A possible merger between two aftermarket buying groups – HD America and Truck Pride – was revealed last month during Heavy Duty Aftermarket Week in Las Vegas. According to the announcement, the board of managers of Truck Pride Partners, LLC and the board of directors of HD America have formed a project team “to evaluate a formal collaboration between the two organizations.”
* Truck Pride Partners Manager Jay Boggeman of Plaza Fleet Parts, St. Louis;
* HD America Director John Minor of Midwest Wheel, Des Moines, Iowa;
* HD America President Pat Biermann;
* Truck Pride Partners CEO Bill Burns; and
* Project Coordinator Tom Gosnell, former president of ArvinMeritor’s Commercial Vehicle Systems business group.
Should the groups merge, the new organization would have 180 members representing more than 850 locations.
Additionally, HD America announced that Biermann will retire August 31 and Don Reimondo will be the group’s new president. Reimondo is currently senior vice president and joined HD America in July 2008.
Biermann has served with HD America for 28 years. He will continue with the organization as an advisor to its board where, according to the announcement, “he will continue to contribute to its strategies and commitment to excellence for its members, suppliers and customers,” as well as be available for special projects.
Along with several other members, Biermann started HD America in 1982 and “was the primary driver behind HDA’s strong, steady growth.”
Reimondo, a graduate of Northwood University, has 30 years of aftermarket experience, including positions with The Affinia Group, Federal-Mogul and Tenneco.
“Don has been instrumental in helping HD America grow and redefine the goals and infrastructure of the company,” said Biermann. “This move will allow HD America to take best advantage of Don’s depth of talent and knowledge in four main areas of our business – our people, our processes, our partners and our customers.”
People In The News
Following are personnel changes and announcements in the trucking industry:
Russell* Affinia Global Brake & Chassis named John Russell its director of sales and marketing for Online, Performance and Racing.
* Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC announced the retirement of Chairman Bob Oswald. The company also named Arnfred Kulenkampff its chief financial officer and vice president of finance and IT.
* Eaton Corp. announced Richard D. Holder its president of the company’s new Electrical Components division. Uday Yadav will fill Holder’s position as executive vice president for Eaton Business Systems.
* FleetPride Inc. named Woody M. McGee its new president and CEO and John Mosunic its new CFO.
Mann* Fontaine Fifth Wheel North America promoted Steve Mann to vice president of engineering.
Bryant* Penray promoted Erica Bryant to its lead customer service representative.
* Stemco announced Bob Montgomery joined the company as its vice president, Fleet Information Systems.
CT Truck and Trailer Represents Transcraft Trailers
CT Truck and Trailer, a division of Carolina CAT, headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., has signed an agreement to represent Transcraft Corporation’s line of trailers. They now are authorized to sell and service Transcraft flatbeds and drop-deck trailers, as well as Transcraft’s line of Benson dump trailers and dump bodies. In addition, they will stock and sell a complete line of parts to service these customers.
Transcraft Corporation is a subsidiary of Wabash National. Carolina CAT is the first CAT dealer to join Transcraft Corporation and will sell and support the trailers through its six North Carolina locations: Charlotte, Statesville, Greensboro, Whitsett, Monroe and Asheville.
For the latest aftermarket news, announcements and trends, visit www.truckpartsandservice.com
Truck Pride Names Donaldson a Preferred Partner
Truck Pride announced that the Donaldson Company is its “preferred vendor” for exhaust products.
According to the announcement, Donaldson successfully demonstrated its willingness to form a partnership with Truck Pride by offering brand recognition, coverage and quality, which is further complemented by their sales and marketing support.
Additionally, Truck Pride said that Donaldson’s development of new technology sets them apart as a leader in the heavy-duty exhaust aftermarket.
Bendix Offers SmarTire TPMS Incentive Program
Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC announced it is offering its SmarTire Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) at a cost savings to aftermarket distributors when multiple TPMS kits are purchased. The offer ends March 31, 2010.
SmarTire monitors the pressure and temperature of each tire on a commercial vehicle to provide real-time tire status information to the driver or service technician. It also warns the driver of tire-related problems before they become dangerous, according to Bendix.
“Bendix is always looking for ways to help our aftermarket channel partners bolster their business. We are pleased to offer this limited-time opportunity that can help make SmarTire TPMS easily available to our distribution network and their customers,” says Fred Andersky, Bendix director of marketing-Controls. “Tires, when not properly inflated, can significantly increase annual costs for fuel and tire wear and tear. The SmarTire system is easily retrofitted for almost any commercial vehicle, allowing our distributors’ customers to start improving ROI immediately. For some fleets, the SmarTire system can pay for itself in as little as eight months.”
