BOULDER, Colo. – Navistar International is in the midst of a massive project to refine its dealership experience, and part of that involves a focus on quicker parts deliveries.

Fleet customers are already looking for trucks to be serviced within six hours rather than 24 hours, says Josef Kory, senior vice-president – parts. That can only be realized if the manufacturer rethinks the way required parts are delivered.

“We’re going to need more ways to get parts to customers the same day and multiple times per day,” he says, referring to a pilot project with the Lyft ridesharing service as an example. It’s part of a general shift away from truckload or LTL delivery models in favor of dedicated and last-mile runs.

But this involves more than frequent trips between distribution centers and dealers. It also means predicting what parts should be on a dealer shelf before the customer arrives, leveraging parts inventory systems that rely on analytics, telematics, and artificial intelligence rather than historical sales data alone.

In some cases, low-volume parts might even be created on demand using 3D printing, he added, during a briefing on the OEM’s Vision 2025 initiative — a program that is looking to transform its dealership and aftermarket experience.

Even the makeup of the parts themselves will need to change, with shelves stocking more components such as sensors to support things like safety and collision mitigation systems, he said.

A winning aftermarket strategy will need to consider several parts like these.