Association Introduces Remanufacturing Marketplace

The Automotive Parts Remanufacturers Association (APRA) launched its BuyReman Remanufacturing Marketplace in November.

The BuyReman Remanufacturing Marketplace features a wide range of products and services exclusively for the automotive and truck parts remanufacturing industry. While a broad range is included in the list of parts on the site, the focus is strongly toward component parts used in the remanufacturing process rather than completed units.

Within the marketplace, online searchers can locate products and services unique to the industry without the clutter of a general Internet search engine. Users have the option of performing keyword-driven searches or a category-specific search. Both methods produce the most industry-relevant results on the Web.

The website also includes a product showcase, which enables APRA members to highlight the many products and services they have to offer. With front-page rotation of select products that link directly back to the company’s website, this attribute will bring life to each product.

This new online business tool will be available to all APRA members and others in the industry from a link on the APRA homepage ( www.apra.org).

The tool also includes a Request for Information (RFI) function, which allows users to contact participating suppliers at a click. With a downloadable desktop search application available, the site also gives users the ability to search for items directly from a small search window on their desktops, making the search process as convenient and time-efficient as possible.

The site also has the capability of including vendor-supplied videos.

Remanufacturing Gaining in Popular Acceptance

Remanufacturing may have been a mainstay of the auto-motive aftermarket practically since its inception, but when was the last time you thought about buying a reman super computer?

Sun Microsystems is promoting something close to that with computer systems in its high-end Sun Fire line of serv-ers, going for more than $1 million even in remanufactured form.

And the European Parliament, which buys tens of thou-sands of printer toner cartridges each year, has changed its policy against reman units. A new contract being adver-tised makes it clear that remanufactured cartridges can compete with brand new ones. “Taxpayers’ money should not be wasted,” says Laura Heywood, secretary of the U.K. Association of Toner and Inkjet Cartridge Remanufacturers. “Remanufactured cartridges have been proven time and again to be of the same quality as original cartridges, are up to 30-40% less expensive, and are more environment-friendly.”