Navistar Launches Customer Parts Recovery Program
The CPR program offers a direct benefit to customers who otherwise would dispose of old or unused parts in scrap yards for pennies on the dollar. By working with their U.S. or Canadian International or IC Bus dealer, customers can return unused inventory, overstocks or obsolete parts in order to capitalize on available credit, regardless of prior purchase history.
With the initial parts redemption, customers receive 25 percent of the value of the products returned to use toward future parts purchases. Customers are required to purchase a predetermined amount of parts over a specified period of time as part of their CPR agreement. Upon completion of this agreement, customers will receive the full credit amount for their return.
“CPR goes beyond a loyalty program and becomes a way that our customers can secure real working capital from unused, outdated parts,” says Michael Cancelliere, senior vice president and general manager for Navistar Parts in North America, based in Warrenville, Ill. “If someone turns in $10,000 worth of parts that have just been gathering dust, we take them and immediately give them $2,500 in cash or credit towards their parts purchases. They can get the full value of those parts back by fulfilling program purchase commitments.”
The CPR program will provide credit through any card in Navistar’s Fleet Charge network to track parts purchases and corresponding credit amounts. Customers interested in participating in the CPR program can contact their parts sales manager at their local U.S. or Canadian International truck or IC Bus dealership.
WEB UPDATES:
* Luber-finer announced it upgraded the “Where to Buy” feature on its Web site, www.luberfiner.com, that allows visitors to more easily find distributors of its products no matter where they are located in the world.
The new site searches by domestic and international postal codes and tracks distributors within a 100-mile radius of the user, with those distributors nearest the user listed first. Additionally, a link to Google maps and location finder views also are available to make for the most user-friendly and accurate global search possible.
This upgrade also includes another new feature that allows Luber-finer and its parent company, Champion Laboratories, Inc., immediate access to update the distributor database in real-time with no waiting period, ensuring the most current information is available through “Where to Buy.”
* Karmak, Inc. unveiled details of its ProfitMaster Scheduling product at a recent technology conference and according to the company, its clients called the new product “innovative, unique, flexible and easy-to-use.”
Karmak said ProfitMaster Scheduling makes managing service schedules and dispatching appointments easier by automating scheduling of tools, bays, technicians, customers and trucks with fully integrated repair orders. Color-coded calendars allow service managers to quickly determine resource availability and identify areas that may need additional attention.
A flexible drag-and-drop interface lets users customize calendars and filter views to promptly allocate resources and schedule appointments. In addition, point-and-click access to pertinent customer information makes it easy to create customer appointments. Multiple calendar views are customizable to display user-specific information.
* Visitors to the redesigned Alliance Parts Web site, www.alliancebrandparts.com, will find enhanced parts support tools regardless of the make or model truck.
“We designed this site to be the first stop for drivers looking for parts and service support on the Web,” said David Marx, aftermarket marketing communications manager for Daimler Trucks North America. “With quick, easy access to an expansive array of useful tools and information, the Alliance Parts Web site makes life more convenient for drivers looking for quality and value.”
The new Web site features an on-site catalog with a comprehensive search function that is said to provide instant access to any product in the catalog. In addition, the site includes a customized page for all 1,000-plus retail locations where Alliance parts are sold. Each page provides locations and maps, along with directions, hours, services and product information. n
Northwood University Honors Grote
Northwood University recognized William “Bill” Grote III, chairman and CEO of Grote Industries, as one of six businesspersons at its 30th Annual Outstanding Business Leader (OBL) Awards Ceremony last month in Palm Beach, Fla.
William Grote III (center) receives Northwood University’s Outstanding Business Leader Award. Presenting the award are Northwood’s J. Ferron (left), chair of the board of trustees, and Keith Pretty, president and CEO (right).Grote Industries, headquartered in Madison, Ind., manufactures high-performance LED lighting technology and pioneered the first LED lamps 20 years ago. Grote is a family-owned company that has been in business for more than 100 years and has global operations.
Grote began his career at Grote Industries as a district manager, then worked his way through several sales and marketing positions. In 1969, as the third generation of family took the helm at Grote, he was elected to the board of directors. In 1972 Grote was appointed director of OEM sales and in 1979 was promoted to vice president of sales and marketing. This diverse experience served him well when he became president and CEO in 1989. Since 2004, Grote has served as the company’s chairman and CEO.
A 1962 graduate of Xavier University, Grote is active in industry affairs. He is a past president of the Transportation Safety Equipment Institute (TSEI), a former chairman of the Motor Equipment Manufacturer’s Association (MEMA) and has held board seats with the Automotive President’s Council, Automotive Sales Council and the Heavy Duty Business Forum. n
