JULY/AUGUST 2023 AFTERMARKET 49 www.aftermarketonline.net nice to meet people face to face and show them our products and demonstrate the benefits of having us on board.” OSRAM Lighting Marketing Manager Terri Clark added: “There’s such a variety of visitors that attend, and there’s always something for everyone on our stand.” For Bosch, the focus was on its ADAS calibration and its secure diagnostic access offerings. With ADAS now largely accepted as mainstream in the parc, a major swathe of the Bosch stand was dedicated to ADAS demonstrations and discussions. Moving over to HELLA’s stand, we spoke to Marketing Manager Helen Goldingay, who told us: “We are here to promote HELLA’s offering in the marketplace, which includes lighting, electronics, diagnostics and ADAS. We have for the first time ever two show offers, on the megamacsX and the MTAB high-voltage tester.” Head of Sales Julian Goulding then noted: “If you have the right kit you don’t have to turn cars away. This certainly applies to EVs.” Important opportunity Beyond the specifics of kit, The Motor Ombudsman was highlighting the recent expansion of the Service and Repair Code to cover mobile mechanics and more. Bill Fennell, Chief Ombudsman and Managing Director of The Motor Ombudsman, noted: “Enhancing the reach of the Code gives The Motor Ombudsman the platform to share its expertise and industry best practice to drive standards even higher in the mobile repairer area of the market.” Another sort of opportunity was arising with the ongoing expansion of the MOTRIO Service Centre network. The Renault-backed chain, which currently has 30 members across the UK is looking to grow, as Senior Customer Support Manager Saqib Qureshi explained: “We are aiming to have 90 garages in membership in the UK by the end of this year, and 250 sites by 2025. We are working with Fixter to help drive work into garages.” Also on the garage network front, AA Approved Garages used the show to launch a new package for garages wanting to be EV ready. AA Approved Garages Network Director Anthony Garbacz commented: “As the servicing, maintenance and repair industry shifts towards electric vehicles, garages are facing a unique set of challenges. With our comprehensive suite of propositions, we are confident they will help to equip garages to thrive in the future.” Data Later on the first day, ALLDATA held a press conference to update the market on the company’s info offering to garages. “We have more than 200,000 technicians using our products globally” said ALLDATA President Satwinder Mangat. “The first reason we are the dominant player is because have more OEM contacts than anyone – 32 in total. The second is our speed of publishing. The third is the depth of our company, and the fourth is our customer service.” Senior Manager for Customer Relations Daniele Marra then went through the system, highlighting its searchability as well as the technical bulletins offered. “The information from the OEMs is not edited,” he observed. Staying on the data side, InfoPro Digital was looking to highlight its presence in the market following its acquisition of Haynes in 2020. Commenting on their product offering, Global Head of Marketing Simone Strimber said: “It is not just information to fix the car; It is everything all around it.” The company has also recently enabled its management system offering to provide enterprise resource planning (ERP). Springboard The second day saw the Aftermarket Keynote Conference take place, in association with Aftermarket magazine in case you were wondering. A packed-out audience heard from sector luminaries like LKQ Euro Car Parts CEO Andy Hamilton, IAAF Chief Executive Mark Field, GiPA UK Head Quentin Le Hetet and more, who covered all the major issues impacting on the industry. Handily positioned right next to the seminar theatre, thereby gaining a ringside seat and a steady stream of visitors was ELTA Automotive. The company took this to their advantage in order to highlight the recently launched range of VXPRO heater and blower motors. “It’s a bit of a shift for us” pointed out Marketing Manager Tim Brotherton, “and we are using Automechanika Birmingham as a springboard for that.” Also making the most of the promotional platform that Automechanika Birmingham represents was Straightset, who were at the show to highlight the ongoing development of the Supertracker brand under their ownership. “Our priority is to show that Supertracker is very much here” said Marketing Director Julia Blake. “We have had people coming on the stand who tell us they have been using the equipment for 30 years.” In terms of specific kit, the company’s laser aligner system was on show in the stand, with both the more conventional redray version, and its new green-ray stablemate that will enable users to perform alignments outside where necessary. Julia added: “We are taking wheel alignment and making it better. Supertracker is here to stay and it is evolving.” Another thing that caught our eye on the way round was the electric London black cab on the TR Fastenings stand, for which the company has been helping provide lightweight components. Complexity Our next stop was with The Verification of Lubricant Specifications (VLS), which is celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2023. The organisation also launched a specially-commissioned white paper at the show, looking back on developments in both the lubricants industry and VLS over the past ten years. VLS Chairman Mike Bewsey, who was also one of the original founding Board members, said: “We are confident that ten years after VLS was formed, the message around compliance is being heard, but as the industry evolves, a recent influx of cases shows that there is still work to be done to ensure an open and fair marketplace.” Best-in-class The topic of lubricants and additives slid us into the third and final day at the show when we started our stint with a stop at the Kalimex stand. The company is the official supplier of JLM Lubricants products in the UK, and JLM’s International Sales Manager Jeroen Schutz was over for the show: “Kalimex is really supporting the JLM brand. They are This was undoubtedly the best Automechanika Birmingham to date ”
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