OPTIMIZING AUTO-REPAIR PRACTICE THROUGH MECHANIC VILLAGE AKURE METROPOLIS AS A CASE STUDY

Abstract

This study investigates the problems facing automobile technicians with a view to optimising auto repair work. The data for the study were collected using questionnaire and interview techniques. One hundred and twenty( 120) automobile technicians, forty-two (42)spare part dealers, and eighty(80) car owners were contained in the analyzed sample. The result of the analysis revealed the various problems facing automobile technicians' in Akure which include inadequate tools with 78(1'0 01' workshops interviewed not having adequate tools while 22(10 had fairly adequate tools ;111d problems 01' low capital base with 75% Auto Technician interviewed having a working capital of less than NIOO,OOO .00, 17% are operating between NI01,000.00- N250,000.OO,while 8% between N251 ,000.00 -N I 000,000.00 above. Also included are the problems of bad location with 70% of the respondents acquiring their land through rentage, 19% through lease while 3% through outright purchase and problem of poor educational background with only 6% having OND which represents the highest educational qualification of all the respondents,8% had City and Guilds Certificate 19% primary school, 11% had school certificate while 56% are without any formal education(apprentenship). Along with these problems is the lack of necessary social amenities ill separate workshops. Encouragement of the development of mechanic village. which was observed from the data collected as one system that can help in solving most 0f the problems. was formulated as an hypothesis, analysed and tested. The hypothesis testing reveals that the establishment of mechanic village to assist auto repair activities is preferred by the respondents. However, in view of the lion-professional ways that some areas that adopted this policy or developing Mechanic Villages in the past had handled it, this study went ahead and developed standardized models for executing the development of such villages so that optimum performance could be obtained. The developed models were later validated and found to be reliable and dependable. Hence, the establishment of standardized mechanic village using the working models developed in the study was proposed and suggested as a way of solving the auto technicians problems thereby optimising auto repairs.