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Feedback Facilitates Better Products |
| Of the service and repair facilities surveyed, Greenberger says that independent general repair shops comprise the largest segment of customers (60%) for equipment and tool companies. (Image: Professional Tool and Equipment) |
During the Tools and Equipment End Users Overview panel, Greenberger shared a number of insights and anecdotes arising from the research his organization conducts. He pointed out that the bulk of customers for tool and equipment manufacturers fall into two large categories-independent general repair shop owners and mobile truck distributors-and then shared a large volume of his company’s research with attendees.
Sound research enlightens, especially when it is both quantitative and qualitative, Greenberger explained. The raw numbers regarding typical shop characteristics pertaining to shop size, number of bays, annual revenue, purchasing habits, and other demographics paint a picture of your customer base, but it is the qualitative comments that provide the extra insight which allows better informed decisions to be made by equipment and tool manufacturers.
Here are three nuggets shared by Greenberger that pertain to equipment and tool manufacturers:
- More than 60% of both groups are small businesses, with annual sales under $500,000. Approximately 60% of shops have four or less bays and they employ three or fewer technicians. In contrast, 86% of distributors say equipment accounts for just a small portion (no more than 10%) of their sales, whereas tools account for the bulk of the sales.
- A tipping point has been reached that favors smart devices and social media. 55% of shop owners use/own a smart device (phone or tablet); coincidentally, 51% of shop owners use social media. In comparison, 78% of mobile distributors use/own a smart phone or tablet; most also reported they now received more orders via text message than via email.
- Proper tooling matters. 32% of shop owners cited ‘increasing billable hours’ as the single most critical challenge they face; 96% of shop owners said having the proper equipment and tools helps increase billable hours. In contrast, 35% of distributors cited having the proper inventory on their truck as the single most critical challenge they face.
“It is essential that equipment and tool makers better understand the nature and demographics for each group, such as how they view themselves, how they make purchase decisions, emerging trends, even how we label or describe them” Greenberger suggested. “It can make a huge difference. For example, I once received a request from Mitch Schneider, the well-known technician, educator and industry spokesperson who also owns Schneider’s Auto Repair in Simi Valley CA.”
“Mitch wanted help with a personal mission. He asked that we stop labeling he and his peers as installers, mechanics, grease monkeys, or repairmen. ‘Call us technicians instead. We need to know as much as doctors do and we also need to operate as fast, if not faster. That presents a better image of what we do everyday.’ It’s odd that even today, many manufacturers still use certain labels in comments, literature and other ways that alienate shop owners and technicians undefined one of their prime customer groups.”
Serviceability Warrants Better Product Design With User-Friendly Attributes
The Shop Owner’s Perspective panel put the concerns and challenges faced by independent service and repair shops front and center before automakers, tool and equipment manufacturers and other ToolTech 2013 attendees. The spiraling pace of inbound vehicle complexity, new materials, electrification, emissions legislation, licensing, the ever-growing expense of tools and equipment required to service these vehicles is constantly changing how modern vehicle are serviced.
The panelists shared their perspectives about what ETI member companies should be thinking about as they continue to support independent professionals with products and services which allow them to stay relevant for the next decade and beyond. Bottom line: Access to the genuine service information and procedures, proper equipment and tools, and well-trained and continually educated talent are the essential resources required to be a successful owner/operator of an automotive repair business today.
It is also crucial to accept that available technician time is limited, while the knowledge base continues compound exponentially. For equipment and tool manufacturers, it is critical that design consider this vice that technicians work in. The design and use of tools and equipment must be more technician-friendly and affordable. If we limit the serviceability of technicians, we harm our customers in the short term, and we detract from the brand experience of vehicle owners in the long term.
| Technician time is valuable and limited. Information, tools and training must not only help today's technicians remain current, they must be user-friendly and time efficient |
“Technician time is valuable and limited,” added Gustufson. “Information, tools and training must not only help today’s technicians remain current, they must be user-friendly and time-efficient. Technicians should not have to waste time being bogged down trying to utilize those resources. Design your products and services so that technicians in the service bays can access and implement what is needed quickly, so that we can earn a better living while serving the motorists undefined the customers we all share in common.”
“Technicians cannot possibly know everything today,” continued Rogers. “To be effective and efficient, they need to be able to quickly source all necessary resources. A stepped modularized user-friendly scan tool that could help move C-level technicians up to B-level and then A-level techs would be very helpful. This would enable a C-level technician to buy a scan tool with basic C-level functionality built in, then later purchase B-Level and A-level modules [rather than a expensive whole new tool] as they grew their service competencies.”
Collision and Mechanical Shops Share Similar Challenges
The experiences and concerns of collision shops were conveyed by the Collision Repair panel for consideration by attendees. “Everyone in this room needs to realize that we are all part of the collision business,” shared Morgan, who moderated the panel. “Just about every vehicle involved in a collision is going to need a scan tool to help put it back together.”“There has been a disconnect between the collision community and the diagnostic community,” noted Bartenen. “Only 10 to 15 % of dealers have body shops, so it is independent bodyshops that provide the bulk of collision repairs. Even though many automakers certified repair networks specify the need to use scan tools to repair mechanical damage incurred during a collision, the lack of a direct conduit between automakers and independent shops makes it difficult to disseminate the relevance of scan tools. This has to improve."
