Capital Equipment News August 2018

SERVICES

more efficiency out of the product,” he says. He thinks the establishment of mobile container workshops is a step in the right direction, but it’s not the mobility that customers are looking for. “Customers don’t want the headache of carrying large stocks of parts for an OEM’s product because it impacts on their cash flow. Remember a lot of these transport businesses are multi-brand truck operators and for them parts issues should be the duty of the OEM and the supplier. Instead of keeping a large and expensive inventory of parts, they are more concerned about investing in technologies that make their transport businesses more efficient and cost- effective than their competition,” reasons Erasmus. Adding to the need of flexibility of service, Erasmus says customers should be able to log online and be able to choose a CPK rate that suits their R&M needs. For example, when one is paying a CPK rate for 5 000 km per month, and they only do 4 000 km this month, the 1 000 km they didn’t use last month should be rolled over to the following month. “If there is any need to exceed this month’s limit, the customer should also be able to borrow from next month. It’s that kind of flexibility that I think we should have in place as we aim for the complete offering model. Customers should be able to go online and see how much it will cost them, where their services will take place and how long their vehicle will be in service for,” he says. How far are we from such a service regime? Erasmus believes that at the pace technology is moving, this may be within reach, but cannot give a specific timeline. “Technology is also getting cheaper and more accessible,” he says. He believes that the passenger car market has made significant headway in terms of technological developments and it’s normally the case that where automobiles go, trucks and buses eventually follow. With all these changes, Erasmus believes that the conventional dealer setup will likely lose relevance. He is of the view that the people aspect will be a major challenge. “Getting people who have always worked in a certain way to adapt to the new model of a mobile workplace and the new thinking will be a huge challenge. Technicians will no longer be based in a static workshop; they will need to be nomadic when executing their duties. For this to happen, it’s going to be about the people aspect and the mindset shift,” concludes Erasmus. b

The most important things in the future will be mobility and flexibility of service.

In future, technicians will no longer be based in static workshops, they will need to be nomadic when executing their duties.

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