ArvinMeritor Launches Search for CEO Successor
ArvinMeritor’s board of directors has retained an international executive search firm to identify a successor to Larry Yost, chairman and CEO. Yost said he will remain in his current capacity until a successor is found.
Qualitee International Names Chris Kern Director of Marketing
Aftermarket industry veteran Chris Kern has joined Qualitee International as Director of Marketing. Kern replaces Jerry Brosilow, who died in May. An AIA Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Kern has been involved in the automotive aftermarket for 29 years. He has held sales and marketing management positions with Beck/Arnley Worldparts and Autopart International.
AMN Perspectives by Thomas Group: Experience at Work
In our last article we talked about inventory management as a trade-off. In most organizations there are conflicting inputs from various departments that affect inventory decisions: finance wants low inventory levels to minimize working capital costs; sales and marketing wants high inventory levels to ensure excellent customer service; production wants long-term planning with low flexibility to create high production efficiencies. Logistics wants to minimize transportation, handling and inventory holding costs.
Deadline Approaching for Participation In Top Aftermarket Suppliers List
The deadline for participation in the 2004 Top Automotive Aftermarket Suppliers List, published by Automotive Aftermarket Suppliers Association (AASA), the aftermarket segment of the Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association (MEMA), has been extended to Friday, Feb. 13. Produced by Babcox Publications, this multi-page, full-color publication will feature insightful information on the largest suppliers to the automotive aftermarket. The form to participate is available online at http://www.aftermarketnews.com/top70.asp. The 2003 AASA Top Aftermarket Suppliers list is also available at the link.
“DST Asks”: What Do You Look For In a Computerized Business Management System?
Technology is breaking down the barriers that once hindered our ability to process and share information efficiently. As our industry taps into the power of new technologies, those businesses that adopt and embrace them sooner rather than later will realize new efficiencies and bottom-line improvements while simultaneously setting the revised standards of successful business operation. Those standards will be the benchmarks of competitive advantage that will steer the future of the industry.
Champion Appoints a New President
John Evans, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Champion Laboratories, has been named president of the Albion, Ill.-based automotive parts manufacturer. Evans, a native of Vincennes, Ind., has been with Champion Laboratories for 20 years. He replaces Tom Mowatt, who has taken retirement.
GM Recalls Popular SUVs for Electrical Risk, Second Major Recall for GM This Month
General Motors said Monday that it will recall 636,000 of its most popular 2002 and 2003 midsize SUVs because of a windshield wiper system electrical problem that’s been tied to two crashes. GM plans to begin notifying owners starting in July, when they will be told to go to a dealer to have a vent hole in the windshield wiper system patched so that water does not leak in. The leaking water can corrode wiring, GM said, which in turn can lead to a short circuit or windshield wiper problems.
“AMN Perspectives by Thomas Group: Experience at Work”
As this column unfolds over the coming months, there will be several major themes, each with a number of articles. In this first series, we’ll address operational effectiveness. We’ve chosen the inventory dilemma as the first topic, though additional installments will include the related issues of inventory management methods, performance measures, information technology and others.
How’s Business?
There are some very strong signs that business will be good in 2004. Optimism among repair shop owners is as high as it’s ever been during the three years we have been tracking this data.
MEMA Joins Aftermarket eForum as Sponsor
MEMA has joined as a sponsor of the 2004 Aftermarket eForum scheduled for Monday, Aug. 2, through Wednesday, Aug. 4, in Chicago, Ill. Other sponsors of this industry-wide event include the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA), the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA), the Automotive Warehouse Distributors Association and the Automotive Industries Association of Canada (AIA), R.L. Polk & Co., Comergent, Evant, Gcommerce, Prescient Technology, DST and WorldPac.