BAT CORE

Why is PETES PAINT so low ? If you look at the parts ledger for BAT-CORE ---for D&T you have 15 pages -- for Auto Barn you have 4 pages -- look at how many pages Petes has on BAT-CORE. Do Management & Staff at Petes support the new part # BAT-CORE like the other stores do?

Comments ??????????

Saturday, April 7th

Make sure whoever opens at the stores on Saturday remembers to change your EOD status. Otherwise EOD will not run Saturday night. If you have any questions please call me.

Keystone part numbers

Click on image to bring up larger version

A special case for Keystone --there are approx 275 stocking parts in KST keep in the CARQUEST warehouse in Toronto. These parts do NOT have the suppliers PREFIX used. When we originally heard this we knew it was a problem. They did it to avoid one problem - if a customer brings the part to the counter to buy it -the suppliers prefix is NOT on the part - and it was thought it would be easier for this reason.

BUT --and there is always a BUT .... on the example shown --how do we know a part is STOCKED apart from guessing ( typing in without the suppliers prefix) ...here is a K&N filter that D&T has set to be stocked as a K33 332087 but is in stock in Toronto as a 332087.

ONE WAY to help avoid this --would be if they would go thru the price file and CHANGE the description on the sku's that are duplicated by a stocked parts part # ....so a KST K33 332087 description would say either USE STOCKED PART or USE KST 332087 ...

Another way might be -- give up on the "special" part number and stock as the 'normal' part and learn the suppliers prefix --have a cheat list for staff- so they know that K&N starts with K33?

Decisions - Decisions - Communication - Communication - keep all the staff in the loop!

Worldpac sales update

Worldpac sales -- after D&T placed first for the calendar year 2006 -- it has been passed by the two stores for YTD (3 months ) sales -- Petes ( who finished 2nd last year ) has a fairly good lead and even Auto Barn whom finished a distant 3rd in 2006 sales has gone into 2nd place.

Lets see if D&T can pull up to the lead horses and make it an exciting race for 2007.

IPOD PROMO

The final draw for the ipod was drawn by Jerry Foster. Dwayne's Auto from Leamington won on invoice #B110136. Congratulations to all winners and thank you for all participants.

e-mail problem

Note - Rhonda & Greg Henderson seemed to have some sort of temp e-mail problem last week-- from Thur night and Fri thru to Monday morning. Not sure what problem was - but it looks like it is gone for now-- if you got an error for undeliverable e-mail - please re-send

Staff Training fr new technology --isn't new at all

here is a reminder that staff training has gone on long ago as well .... from youtube



Comments ?

Land 'n Sea on line ordering

We have sent the user names and passwords to the store managers for the Land 'n Sea on line ordering for Marine parts. We are encouraging you to try this site instead of CC Marine --as there are some VERY INTERESTING things that will happen soon - similar to the eKeystone.

We are also encouraging you to get FACE TIME on the A&I Farm Parts on-line site as well - thanks

Allstream sends letters of rate incraese - maybe not!

Rhonda passed me a letter from Allstream with a HUGE increase from $34 to $53 per business line. I have checked with Larry Domm - our local CFIB ( Cdn Federation of Independent Businesses ) and he assures me this letter is in error and we as long time members in CFIB will not be getting this rate increase.

Salesmen -- ask your customers if they also have this letter - might be a good time to join CFIB if not yet.

say you have 6 business lines x $20/line x 12 months a yr = $1,440 you can save.

#5 wins

KYLE BUSCH WINS AT BRISTOL
Kyle Busch drove the No. 5 CARQUEST Auto Parts / Kelllogg's Chevy to victory Sunday in the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway.

In the first NASCAR Nextel Cup race for the Car of Tomorrow, Busch held off Jeff Burton and teammate Jeff Gordon to capture his first NASCAR Nextel Cup win of 2007.

who makes our O2 sesors ??

Ok - quiz time -- who makes the O2 sensors for CARQUEST -- if you said Standard you are way out of date ...and even for those who think they got it right by saying Bosch -- well -- you are now only partially right. CARQUEST has added two additional suppliers - both OEM suppliers -- welcome DENSO and NTK. Denso sensors are in sub-line 4 and NTK are sub-line 5 for line OXY. Watch as the new supply roll in ...so it is ABSOLUTELY - Fit - FORM - FUNCTION - not just close -- EXACT!

Changes have been made automatically in our computer system. Now -- go sell!!!

