As you walk into the Automotive Service Repair Week (ASRW) floor today, no matter what section of the aftermarket you work in, you’ll find things you think you have seen for years.
But things aren’t always what they seem.
“It may not appear to be radically different, but it actually is, because the focus is so much sharper,” says Ron Pyle, president of the Automotive Service Association (ASA), which hosts ASRW. “This is the most comprehensive event of its type for the independent repairer. There’s no place else where you can get thee broad range of exposure to education, networking, the product offerings and access to the OEs that you get at ASRW.”
Whether you’re looking for that OE information, action in your home state of California or the latest on glass repair, this year’s ASRW has new offerings to take advantage of, if you know where to look and who to look for.
The New Kids on the Block
Who to look for includes new groups and presenters at the third annual ASRW. Throughout the last year, ASA has reached out to associations throughout the automotive industry to bring them under the ASRW umbrella. Auto Glass Week for the third year is taking place this week, while the Automotive Service Councils of California (ASCCA) signed on to co-locate with the glass repairers, NACE and CARS this year.
And it’s a big year for the state association to make the move.
“We are excited about ASCCA’s involvement in ASRW this year,” says Jackie Miller, ASCCA executive director. “This is an event that was created for all segments of the industry, and we’re pleased that ASCCA, which is celebrating its 70th anniversary during the event, is participating.”
Pyle says ASRW organizers are happy to have the California group on board, adding that he understands some groups were slow to join because of long-range agreements and arrangements.
“The ASCCA example is a good one. They’re doing their own meetings, they’re doing their own thing under this new umbrella,” he says. “And, of course, it brings critical mass, and we all benefit from that.”
ASCCA’s meeting manager Monique Rice says coming under the ASRW umbrella is a benefit for her group and the rest of the industry, a point is illustrated in part by the association’s pavilion on the main CARS show floor.
“This initiative is a major step in meeting industry requests for greater educational opportunities and gives ASCCA a great opportunity to educate and engage a national audience while offering us the benefit of enhancing the California repair shop owner’s educational experience,” Rice notes.
Pavilions to Peruse
The educational experience is a cornerstone of ASRW. In addition to the lineup of classes for both the collision and mechanical repairer, a big feature of this year’s NACE and CARS is the new OEM Pavilion. At this area, attendees will be able to ask questions of today’s OEs and get information on the accessibility of parts and repair information. Pyle explains that nearly every OE in the marketplace will be on hand to share information, illustrate how to use their resources and listen to technicians’ and owners’ questions and concerns about information access.
“We believe that the OEs in particular have a good reason to want to work with the independent repair marketplace, because they have customer satisfaction issues. They’ve downsized their dealer networks, they realize that customers are going to be needing the kind of competent repairer in the marketplace to keep their brands popular,” Pyle says. “So by sharing information and doing it in this kind of format, letting people know that they appreciate them and cultivating those relationships, it’s just more productive than the alternative. And certainly it’s in the best interest of the consumer.”
Aside from technical information, another pavilion is dedicated to customer service. Eight exhibitors fill the Customer Service Pavilion, including direct mail/advertising companies, educational providers, software providers and media companies dedicated to the automotive industry. And shop owners will have another area in which they can learn more about benefits for their employees.
The ASA Marketplace, which during the course of the last year has launched and evolved into a significant benefits portfolio for ASA members, has a physical presence on this year’s show floor. The Marketplace has grown online through ASA’s partnership with BizUnite and its portfolio members like Sprint, Office Max and Staples.
“Putting those vendors into an area on the show floor where the nonmember and the member alike can see what we have available now in the ASA Marketplace will be really impactful, we believe,” Pyle states. “We think people’s eyes will be open.”
Informative Forums
Continuing with the growing educational aspects of ASRW, we turn to new forums and gatherings set up for this week. It started with Sunday’s ASRW Industry Forum and Reception designed to offer platforms for current industry topics, according to Pyle.
The forum featured a pair of concurrent sessions for collision and mechanical repairers. While the collision folks discussed “Certified Collision Repair – An Industry Perspective” and “Diversity in the Shop: How to Work with People Not like You,” the mechanical side shared thoughts on “Aftermarket Parts Quality: What’s in the Box” and “Servicing Information Access: Right or Responsibility.”
This year’s event wraps up with another new offering specifically for collision repair professionals, the NACE Town Hall meeting on Wednesday. The discussion panel will look into “Is Certification the Best Aftermarket Parts Policy for Consumers and Repairers,” which includes a variety of industry segments and entities working to establish parts certification programs.
Pyle says the decision to end the three-day event with this discussion comes as the debate is one of the biggest in the collision industry now and because the new NACE format allowed for the discussion to be highlighted.
Taking Notes
With all the changes you’ll see — and those you’ll now look for — around the ASRW floor, feedback is key more than ever. Dates for the 2011 event already have been announced, and planning will begin soon. So while you’re taking advantage of the training, networking and meeting times with manufacturers, take note of what you like and don’t like.
Pyle says the feedback is used. “We’re handling it a little differently now so that we both get direct input from the attendees and we share that and parson it and we really are listening carefully.”
