An Era to End at Ford: William Clay Ford Plans to Retire from Company Board
William Clay Ford, the last surviving grandson of Henry Ford, plans to retire from the Ford Motor Co. Board of Directors after nearly 57 years, the company announced Wednesday. Ford, who turns 80 Monday, is the father of chairman and CEO Bill Ford and has been on the board for more than half of the company’s history, elected before he even graduated from Yale University.
Executive Interview with Dave Ellingen, President and CEO of Mitchell 1
Mitchell 1 got its start back in 1946 when Glen Mitchell started a business out of creating simplified parts replacement books. In those days, OE parts replacement books could be complicated and difficult for the counterperson to use. As a counterperson himself, Mitchell saw a better way to organize parts replacement books, and from his vision, Mitchell 1 was born. Dave Ellingen, president and CEO of Mitchell 1, shared with aftermarketNews.com some of his thoughts on the roadblocks to getting more repair shops to embrace technology, and how parts suppliers are working to move the effort forward.
New Mitchell 1 Manager/Manager Plus Version 5.7 Offers Exclusive Selection of Parts Vendors
The latest version of Mitchell 1’s Manager/Manager Plus Version 5.7 offers a new feature — a selection of parts vendors and catalogs including the industry’s three premier parts providers — NAPA, CARQUEST and O’Reilly.
Executive Interview with James Croston, Director of Marketing, Trico Products
Our latest Executive Interview features James Croston, director of marketing, Trico Products. As director of marketing for Trico Products, Croston has surfaced as a leader in today’s highly competitive automotive aftermarket. He has dedicated the last 15 years at Trico to developing new products that fill voids in the marketplace, educating the sellers and the buyers alike and finding better ways of communicating with potential and existing customers. Croston recently shared with us his opinions on the future of the wiper blade segment, as well as details about Trico’s recent product launches for the Innovision and Oktane lines.
A Suppliers’ Guide to Innovation
As automotive suppliers continue to get hammered by price cuts, material cost increases, and competitors in low-cost countries, renewed attention is being focused on product and process innovation as a way to improve competitive positioning and profitability. So here we’ll look at the systems automotive suppliers need to implement if they want to consistently deliver on the innovation imperative.
Montgomery, Ala., Hosts Third Minority Automotive Supplier Expo
Representatives of U.S. automakers spent quality time with minority-owned companies last week in Montgomery, Ala., trading information on the business opportunities resulting from Alabama’s status as a hub of automotive manufacturing. The third annual Minority Automotive Supplier Showcase, presented by the Minority Business Participation Corp. at Alabama State University, was designed to connect automotive suppliers with representatives of Hyundai, Honda, Toyota and Mercedes.
Auto Data Network Acquires CarParts Technologies
Data Network Inc., a provider of software and real-time data services to the automotive industry, has acquired California-based CarParts Technologies, Inc. The deal was completed 17 months ahead of schedule. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
BorgWarner Breaks Ground for New World Headquarters in Auburn Hills, Mich.
BorgWarner has broken ground for its new world headquarters in Auburn Hills, Mich. In September 2003, the powertrain supplier announced that it would relocate its corporate headquarters from Chicago to metro Detroit in order to maintain closer connections with the company’s global customers and suppliers, as well as maximize opportunities for collaboration with the BorgWarner Powertrain Technical Center, which is also located in Auburn Hills.
Autotecnica Names SS Sales & Marketing as Western Rep Agency
Autotecnica, a provider of “OEM-quality” performance and styling products, has selected SS Sales & Marketing for manufacturer’s rep agency support. SS Sales & Marketing will provide coverage for Autotecnica in 10 western states and western Canada.
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.