Cummins Recognized by Chrysler as 2012 Sustainability Supplier of the Year
Chrysler Group recently recognized Cummins Inc. as the 2012 Sustainability Supplier of the Year during the company’s 2012 Annual Strategy Meeting and Supplier Awards Ceremony on June 6 at the Fox Theatre in Detroit. Nominations were based on the following criteria: • Significance to environmental, social and economic sustainability • Impact of the
Four Tips for Running a Family Business
Since its inception over 70 years ago, Bremen Castings has been a company at the forefront of the foundry industry having won numerous awards for its safety, technology and environment-friendly manufacturing. “In an industry with strong traditional roots, it’s important to have your company stay on course and to keep up with the times,”
How to Use E-Verify System to Check Employment Eligibility
The following article from SEMA eNews gives a brief introduction to the federal government’s “E-Verify” system, which allows employers to check employment eligibility documents against a federal database. The U.S. Supreme Court recently upheld an Arizona law that requires employers in Arizona to use the system. In addition to Arizona, some other states have variations
Protecting Your Shop’s Reputation: Be Wary Of Threats To Your Brand Name
Unfortunately, protecting your brand has become more of a challenge in the Internet age. Complaints that were once handled in person and in private are often shared online, potentially alienating new customers and making it difficult for shop owners to resolve issues. Even worse, because of the anonymous nature of the Internet, some shop owners
Leading By Example: Focus On Core Strengths To Build A Stronger Team
He had a lot of time to reflect on life and who he was during his long stay at the South Pole Advance Base weather station in 1934, where temps averaged -60 degrees in the winter. He was alone and the closest human was 123 miles away. Segueing from that example, in this article I’d
Babcox Media Launches Aftermarketjobs.com
For aftermarket employers, AftermarketJobs.com offers a cost-effective resource for promoting open positions within their companies, while at the same time directly reaching prospective employees who are already involved in this dynamic and competitive market. AftermarketJobs.com will be managed by veteran Babcox sales executive Karen Kaim. Officially launched on May 1, AftermarketJobs.com offers the ability
Win a New Tool Box in ‘The Great GOJO Giveaway’ Promotion
The spring 2012 promotion, which runs now through June 14, 2012, allows employees in these Tough Soils industries to enter for a chance to win the grand prize: a brand name, 11-drawer tool chest valued at more than $4,000. In addition, GOJO will give away 15 prize packs – one awarded each week – that
Pricing Your Shop’s Services Without Adversely Affecting Customer Relationships
What I decided to do with this article is break the subject of pricing down into three components: Base pricing, price modification andmeasuring results. Base Pricing At Elite, we believe that in all cases, your prices need to be competitive. By “competitive,” I’m not suggesting that you need to charge the same price as
MAHLE Clevite Kicks Off All-Star Sweepstakes; Prize Includes VIP?Trip
The randomly selected grand prize winner will receive a VIP trip the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup All-Star Race in Charlotte, NC this May. “MAHLE Clevite wanted to acknowledge the dedication and talent of the thousands of engine specialists and builders as well as automotive technicians throughout the country,” said Ted Hughes, Manager – Marketing
7 Common Small Business Tax Misperceptions
The old legal saying that "ignorance of the lawis no excuse" is perhaps most often applied in tax settings and it is safeto assume that a tax auditor presenting an assessment of additional taxes,penalties and interest will not look kindly on an "I didn’t know I wasrequired to do that" claim. On the flip side,
PRI Announces Transition and Sale to SEMA
With 20-plus years of publishing and management experience at PRI, John Kilroy will serve as vice president/general manager of PRI and assume day-to-day operations for the group. All the operations, employees and offices will remain intact at PRI’s current location in Laguna Beach, Calif. "Steve Lewis launched the PRI concept a quarter-of-a-century ago,
How To Deliver World-Beating Customer Service
Shop owners know that the key to attracting and retaining loyal customers lies in delivering top-notch customer service, but how is that defined in everyday interactions? What does it take to teach and instill a “customer service” attitude throughout your business? In this economy you have to be much more effective to keep customer loyalty
Alapont to Retire From Federal-Mogul, Jueckstock Elected Successor
Alapont will remain with the company in a consulting role to assist with the transition and will also remain on the company’s board of directors through the 2013 annual meeting of shareholders. Rainer Jueckstock, currently senior vice president of the company’s powertrain energy business unit, has been elected CEO effective April 1. Jueckstock
Be More Efficient And Profitable With Well Organized Shop
The best way to be ready to start your day is to get your shop together. This means that every day certain things must be shut down, cleaned, put away, wiped down and organized. Get yourself a pedometer, attach it to your belt and at the end of the day see how many miles you’ve walked around your
Good, Bad or Ugly, Customer Service is Your Key to Success or Failure
Automotive-related issues continue to rank in the top ten ofconsumer complaints received by the Better Business Bureau. Even ifyou don’t deal directly with retail customers, the way you handleANY customer complaints can go a long way in determining your successor failure. Particularly these days, in the economy we are facing, you needevery customer you can
Learn How To Improve Customer Retention, Sales From Amazon.com
noadI even have my own “Recommended Reading Store” powered by Amazon.com. (You can visit it at http://astore.amazon.com/saawll-20). Apparently, I’m not alone in my infatuation with the company. In the recently published 2011 Temkin Experience Ratings, Amazon was ranked No. 1 in customer service out of 143 large companies across 12 industries. According to Temkin, the
Protecting Your Customers’ Info: Understanding The ‘Safeguards Rule’
By now, most shops should have implemented their information security programs and taken steps to ensure compliance with the Safeguards Rule. If you have not, we recommend taking steps to get in compliance immediately. If you have, it’s still important to periodically review and assess your program to ensure you remain in compliance. History President
Ohio Technical College Earns Fourth Consecutive Weatherhead 100 Award
The 2011 Weatherhead 100 Award recognizes the fastest growing companies in Northeast Ohio, based on the percentage of sales growth from 2006-2010. Ohio Technical College placed 46 out of 100 companies on the list. To be eligible for the award, companies also must have net sales over $1 million and have a minimum of
Waste Not, Want Not: Waste Oil Heaters Can Drastically Cut Costly Shop Heating Bills
The heater burned the waste oil that accumulated from oil changes and other jobs to produce heat for the shop. It was a great way of getting around the highcosts of natural gas used in conventional heaters, plus it got rid of all the used oil that the shop produced. So, if your shop creates
A Conversation with the MAHLE Clevite Champion Technician Winner Dave Arce
Dave is the owner of Arce Engines in El Cajon, CA. He remanufactures engines, performs general installation and repair, does engine rebalancing and has quite a resume when it comes to high performance racing engines. Dave’s daughter Hollee nominated him for the contest and wrote an excellent essay about all of her dad’s accomplishments throughout