Cases - Business

There is a huge shortage, which effects franchises costs in labor, availability of labor and quality of workmanship. For instance 80,000 Americans are in Oil Lube Facilities alone and over 50% are franchised lube centers. Companies like; Jiffy Lube, Lube Pros, Grease Monkey, All-Tune an

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

d Lube, Oil Can Henry, etc.

Automotive maintenance franchise issues continue as technician shortages increase. We are seeing issues in the automotive aftermarket service sector, which makes it tough on Automotive repair and service franchises. This effects mobile auto service companies

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

as much as fixed site operations. Mobile unit automobile repair teams, which require two technicians per unit on the road for personal cars and up to 4 technicians for fleet on-site oil changing and Heavy Equipment are feeling the pain as much or more than large automotive repair stati

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

ns. Car Dealerships entering the auto lube business too are feeling the pinch and work hard to maintain enough mechanics on staff and still train them to the latest models and all their OEM idiosyncrasies. As a matter of fact Car Dealership franchises employee 265,000 Americans as techn

here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe

icians to repair warranty work and do routine services. And they soak up annually 35,000 new technicians per year and that is just to stay even with the attrition rates and expansion of the largest Car Dealership Consolidators.

Think about it; United Auto, Auto One, Lithia, CarMax, Aut

d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro

Nation, Sonics Automotive Group, alone account for thousands of dealerships and growing and they also want a piece of the oil change action as Manufacturers are going to specialized oil to help meet emissions rules from the EPA, thus branded oil such as BMW Oil, which is required in the

ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc

ir operations manuals. And of course they do not sell this oil to Oil Change Companies not affiliated over their counters. Then there are many companies which do oil changing which also do other services companies like, Midas Muffler which is one of the oldest franchises still running i

easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi

n the US. And Minekie Muffler (SP? Silly name) as well as all the Tire Companies, which have added oil change services. And let’s not forget the Master Grand Daddy, largest company in the US accounting for 9% of the total GDP; Yes, I am speaking of Sam Walton’s creation, if you get a ch

nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically

nce go read; “Made in America” the story of Wal*Mart and incase you think that is not some real competition, you might wish to know that they are now the largest automotive repair company now due to their auto service bays at the Super Wal-Marts.

All these issues make getting trained t

and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ

echnicians tough and the gap widens, which effects your performance, customer service, increases risks of mistakes, raises your cost of labor and hurts your completed operations insurance costs. As if there is not enough costs with all the other regulations affecting your bottom line? I

ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi

is a challenge to find labor which requires a skill such as an auto technician and yes unlike other parts of the auto sector such as overhaul and repair where there is the greatest shortage and body shops which requires knowledge and skill with an even bigger shortage of qualified tech

ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a

nicians.

The oil change business is not without significant hardships in recruiting and maintaining labor as competition lowers costs and labor needs to be cut due to workmen’s compensation insurance and benefit costs and insurance and regulations and lawsuits concerning slip and fall

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

and work place injuries. So where can you find the right people for the low cost necessary to stay in business with all these dramatic increases in costs and competition? Well ASE has some good advice if you are looking for technicians on their association website. Military Hobby Shops

cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin

s another suggestion. As costs keep going up for quality and skilled labor, how much should you pay in your oil change franchised outlet facility? Here are some thoughts;

http://www.parthe.net/_oilchangeguys/00000074.htm

A recent survey by the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Associati

tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen

on (AAIA) showed for every 10 who retire as auto technicians only 2-3 start. The attrition rate is dangerous. Similarly the military is soaking up many folks and even the US Navy is having difficulty staffing all the ships. When Motor Age Magazine took their survey they saw some shockin

t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel

tell tale signs; 37% of automotive technicians across the board said they would not still be in this line of work in 5 years from now, which is not too un typical of the fact that Americans change their jobs every 3.2 years on average, 50% that is or that teachers only 50% stay with it

ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

over 5 years? Scary thoughts, but those statistics are real, Source: American Demographic Magazine. If you have a brand like Castrol, then they give scholarships and can assist in providing labor at entry level, but if you are paying under $8.00 per hour expect massive turnover. Under

y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products

$15.00 per hour expect triple and five times less turn over, which is difficult still in that the average oil change worker is only four to seven months on the job? Starbucks with all it’s benefits is 50% per year, most Quick Service Restaurants are 75% per year.

With the increased ins

.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de

nity of over regulations and incessant frivolous and BS lawsuits from ambulance chasing legal terrorists, it is hard to say if this trend will stop. Unless we get some additional tort reform it will be a tough row to hoe. Due to the insurance costs and increased labor associated costs;

elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

then it will continue to be a challenge Oil Change Facilities with even the best demographic locations. If you are going into the oil change business; stay lean and mean, because theses challenges are threatening your profits, which could leave you with little chance of a reasonable ROI

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

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We were impressed with South Western Colorado as a good place to hang your hat and a pretty good place to run a business. Great labor supply, good transportation and excellent tourist flows. The town is growing in Cortez and up the hill in Durango as well.

Most Realtors know the importance of identity branding and work at branding themse;ves. So, when real estate buyers and sellers need a Realtor they think of them...not you.

From your name and logo to your business philosophy and corporate mission; from your advertising campaign message to your design elements; from your products and services; all that is owned, produced, stated, sold and marketed by your company falls under the broad heading of your Brand.

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Cases - 80,000 Americans Work in the Oil Change Industry

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