GAAS UPDATEDistributors, Suppliers Keen
On Creating Efficiencies DEARBORN, MI - Gordon Ulsh, president and CEO of Exide, sees a lot of symptoms attacking the industry simultaneously, including everything from how companies are financed to where parts are purchased and made to the speed at which we demand information. He believes all these changes put pressure on the different levels of service, and it's one reason he, and other suppliers who spoke at the Global Automotive Aftermarket Symposium last month in Detroit, told attendees that they can no longer offer some of the traditional value-add programs to the distribution channel. Ulsh contends there is so much waste associated with "not really transferring products, goods and services to our customers," yet the industry protects many non-valued added efforts. He also suggests that we haven't responded quickly enough to electronic technology to really help us as an industry become more efficient. But there are areas where suppliers can't afford to cut corners, according to some distributors in attendance. "Cataloging is something we could not do without," said Jacques Landreville, president and CEO of Uni-Select. "Warranties are something we can not work without, [and] the sales force is becoming a critical ingredient." "Our biggest fear is the abandonment of the sales force," said Mike Schultz, co-president of Federated Auto Parts. Frank Ordo
