If you are looking for early signs of the much-anticipated economic rebound, look no further than the automotive aftermarket. The week started off strong with news that Visteon Aftermarket and Proliance have merged to form a new company called Vista-Pro Automotive. Equity funding for the formation of Vista-Pro and the acquisition of the assets of Proliance was provided by Wynnchurch Capital, a Chicago-based private-equity firm, Roger Brown, the CEO of Vista-Pro, and John McClinden, a Chicago-based investor. Vista-Pro’s product offering and family of brands will include Proliance’s well-known, patented products including: Ready-Rad radiators, Ready-Aire condensers and Ready-Aire heater cores. The company’s full product line will be manufactured at two facilities in North America. Vista-Pro Automotive will operate from headquarters in Nashville, Tenn., with a support office in New Haven, Conn., and distribution centers in Sparta, Tenn., Reno, Nev., and Southaven, Miss.
Also this week, Motorcar Parts of America (MPA) announced that it acquired certain assets of Reliance Automotive Inc., a privately held remanufacturer of alternators and starters based in East Berlin, Conn. Reliance began operations in 1976 with three people in a small storefront in Connecticut. Today, the company operates from a modern 90,000-plus-square-foot facility, employing more than 300 people. This latest acquisition is part of a continuing strategic acquisition program for MPA.
In the distribution segment, Uni-Select this week announced that it completed the sale of Palmar, its Heavy Duty Group. The assets of the Heavy Duty Group were sold in two parts. The part of the Heavy Duty Group that provides replacement parts, tools and accessories for heavy-duty vehicles is being sold to UAP Inc., a Canadian subsidiary of Genuine Parts Co. The wheels division is being sold to Robert Thibert Inc. The sale is expected to generate approximately $22 million (CDN) in net cash during the third quarter and result in a non-recurring net loss of approximately $5 million (CDN). Uni-Select plans to use proceeds from the sale to reduce debt.
Also this week, Activant announced that it is collaborating with R. L. Polk & Co. in the development of the aftermarket industry’s first parts demand intelligence solution featuring vehicle data integrated with daily electronic catalog transactions. The solution will integrate Polk’s National Vehicle Population Profile and Trucking Industry Profile data for class 1 through 6 vehicles with the Web-based Activant Vista market intelligence solution, which captures and analyzes an extensive nationwide database of daily electronic catalog lookups by part number and vehicle platform. The new Activant Vista Replacement Rate Analysis will be the industry’s first independent solution offering detailed regional and national views of parts consumption within a given application and corresponding vehicle population, said the company. The new Activant Vista Replacement Rate Analysis will be available beginning this fall.
The final item in our round-up of the week’s top news comes from Genuine Parts Co. (GPC). GPC’s board of directors has elected Michael Orr to the position of senior vice president – operations and logistics. Previously, Orr served as senior vice president – operations and logistics of the company’s office products subsidiary, S.P. Richards.