Group Health Benefits

It is once again renewal time for our group health benefits. Hugo has supplied us with quotes from other companies and we have determined that we will be switching carriers this year. The current company came back with a 12% increase over our current rate. Switching companies will at this point only involve the employees signing the new enrollment forms and confirming the information, Hugo will fill in the forms. The new benefits plan will remain exactly the same as the one we currently have the only change is that the new company will cover eye exams up to $80 every two years. If you have any questions please call me. We are looking for a May 1st switch, so if you have any claims that need to be processed get them in now. Make sure you tell your spouses.

Cruise coming -- April 2008

Tech net cruise is coming for April 2008. The last one quickly set up was a smashing success ( as John Sawatsky from MSJ in Windsor).

The details will be out in Mid April -- BUT the special starts April 1 ( no - I am NOT foolin this time ) ---so the more your accounts buy - the more of the trip will be covered with rebates Salesmen -- start talking with your TECH NET accounts about this. Cruise will be in April 2008 ....watch for details

Payroll

I will be doing payroll on Wednesday the 28th. Please make sure all timesheets and vacation/sick days are sent in before that.

It's a boy!

Congratulations to Colleen and Neil (Pete's Paint) who are celebrating the birth of their second child today.

April 9th Staff Meeting

The staff meeting for April is in Leamington at D&T.

Staff Meeting

Please note that since tonight's staff meeting in Essex has been cancelled that the next meeting of April 9th (Easter Monday) attendance is mandatory. The May 14th staff meeting will be in Essex and the July 9th meeting will also take place in Essex. Mark your calendars now.

who won what ?

Matt asked who won the 57 Chev CARQUEST draw - we are still awaiting those details --in the mean time the long delayed press release for who won the BMW is here --I missed it on the CARQUEST LINK -- of course it is easy to miss stuff on the Cdn version of this link -- can you suck ... yes --I guess I can ... was told it was posted in jan/07

yes - BMW in French - but you get the idea --you didn't win - someone in Houston did.

Who should win the 'Horses Ass" award for the worst parts catalog?

Ryan gave me a good idea -- well--the Oscars are now over-- and your favorite won ( or not ) --so nw we need to move on --- to who has the WORST PARTS CATALOG ( or catalogue - for us Cdn's )

One nomination came from Ryan's mouth even before the idea was hatched-- he is nominating the CARQUEST U-Joint catalog ... it is so bad that we regularly have to double check against Precision ( who so some reason decided to make an understandable parts cat - just to prove it could be done - those guys are such trouble makers ....)

So -- send your nominations to your store manager and he can forward them on to the writer. Like Madona says ...EXPRESS YOURSELF ..... together we can improve CARQUEST catalogs ...err...catalogues .... one at a time.

iPod winner

Ryan e-mails me that the iPod winner for the 2nd draw ( 2 more to go - mid March and end of March )

... the winner is ..... Frank from CA Bailey's --draw was made by Roy from Leamington Chrysler

The first winner ( mid-Feb ) was DB Auto Essex - drawn by Mike Kok from Millers Shell

Keep the web-link orders coming in.....

Wheel Bearings

Sales staff please remember to tell your customers that we had a large price reduction on top line wheel bearings.A lot of them are very close to second line price.Also remember that second line warranty issues are supposed to be fixed when selling on price.I have been telling my customers about this reduction when they call for wheel bearings and any other time while they are waiting on the phone for me to look something up.It is more productive than "how's the weather"!

BATERY CORES

We need to start re-training staff on this rather odd way to handle battery cores effective NOW

When you sell a battery over the counter - please - also billing this EXTRA part number ... BAT CORE. prices at $5.95. Ask the customer to return his old battery to us ( tell him where he can drop the battery and avoid it coming back into the store area ) and bring the bill back as well --and we will give him back as credit (or cash if it was a cash sale ) the core charge. You would refund the part number BAT CORE ... it is different than a normal core that is LINKED to the individual battery part. As your store manager for more details if you mis-understand what I am trying to explain here.

For the time period March 7th thru March 21st- we will have a special -- every battery you sell over the counter that you properly include the the NEW battery core part number - we will credit you with $1.00 ( awh yes -- you knew there would be a downside --didn't you -- and for every battery sold over the counter (all sales NOT to a garage account for re-sale ) we will charge you the core value $5.95 from your extra bonus tally - because that is what our store profit sharing will loose wen you can't or won't remember. Are you game for making an extra $1.00 for EVERY battery you sell March 7th thru March 21 ( just so happens to be the time period the writer is away in Hawaii - btw ) ...sell CARQUEST batteries .... sell quality. I hope so--so get CHARGED UP ON SELLING BATTERIES.

