Fixed Ops Journal - June 2019 - F33

FIXED OPS JOURNAL

ROUNDUP
News items from the world of fixed operations
Service technician shortage
is getting worse, report says
The demand for new auto service technicians this year will likely be twice as great as
the supply of graduates of postsecondary tech
training programs, a report predicts.
"Not only does this trend continue, but it
has even worsened," says the "Technician
Supply & Demand Report" compiled by TechForce Foundation, a nonprofit group that promotes technician training and careers.
The auto industry will need nearly 78,000
new technicians this year, the report projects.
Fewer than 38,000 students graduated from
postsecondary training programs in the 201617 school year, the most recent figure available. That number has declined annually
since 2012, the report said.
"While the shortage continues to worsen,
the good news is the transportation industry
is organizing to do something about it," said
TechForce CEO Jennifer Maher. She cited initiatives by groups such as the National Auto-

mobile Dealers Association to increase the
number of service technicians.

Cox Automotive integrates Lyft
with Xtime fixed ops platform
Cox Automotive is integrating the Lyft
ride-hailing service with its Xtime software
platform for dealership service departments.
The partnership will enhance customers' options for getting to and from service appointments, the companies say.
A growing number of dealerships are working with Lyft to supplement their service departments' fleets of loaner vehicles and customer shuttles.
The new arrangement, expected to take effect in the second half of 2019, will let dealership customers select Lyft as a transportation
option when they schedule service appointments.
When a customer arrives at the dealership, a
service adviser can arrange pickups and dropoffs through Xtime's check-in tablet applica-

tion. Moving to on-demand transportation for
service customers will permit dealerships to
reduce fixed costs of maintaining shuttle services, Xtime says.

VW has best aftersales supply
chain, according to survey
Volkswagen Group of America runs the
best-performing aftersales supply chain
among automakers in North America, based
on operating measures and dealer satisfaction, the consulting firm Carlisle & Co. says.
Last month, VW received Carlisle's first annual award for top aftersales supply chain.
Carlisle compared 17 automakers on supply
chain performance in six areas: service parts
order fill, inventory performance, supplier
management, warehouse space efficiency,
warehouse labor productivity and order quality.
The award also reflects results of Carlisle's
annual satisfaction survey among dealership
parts managers.

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JUNE 2019

PAGE 33

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Fixed Ops Journal - June 2019

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