Industry shows are a great way to interact with potential clients and business partners. In November, Universal Polymer & Rubber attended both the AAPEX and SEMA 2015 automotive industry shows in Las Vegas, Nevada. Both of these shows were well attended by almost the entire automotive industry.
The AAPEX 2015 show at the Sands Expo featured over 2,200 automotive aftermarket manufacturers and suppliers, who set up booths and displays to showcase their products and services to over 39,000 targeted buyers. The SEMA show at the Las Vegas Convention Center drew more than 60,000 domestic and international buyers who were there to see over 2,000 exhibitors.
The shows brought together a wide variety of companies from OEMs, to single car garages, to tire manufacturers, parts manufacturers and up fitters. The scope of the shows was daunting, with multiple indoor halls as well as outside display areas and demo areas. One of the largest areas was the new products showcase, where new and featured products were on display. Even between the buildings there were areas set up for car displays, car testing, and engine testing areas. All size companies were represented, with small companies setting up their booths right next to the largest companies in the automotive industry.
Both shows were very productive events, and allowed us to learn about the latest technology available, and the new trends that are growing in the automotive industry. As sales and production numbers are going up in North America, it was great to be at events that show where the future of the automotive industry is heading.
In 2016, we will be attending more industry and trade shows. First up in the beginning of March, we will be at The Precast Show 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee at Booth # 374. At the end of the month we will be attending the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Kentucky. For the most up-to date information on shows we will be at in 2016 be sure to follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.
If you work in the automotive industry, you may have heard about the possibility of returnable packaging—sending packing containers back to the supplier in order to be more sustainable and eco-friendly. It was a growing trend in the 1990’s, when more and more people in the industry were pushing for it. So where does returnable packaging stand now, and why isn’t there more of it?
While it seemed like a great idea at the time—who doesn’t want to do better things for the environment?—many soon realized that the cost of returning packaging simply didn’t make smart business sense. While it’s a fantastic idea if the supplier is located a short distance away, it’s not uncommon in today’s logistical environment for a supplier to be located hundreds of miles away. In the case of returnable packaging, someone has to bear the extreme cost associated with its return, and the cost was simply too much.
Personally, we have seen that returnable packaging is not attractive to most of our automotive clients. While we supply 20-25 tier 1 suppliers, only one of those suppliers practices this policy. For the rest, the financial burden is too much. And when it comes to the auto industry, costs are a huge driver, and the supply chain must do what’s most cost effective in order to remain competitive and keep a healthy bottom line.
Furthermore, many companies who once partook in the practice found that returning packaging proved to not always be as positively green as people had hoped. As an example, when Toyota first began implementing waste reduction programs, one of their measures included a returnable packaging system. However, shortly after its implementation, they found that while trying to be more sustainable, the opposite was happening. According to a Toyota executive, they soon realized “we were reducing a waste that was formerly recycled, and our recycling rate got worse. So our strategic indicator was telling us to not implement more returnable packaging programs.”
While we’re all mindful of sustainable, efficient business, it’s a competitive landscape, and, as in any industry, ideas that are not practical are not going to be able to become universally adopted.