#5 race car

Click here to download full size image -- use it for screen saver or whatever ... enjoy -- --- #5 --- >>> #5 <<<

Meeting date change - for March

PLEASEZZZ note this change - Rhonda brought it to my attention --with so many staff away --we will move the staff meeting to the 3rd week in March -- still at Auto Barn

Mon March 19th - at Auto Barn

D&T WINS AWARD!!!

HARLEY SADLO, the President of MCS PRESSURE WASHERS announced 02/28/2007. D&T Auto Parts has been named their #1 Dealer in ONTARIO for 2006. We should see a plaque in about a month. This also entitles the store manager to an awards dinner in Whistler B.C. (next time I am out that way.)

when is a Chinese gas tank --not a chinese gas tank

watch --some suppliers are mentioning their gas tanks are Canadian Made ...when they have been selling Chinese for some time. It may be that they are ordering the upper and lower shells and assembling in Canada. SPI is Cdn shell and Cdn assembly ...fyi.

See a price that just looks wrong -- Kingdom has a list of clear out parts - your store manager has a copy - whom ever might be selling something off of that list --it is truly ONE BIG list and some really low prices on parts that fit semi-obsolete or slow applications .... FYI

LandnSea accounts for Auto Barn and Petes

Petes Paint and Auto Barn now have 'LandnSea' accounts -- e are asking you to try this option out. They are a major player in Marine. See you store manager for details ( or Neil at Petes ). D&T has had an account for some time.

Staff Meeting for March and April at Auto Barn ....

PLEASEEZZZ mark you calendars -- the staff meeting for BOTH March and May will be held at Auto Barn. Managers - please confirm attendance for chair and food planning. So -- who will forget and show up at the wrong store? Not you I hope - you are better organized --aren't you? Write yourself a note right now --yep - that's a good idea.

April is at D&T for monthly CARQUEST staff meeting

Tech-Net council meeting set for Monday March 26th

Ken and Neil are planning a regional Tech-Net council meeting for shops Monday March 26th. We whole heartily support the extra effort that these guys are doing. Good job and good luck with plans - for it to be good will take effort -- good things do!

LCS 10020 vs 10003 --wht do we do the dumm stuff?

Robyn - our Lucas oil rep - wants to know why we sell so much of the small Fuel Treatment ... 155 ml $3.99 --when we should be selling LCS 10003 - it is 946 ml for 12.99 -- you get 6 times the item for only 4 times the price ....doh ... as Mr Simpson would say .... can you upsell your customer so he saves money ?

redeem Web-Link spiffs

Abe at Petes Paint might have the first redemption for the $1.00 coupon for Web-Link orders during our in-house promo period.

I have shown Abe how to run a 8-18 report ( which is cleared every month) and sent him a Jan 8-18 report that I send all managers. If this is all 'greek' to you --see you manager and ask him to train you on how to understand what I just said.

Perhaps the managers might consider standardizing the part number-- we have XXX YPS-SPECIAL in the system priced at $1.00 -will this work for using for the credit when they buy the iPod or tools? managers -- comments?

remember to view the sister BLOG

There are some new posts on the sister blog Essex County CTI blog -- check them out ...lets keep our CARQUEST trade accounts up to date - remind them to see it as well

Dorman 615-200 gasket

We had a failure on this part number after 2 weeks.We have discountinued to stock it.I talked to Dorman and Bill says they are aware that there might be issues.I sold both sets to used car lots because of price but that is not always the right chioce.Use GSK MIS16259.
Greg Guyitt

CTI course change

see the CTI blog for details do you remember the site URL? Did you bookmark? ( hint cqcti.blogspot.com )

check this out

Check this link out - it shows on Web-Link - and has several new CARQUEST programs listed

click here

Daylight Savings Time -- starts earlier this year

Daylight saving time starts earlier this year - March 11, 2007 and runs LONGER -- changing at Nov 4th ....we will see how many computers get this right ...:-)

Be Ready

see this link for more info .... daylight saving time changes

Payroll

I will be doing payroll on Tuesday, February 27th. Please make sure that all time sheets and sick/vacation days have been reported before then.

