The Commercial Vehicle and Automotive Trade Show held last month, comprised of over 600 exhibitors, spread over 90,000 square metres and 11 halls making this year’s event the largest show ever held in the UK. Home to the UK’s road transport and automotive aftermarket businesses there were more car, van, truck, trailer, bodywork and road transport suppliers at the exhibition than at any other business to business show in Europe over the last year.
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Have you ever considered tackling a 48 kilometre mountain bike ride and a half-marathon in Arctic temperatures? Could you climb a 30m-high ice wall, endure 30 kilometres of cross-country skiing, and navigate a team of huskies through alpine woodland in temperatures as low as –45 degrees celcius? Men and women from around the UK are prepared to give it a go as they apply to be part of the 2006 Fulda Challenge team.
Goodyear Dunlop has reorganised its Off-The-Road department, promoting Mark Turner into the role of key accounts manager for OTR SBU.
Currently farm tyre sales and training specialist, Mr Turner will now focus on key accounts, and the development of farm, industrial, ATV and Terra tyres with dealer customers throughout the UK. In his new role Turner will continue to run the show calendar for Goodyear Dunlop and will maintain his training responsibilities.
Roger Putnam, chairman of Ford of Britain, is to take up the position as president of the SMMT. He succeeds Tod Evans, former chairman, Peugeot Citroën Automobiles UK Ltd, in leading the motor industry trade association for the 12 months from June 2005.
Commenting on the announcement, Roger Putnam said: “I am proud and honoured to become SMMT president for 2005-06. The industry faces some significant challenges in balancing the needs of its customers, in coping with regulatory pressures, and in dealing with a challenging manufacturing environment. I want to play my part in ensuring that issues like skills, R&D and productivity are given the profile they deserve.”
John Tinham of Chelmsford-based garage, John Tinham Motor Engineer, has secured the title of Top Technician 2005. His name was announced at the Awards Ceremony held at Brands Hatch race circuit, hosted by sponsors Crypton, eXponentia, ReMIT and Vauxhall Trade Club.
Kwik-Fit fleet group (incorporating Kwik-Fit Fleet in the UK and Netherlands, Pit-Stop Fleet in Germany and Speedy Fleet in France) has captured two more industry awards to add to the three the company has already won.
For the second year in a row, Continental has agreed to support the Chrysler Group’s dealer training and consumer marketing programmes. Continental will provide support for the Inspired Drives, Camp Jeep and Camp Jeep: On the Road US consumer programmes.
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Battery manufacturer Exide has introduced a loyalty programme, called the Exide Experience, to coincide with the introduction of its new range of batteries.
Exide customers can exchange loyalty points earned on sales of batteries for any one of more than 300 experiences. The more active and adventurous can opt for astronaut training, driving a Ferrari, flying a Tiger Moth, powerboat racing, gliding or white water rafting, to name but a few.
If this all sounds too strenuous and taxing, there are gentler alternatives, including dolphin watching, a luxury spa break or Feng Shui lessons.
Exide’s marketing manager described the Exide Experience as “our best-ever incentive programme”, adding: “The scheme is unrivalled in the industry and is one which we believe will surpass all our customers’ expectations.”
The Retread Manufacturers Association is to introduce a series of specialist training courses as part of a development programme aimed at increasing the range of value-added benefits to members.
As a first step, the Association is re-introducing its City and Guilds Part 1 – Workshop Practice courses for the 2005/2006 study year. These correspondence courses, aimed at operatives in retreading plants, are being administered in conjunction with Newlaw Associates and cover a full range of processes in retread plants including inspection, drying, buffing, repairing, cementing, hot cure tread preparation, sidewall veneer application, hot cure building and precured retreading as well as other relevant topics such as matrices, basic materials, legislation and health and safety issues.
ATS Euromaster has launched a specialised industrial service that will allow customers to obtain almost any type of tyre, from wheelbarrows to forklifts to mobile cranes. Introduced in response to “customer demand”, the service will be available at 31 of its centres across the UK.
Michelin has confirmed that it will be injecting a multi-million pound investment package into its UK service chain ATS Euromaster this year, so that it can continue to develop its added value customer focus started in 2004. According to the company this 10-year programme is part of a wider investment schedule that will be introduced and rolled out throughout the coming years.
