march2022 - 28

integration also enabled significant savings in
workload and administration. "
Parts are ultimately sourced at the shop level,
noted Andy Turnbull, SVP of customer solutions
at Diesel Laptops. The provider of diesel diagnostic
hardware and software tools also offers Diesel
Parts, a searchable database of over 2.5 million
items. The site, which is updated daily, includes
diagrams, measurements, and cross-reference and
VIN lookup capabilities.
Turnbull said that having a single infrastructure
linking diagnostic tools to parts identification
is also an important feature. Accordingly,
Diesel Parts was designed with a data-informed
approach and that type of integration.
" Identifying what part is needed based on
fault codes is one thing, but sourcing it quickly
can be more difficult, " Turnbull stated. " When a
technician or shop manager can use a diagnostic
tool to not only get repair instructions based
on a fault code but also instantly find the parts
that are needed, that's how next-generation ecommerce
technology uses the power of data to help
make correct, extremely specific, and effective
parts-buying decisions. "
Help at the OE level
Manufacturers are also enabling more effective
parts-purchasing practices. Major vehicle, system,
and component suppliers offer online replacement
parts-purchasing tools.
" At an elementary level, these sites benefit fleets
and service providers with an ability to crossreference
parts, " said Christy Westrich, director of
customer loyalty at MeritorPartsXpress. " Across
many OEM and competitive platforms, customers
don't have the luxury of everyone using the
same part numbers or identifiers. By providing
» Third-party ecommerce sites help
buyers compare parts for the best price,
availability, and compatibility.
Photo: FindItParts
standardized data on parts across the industry,
the best ecommerce platforms provide accurate
parts identification. "
Recently, MeritorPartsXpress rolled out several
updates to its ecommerce platform, including
configurable text alerts for order confirmation and
messaging about the location of parts to determine
shipment delivery times. There also are
web-chat capabilities for connecting with technical
service representatives. Updates planned
for the coming year include faster data mining,
a VIN decoder tool, and search engine optimization
improvements.
" The pandemic has pushed the value of ecommerce
parts purchasing technology to the forefront, "
Westrich said. " Before it was a necessity,
fleets and service providers had to call a supplier
to gets parts and cross-reference information. Now
they have that capability instantly and at all times. "
Westrich continued, stating that relationships
still remain extremely important in the commercial
vehicle industry-and those relationships
carry their importance into the ecommerce space
when it comes to the sharing of data.
" Not long ago, suppliers mostly kept information
about their parts and availability to themselves,
preferring to work with customers one to one, "
Westrich said. " Today, we've all realized that by
putting our collective intelligence together and
collaborating, we can all help each other-and our
customers-meet their parts needs. "
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march2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of march2022
