The ZEG creates with the quality workshop together with the TÜV Nord for the first time uniform quality standards for bicycle workshops. This finally takes away the customer's fear of not being served competently or even negligently. The first dealers have already been certified.
Bicycles have become quite complex machines in recent years. Suspension systems need maintenance, hydraulic brakes have brought motorcycle technology to mountain bikes. Carbon components and super-light components require special care when attaching them - the torque wrench has long since replaced the "bone". And the triumph of the e-bike has enriched the professional field of the bicycle mechanic by another facet: Like the car mechanic, only 20 years late, he now has to read out errors with a diagnostic device and computer.
Quality workshop: the time has come for this
The demands placed on a bicycle repair shop have increased significantly, which the industry is addressing with dealer training courses, for example; certificates from corresponding seminars are now the flagship of every business. However, the necessary skills are only one aspect of successful bicycle maintenance or repair. It is equally important that the specialist knowledge is applied correctly, and this unfortunately repeatedly leads to problems. As in the automotive industry, blind tests in workshops have regularly revealed deficiencies in due diligence. However, these random samples, which are then sensationally presented on private television, usually lead to nothing. A more sensible approach is to achieve sustainable quality improvement, as the Zweirad-Einkaufs-Genossenschaft (ZEG) has committed itself to with the establishment of the quality workshop. The dealer association, with just under 1.000 Members, together with TÜV Nord, have developed the "Certified Service and Repair Quality" seal, which is intended to offer customers greater transparency and uniform quality standards. Clear pricing, clear guidelines for order acceptance, and, last but not least, a digital checklist that includes all relevant components during inspections and ensures that even minor defects are detected are on the dealer association's agenda.
No more careless mistakes and no more non-transparent prices
What will benefit customers should also prove helpful for companies, for example through clearer work orders, the avoidance of careless mistakes and correspondingly fewer corrections. So it's no wonder that the ZEG dealership provided strong impetus for the introduction of the seal - the certification is of course also a competitive advantage for a bicycle shop - good dealers have now recognized this. The TÜV-tested ZEG dealers can still be counted on one hand. But at least 50 to 100 companies should be certified as so-called quality workshops in the coming year. Long-term quality control will take the form of regular "incognito tests". So the matter is sealed: Parallel to the complexity of the bicycles, the quality of work in the bicycle trade will increase, and at some point the "undercover investigators" will get nothing in workshop tests - at least in the case of ZEG companies.