The staff at Ohio Auto Supply has helped several area residents prove their skills as car detail experts.

Seven participants received certification in the Phase II portion of the International Detailing Associationa’s program for certified vehicle detailers.

IDA’s program is similar to certified training for automotive mechanics, said Mike Dickson, owner of Ohio Auto Supply.

“We’re raising the standard of the profession and helping people realize there is a skill, art and value to detailing a car,” Dickson said. “It’s nice to see that it’s perceived as a valued profession.”

Dickson has been involved with IDA since 2011 and serves as a vice president representing suppliers. Mike Polosky, sales manager for Ohio Auto Supply, chairs the association’s certification committee.

Working with the association is as a way to repay the industry that has provided him a living, Dickson said.

Ohio Auto Supply opened in 1933 as a part supply business and has provided auto detailing supplies and equipment since 1970. The company sold the auto parts side of the business years ago to focus on detailing.

Since 1983 the company has made its own cleaning solutions, selling them through the Professional Detailing Products or PDP line. In addition to cleaners and solvents, Ohio Auto sells auto detailing equipment and tools.

Earlier this year, the company added 4,000 square feet to its building at 1048 Tuscarawas Ave. W, which created space for an auto detailing training center.

Dickson — who follows his grandfather, Max Rubin, and father, Phil Dickson, as Ohio Auto Supply owner — markets the PDP line to shops and dealerships around Northeast Ohio. The company works with distributors around Ohio and in parts of Michigan, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Indiana and Kentucky.

Among the candidates receiving certification was Brandon Diana, a lab assistant in the automotive and transportation technology department at Stark State College. Dickson said Diana is working toward becoming certified as a trainer for auto detailing.

Others earning IDA Phase II certifications came from Cleveland, Vermilion and Dublin to participate in the program.