Data management is integral to an efficient maintenance operation, but where is your parts data coming from, and how good is it?
Simplifying the process reduces errors
The parts supply chain is feeding parts information into inventory and maintenance management systems in so many different formats that it could be slowing you down. Not having access to the most current parts on the market. Not having assurances that what you ordered will complete the repair. Returns and refunds—these all affect uptime.
The suppliers in the commercial vehicle parts supply chain now have an opportunity to change that and generate greater efficiency for your organization by adopting a standardized parts information communication system.
Led by HDDA: Heavy Duty, a community of the Auto Care Association, the 20-year-old Product Information Exchange Standard (PIES) is now being expanded to accommodate heavy-duty vehicles. The initial phase of this expansion will cover 85% of the parts currently sold. By incorporating PIES into a supplier’s parts communication network, the data management systems used by fleets and service operations will be able to have expanded parts information, improved customer service from your parts providers, increased access to a greater inventory of parts options and minimized return rates.
Adding one more piece to PIES
One critical element of the updated PIES is the inclusion of partial Vehicle Maintenance Reporting Standards (VMRS) codes. VMRS codes have long been a help to fleet maintenance operations in identifying the parts and services performed on each vehicle asset. One of the ongoing challenges with VMRS, however, has been increasing the number of manufacturers that provide a proper code at the point of sale. HDDA believes that the inclusion of a VMRS code into the PIES standard will encourage more suppliers to participate in the VMRS and that it will result in the streamlining of the parts data communication system.
In the data-driven, technology-reliant trucking industry that has emerged over the last few years, we now know that data, when managed the right way, gives your operation a competitive advantage and makes you more efficient. But what are your parts supplier partners doing to improve your data and help fleets maximize uptime? One thing they can do is participate in the creation process of PIES for the commercial vehicle industry. By urging parts manufacturers to join the PIES project, your organization will have better, more accurate parts information on more than 8,200 key heavy-duty vehicle components.
“One of the ongoing challenges with VMRS, however, has been increasing the number of manufacturers that provide a proper code at the point of sale.”
The success of the PIES expansion to include heavy-duty products is contingent upon the customers purchasing the parts. While nearly 70 companies have committed to creating and adopting the standards when they are fully released, there are countless other manufacturers out there that need to hear from their customers on why they should participate in the project.
There are three reasons to tell your parts supplier to adopt data standards:
➊ The more information you have on their product, the more likely you are to purchase.
➋ Data standards help get new products to market faster, which gives fleets a chance to incorporate new options into their vehicles.
➌ Data standards can increase vehicle uptime by getting the right part, at the right place, at the right time.
The bottom line is that data standards help the trucking industry. Visit the HDDA: Heavy Duty comprehensive standards resource center here to find more information about the development and adoption of PIES into the heavy-duty aftermarket.
