Parts Remanufacturers Going Dutch

The Automotive Parts Rebuilders Association (APRA) has announced that this year’s European Symposium will be held over the dates of June 14-16, 2003 at the Amsterdam RAI Exhibition Centre in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
The Symposium will be held during the ReMaTec 2003, also located at the Amsterdam RAI Exhibition Centre during the same dates. ReMaTec 2003 is the business forum for automotive remanufacturing, rebuilding and distribution.
On Saturday, June 14th, the APRA European Symposium will start off with an all-day optional seminar "Lean Remanufacturing". Lean Remanufacturing is a technique originally developed in the automotive industry that concentrates on shortening the time between the customer’s order and shipment. The seminar presents a comprehensive introduction to the essential components of Lean Remanufacturing and will show participants how to modify their organization to speed the flow of product and how to spot waste for elimination.
The Lean Remanufacturing Seminar will be conducted by John S. W. Fargher, Jr., Ph.D. Dr. Fargher is the Director of the Mid America Manufacturing Technology Center, assisting small and medium manufacturers and remanufacturers through the state of Missouri, USA to be more competitive.
Sunday, June 15th from 8:00 a.m. 10:00 a.m., before the ReMaTec show opens, there will be three different workshops taking place simultaneously the Electrical Workshop; the Air Conditioning Workshop and the Automatic Transmission Workshop. The cost to attend these workshops is only $10 U.S. per person. After the ReMaTec show closes, there will be another presentation from 4:30 p.m.- 5:15 p.m. "Marketing and Product Management Possibilities for the European Reman Industry" presented by Gregor Schlingschroeder of COE Marketing. Wrapping up Sunday’s events, there will be a "Welcome to Amsterdam" Cocktail Party from 5:15 p.m. 6:30 p.m.
Monday, June 16th, the European Symposium begins at 8:30 a.m. with remarks and introductions by Fernand Weiland, APRA’s European Director. The theme of the morning presentations will be Distribution and Remanufacturing and will include the following speakers and subjects: "Penetration of Remanufactured Products in European Distribution" by Fernand Weiland, FJW Consulting; "Remanufactured Products, a Clear Opportunity for the Aftermarket" by Eric Depoortere of Delco Remy International and "Block Exemption Regulation and It’s Implications for the Independent Distributors of Parts and Components" by Eric Rommerts of FIGIEFA-RAI Autovak and "Inter Cars Visions and Developments" by Krycztof Oleksowicz from Inter Cars, Poland.
Later Monday afternoon, there will be an APRA meeting to discuss Electronics and Remanufacturing. Speakers during that session include: Wolfgang D. Hofman from Motorola "Semiconductors-Growing Importance and Spare Part Supply Specifics in the Automotive Business"; Ralf Schmid from Conti-ISAD – "Significant Emission Reduction with the ISAD Starter Alternator"; and Michael Walker from ATP "Remanufacturing and Testing of ECU’s for Engine Management Systems". This will be followed by a panel discussion to discuss APRA’s plan to create an Electronics Division.