Remy Settles Patent Infringement Suit

Remy International, Inc., and Unipoint Electric Manufacturing Company Limited have settled a patent infringement lawsuit in which Remy asserted violations of various patents related to Remy’s automotive alternator and starter technologies.
Unipoint has agreed not to produce products that infringe Remy patents; the validity of Remy’s patents was not challenged. This settlement stems from legal action initiated against Unipoint by Remy last November.
Remy also delivered cease and desist notifications to more than 30 other manufacturers and distributors who have been involved in similar practices. These companies make little or no investment in technology and subsist by copying the intellectual property of legitimate automotive manufacturers. Remy will continue to gather samples sold in the marketplace to monitor for infringement on their patents. Additional legal action will be initiated if these companies continue to violate Remy’s proprietary intellectual and technological advantages on starters and alternators.
Major national distributors and/or retailers, who may have unsuspectingly purchased patent-infringing parts from the companies named in the complaint, have also been advised of Remy’s actions.
To ensure dual supply channels for Remy’s high-volume alternators, the company officially licensed a wholesale supplier for North America, Wetherill Associates Inc. (WAI), headquartered in Royersford, Pennsylvania. Together, Remy and WAI will serve as the authorized sources for CS-130 and CS-130D alternators, alternator assemblies and kits.
Richard L. Stanley, president of Remy Inc., stated, “Counterfeit and patent-infringing automotive replacement parts have become a major problem for the industry. The copied products may resemble our patented designs, but typically do not meet performance specifications in terms of functionality, quality and durability. Customers may incorrectly assume that a new knock-off part is a better choice than a remanufactured original equipment part. We are very proud of our engineering capabilities and the performance of our products. We will aggressively defend our patents against infringement.”
Wetherill Associates is one of North America’s leading manufacturers and distributors for automotive electric aftermarket components with operations and customers throughout the United States and Canada as well as in Europe, Latin America and China.