Panel Beater

When Callan Quentemijer found the long hours and shift work in the hospitality industry were getting him down, he decided to try something different – very different. The 22-year-old decided that the automotive industry was his true calling.

Quentemijer, who grew up in the Blue Mountains, has been working as a panel beater for almost six years now, and enjoys all the challenges of his trade.

Hospitality initially attracted him but it wasn’t long before Quentemijer decided it wasn’t for him and he’d much rather be putting cars back together. “I just didn’t like standing up for about 10 hours a day in one spot chopping up vegies,” he recalls.

Quentemijer says when he was younger, he was always pulling things apart and putting them back together, so he decided to throw in his apron for a pair of overalls and follow his passion for fixing stuff.

He applied for an apprenticeship as a panel beater after seeing an ad in the paper, and says he has been hooked by the profession ever since. Quentemijer says he loves the idea of the craftsmanship that is part and parcel of the trade and he loves seeing his work evolve; whether that be fixing up a car that has been in an accident, doing restoration work on cars, or building vehicles from scratch.

He says he also enjoys communicating with the customers and making sure they are happy with the work he has done when they come to pick up their car. Even when Quentemijer isn’t hard at work, he is restoring his own car, which is his pride and joy.

He has been crafting a specialised ute for the past three years and says he has about another six months to go before his work is complete.

“It looks like an old Ford 32 hot rod,” he says. A panel beater needs to be good with their hands as well as be creative, Quentemijer says.

Excellent customer service and communication skills are also vital, so the client can understand the process involved in fixing or restoring their car.

Quentemijer completed a Certificate III in Autobody Repair at TAFE NSW-Western Sydney Institute’s Mount Druitt College. He has also represented TAFE NSW-Western Sydney Institute in the National

Workskills competition where he received a bronze medal in Brisbane last year for his outstanding work as a panel beater.

How to be … a panel beater
To become a panel beater you usually have to complete an apprenticeship in Automotive (vehicle body — panel beating). For further information contact Automotive Training Australia (03)94793480 or visit http://www.automotivetraining.org.au/