Mark Shasteen is an automotive industry professional with more than 30 years of experience. He started his automotive career with the Packard Electric Division of General Motors, and has spent the past 13 years in a number of executive leadership positions with Delphi Corp., a leading products and service solution provider in this industry. He has worked extensively with both vehicle manufacturers and industry suppliers. Shasteen holds both a bachelor’s of industrial engineering from Youngstown State University and a master’s of business administration from Kent State University.

In today’s interview, he shares with aftermarketNews details about his new role with CTDI and what to expect of this newcomer to the market.

CTDI is going to be a new name to many of our readers. Tell us a little about the company.

While we may be a new name in the automotive industry, particularly in North America, we’re not a new company.  The company was founded 38 years ago by Jerry Parsons, our chairman and CEO, along with his father Don, and his brother, Dick. It started out as a small, family-owned business and now has grown to 66 facilities worldwide with just under 8,000 employees and more than $1 billion dollars in annual sales.

CTDI is a full-service, global engineering, repair and logistics company providing best-cost solutions to the communications industry. We’ve been in the automotive industry now for five years in Europe. We are now shifting into automotive as a major strategic initiative here in North America and in other regions, as well.

We describe ourselves as the largest independent electronics remanufacturer in the world. We also offer a wide array of engineering and logistic services. Our customer base is a ‘who’s who’ of telecommunications service providers, electronics and OE device manufacturers, as well as many of the top automotive companies and tier one suppliers.

The company officially introduced itself to the automotive industry at this year’s AAPEX show. What was the reception like?

The AAPEX Show was a major investment for our company and provided CTDI with the opportunity to tell the automotive industry our story. The reception was very positive. We thought everything came together very nicely.

Our Reman 8.0 comprehensive end-to-end service offering for automotive electronics was also very well-received and generated a lot of interest. We had some especially good customer meetings with lots of follow-up. I thought overall it was a very good introduction of the company to the North American automotive market.

Tell us about Reman 8.0, CTDI’s program for automotive electronics.

Reman 8.0 is essentially a set of service solutions specifically designed around the lifecycle needs of Tier 1 electronics suppliers and vehicle manufacturers. Reman 8.0 is built upon CTDI’s comprehensive electronics remanufacturing service portfolio and includes innovative test platform development, forward and reverse logistics, core management, component level repairs of automotive electronics and warranty administration.

Reman 8.0 leverages the core strengths of CTDI and offers a fully integrated service model tailored to individual customer needs while providing a scalable and adaptable platform for growth. It’s designed to be an end-to-end solution that offers our customers a menu of services they can pick and choose from that best meets their needs or a complete, turnkey solution.

What value proposition does CTDI bring to the automotive aftermarket?

The core of the value proposition is advanced electronics remanufacturing. As the world’s largest independent electronics remanufacturer, we’re performing more than 7 million board level repairs annually. We cover about 75,000 different SKUs that cross a wide range of electronics platforms, from consumer products to telecommunications to automotive.

With more than 350 engineers on staff, we assist customers with service engineering, test platform design and fabrication, and in-field warranty screening and root cause analysis.

Many customers also rely on us for cost efficient end-to-end logistics solutions including reverse logistics, warehousing, advanced exchange services, core management and direct outbound fulfillment. Other key components in our value proposition involve innovative end of life product and service solutions, and configurable Web-based IT support systems that seamlessly integrate with virtually any enterprise and warehouse management system. In simple terms, we help our customers wring the most value out of product returned from the field.

On a more personal level, what strengths do you feel you bring to CTDI, with your extensive experience in the automotive industry?

With more than 30 years of experience in the automotive industry, much of it in the OE service and aftermarket side of the business, I have a keen understanding of the customer base, the demands of the service channels, and how best to employ the deep capabilities of CTDI to bring superior value to the automotive market.

With significant global experience in engineering, operations, remanufacturing, and business development and P&L accountability, I have the knowledge base and leadership skills needed to develop and run the new automotive business unit at CTDI.

As a former board member of MERA, and the head of the remanufacturing business for a major tier one electronics manufacturer, I also have a rich appreciation for the automotive marketplace and a passion for sustainable lifecycle solutions.

What’s ahead for the company – in terms of its involvement in the automotive aftermarket?

Automotive is a major strategic initiative for CTDI. The company has grown from the family garage to be a major world player and most of this has been accomplished through organic growth. The company does understand what it takes to invest, develop and win in new segments of the market. And I have no doubt that the same will be true in automotive. We are in this for the long-term. Our approach to customers is in developing long term, strategic relationships. We are not just chasing after wins. We plan to be here and to be a significant player for many years.

Technology is not going away with more and more electronics finding their way into vehicles with the electrification of the powertrain, connected vehicle systems, and the safety systems. The list goes on and on and electronics are making up a greater percentage of today’s vehicle content. With the technology curve evolving more quickly and people holding on to their cars longer, the service demands are getting increasingly challenging for the whole market and we think we have the capabilities and solutions that will find traction in the marketplace.