BACKGROUND THE AFTERMARKET
WABCO Helps the Aftermarket Benefit from the Electronic Revolution in Commercial Vehicles with Diagnostics Capabilities and Training
Serving aftermarket customers requires an extensive and efficient distribution network to provide a broad range of product offerings as well as increased service, support and technical training. WABCO is expanding its distribution network beyond its traditional markets in Western Europe, enriching its product offerings, and adding new services to already existing diagnostic capabilities and training.
The application of increasingly complex electronic vehicle control systems and technologies in commercial vehicles is rapidly increasing and with it the size of the global commercial vehicle aftermarket. To support fleet and aftermarket customers in decoding the electronics maze, the aftermarket business unit provides a growing range of efficient support tools, services and trainings. A comprehensive global service network of certified workshops offering standardized quality and service levels enables WABCO to support its customers’ systems and components throughout a vehicle’s entire life cycle.
Systems and Technology
Workshops must increasingly maintain, diagnose and repair multi-brand commercial vehicle products and systems. Those workshops that respond best to customer needs, for example by upgrading their capabilities to offer a broader range of diagnostic services, will be well positioned on the market. Complementary to WABCO System specific diagnostic solutions WABCO’s Expert Diagnostics system, a generic and affordable diagnostics tool, covers system diagnostics for a wide range of vehicles and comes in Compact, Advanced and Premium versions that are scaled to individual needs. It offers significant new business opportunities for workshops.
WABCO recently launched Tire Premium Seal, a unique first-aid kit for leaking commercial vehicles tires. The system offers increased safety and significant cost savings by making the repair process simpler, quicker and safer than changing a wheel and reduces vehicle downtime. The innovative tire repair kit for trucks perfectly complements the WABCO Vehicle Tire Pressure Monitoring System (IVTM), increasing the benefit for truck and bus fleets worldwide. Once the IVTM system has detected a leak, WABCO Tire Premium Seal enables the driver to fix it within a few minutes.
Knowledge-transfer and Training
But innovation is not just about technology. Sharing ideas, knowledge and expertise with distributors, workshops and fleet customers is the responsibility of the leading suppliers in the commercial vehicle industry. WABCO University provides technical training, e-Learning modules, business training as well as tailor made consulting services. The timely investment in state-of-the-art technology, such as diagnostic tools and well- trained staff, both contributes to the growth of an existing workshop business and its future success.
Service and Quality
WABCO’s global service network comprises more than 400 WABCO Service Centers complemented by more than 1,000 WABCO Service Points. These certified workshops guarantee standardized quality on highest levels. The newly established Service Points offer WABCO service for at least one vehicle type, like trucks or trailers, while the Service Center offer qualified service for all vehicle types and also include warranty handling. Spare parts can be ordered via the WABCO web shop twenty-four-seven or via WABCO Direct, the multilingual technical service hotline. In Germany, Austria and Switzerland, this service has been expanded, now offering a Saturday service hotline. Other markets are scheduled to follow.