CarParts Technologies Inc. (CPT), a provider of open, eCommerce and business automation software solutions for the automotive aftermarket, announced it has successfully deployed its first interface from its Tradera(TM) Tire Management System to the Michelin Retread Management System, BIB TREAD(TM), at Ozarko Tire Centers, Inc. According to the company, BIB TREAD(TM) software provides complete management of every step of the retreading and repair process, tracking each tire through its receiving, inspection, repair and final invoicing. Ozarko Tire Centers, Inc. of West Plains, Missouri, a Michelin Retread Technologies (MRT) retreader and owner of six commercial sales locations, has been using CarParts Technologies Tradera(TM) Tire Management System since September 2001. Now that Ozarko Tire Centers, Inc. is live with the new BIB TREAD(TM) Interface, all retread billing information is passed directly from BIB TREAD(TM) to Tradera(TM) at the moment the finished product is released from the retread plant. "The new interface has already reduced my monthly administrative costs by 15 percent because updates from BIB TREAD to the CarParts Technologies inventory management and Point-of-Sale system are automatic," said Ozarko Tire Owner Gary McGinnis. "With Tradera, we can bank customer retreads and the system gives our salesperson the ability to quickly access inventory information from within our Point-of-Sale. With one mouse click we can bill out a customer. This level of online information gives us a competitive advantage in servicing our biggest customers with better information by eliminating manual searches and by eliminating at least 15 keystrokes per tire on multiple tire orders." "Servicing commercial truck fleets is very competitive in today's tire market," said Paul Van Den Berg, vice president of product marketing and services for CarParts Technologies. "The ability to provide up-to-date, accurate information on tire sales or retread information gives commercial tire dealers a competitive advantage in servicing existing clients and winning new customers. Elimination of duplicate data entry into two systems, reduction of reliance on paper, and more timely access to information improves the productivity of sales and finance staff. Given that staffing costs are a major expense in the commercial tire channel, enabling a 15 percent improvement in productivity is not a small accomplishment." "Michelin is pleased to see this new level of integration with the CarParts Technologies platform," said Jack McCammond, manager of eBusiness products for Michelin Americas Truck Tires. "Moving retread data directly from BIB TREAD into Tradera will eliminate all double keying, making the process faster, and reducing data entry errors. For our fleet customers this will produce more timely and accurate billing, thereby reducing their administrative costs. By working with CarParts Technologies we are seeking to give our retread dealers competitive advantages in servicing national and regional fleets across the country." About CarParts Technologies, Inc.
CarParts Technologies, Inc. is a provider of extended supply chain software solutions for the automotive aftermarket. The CarParts Technologies OpenWebs(TM) eCommerce platform enables efficient online trade, integration and collaboration between B2B marketplaces, buyers, suppliers and commerce service providers. The solutions are used in more than 3,000 leading aftermarket outlets including Tier 1 manufacturers, program groups, tire and service chains, warehouse distributors and independent installers. CarParts Technologies says its open, end-to-end solutions allow companies to generate new sales, operate more cost efficiently, accelerate inventory turns and maintain stronger relationships with suppliers and trading partners. Established in 1997, CarParts Technologies says its complete suite of business solutions has delivered returns on investment to customers across the entire aftermarket supply chain. Headquartered in San Juan Capistrano, California, CarParts Technologies has received venture capital funding from @Ventures, the affiliated venture capital arm of CMGI, Rho Ventures, BEV Capital, Investor AB and St. Paul Venture Capital.