Truck dealers supply 34% of driveline center bearings.
How do your parts buying practices compare to those of your peers? Results from the FLEET OWNER Aftermarket Monitor survey on drivelines for 1996 showed that truck dealers were used as a source of center bearings for 33.8% of heavy-duty vehicles (Fig. 1).
Analyzing the data by GVW class showed that center bearings for heavy-duty vehicles were sourced directly from the manufacturer more frequently than were those for midrange or medium-duty vehicles. Also, use of jobbers/parts houses decreased as GVW increased, going from 30.6% for midrange, to 28.2% for medium-duty, and 21.9% for heavy-duty (Fig. 1).
Looking at the heavy-duty data segmented by fleet size showed that use of heavy-duty distributors decreased as fleet size increased. Small fleets (1-24 vehicles) used heavy-duty distributors as sources for driveline center bearings 24.6% of the time; medium fleets (25-100 vehicles), used this source 17% of the time; and large fleets (101+ vehicles) used heavy-duty distributors 9.8% of the time. This segmentation also showed that large fleets used manufacturers-direct substantially more often than small- and medium-sized fleets. Correspondingly, large fleets used truck dealers and heavy-duty distributors as sources for driveline center bearings less frequently than did small- and medium-sized fleets. (Fig. 2).
The Aftermarket Monitor divides components into 15 major groups and sends out more than 4,000 questionnaires each month to commercial vehicle operators. Parts categories covered are diesel engines; gas engines; electrical and lights; air brakes, wheel seals and bearings; hydraulic brakes, wheel seals and bearings; manual transmissions and clutches; automatic transmissions; drive axles, universal joints and drivelines, and PTO drives; exhaust components and engine cooling systems; front suspension and shock absorbers; rear suspensions and springs; engine oil and filtration systems; tires; electronics, wheels and fifth wheels; seats, mirrors, tanks, and leak detection equipment; and paint.
For more information on FLEET OWNER's Aftermarket Monitor, call Tom Duncan at 914-287-6710.
The following individuals recently received prizes for participating in last month's survey: Seth Doulton, Golden State Pick-up Parts, Santa Ynez, Calif.; Ronnie Kirk, Mabin Lumber Co. & Building Supply, Mebane, N.C.; David Culver, City of Green River, Green River, Wyo.
[Ed. Note: Please refer to page 89 of Fleet Owner's January 1998 issue for references to figures mentioned in story.]
