Aftermarket July/August 2022 Issue

considerably more.” With EV sales continuing to climb, Andy also pointed out that the full-EV question is not the only issue: “The immediate challenge is hybrids” he said. The relationship between the driver and the vehicle has changed drastically in recent years and he said that businesses need to understand this: “As technology moves, is the driver of the vehicle going to be the owner of the vehicle? In this case, garages and bodyshops will need to think about how they can bring work in. It is going to be critical that they are digitally visible and digitally capable.” If hearing Andy speak was not enough, LKQ Euro Car Parts had carved out a mighty chunk of the hall, where service, maintenance and repair, coatings and collision, training and diagnostics were all covered. With some of the best giveaways of the show, and a lot of fun stuff too, the stand was full for most of the two days. Range Meanwhile, just across the way from ECP, TOPDON UK had its full range of TOPDON Diagnostics kit on show, which mean visitors could become more familiar with their equipment. Just up the aisle, car service and repair booking platform GaragesNear.Me was looking to introduce itself and encourage garages to sign up. GaragesNear.Me UK Managing Director Martin Pring observed: “GaragesNear.Me is designed to be simple and easy to use for both garages and customers, so we’re looking forward to meeting high quality, future-focused garages to make just a five minute time investment to sign up at the show and secure more work, without the hassle of bidding for it.” Also, not far away, Autotech Training used the event to unveil a new web-based platform intended to help MOT Site Managers and garage owners keep DVSA-compliant and aid efficiency. The new tool, MOTsafe is being made available as a stand-alone product, or as part of an audit service. It analyses and simplifies DVSA data, as Autotech Training Managing Director Colin Gleghorn explained: “Whether you are an independent VTS or part of a large dealer group, MOTsafe is truly access-all-areas and provides the right information, in the right format to the right person, in real-time, helping you stay compliant and keep on testing.” The MOT was one of the many topics under discussion for visitors to the IGA stand. The organisation looked to promote the benefits of membership to garages during the event, in a world where being able to show a united front will mean the sector is able to influence decision making at 56 AFTERMARKET JULY/AUGUST 2022 UK GARAGE AND BODYSHOP EVENT REVIEW www.aftermarketonline.net the highest levels. Not far away, the GEA was having a similar discussion with garage equipment suppliers, and the IAAF and SMMT among others were also on hand. Super While the event was an opportunity to discuss serious issues, there was plenty of fun to be had as well. For retro- minded petrolheads, Lucas Oil Products’ stand provided some definite eye-candy in the form of a Ford Capri Mk.1 drag racer. If it wasn’t for the V8 with massive supercharger scoop, you would be forgiven for complementing owner Bob Glossop on the originality of the vehicle. However, the body was actually fibreglass, which Bob kept shined using Lucas products. In fact, he kept the whole car running on Lucas lubricants and cleaning products. The stand was a popular stop. For those with a racing interest, the eBay Green Parts stand was also proving an attraction, with its Scalextric track available for visitors to try their luck on. They were not just there for fun though; The company was looking to highlight its green parts programme to the crash repair sector. Laura Richards from eBay observed: “eBay is a huge marketplace, with hundreds of thousands of buyers. A couple of years ago, we started to investigate who is buying on eBay, and a lot of it is actually business buyers. With what has been going on in the market lately, with Brexit and COVID-19 etc, there has been a huge impact on the supply chain for spare parts, and there has been a big increase in business buyers shopping. “We connected with Aviva, and they wanted to incorporate a lot of green parts in crash-damaged vehicles. However, Aviva and the other insurers require higher quality. There were thousands of green parts on eBay with no provenance or any guarantee of quality, so that’s why we launched a certification team alongside the RAC, the Vehicle Recyclers Association, the NBRA, ABP and loads of other industry partners to build this scheme up. It is voluntary, so the recyclers in the UK say they want to be certified.” She added: They are up to 70% less than the new part. The recycled parts market is growing really fast.” Educate and inform On the equipment front, for those whose inclinations lean It’s been an extraordinary event, an important one for any garage owner to attend with so much on offer ”