{"id":4059,"date":"2013-09-05T20:14:51","date_gmt":"2013-09-05T20:14:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/get3dsmart.com\/Stagingsite\/\/\/?p=4059"},"modified":"2017-07-13T20:26:33","modified_gmt":"2017-07-13T20:26:33","slug":"3d-printing-automotive-aftermarket","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/get3dsmart.com\/Stagingsite\/2013\/09\/05\/3d-printing-automotive-aftermarket\/","title":{"rendered":"3D Printing In The Automotive Aftermarket"},"content":{"rendered":"

The average car in the United States has been on the road for 11.4 years. Its a record, made possible by the fact that cars today are better engineered, allowing them to last longer. But its also an indicator of the nation\u2019s recent economic health. With the average retail price of a new car at over $30,000, people are waiting longer to upgrade their vehicles, and this trend means big opportunity for automotive aftermarket retailers and the eCommerce upstarts that are challenging brick-and-mortar\u2019s superiority in the space.<\/span><\/p>\n

Could 3D printing help automotive aftermarket retailers fend off competition from new online competitors? Could it help them simplify management of their supply chain? Could 3D printing allow them to offer a slew of new products and could it help auto parts retailers gain access to new markets? We think so and in this article we address why.<\/span><\/p>\n

Market Size and Share<\/b><\/p>\n

The aftermarket industry is made up of automotive products and services including: replacement parts, accessories, lubricants, appearance products, tires, collision repair, and tools & equipment. The industry employs 4.1 million people and generated $307.7 Billion in 2012. The industry is growing at 3.5%. <\/span><\/p>\n

Though eCommerce makes up a comparatively small portion of total sales ($4.4 Billion) its <\/span>growing at a much faster clip<\/span><\/a> than brick and mortar (approximately 15.5% versus 2% respectively). Non-traditional sellers are leading the pack in online sales. Amazon, for instance, sells more auto parts and accessories than any other online retailer and eBay Motors alone sells over 500,000 car and truck parts and accessories each week.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"This is creating some challenges for some of the traditional namesakes in automotive aftermarket retailing. PEP Boys, with over 700 locations reported a decline in same store sales of 2.6% last quarter. Advance Auto Parts, with approximately 3,900 locations reported a same store decline of .3%. Autozone, with over 5,000 locations saw a measly same store increase of .2%. Some did buck the trend, including O\u2019Reilly Auto Parts which has approximately 4,000 stores, reported a same store sales increase of 6.5% and Genuine Parts Company, the owner of the 6,100 NAPA stores reported a 6% sales increase in it\u2019s Automotive Group\u2019s North American division. That\u2019s an overall increase, including sales from stores and its website, which likely accounted for a significant portion of the growth. <\/span><\/p>\n

Supply Chain<\/b><\/p>\n

The aftermarket auto parts industry presents one of the most difficult and complex supply chains to manage. <\/span>An individual store might carry as many as 20,000 products, but system-wide, across the organization (including satellite stores, hub stores, and distribution centers) an automotive parts supplier might offer as many as 500,000 products. <\/span>It takes considerable effort and technology to coordinate the collection of parts from their points of origin and provide consolidation services to facilitate the receiving, sorting, repackaging and delivery of items to each retail location. There are also issues around inventory management and retailers are constantly challenged to effectively manage the balance between over-ordering and warehousing unsold stock, and delayed fulfillment due to under-stocked items.<\/span><\/p>\n

Small improvements in the supply chain process can yield big dividends. At Advance Auto Parts, a recent improvement allowed the company to increase the volume of inventory it handled, which helped offset the opening of a new distribution center and new store locations. One look at the video below provides an indication of how complex it all can be:<\/span><\/p>\n