OREANDA-NEWS. April 13, 2012. AUTOBACS SEVEN Co., Ltd. (“the Company”; Representative Director and CEO: Setsuo Wakuda) announced today that on April 12 it will open an Auto Body Repair and Painting Center (“BP Center”) for performing sheet metal processing of accident-affected motor vehicles in the Urayasu area of Chiba Prefecture.

 Demand for automotive maintenance services, body repair working and other maintenance needs are growing amid the trend toward longer vehicle service life. Although the Company already offers body work and car painting services at its stores, it has decided to open the BPCenter to enhance sheet metal processing and painting services with advanced technologies and deliver greater convenience to customers.

 The center will be capable of performing frame adjustments, alignment control and sheet metal working and painting for accident-affected vehicles and repairing hybrid vehicles. In the future, it will perform work ordered by customers at nearby stores of the AUTOBACS Group – a move that will improve the sheet metal processing and painting service abilities of such stores.

 For launching the center, the Company has acquired a 100% stake in the Yanaka Corporation. This company possesses a high level of technical capabilities and expertise in motor vehicle inspection and maintenance services, sheet metal processing and painting, and has many years of results in the Urayasu district.

 Following the share acquisition, the Yanaka Corporation will cover the services of the auto body repair center and utilize its leading-edge technical capabilities and expertise in training AUTOBACS Group workers in efforts to boost the entire group’s ability to respond to demand for auto body repair and car painting services.
Corporate details of the Yanaka Corporation are as follows.

 1. Name: Yanaka Corporation
 2. Location: 4-15-5 Kitazakae, Urayasu city, Chiba prefecture
 3. Representative Director: Masachika Sumikura
 4. Number of employees: 22
 5. Business description: Auto maintenance services, body repairing, painting and auto sales
 6. Business achievements: 900 cars per year

 Yasuo Yanaka, former representative of the Yanaka Corporation, will be appointed as adviser for the Company’s sheet metal processing and coating business to enable him to continue to provide guidance. This share acquisition will have a minor impact on the financial results.