ARA CONVENTION FULL-SERVICE PANEL: In running a successful full-
service operation, there are many variables that must determine standards of operation, but one thing is common among the most successful: Quality, Service and Price. “The customer has expectations, we must meet their expectations,” says Marty Hollingshead, Northlake Auto Recyclers and ARA’s Secretary. “Teach your people not to lie by omission, meaning that you must be upfront about all aspects of the part and sale. Fully describe all the damage to the part, deliver on set realistic expectations ... send the part as promised,” he advices.
“Grow through efficiency, and deliver above what is expected,” echoes Dan Marks, Marks Auto Parts. “Grow your business through exceptional customer experience.”
Facility to Facility Variables The full-service facility variables are things like wheth-
GLOBAL INDUSTRY: As an industry concern for auto recyclers, Andy Latham reported that what should be end-of-life vehicles are being refitted and sent to other countries to be put back in service. “There are massive movements of these vehicles around the world. They are repairing end-of-life vehicles from major markets, even changing the driver orientation from right to left, or visa versa, and reselling them in smaller market countries. In one case, it was tracked that a written-off car in New Jersey landed in another country as a driv- able vehicle. Russia is a large recipient of these cars. They flow through the Middle East, India and Asia.” What makes this especially dangerous, beside the safety issue, is if these cars end up again in the auto recyclers’ end-of-life product pool around the world, with significant liability attached to them in general.
32
er or not to broker parts. “I am not a fan of brokered parts,” says Hollingshead. “We have standards for our parts that is difficult to control. We can’t control qual- ity, shipping or profit margins.” Mike Meyer, of PAMs Auto Parts, says, “We broker a lot, but we spend the time to make the part look like ours, including pack- aging. Our goal is to always say ‘yes’ to the customer.” Another variable is inventory. “We have a set amount of allotted space for parts. How much money we will make determines the amount of warehouse space we give to a particular part,” says Meyer. Whereas Holling- shead carries a deeper inventory on the shelf, “In my market, the part has to be on the shelf.” Employee culture was also part of the discussion. Retaining the people you are investing in is a priority as they are the biggest expense and the biggest asset. Paying what a job is worth, making employees feel rel- evant, and that they are making a difference was the general advice from the panel. They cited paying for employee healthcare, along with dental and vision, as benefits that keep employees content. Educating em- ployees about their benefits, by bringing in the experts to talk with them instead of it coming from manage- ment, shows you are invested in their well-being. Send- ing personal cards also makes your team feel valued. DRIVING DOWN THE RETURN RATIO PANEL: The cost of returned parts is a big money-waster according to the panelists Todd Ensworth, CarEggs, Charlie Salter, Im- pact Salvage Solutions and Panel Armor Products, and Dan Snyder, Snyder’s Certified Auto & Truck Parts. “Chaotic business practices cause the return rate to be high,” noted Snyder. “You cannot think that well in chaos. Set your goals of what you want and make a plan.” He suggested talking to people involved in the process, running it through in your mind, document- ing it, and training your team, and then retraining.
January-February 2019 • AUTOMOTIVE RECYCLING
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68