Monday was a pivotal day for the state of California, as Gov. Schwarzenegger signed into law (SB 346), a new brake pad reformulation bill that requires a two-step reduction in friction material copper content to no more than 5 percent after 2021 and no more than five-tenths of 1 percent after 2025. SB 346 was introduced into the California Legislature by Senator Kehoe (D-San Diego) in early 2009. At that time, the bill sought to limit copper content in brake friction materials and also required at least a $1 fee on each axle pad set sold, which would be collected by retailers and installers with no guarantee that the fee would not increase. The bill also sought to impose penalties for non-compliance upward of $10,000 per violation. An industry-wide coalition worked with legislators to bring the bill to its current form, removing the abovementioned fees, which were a concern to some industry associations.
Also in our most-viewed news of the week is the announcement of the sale of Tomkins plc to Onex Corp. and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. Onex is one of North America’s oldest investment firms, committed to acquiring and building high-quality businesses in partnership with talented management teams. The CPP Investment Board is a professional investment management organization that invests the funds not needed by the Canada Pension Plan to pay current benefits on behalf of 17 million Canadian contributors and beneficiaries. Together, the two firms acquired the industrial holding company for $5 billion.
In this week’s Executive Interview, Dayco’s Ed Rammel talks to aftermarketNews about technology in the aftermarket, data standards and association initiatives like OptiCat and the SEMA Data Pool. As vice president of marketing for Dayco, Rammel is responsible for all marketing activities for the automotive aftermarket including, product management, sales administration, purchasing, product research and development, cataloging, communications, sales automation and intellectual properties. In the interview, Rammel notes: “This is an industry that is drowning in inventory, levels of which are rising every day and will for years to come. Businesses that don’t take action to cope with this reality will be consumed by it. When I look at what tools are available to avoid drowning, technology is really the only viable answer.”
In the distribution segment this week, FleetPride, one of the nation’s largest independent aftermarket distributors of heavy-duty truck and trailer parts, announced that it has acquired Southwest Brake & Parts Inc., expanding FleetPride’s footprint into Michigan. The deal includes eight Southwest Brake & Parts locations throughout the state. Southwest Brake & Parts was founded in 1958 by the Holaski family. The company operates locations in Detroit, Burton (Flint), Hazel Park, Jackson, Lansing, Mt. Pleasant, Saginaw and Wixom, Mich. – all of which are part of this asset purchase agreement.
And finally, we wrap up our look back at the week’s top news with word that industry veteran Jeff Sandt has joined Gates Corp. As Gates’ new business development manager for the automotive aftermarket, Sandt will head Gates Water Pump initiatives and will identify and cultivate new business opportunities. With more than 20 years of industry experience, he joins Gates from Truck Pride, where he was director of product management. Sandt held previous positions as VP of sales and marketing for the water pump business at ASC Industries and director of business development for the Internet Auto Dealers Marketing Association (IADMA). He also worked in various sales and project management capacities at CARQUEST.
