Wednesday, December 27, 2017 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
9
Construction safety
summit in C.O.
PHOTO PROVIDED
Mike Cmelik owns and operates Dent Craft in Sisters.
New business removes dents
By Jim Cornelius
Editor
It happens. You’re parked
in the lot at Ray’s Food Place
and somebody’s stray shop-
ping cart comes rolling across
the pavement — and right
into your car. You now have a
nice dent in your driver’s-side
door.
“I love those carts!” says
Mike Cmelik with a chuckle.
That’s because Cmelik’s
Dent Craft Paintless Dent
Removal specializes in a
quick and relatively inexpen-
sive fix to just that kind of
everyday mishap.
Utilizing specially
designed steel rods with a
variety of tips — some of
which Cmelik has designed
and patented for the industry,
“we can take dents out of your
car without having to do any
paint or bodywork. Basically,
we massage that stuff out.”
Because there is no need to
match paint and apply it, the
turnaround for repair is short.
“Most repairs take less
than an hour,” Cmelik says.
And, he notes, “most of the
time the repairs that I do for
people are less than their
deductible.”
The Dent Craft process
can take care of dents and
dings up to about the size of
a basketball. Scuff marks can
be buffed out — as long as the
paint is intact.
“If the paint’s cracked,
that’s an indication that you
need to be talking to the guy
at the body shop, not me,” he
said.
Estimates are free, and
Cmelik is entirely mobile and
can come to the client. Clients
can text a photo of their dent
and receive “a pretty close
estimate from those pictures,”
Cmelik says. The repair can
be done on the spot, or an
appointment can be set up.
Cmelik has been a “car
guy” for his whole life, and
worked in the paint and body
industry for years. His father
tipped him off to the paintless
dent removal process. At first,
he admits, he was skeptical.
But after seeing the process
in action, and the quality of
the results, he was convinced
— and he launched his own
business.
His wife, Karen, handles
the books and the website
work and social media.
The business has been
successful. He contracted
with big car dealerships and
“chased hail for All-State.”
He and Karen moved to Santa
Rosa, California, to be close
to family — and there they
ran into a firestorm. Literally.
The couple was caught in
the massive firestorm that hit
that community last summer.
They received no warning and
barely escaped the onrush-
ing flames. Ten minutes after
they evacuated, their house
and shop had burned to the
ground.
The loss of all they owned
was, of course, traumatic, but
Mike and Karen were deter-
mined to look forward and not
focus on the rear-view mirror.
GOT DENTS?
Save MONEY, Save TIME with
PAINTLESS DENT REPAIR
• Independently owned local business, 24 years exp.
• Save hundreds of dollars on your repair
versus going to an autobody shop
• Fast – most repairs are completed in under an hour
• We offer a mobile service coming directly to you
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Estimat
541-588-2299
They had purchased two-and-
a-half acres in Sisters with an
eye toward retiring here — so
they simply decided to move
here now.
“We had something we
wanted to do, so we focused
on that,” Karen said. “Our
move up here was easy; we
didn’t have anything to haul
up here.”
The couple is renting a
home in Tollgate until they
build on their homesite.
Mike loves his work, and
the couple also enjoys out-
door recreation and motor
sports.
“We have a ton of stuff we
love to do,” Mike said.
And they’re excited to be
doing it in Sisters.
For more information on
Dent Craft, contact Mike
Cmelik at 541-588-2299 or
email mike@dentcraftrepair.
com Learn more about the
process at www.dentcraft
repair.com.
The safety and health of
workers in the residential,
commercial, and industrial
construction industries will
take center stage during a
two-day training conference
in Central Oregon.
Topics covered during the
January 29-30 Mid-Oregon
Construction Safety Summit
will include ladder safety,
excavation rules, electrical
safety, construction-related
health hazards, and elimina-
tion of fall hazards.
Oregon’s Occupational
Safety and Health Division
(Oregon OSHA), a divi-
sion of the Department of
Consumer and Business
Services, encourages employ-
ers and workers to attend the
17th annual summit at the
Riverhouse in the Deschutes
Convention Center in Bend.
The summit’s keynote
speaker is Russ Nicolai,
safety director for Snyder, a
commercial roofing contrac-
tor with offices in Oregon and
Washington. During his Jan.
30 presentation, “Changing
One’s Perspective,” Nicolai
will discuss how innovations
can create successes in pro-
tecting workers and boosting
company performance.
The summit also offers
opportunities for attendees
to earn continuing educa-
tion credits through Oregon’s
Construction Contractors
Board and Landscape
Contractors Board. Moreover,
certification and re-certifica-
tion will be offered for first
aid personnel and workzone
flaggers.
The two-day summit’s
other workshops include:
• Construction A to Z. This
session reviews the many
hazards found in construction
and demolition, and the best
practices — and requirements
— for correcting them.
• General excavation
safety.
• Electrical safety and you.
• Understanding and
implementing the new silica
standard for construction.
• Defensive driving strate-
gies for Central Oregon.
• Hand/power tools
and personal protective
equipment.
Registration for pre-
conference workshops
(Monday, January 29) is
$50. Conference registration
(Monday, January 30) is $85.
Registration for the OSHA
10-hour training for construc-
tion is $140 for both days.
To register, visit http://
safetyseries.cvent.com/
events/2018. If you have
questions or need help reg-
istering, call the Oregon
OSHA Conference Section,
503-947-7411.
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