AGRSS News
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AGRSS Third-Party Validation to Launch September 1; Fees Officially Set
The Auto Glass Replacement Safety Standard (AGRSS) Council’s third-party validation program will begin officially on
September 1 and many of the highly anticipated details of the program have been established.

Under the program, each year all the locations of AGRSS-registered companies will be divided into geographical clusters of 10 across the United States. Ten clusters (100 locations total) will be validated during each annual validation period. The clusters to be validated will be picked randomly.

In a recent interview that appeared in the AGRSS Newsletter, AGRSS president Debra Levy explained that each company to be validated will receive one month’s notice before a representative from Orion Registrar Corp. will visit the business.

“The results of the validation will not be as simple as a pass/fail process,” Levy said.

“You could have no deficiencies or you could have deficiencies that require correction,” she said. “At that point, AGRSS would give you a bit of time to make a correction and then return to verify that has been done. If you still have major deficiencies, then your company ceases to be AGRSS-registered. Of course, there is an appeals process as well.”

The fee schedule for AGRSS-registered companies will change after September 1 of this year due to the additional costs required to administer such a program. After September 1, it will cost companies $494 to register their first location, and $99 for each additional one.

“This fee includes the validation review,” says Levy. “It’s not cheap, but it’s not the crazy numbers I’ve heard bantered about.”

Each year, a new validation period will begin on September 1; that period lasts a year. Thus, each year on September 1, the pool of companies is sealed—in order to keep the validation model statistically sound. www.agrss.com

AGRSS Board Creates Membership Categories
The Auto Glass Replacement Safety Standards (AGRSS) Council Inc. board of directors recently voted to create categories for AGRSS membership in the AGRSS Council Inc. The addition of membership categories provides not only installation companies, but also computer software vendors, tool manufacturers and other suppliers, the opportunity to become recognized members of the AGRSS Council Inc.

Membership allows a member company to:

• use the AGRSS member logo, distinctively different from the registered company logo;

• have its company logo on AGRSS.com;

• have its company listed in AGRSS database for easy identification by consumers;

• participate in and vote on AGRSS committees;

• have a representative chair AGRSS committees;

• have the privilege of having a representative elected to the AGRSS Council board of directors and thus be elected as an officer of the AGRSS Council; and

• receive a discount on registration fees at the International Auto Glass Safety Conference.

Though membership is open to any company associated with the auto glass industry, all windshield installation companies who wish to be AGRSS members must also be AGRSS-registered companies.

In addition, the Council now will permit affiliate members (those who offer services or products to the auto glass industry but do not install auto glass) to join, but these will pay dues according to company revenue. Companies that have revenue in auto glass related sales under $1 million annually pay $300 (see chart for more information). Affiliate members receive similar benefits for their support of AGRSS Council Inc. such as:

• being listed on AGRSS web page under the separate affiliate member listing;

• use of AGRSS affiliate member logo;

• the right to be on and vote on AGRSS committees;

• the right to chair AGRSS committees; and

• a discount on International Auto Glass Safety Conference registration.

Sullenberger to Keynote Conference
Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger III will serve as the keynote speaker for the upcoming Fifth Annual International Auto Glass Safety Conference in November. Captain Sullenberger, who became a hero when he landed the recent US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River, will address attendees on Thursday, November 5, at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas.

Captain Sullenberger will speak on planning for safety and personal
responsibility. He also will hold a private breakfast with members of AGRSS-registered companies prior to the speech.

“Hearing from Captain Sullenberger, a man whose persistence in the field of safety was proven back on January 15, is an ideal fit for the AGRSS-registered companies and those in the auto glass industry who hold safety first as their top priority,” says Debra Levy, president of the AGRSS Council Inc. “We hope our attendees are able to come away with a greater understanding of what a difference their diligence in safety can make as it did in Captain Sullenberger’s case.”

In addition to being a pilot, Captain Sullenberger is the founder and chief executive officer of Safety Reliability Methods Inc. (SRM). SRM is a company who aims to achieve the highest levels of safety, performance and reliability to organizations based on the most effective methods available.

The speech is sponsored by AGRR magazine, Glass America, Mygrant Glass, Pittsburgh Glass Works ARG and LYNX Services, along with NACE and DuPont Performance Coatings. www.agrss.com/conference

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