e-commerce
Parts is Parts? Hardly. Observations from Heavy Duty Aftermarket Week.
LAS VEGAS, NV -- Children of the 1980s might recall a Wendy’s commercial that mocked the quality of chicken sandwiches from competing fast food chains. “Parts is parts,” the cashier for a generic restaurant says with a shrug, suggesting different pieces can be fused together into some sort of processed Frankenchicken. There are clearly differences in parts, though.
Sobey’s, Ocado partner on grocery delivery
TORONTO, ON – Another grocery giant will be entering the home delivery space in Canada. Sobey’s is partnering with grocery software and order fulfillment company Ocado Group to build a web shop and Customer Fulfilment Center (CFC) in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).
Communication key to distributor partnerships
LAS VEGAS, NV – Price plays a role in any business transaction, but strong relationships continue to be a differentiator when it comes to selling truck parts -- even in an era of e-commerce. “It’s changed the way communication happens, but it doesn’t change the type of communication,” says Carl Mesker, SAF Holland’s vice president - aftermarket. “What’s critically important is the relationship and the trust.”
Aftermarket increasingly global, online
LAS VEGAS, NV – The business of selling truck parts has become increasingly global, introducing a series of new brands along the way. But the source of the parts is only one thing to change, as the industry is further transformed by the tools of e-commerce. “It’s amazing to see what’s happened in the last 10 to 15 years,” said Heavy Duty Manufacturing Association president Tim Kraus, referring to the global alliances of Volvo and Mack, Paccar and DAF, Navistar and Volkswagen, and equipment made under the Daimler umbrella.
IN PRINT — The Clock is Ticking: Consumer demands transform trucking
Seventeen years ago, Tom Hanks stood in a shipping yard and lamented that 87 hours was an eternity. Castaway was on the big screen, and the Hollywood superstar was playing a time-obsessed operations manager for a world-wide shipping company. Shouting that "the cosmos [were] created in less time. Wars have been fought and nations toppled in 87 hours. Fortunes made and squandered," Hanks was forecasting the future of the supply chain. From 87 hours to just 24 or less, time is running out for goods that take more than a day to get to consumers, and trucking is undergoing massive changes, all thanks to a store that sells just about everything: Amazon.
E-commerce is transforming trucking
NASHVILLE, TN - Seventeen years ago, Tom Hanks stood in a shipping yard and lamented that 87 hours was an eternity. Castaway was on the big screen, and the Hollywood superstar was playing a time-obsessed operations manager for a world-wide shipping company. Shouting that "the cosmos [were] created in less time. Wars have been fought and nations toppled at 87 hours. Fortunes made and squandered," Hanks was forecasting the future of supply chain. From 87 hours to just 24 or less, time is running out for goods that take more than a day to get to consumers, and trucking is undergoing massive changes, all thanks to a store that sells just about everything: Amazon. As e-commerce grows exponentially, taking larger and larger shares of markets -- like household goods, cosmetics and personal care items, groceries, and furniture -- it's re-shaping how goods are packaged, shipped, and stored, forcing fleets to adapt quickly. Retail markets were up in July all over the United States, but online sales saw an increase of 1.3%, compared to just 0.1% for traditional brick-and-mortar stores.
Wabash National buying Supreme body builder
LAFAYETTE, IN - Wabash National is purchasing Supreme Industries -- the second-largest maker of truck bodies in the U.S. - as an answer to the growing e-commerce segment. The cash offer is valued at US $21 per share, which equates to an equity value of $364 million and enterprise value of $342 million. The company expects to realize at least $20 million in annual cost savings by 2021, largely through corporate and procurement expenses and operational savings. Supreme, founded in 1974, recorded $299 million in sales last year and has seven facilities across the country. (All figures are in US dollars.) The Wabash portfolio includes dry freight vans, refrigerated vans, liquid and dry bulk tank trailers, and platform trailers.
UPS reports successful drone delivery
LITHIA, FL - UPS says it has successfully tested a drone that launches from the top of one of its famed package cars, delivering a package to a home and returning to the truck while the driver continues along the route. The test was conducted in Tampa, Florida on Monday with Ohio-based Workhorse Group, which developed the electric truck and drone used in the test. The Workhorse HorseFly™ UAV Delivery system includes an octocopter delivery drone that docks on the roof of the truck. A cage underneath the drone extends through a hatch in the truck. The driver loads the package into the cage and sends the rechargeable drone on its pre-set autonomous flight. It has a 30-minute flight time and can carry packages that weigh up to 10 pounds.