The Retread Manufacturers Association (RMA) has announced that it will introduce a series of specialist training courses as part of a development programme aimed at increasing the range of value-added benefits offered to RMA members.
Matador is celebrating its 100th anniversary by touring western Europe with its presentation truck. The company first used its presentation truck in 2004 and will now use it to remember its long history and highlight its objectives for the future. The truck provides a suitable environment for presentations, training activities, business negotiations and has exhibited at exhibitions and motorsports events.
Last year the truck embarked on its central and southern Europe tour with the intention of focusing on training markets of the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Greece. Mr Reich, head of the marketing department of Matador Tyre division described last year’s tour: “It is understood that our objective was to get closer to our customers. And I could say from my experiences of last season that this form of presentation got quite a warm welcome from our business partners.“ The presentation truck will be touring during April and has planned stops in France, Belgium and the UK.
Cooper Tire and Rubber has announced the appointment of three new managers. Dustin R Lepper has been named as manager of management education for The Cooper Learning Center, where he will facilitate training courses for the company and oversee other activities within the college of management education. Curt L Cramer has been appointed as territory sales manager, serving existing customers in the Northeast region as well as developing new business opportunities in this area of the country. Mr Cramer began his Cooper career in information technology eight years ago, and most recently served as a customer service coordinator. Clay S Lewis will become composite materials development manager, with responsibility for development of materials and compounds in the reinforcing components of tyres. Since joining Cooper as an trainee engineer in 1990, Lewis has worked as associate engineer, process engineer, tyre engineer and most recently as advanced manufacturing engineer.
Today, every company that wants to be successful in fleet business needs a lot more than just good products, nowadays that is just a prerequisite. Those responsible at Bandag Inc in Muscatine, Iowa, are convinced that the right service and the right network is even more important than the products. Bandag claims that it has both, and is trying to further integrate all of its 220 European dealers into a single global retreading network. In order to promote this policy, the company invited 20 of its dealers from around the UK and Ireland to visit its American headquarters.
Until recently, European Bandag dealers rarely had the opportunity to look around the franchiser’s corporate inner sanctum in Muscatine, Iowa. From here the company operates many of its unique facilities including its training centre. This £19 million centre opened just a few years ago and offers a range of educational opportunities within the ideal environment that is provided by the global Bandag family. A range of different courses are given, including classes on Bandag’s overall business model including its finance and management (divided in service, sales and production management). In addition to this theoretical instruction Bandag is making a big effort when it comes to practical ‘on-the-tyre’ training.
Therefore, when the training centre in Muscatine was built, Bandag incorporated a technical learning lab offering all the latest Bandag equipment. Instruction covers the whole process from the inspection of a newly delivered truck tyre to pre-cured retreading to the final inspection of the retreaded tyre. All of this is not only simulated, but actually carried out in Bandag’s learning facility.
While taking the tour through Bandag’s Muscatine learning centre, the Irish and UK dealers learned about the different options available for repairing a damaged truck tyre before it enters the retreading process.
Using a chearograph in connection with computer-based laser technology is one way of doing this and it can even save a Bandag dealer money in the long run, according to technical trainer, Frank Ortiz.
Many faults can be identified simply by carrying out a visual inspection, but if some kind of damage has slipped through the initial inspection and the dealer starts the retreading process only to find that the tyre was not in a fit state to start with, there are consequences.
Bandag would take it very seriously if any customer purchased a retreaded tyre from one of its dealers that was anywhere beneath the company’s high quality standards. Quite apart from quality control, there is also the question of money. By this point the dealer would already have spent a fair amount of money on the retreading process that he won’t cash in on if the end result is sub-standard. This is why Bandag recommends an in-depth initial examination of any that comes into a dealership for retreading.
Bandag’s UK dealers also received substantial training also on other machines like the “Buffer 8400”, the “Repair Station” or the “OSM 5400,” otherwise known as the ‘dragster’ because of its looks. However, the heart of the technical training facility is the curing chamber, where the actual pre-cure retreading process takes place. Visitors to the centre are allowed to take a tyre right through the retreading process, from first inspection to pre-curing itself. There is also the opportunity for discussion among experts and for the exchange of ideas for running the technical processes back in the UK
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