Pep Boys Stores to Carry Royal Purple Synthetic Lubricants
Starting this month, Pep Boys will carry Royal Purple’s high-performance synthetic lubricants at its stores nationwide. Royal Purple’s line of synthetic lubricants and additives includes engine oils, transmission fluids, gear oil, coolant additives, fuel system cleaner, power steering fluid, chain lubricant, penetrating lubricant, assembly lube and shop compressor lubricant.
GAAS Scholarships Awarded to 145 Students
The Global Automotive Aftermarket Symposium (GAAS) continues its work to ensure a strong future talent pool for automotive aftermarket companies and service outlets through its highly successful scholarship program. A total of 145 students will receive $1,000 GAAS scholarships in 2004, with the majority of recipients entering automotive vocational-technical programs, which will help address the critical shortage of automotive technicians.
ACDelco to Help Train Technicians Through Scholarship Program
ACDelco has developed a scholarship program to help combat the skilled technician shortage. The program will support ACDelco’s Total Service Support (TSS) Independent Service Centers (ISCs) by helping business owners identify and develop quality technicians, as well as future shop owners and operators. For the fifth consecutive year, ACDelco will award 10 nationwide scholarships exclusively to TSS accounts, helping with the cost of tuition and books for their technicians and dependents.
Advantage Automotive Group to Expand Automotive Electronic Catalog Database
Advantage Automotive Group is partnering with Quantum Data Services of Farmington, Utah, to help accelerate the growth of its automotive electronic catalog database. Advantage Automotive Group uses the database to run the Parts-World.com family of Web sites.
DST Asks: Parts Distributors — Do Your Customers Order Parts Online?
Help Wanted – Parts Counterman, Requirements: Must be willing to work 365 days per year, 24 hours per day. Understands and has committed to memory a world-class multi-line parts catalog. Always knows correct pricing of each item. Processes parts orders in nanoseconds. Never puts customers on hold. Works for electricity – no salary or extra benefits. Any bets on how many responses you’ll get to that classified ad? Selling auto parts would be a lot easier and less costly if you could make those kinds of hires. Actually, it turns out that such resources are available today, just not human resources, the kind we would advertise for in the local paper. Instead, we might call them “cyber-employees” – a new species that forms the backbone of e-business and works in the world of browser-based technology on the Internet.
Herman Trend Alert: The New Recruiting
Recruiting has increased across industry lines in recent weeks. The numbers are not dramatic yet, but the trend is steady. That signal is positive, compared to the fluctuating numbers we have seen recently.
Growing Auto Parts Market in China is an Opening for New Business Models
Last year was a remarkable year for the automobile market in China. Car production grew 80 percent and domestic car sales soared nearly 70 percent over the year before. During 2003 the total import to China of cars and car parts grew 86 percent over 2002. China now ranks fourth in automobile production and third in automobile sales in the world. According to PRCDirect — a consulting firm which specializes in the Chinese market — this sales growth is creating a corresponding demand at the aftermarket and OE levels.
Victor Reinz Names Machinist of the Year
Victor Reinz has named its Victor Reinz Machinist of the Year. Along with the AERA and the ASE, Clevite Engine Parts established the Victor Reinz Machinist of the Year Award in order to recognize the valuable contributions machinists make to the automotive rebuilding industry. This year’s award was presented at the AERA New Products Showcase in Las Vegas, Nev. on April 23, 2004.
Grote Unveils New Product and Technology Information System for Distributors and Installers
Grote Industries has launched a new set of catalogs and training materials for distributors and installers. The new system contains information about the company’s products and underlying technology, including information to facilitate product specification, selection, installation and troubleshooting.
CARQUEST’s Pete Kornafel Talks About His New Book on Inventory Management
Pete Kornafel, vice chairman of CARQUEST, recently wrote and published “Inventory Management and Purchasing — Tales and Techniques from the Automotive Aftermarket,” a practical guide to inventory management for wholesale distributors and stores that supply “hard goods.” Kornafel took some time last week to speak with aftermarketNews.com about the inspiration for his new book.