PE Data

MORE THAN THE SUM OF ITS PARTS

A NEW EU REGULATION IS FORCING TRAILER MANUFACTURERS TO DISCLOSE ALL REPAIR AND SPARE PARTS INFORMATION STARTING IN 2021. THIS IS A DIFFICULT TASK BECAUSE MOST TRAILERS ARE CUSTOM-MANUFACTURED UNITS. PE DATA HAS DEVELOPED A SOLUTION THAT EVEN INCREASES SALES AND
SAVINGS POTENTIAL.

TO THE LAYPERSON, TRAILERS LOOK MORE OR LESS THE SAME

And yet, when you get down to the details, they differ much more than cars or trucks – because they are built specifically for their transport purpose, virtually no two trailers are the same. This makes the technical documentation process complicated and time-consuming for manufacturers. This is why a new EU regulation is the subject of much debate: it obliges trailer manufacturers to provide access to all repair and maintenance information for their vehicles starting in 2020, and to make it available to “all independent economic operators in an easily accessible form that can be processed electronically”.

The regulation is already in force for passenger cars and trucks – a “VIN number” identifies the vehicle and reveals its technical content. This is intended to boost competition in the field of maintenance and repair across Europe, but also to benefit technical publishers, automobile clubs and inspection and testing service providers.

PE Data
Ralf Maurer
Managing Director, BPW Aftermarket Group Deutschland GmbH

“The EU regulation is also opening up new opportunities for vehicle manufacturers,”

says Ralf Maurer, managing director of BPW Aftermarket Group Deutschland GmbH. The company includes the IT specialists from PE Data, who have been intensively conducting systematic and manufacturer-independent research into product and vehicle data since 1994.

This experience is now also available to vehicle manufacturers. This is because PE Data has already developed the necessary system logic, software and a lot of the information relevant to trailers. This forms the basis for an innovative, proprietary catalogue and online shop system that boasts innovative search and ordering features. This can be used to track down the right spare parts or repair documents via smartphone, PC or tablet by entering the licence plate number, the vehicle identification number or intuitively searching for specific terms.

The QR code that is affixed to the vehicle during the production process or later in its life cycle makes the process even easier – simply scan the code with your smartphone’s camera and the trailer reveals its entire technical content; spare parts can be ordered in seconds. And even if the trailer manufacturer does not have all the necessary data, the vehicle file learns automatically from the user’s behaviour. This enables vehicle manufacturers, dealers and workshops to benefit from each other’s knowledge throughout the life cycle of a vehicle. The trailer only needs to be identified once, then it’s added to the system for future reference. It even allows you to save technical drawings, photos or video repair instructions, which can be easily added over time. The manufacturer’s digital vehicle file doesn’t start from scratch anyway, but right from the start is enriched with data that PE Data has already researched – including the parts lists and product data from the BPW Group and possibly other leading manufacturers.

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Outstanding employees create an outstanding team – PE Data won the Innovation Award at the 25th Automechanika Frankfurt in the Dealer & Workshop Management category against nearly 120 competitors.
PE Data
Outstanding service creates an outstanding relationship – a data-driven spare parts service leads to greater customer satisfaction, from the manufacturer to the spare parts dealer to the workshop.

“With PE Data, we are opening up new opportunities for vehicle manufacturers in the spare parts business. This benefits vehicle operators as well as workshops and dealers operating on the independent aftermarket.”

Ralf Maurer