The automobile industry’s most important trade fair for equipment, parts, accessories, management and services will once again open its doors in Frankfurt in mid-September. TecAlliance, one of the world’s leading service and solution providers for automotive data management, will take advantage of the event — expected to welcome over 130,000 visitors from 170 countries — to present highlights from its portfolio to the automotive aftermarket.
One of TecAlliance's innovations is the new version of the TecDoc Catalogue, a spare automotive parts catalogs. The new version (3.0) is built to be more intuitive than before while enabling even more precise and faster searches. Users also have the option to only display IAM parts (IAM = independent aftermarket) that match the vehicle manufacturer's OE data.
The repair and maintenance information (RMI) has also been better integrated into the new version of the catalogue and combined with the spare parts data, so that the garage has direct access to all necessary information — on installation, dismantling and maintenance.
The scope, quality and up-to-date status of the data and information in the TecDoc Catalogue make it possible for independent garages to offer vehicle maintenance in line with manufacturer regulations, maintaining the manufacturer’s warranty, the company says. All in all, the TecDoc Catalogue now enables garages to calculate the costs to their customers in a more precise manner. It also makes it possible for the garage to make all organizational preparations and place all necessary orders even before the vehicle comes through the garage door.
But it is not only garages that benefit from the new TecDoc Catalogue. To help traders to set up their own web shops in a speedy and uncomplicated manner, TecAlliance has used the TecDoc Catalogue to create a customized solution featuring web shop functionality (including the fully-integrated OE and RMI data). As an alternative, trade organizations can integrate the TecDoc Catalogue’s range of data into their own shops or catalogue systems as a web service.
Integrated solution for order management
Among the TecAlliance highlights in Frankfurt is the further development of the order-to-invoice solution. A central online portal now provides access to all TecAlliance process modules for the supply chain: order, e-Invoicing, returns and access to article information (Collaborative Managed Data). The main advantages of the integrated solution are lower costs and simpler processes because of automation and digitization. This offering – professional management of the complete order-to-invoice process – appeals equally to manufacturers, traders and garages. The order manager can be used as a web application and a mobile app; it can also be integrated into ERP systems.
With the CCU, TecAlliance is presenting a PIM tool to manage spare parts data. Industry data managers can use the CCU to enter article information, maintain it and link it to the appropriate vehicle data.
In addition to the option of capturing article text information in the international TecDoc standard, it is now possible to map it to other formats. These include MAM for the British market and ACES and PIES for the USA and Mexico.
TecAlliance is also showcasing the prototype of the Analytics Manager: a business intelligence solution for targeted analysis which enables the optimization of product portfolios based on an improved understanding of customer and market demands.