KYB

Just a reminder that Gerry is here (Auto Barn) Monday night for a KYB clinic.
Greg Guyitt

We can;t solve your problems --if we don't know of your problems

One of several points I wrote down at the last staff meeting chaired by Rhonda -- poor pick up of battery cores at Petes Paint -- now has been resolved ( or so say Gary from East Penn )

Moral of story-- if we don't know of your problems -- we can;t fix your problems ... or ... you could also try fixing your own problems ( for practice, of course :-)

PLEASEZZZ -- if you have something you think you could make better in our CARQUEST stores -- PLEASEZZZ -- lets try our dammest to do it.

OK --so I have 7 more to yet check off as fixed ... hmm .... Greg from another hotel

Will this one be better than the others ?

Have a look at this -- there have been others on the market and results seem to be mixed to poor --will this kit be better - we won't know until we TRY IT. I have asked Pete to add both and give us some feedback ... If you can't wait --your store can test this new CARQUEST product by setting levels on
SYM 750 100 10 C
SYM 750 100 30 --both are on promo ( does anyone know in what promo ... sure wish CQ made it easier ...hint ... )

This item is described on track #3 on the Feb Driving Force CD -- s your store manager letting you listen to it? Another hint - eh? Your manager won;t share ??? ....click here ..... mp3 of Driving Force - need speakers to hear ....doh ...

Note the Motor Mag TOP 20 award ... I think that adds a HUGE amount of creditability to this product .... let us know how you find the tests with your customers ( and maybe your trucks ... ? ) Here is their web site .... ----Symtech headlight aimers & lens cleaners ----

Read CTI course PDF's

Neil mentioned that he could not open a recent CTI course. I notice that on my Mac the quick program will NOT open - but the full version of Adobe 7.0 or latter should open. Adobe seems to have an update every week ...so if oyu haven;t update lately -- you have a 15 minute job.

Let me know if you still have problems on your computer. PLEASEZZZ note -- you are NOT to share this with non-CTI participants

Plaxo is a shared Internet address book

Hello - we have been testing the Plaxo internet based address book. Why do we need an address book -- well - our older Autologue computer had a handy way to make supplier contacts - but the J-Con is anything BUT user friendly to do this. In fact - ,many of you are using a 2003 export copy of the addresses from the Autologue.

Well - time to put something into place that we can UPDATE and improve as we go along. I haven;t seen much effort from the managers to ADD new contacts - but I am hoping that as one comes across a name that needs to be in the book - it wil be added ( try to NOT DUPLICATE existing names ... pleasezzzzz )

Additional tip - your store manager will give you the user name and password .... we are offering a prize for the first person who by accident 'clicks on the UPGRADE NOW button ...that person gets to PAY for the extra service ... so you have been warned ...

Comments and feedback to Greg H appreciated.

Tool meeting for Tue Feb 27 at Auto Barn

A tool & Equipment meeting is confirmed for Tuesday Feb 27th at Auto Barn for 6:30 pm. Come for 6:00 and have a pop and pizza and chat - meeting starts at 6:30 -- please be on time

We have Dev-Air Compressors and Hennessy Coats for Tire Changers and Balancers. Meeting for staff only and is open to all area CARQUEST jobbers. Please confirm that you can ( or can't ) attend with your store manager. Area jobbers are asked to confirm the number of staff with Mike Parker who will in turn tell the guys at Auto Barn so they can have enough chairs and food.

This is the only one scheduled for 2007.

Gates RBR - send a picture contest

Gates RBR has a contest -- have our accounts take a photo and send it to Gates on how they used the Unicoil - they have several categories of prizes --see your stores salesman or Greg H for more details. Promo runs from now to end of June 2007. Just one more handy part from CARQUEST.

RBR 25510 is 1/2 RBR 28511 is 5/8 and RBR 28512 is 3.4" --- have you held one? Go now!

ps - The address for the Uni-coil contest is e-infocanada@gates.com

Battery cores

CARQUEST tells us to look for a new part number to soon be added to our system - BAT-CORE it will be an innovative way to handle cores that --the more I think of it - the more I personally like like it.

We could suggest that they add 2 additional numbers ( one for small batteries like U1's and one for 8d's and smilar ) - but the one part will cover most of what we need.

A customer comes in and buys a batter - we bill the battery and the CORE part - we have to remember to do the CORE - but after a could of reminders and a few 'inches of string wound on your finger as a reminder (well-that part could be optional and only for the really hard to remember staff :-)

The Customer brings the old battery back with the bill and we credit the core ... we get the cores back to recycling and the environment is better for it all.