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| ETI Members have the opportunity to partner with I-CAR's Industry Alliance or participate in its Equipment and Tool Advisory Council (Image: I-CAR) |
Plucinski shared how the Collision Repair Education Foundation efforts are focused on making collision repair training relevant and reflective of current needs. “We need to modernize and bring consistency and relevancy into collision education. We need to focus on what shops do today and not waste precious time teaching what is no longer done. In addition, we need to get students into shops so that their education is focused on employability rather than just knowledge.
His presentation, available on the ETI website, details how the Foundation achieves this by leveraging the assistance and involvement of body shops, equipment and tool makers, and other stakeholders.
Improved Communication is Key
After listening to these gentlemen, I spoke with other technicians present and others after the event. They shared the following takeaways that warrant consideration by scan tool manufacturers:- Set realistic expectations in the minds of those who purchase your products. Own the responsibility to better inform buyers what the tool can do as well as what its limitations are. This helps the buyer make the most informed purchase decision possible.
- Is your current product and usage design keeping pace with technology? Enable your customers-at independent and dealer facilities-to be more productive, effective and time-efficient. It results in happier scan tool users and better brand experiences for car owners. Toyota’s Techstream, for instance, serves as a model that does this. Is it time your products, if not your business model, changed to emulate this?
- Listen to your buyers. When your scan tool customers express concerns and wishes, acknowledge, engage and consider what they have shared. Who knows? It might just help you build a better mousetrap.
The need to do something (i.e. build a better technician-friendly scan tool) does not in itself create the ability to do something. But it does put customer desires on the table for consideration by manufacturers in product and service design. The shop owners panel demonstrated a serious disconnect between what shop owners and technicians need and want in a scan tool, compared to what scan toolmakers can actually provide for various market niches.
The reality is that, for the most part, automaker factory scan tools are expensive. Duplicating the full functionality made available by an automaker would correspondingly increase the cost of an aftermarket tool. So to compete and serve different market niches, aftermarket scan tool manufacturers select from the data streams supplied by automakers which functionality they wish to include in a scan tool to meet a saleable price point that also includes a profit for the maker. Equipment and tool makers should note that shop owners and technicians do not understand this adequately.
There’s Good News on the Horizon
It should also be noted that innovative improvements are also being made by scan tool manufacturers that serve everybody’s interests. For example, during the Aftermarket Testing and OEM Build Information Integration presentation, MAHLE’s Bolt demonstrated the value of integrating vehicle factory-build information into scan tools.
“Aftermarket vehicle testing once required only that the technician knew the year make and model of the vehicle,” he explained. “This information was readily available from the VIN and many tools utilized VIN position and letter designators to allow the technician to figure out which vehicle was being tested. But as vehicle complexity has increased, it has become increasingly difficult to determine exact properties of the vehicle being tested.”
“Information such as trim level, infotainment package, brake system type, etc. is needed for the scan tool to correctly connect to the vehicle, but there is no easy way for the operator to decide what properties the vehicle has. OEMs have long created a ‘build description file,’ frequently referred to as Vehicle Broadcast or As Built file, which is used in assembly plants to build the vehicle. This information is becoming a necessary part of vehicle identification and diagnosis.
Currently, not all automakers have an OEM Vehicle Broadcast database. In addition, those that have a database typically do not publish it,” Bolt noted. He added that some limited “as built” information can be found in vehicles today in the form of barcodes, labels or stored inside electronic control units, but each of these sources is problematic. In his presentation, Bolt demonstrated how potential new standards could be developed to provide aftermarket tool suppliers with a method of retrieving the VIN-specific Vehicle Broadcast Information through a standardized interface via a scan tool.
The VIN is captured by manual entry, bar code scanner or ECM Query through OBDII mode 9.
Vehicle build information is either stored on the ECU or downloadable from a central location.
An standard will need to be developed so that disparate OEM vehicle build data can be translated into a universal database record format, perhaps through SAE.
Vehicle build information decode must be published for tool integration. This could be provided through ETI's TEK-NET Library.
An standard which defines the interface to request the vehicle build information from the internet will have to be developed, perhaps through SAE.
Middleware server software will have to be developed and deployed.
Bolt’s bottom line: Vehicle serviceability at any service/repair venue, when based on actual build information, would be vastly improved. He cited three major advantages that “as built” integration would provide:
• The process utilizes the existing OEM vehicle build infrastructure.
• It can be implemented without changes to the vehicle communication protocol.
• It provides a single unified mechanism of integrating vehicle build information into both aftermarket and OEM scan tools.
Let me share an observation from attending ToolTech 2013 here. I watched Bolt’s presentation while sitting immediately behind one of the earlier shop owner panelists. I saw him repeatedly nodding affirmatively or quietly saying, “Yes,” throughout Bolt’s presentation. Clearly the message being sent by Bolt was being favorably received.
That is meaningful communication, and it represents the type of dialogue that ETI fosters. It is something we must all engage in and sustain.
[Editor’s Note: Visit http://etools.org/ETIPresentations to view a PDF of most of the ToolTech 2013 panel presentation referred to in this article. Note that some presenters did not provide a copy of their presentation to ETI.]
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