General Motors’ Customer Care and Aftersales division recently announced at NACE automechanika Chicago that the company will offer a comprehensive collision certification program, which will start early next year.

The new program will be more comprehensive than the current GM training and tools-focused programs, the company said.

It will include added standards for both pre- and post-repair scanning, calibration, overall repair and build on existing GM programs, according to the company.

“Today’s certification programs have to evolve to keep up with the rapid-fire pace of technological innovation in the auto industry, especially in areas like safety systems,” GM Customer Care and Aftersales collision manager John Eck said in a news release. “Our new program is being designed to measure critical behaviors and procedures that will help ensure every collision repair is done to the highest standards, whether the work is done at a dealership, an independent body shop or by a multi-shop operator.”

Currently, GM Customer Care and Aftersales is working with companies like Mitchell International and Enterprise Holdings in the development of the certification.

Both companies share a common goal of wanting to ensure vehicle repairs are proper and of quality, according to GM.

In a position statement issued last year, the company said all vehicles being assessed for collision damage repairs must be tested for Diagnostic Trouble Codes. And following repairs, vehicles must also be retested to verify the existence of pervious and/or new faults.

Additionally, GM said it is interested in including technologies like OnStar’s, to give drivers information regarding qualified collision repair facilities using both a vehicle’s location and unique crash severity.

“With Automatic Crash Response, OnStar is typically the first to know an incident has occurred,” said Brian Hoglund, OnStar Commercial Experience director for GM.

“Depending on the vehicle’s repair needs and driver’s well-being, OnStar has the ability to help streamline the repair process while making the experience more convenient for our customers,” he said.