Watch for this part to be announced. The core price will be $5.95 -- in between Wal-Mart's $8.00 and CTC's $5.00 core

one things leads to another

When we posted the image for the reminder on the severe duty rotor for the 2004 Crown Vic -- we noticed something that perhaps we should have noticed before ... this is IMPORTANT ... PLEASE follow this and tell your web-link customers -- even better -- show them this VERY EXAMPLE ... or they will think we don;t have it and will LOOSE SALES for both us and CARQUEST.

This bug has been mentioned to Activant for more than a year - the help desk guy tells us and Activant in their typical arrogance has stonewalled the solution. The problem is the PER CAR QTY ...in this case is TWO and each store has ONE. Once we have the new e-cat this problem will go away -- but for now we have to learn how to handle the training.

USE THIS EXAMPLE with your customer - 2004 Crown Vic front rotor

PUT one into the cart

Click the CHECK P/A button ( P/A = parts & availability )

Then you will see that the single rotor shows at the store - remind our customers that we will get the 2nd part from our sister store rush for them

PLEASE --if you do NOT follow this -- call Greg H for more details

Rotors for Police Dept's and others with Hi Standards

Remember the sub-line # 7 parts in Drums & Rotors BDR ---theGold (composite exact OEM made in N/A ) and the HD cross drilled ...are an option and available from Toronto CARQUEST

"Free brake spec books"

We have been in the habit of giving away"free" brake spec books.Part numbers 42181bpi and 3511cq.There is a cost attached to these.My viewpoint on these is since all that info is now available free with Weblink we should no longer give out the books but should instead direct these guys to use Weblink.If anyone does not know how to get this Web based info feel free to call me and I will show you.
Greg Guyitt

iPod & Tool piff Promo for Feb & March

PLEASE remember our in store iPod ( or tool gift ) spiff promo - every e-invoice gets a coupon redeemable for $1.00 towards an iPod or tools from our new CARQUEST Equipment cat. Support the key customers who order on line.

TPS is new line for Tire Pres Monitor System

TRN was a short term parking spot for a few of the Schaeder parts in the TPMS. These parts will need to be re-numbered soon to the new Line Code -- TPS.

More suppliers will complete this line --so it covers all parts. We have requested the parts from the Toronto MIF file ( using an 11-2 request ) and expect them to be added tonight. The Feb Parts Source CD will have the complete data file -- as the data was added too late to make the Jan Parts Source CD that will e updated tonight as well. See page 48 for a few TPS parts on the upcoming CARQUEST tool & equipment flyer.

Changes at Mevo Tech

Joe Mercanti is Ont Sales Manager for Mevo Tech ( took over from Robert Mario - whom I don't think I ever meet - ) You may remember Joe from Ultra Fit

Erv Siebel has left Mevo-Tech - they are actively searching for a replacement - in the mean time Joe will be happy to fill in -- cell # 416-230-8210 or jmercanti@mevotech.com

Mevo Tech supplies CARQUEST with RCH chassis - a new price fighter line of chassis to be announced soon / Rack & Pinion and CV Shafts in ETN / 2nd line bearings BRG ( remember they have upgraded their manufacturer and od a total recall on the poor quality bearings ) ....and Lower Control Arms in CAA

Payroll

I will be doing payroll on Tuesday next week. Please make sure all timesheets and vacation/sick days are sent in. Thanks.

T4's

The T4's for 2006 are completed. They are in your respective stores mail slot here at D&T. If you notice any errors please report them to me ASAP.

BSP Brake Pads

I linked all Bsp brake pads to Fri Reds(Rmd) to look after lack of Cataloguing on this line.I recently heard someone say "no" when asked if we had a cheaper line.The customer got away before we figured out we had them in stock but they were not shown in E Cat.Please remember also that these pads are Canadian Made.We can use that as a selling feature when going up against some off our competetion.Stop treating these as if the were Junk.Auto Barn has never had a warranty set of these pads and this is in the price range or cheaper than CTC Monroes.Also see the past blog of Oct 18 2006 for a refresher on who BSP is.
Greg Guyitt

Water Outlet

I just linked two Ford water outlet's. NWP-W4320 and NWP-W4360. They are both exactly the same except one has a threaded bung for a temperature sensor and the other does not. Here is the kicker, the one with the extra threaded outlet retails for $21.21 and the one without retails for $75.27.

extra stock at Windsor SuperStore

Phil from CARQUEST Windsor writes ...... Here is the list of product lines we have updated in Windsor. ( so far ).
WAL Convertors
DNS
ECC
CAL
CFI
CCH

Next week I will call Glen Avery in Raleigh and see about doing FRI & BDR ( 2 very
big lines).
Any question call me ....regards Phil

If YOU see a line you wish the superstore had more stock in -- drop Greg H an e-mail - with your effort we can make things happen. Regards Greg from Carlsbad CA.

