By Andy Vickery

By Neil Pattemore

Last month, we reported about the scare over the potential split of MOT and servicing workshops, with the EU already having passed legislation on roadworthiness and not including any such proposal.

Last month, we ran a story concerning an update to the Castrol Trend Tracker, showing a decrease in the market share of the independent workshop. Meanwhile, the franchise dealer sector held its share, its first non-decline in seven years.

By Neil Pattemore

The world is much more digital today than it was even a decade ago. The invention of the smartphone has meant that individuals always have an online presence and are able to write and interact with many more people than ever before.

The city of Glasgow is currently undergoing a large redevelopment programme. The old high-rise flats are being torn down, a new hospital is being built and the commonwealth games are just around the corner.

Nestled in the east of the country, in a county that has no motorways but plenty of canals, sits the UK Headquarters of Snap-on Diagnostics and Equipment.

For some people, the best way to make money is develop a cheap product, brand it as something more expensive and sell it at a high price based on the manufacturer's name. This is happening all over the world in a number of different markets, such as pharmaceuticals, food, consumer goods and the automotive aftermarket.

By Andy Vickery

By Neil Pattemore

The garage industry has taken a beating recently, with claims that the profession is rife with cowboys who will take their customers for a ride, charging for work that is not needed and completing some jobs to a dangerous sub-standard degree.

By Neil Pattemore

By Andy Vickery

By Steve Scofield

All businesses create waste and it's increasingly important you deal with it correctly because of the legal aspects and the fact that customers expect their local garage to be a tidy environment to visit. Also, by getting rid of your waste in the right way, you could also get a bit of cash back.

Tech info firm Autodata is set to move to the 'cloud'. The firm is set to move its product away from the CDs, downloads and printed books of the past and into an era where the information is delivered over the web.

By Andy Vickery

As I go around the country talking to mechanics about diagnostics, a couple of statements keep coming up - 'There's no money in diagnostics,' or, 'I can't charge for diagnostics'. A few years ago, this is how I thought about diagnostics; a necessary evil something I had to offer my customers. As time has passed, I soon realised you can't hide from diagnostics, the modern motor car is bumper to bumper diagnostics.

Are there many serious accidents from vehicle lifts collapsing?

By Neil Pattemore

By Andy Vickery

By Greg Whitaker

Andy Vickery

There are many pressures on garages to invest in the most up to date diagnostic equipment and software. It can be a big decision which is the best one and whether it will be value for money. Sometimes there is so much focus on these big investments that smaller items are often forgotten and some pieces of equipment are so old they are not really capable of doing the job they need to.

A new 3,000sq ft electronic manufacturing facility at Standard Motor Products Nottingham HQ is making a custom programme of components, starting with Intermotor and Fuel Parts branded air mass meters. The electronics used have been designed in-house and are said to achieve very accurate output tolerances.

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