As you walk into the Automotive Service Repair Week (ASRW) floor today, no matter what section of the aftermarket you work in, you’ll find things you think you have seen for years.
But things aren’t always what they seem.
“It may not appear to be radically different, but it actually is, because the focus is so much sharper,” says Ron Pyle, president of the Automotive Service Association (ASA), which hosts ASRW. “This is the most comprehensive event of its type for the independent repairer. There’s no place else where you can get thee broad range of exposure to education, networking, the product offerings and access to the OEs that you get at ASRW.”
Whether you’re looking for that OE information, action in your home state of California or the latest on glass repair, this year’s ASRW has new offerings to take advantage of, if you know where to look and who to look for.
The New Kids on the Block
Who to look for includes new groups and presenters at the third annual ASRW. Throughout the last year, ASA has reached out to associations throughout the automotive industry to bring them under the ASRW umbrella. Auto Glass Week for the third year is taking place this week, while the Automotive Service Councils of California (ASCCA) signed on to co-locate with the glass repairers, NACE and CARS this year.
And it’s a big year for the state association to make the move.
“We are excited about ASCCA’s involvement in ASRW this year,” says Jackie Miller, ASCCA executive director. “This is an event that was created for all segments of the industry, and we’re pleased that ASCCA, which is celebrating its 70th anniversary during the event, is participating.”
Pyle says ASRW organizers are happy to have the California group on board, adding that he understands some groups were slow to join because of long-range agreements and arrangements.
“The ASCCA example is a good one. They’re doing their own meetings, they’re doing their own thing under this new umbrella,” he says. “And, of course, it brings critical mass, and we all benefit from that.”
ASCCA’s meeting manager Monique Rice says coming under the ASRW umbrella is a benefit for her group and the rest of the industry, a point is illustrated in part by the association’s pavilion on the main CARS show floor.
“This initiative is a major step in meeting industry requests for greater educational opportunities and gives ASCCA a great opportunity to educate and engage a national audience while offering us the benefit of enhancing the California repair shop owner’s educational experience,” Rice notes.
Pavilions to Peruse
The educational experience is a cornerstone of ASRW. In addition to the lineup of classes for both the collision and mechanical repairer, a big feature of this year’s NACE and CARS is the new OEM Pavilion. At this area, attendees will be able to ask questions of today’s OEs and get information on the accessibility of parts and repair information. Pyle explains that nearly every OE in the marketplace will be on hand to share information, illustrate how to use their resources and listen to technicians’ and owners’ questions and concerns about information access.
“We believe that the OEs in particular have a good reason to want to work with the independent repair marketplace, because they have customer satisfaction issues. They’ve downsized their dealer networks, they realize that customers are going to be needing the kind of competent repairer in the marketplace to keep their brands popular,” Pyle says. “So by sharing information and doing it in this kind of format, letting people know that they appreciate them and cultivating those relationships, it’s just more productive than the alternative. And certainly it’s in the best interest of the consumer.”
Aside from technical information, another pavilion is dedicated to customer service. Eight exhibitors fill the Customer Service Pavilion, including direct mail/advertising companies, educational providers, software providers and media companies dedicated to the automotive industry. And shop owners will have another area in which they can learn more about benefits for their employees.
The ASA Marketplace, which during the course of the last year has launched and evolved into a significant benefits portfolio for ASA members, has a physical presence on this year’s show floor. The Marketplace has grown online through ASA’s partnership with BizUnite and its portfolio members like Sprint, Office Max and Staples.
“Putting those vendors into an area on the show floor where the nonmember and the member alike can see what we have available now in the ASA Marketplace will be really impactful, we believe,” Pyle states. “We think people’s eyes will be open.”
Informative Forums
Continuing with the growing educational aspects of ASRW, we turn to new forums and gatherings set up for this week. It started with Sunday’s ASRW Industry Forum and Reception designed to offer platforms for current industry topics, according to Pyle.
The forum featured a pair of concurrent sessions for collision and mechanical repairers. While the collision folks discussed “Certified Collision Repair – An Industry Perspective” and “Diversity in the Shop: How to Work with People Not like You,” the mechanical side shared thoughts on “Aftermarket Parts Quality: What’s in the Box” and “Servicing Information Access: Right or Responsibility.”
This year’s event wraps up with another new offering specifically for collision repair professionals, the NACE Town Hall meeting on Wednesday. The discussion panel will look into “Is Certification the Best Aftermarket Parts Policy for Consumers and Repairers,” which includes a variety of industry segments and entities working to establish parts certification programs.
Pyle says the decision to end the three-day event with this discussion comes as the debate is one of the biggest in the collision industry now and because the new NACE format allowed for the discussion to be highlighted.
Taking Notes
With all the changes you’ll see — and those you’ll now look for — around the ASRW floor, feedback is key more than ever. Dates for the 2011 event already have been announced, and planning will begin soon. So while you’re taking advantage of the training, networking and meeting times with manufacturers, take note of what you like and don’t like.
Pyle says the feedback is used. “We’re handling it a little differently now so that we both get direct input from the attendees and we share that and parson it and we really are listening carefully.”
