Truck Parts and Service | Heavy Duty Trucking, Aftermarket, Service Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/237360
Cover Story HDMA President and COO Tim Kraus says aftermarket suppliers joined in the activity once positive trends were established. Freight levels started to rise and as more parts were needed, suppliers actively increased inventory to serve the growing marketplace. "[Suppliers] don't add to inventory in today's environment unless they have a solid indication of trends they see in the marketplace that it is improving," he says. "At first we saw some refill demand, but now we're back up to acceptable levels and the indications we see now are that we're in a period of true growth." The aftermarket also was able to respond as utilization picked up during the year. "The late fall and winter months have been abnormally active," says Brian VanCamp, segment manager – aftermarket at Hendrickson. "Customers in all regions are reporting growth in part and service labor sales as we finish the year." Things were even better in Canada, where Kevin Hopton, president at CBS Parts, says his business was able to post one of the strongest sales years in its history. Insulated from the depths of the U.S. recession in British Columbia, Hopton says CBS Parts was able to use strong years in 2011 and 2012 as a springboard into 2013. Engine and powertrain components were among the company's strongest product categories, which Blodgett attributes to an aging fleet population. "There are a lot of trucks out there from 2005 to 2007," he says. In California, where engine regulations are the most extreme, Capitol Clutch & Brake President Vince Mathews says his business turned to alternative product lines to keep business flowing in 2013. "California is a little bit different than the rest of the country in that [the state is] forcing a lot of the older trucks off the road," he says. "We tend to concentrate on items that are harder to find and slower moving but appeal to a wider range of customers." Putting a stop to consolidation helped the market as well, says Walt Sherbourne, senior director, field sales and training, North America for Meritor's aftermarket division. Stabilizing the distribution – Brian VanCamp, segment manager channel helped strengthen – aftermarket at Hendrickson customer relationships, Sherbourne says, which allowed distributors and their supplier partners to work together to improve their aftermarket product offering. More than 93 percent of responders to TP&S's reader survey say their supplier relationships remained stable or improved in 2013. (See Figure 6) Meritor enhanced its relationships by personally sitting down with its distributor partners and creating plans for growing together in 2013. Sherbourne says when the market turned north in the spring that was a key contributor to Meritor's sales growth. Looking ahead, Sherbourne says Meritor is optimistic the aftermarket can build on its strong 2013 close in the coming year. "We see steady sales growth moving forward," he says. "We're gearing up." Blodgett says MacKay & Company's 2014 projections place Customers in all regions are reporting growth in part and service labor sales as we finish the year. Finding your future staff While the driver shortage works its way into public consciousness with segments on cable news and articles in the Wall Street Journal, the looming aftermarket talent gap remains unknown outside of the industry. There are great jobs and career opportunities in the aftermarket the average college graduate simply doesn't know about. That's something OEM, suppliers and aftermarket businesses hope to change. Steve Crowley, president and CEO at VIPAR Heavy Duty, says his organization is working to create a young leaders group to provide a format to W W W . T R U C K PA R T S A N D S E R V I C E . C O M deliver leadership and management development content as well as networking opportunities to its young members. By creating a comfortable environment, Crowley hopes the industry's youngsters will remain grounded in the aftermarket and try to recruit in more young talent. And the talent gap isn't just limited to parts sales. Almost a third of TP&S reader survey responders say the average ages of their service technicians are 45 or older. Only 8 percent say their techs average 30 years old or less. (See Figure 5) "You don't see too many younger guys coming up in the industry anymore," says Jim Pascale, president at Pascale Service Corporation. "I don't know if they aren't looking at [our] industry or if they're just being pushed into other areas." Vince Mathews, president at Capitol Clutch & Brake, says the aftermarket needs to reach out to schools and promote the career opportunities the industry has to offer. "It's just so difficult to get talent into this industry anymore," he says. "We really have to promote the long-term options we have and hope word will spread." J a n u a r y 2 0 1 4 | T R U C K PA R T S & S E R V I C E 17