What Are The Costs?
In the equipment industry, it’s a similar situation. Change and development have been furious. Advancements in technology have made nearly every step of the rebuilding process more exact than ever, which has made it easier for shops to meet the ever-tightening tolerances and reach OE specifications. But these advancements haven’t come without their costs, both
Heavy Duty Diesel Rebuilding Opportunities
It’s certainly no secret that the engine rebuilding industry has been hurt by better quality, longer-lasting automobile engines. The same thing – but taken to an even greater extreme – can be said about the heavy duty diesel engine market. “The quality of today’s engines – both automotive and diesel – is so much better
Valve Guide and Seat Equipment Options
For many engine builders the bread and butter business is in cylinder head work. In fact, according to our 2005 Machine Shop Market Profile (also available at www.engine-builder.com) 41 percent of gas and 54 percent of diesel engine builders’ business comes from servicing cylinder heads. And one of the most important aspects of doing this
Shop Management Software
Reality TV puts ordinary people into difficult, often dangerous situations with the sole purpose of providing entertainment to millions of people. Except for the “entertainment” and “millions of people” part of the equation, that also sounds like just another business day. How often do you as a machine shop owner or engine rebuilder feel that
Secret to Success is No Secret, Says Incoming AERA Chairman
John DeBates doesn’t understand what all the fuss is about. "I’m just a guy with a machine shop," he suggests. "I’m no superhero." And yet, when John DeBates, incoming chairman of the Engine Rebuilders Association (AERA) talks, people hang on every word. Perhaps it’s because he’s just a naturally funny, engaging and friendly personality. Perhaps
Coretalk: PERA Promotes Profit At Tech/Marketing Meeting
The following is the agenda for the meeting: Friday, April 29 7:00 – 10:00 a.m. – Registration. 7:00 – 8:00 a.m. – PERA Continental Breakfast. 8:00 a.m. – Opening Remarks & Introductions. 8:15 a.m. – “Performance Market,” Scooter Brothers of Comp Cams. 9:00 a.m. – “Performance Market,” Ed Keibler. 9:45 a.m. – Refreshment Break. 10:00
The Mid-range Diesel Engine Market
The diesel engine market is a very complex one, but it can be broken down into three basic categories: light-, medium- and heavy-duty. These categories could then be broken down further into on-highway, off-highway and agricultural. In 2004 roughly 1.5 million new diesel engines were produced in North America, a whopping 79.6 percent of which
Coretalk: GM, DaimlerChrysler Join Forces To Produce Hybrid Automobile Engines By ’07
Although financial terms of the agreement weren’t disclosed, the collaboration is likely to involve an investment of hundreds of millions of dollars between the automakers. The first of the vehicles is to debut in 2007 – when Toyota has said it hopes its hybrid model sales will total several hundred thousand worldwide. GM, which has
Topline Automotive Buys, Reopens Hylift Facility, Engine Builder, August 2004
A full-line of flat mechanical tappets, lash adjusters and encapsulated hydraulic roller lifters are again being produced by the original Hylift machines and team. The previous Hylift OE lines that were in Zeeland, MI, have now been relocated to the Muskegon plant. “The same people who made ‘The Beautiful Lifter’ are back manufacturing with precision
Get Your Shop Together To Be More Efficient, Profitable
Let’s face it; the hardest part about starting each day is being ready to work when the start bell rings. The worst way to start your day is to spend time searching for where you left off the day before. The best way to be ready is to get your shop together. This means that
TIG Welding Opportunities: Working Magic In Cylinder Head Emergencies
Is there a machine in your shop that can be said to work magic? Not only can it fill cracks and repair broken castings, it has the power to create profits, restore power and turn back the hands of time. You might call it a TIG welder, but many of your most desperate customers will
In Search Of New Markets, Mike Jeffries
Looking for new markets is one of the toughest things we do, so every time the phone rings we listen for an opportunity. Most of what we find is suspect, but over the past 12 months we have rebuilt a number of compact diesels and sold a number of rebuild kits. As a result we
Vincent Mancini Sees the Future of PERA ; Right Here, Right Now
You might think that a popular rock band would have nothing to contribute to an engine remanufacturer. You might think the best way to make a profit is to slash expenses by all means necessary. Or, you might think things would be better if your customer would just see your side of the story for
Message From Incoming PERA President Jim Ormsby
Sometimes we need to exceed even our own expectations. That’s the message from Jim Ormsby, incoming Production Engine Remanufacturers Assoc-iation (PERA) president and current general manager of Franklin Power Products, a production engine remanufacturer (PER) located in Franklin, IN. They’re words that all PERA members should take to heart if they wish to re-energize shrinking
Finding Your Break Even Point
Why should you care what your business’ break-even point is? What purpose does it serve to know what it is? More specifically, how do you determine which of your business costs are fixed and which are variable? What costs affect your break-even point the most? How often should this information be calculated? How do you
Machine Shop Market Profile Part II
In Part I of our annual review of the machine shop market, which appeared in our July 1998 issue, we provided average production numbers in 1997 for cylinder heads, engine blocks and crankshafts reported by machine shops. According to our survey respondents, custom engine rebuilders/machine shops averaged 18.29 gas and diesel engines rebuilt monthly during
Machine Shop Market Profile
Interviews conducted with parts and equipmentsuppliers, as well as machine shop owners and custom engine rebuilders,generally point to market demand which has remained flat whenengine production numbers are compared to year earlier figures.Recent survey results of machine shops concerning production year1997 confirm these assumptions. Automotive Rebuilder magazine conducted a surveyof the machine shop membership of
Power Investments, Inc.: Building An Empire In The Rebuilding Industry
Mike Jarvis, 53, president of Power Investments,Inc., is quietly building an empire in the rebuilding industry.If you want proof, just take a look at his frequent flyer miles(he’s averaged about 2,500 business miles per week over the pastfour years), and the fact that company growth has averaged between12-18% per year, mostly through acquisitions, since 1983.
The Core Market Right Now Is Very Soft
Core suppliers throughout the industry aretrying to interpret the reasons for a slower market this year."The core market right now is very soft", says Bob Grady,president of Rebuilders Automotive Supply (RAS) in Cranston, RI."Unit sales are about the same, but prices and margins aredown and terms are longer, so profits are down too." It’s human
Clutch Market: Passenger Car And Light Truck Clutches
Optimism isn’t exactly running high these daysamong clutch rebuilders and their component parts suppliers, particularlywith respect to passenger car and light truck clutches. The marketis being squeezed on one side by an influx of new clutches fromoffshore suppliers, and on the other side by price pressures andtoo much competition. You might say it’s a gripping