Abstract:

The paper describes how the need for a panel came about and relates the means by which the panel was set up and run for the first six months of its life. The panel consists of 200 garage or workshop managers who are responsible for purchases of materials used in repairing or refurbishing motor vehicles. Details of these purchases are obtained from the panel every other month, using a self-completion questionnaire. The panel is sponsored by a number of manufacturers of body repair materials (sand paper, masking tape and under seal fluid for example). As these materials are sold through intermediaries, data from the panel is the only way these manufacturers can maintain direct contact with the market in which their products are eventually used. In the paper, the particular problems of research in this market are described. We also discuss the means by which these problems were eventually overcome in setting up the panel.