including the OEM Collision Repair Technology Summit.