Register customers for CFI filter reabtes

Just a reminder that if you are going to register a fleet ( farmer or whatever ) filter customer - Jeff Kuchma appreciates the fact if you use the excel registration form ... see the image here --the actual form is available from your store manager or Rhonda in the office.

Rhonda asks -- tell her the data and she will forward the file and track progress and make sure the customer file gets changed to reflect the extra discounts

SPRING filter sales are coming soon --lets get ready for making those extra sales. Think CARQUEST filters! How do you find your stores stock? Give any feedback to Greg H.

new distributors - by Richporter

Russ from Richporter sends us this info on the new line of distributors

Top 15 Most popular items: available from CARQUEST as NDS line
1 TD52
2 TD31
3 TD01
4 NS25
5 TD41
6 TD42
7 TD55
8 TD23
9 TD80
10 DG23 << Dodge unit with module NOT available from dealer --- very competitive
11 NS40
12 MZ25
13 TD44
14 MZ27
15 TY33

Honda's (TD#'s) retain a high level of replacements as the OEM units were not designed for North American driving habits, or our weather.
Nissan NS25 has been a OEM design flaw issue for the past 3 years... NS40 is a "newer" sku that has seen a huge increase in demand in the past 6 months.
Mazda (MZ's) MZ25 and MZ27 (Ford Probe too), again have been a top seller over the past 4 years....
Toyota (TY's) TY33 is newer top 15 item.
All parts are NEW with NO CORE Charges, and come complete with cap and rotor

Right to repair CD - Powerpoint presentation

Each store has a CD powerpoint presentation in their mail slot -- make sure salesmen see this and show this to their customers ( need sound )

Technet U -- some questions and answers

The updated TechNet program for 2007 has some additional items ( or improved items)

One is the tech net U web site www.technetu.com

I have set the following people up with user names and PIN's
All managers and salesman , Barry, Abe & Adam - I will be telling you more. If you are not listed here - and would like to try it -- see Greg H. #1 priority os to understand this site well enough to help our customers get the best out of it. We also have a new training course for jobber staff coming soon ...watch for more details.

The site is NOT designed for jobbers --so bear with us -- we want you to be able to help explain this to your TECH NET customers -- you have choices that you have to set the MINUTE they first enter.

DECISIONS ....
you can pick 10 tests for ASE ...since there are 10- you can one of each or you can 10 of one test or any combination therein. Additional tests for ASE prep are $5.00

DECISIONS #2 Tech Assessment courses --are you ready to write your ASE - pick 3 out of 10. additional courses are $19. These tell how close to being prepared to write the ASE test.

DECISIONS #3 TECH COURSES - pick 4 out of 10 - additional copies or courses are $29

No DECISION -- 6 copies of several courses are included -- extra copies - or additional courses are $10 each. ALL prices are US $ dollars.
Courses included are
-A Welcoming Customer Culture - Includes important information so you can understand the advantages of developing a customer culture. This course will help you identify the characteristics of a welcoming customer culture, and recognize the leading indicators of customer satisfaction.
-Basic Telephone Skills - This course will help you recognize how to make a good impression on the phone. You will learn how to identify how to place and receive phone calls effectively. In addition, you will learn how to recall the behavior of an active listener and acquire better communication skills.
-Communication Skills - This course will teach the importance of good communication within an organization. It will help you identify the components of effective communication and help determine ways to improve communication and foster it in the workplace.
-Communication Skills - This course will teach the importance of good communication within an organization. It will help you identify the components of effective communication and help determine ways to improve communication and foster it in the workplace.
-Motorist Assurance Program (MAP) - MAP is a comprehensive effort to improve service to auto repair customers and has been designed to assure customers consistent and high quality service. MAP supplies you with inspection check sheets on the following topics: Brake System; Drive-Train & Transmission System; Electrical Systems; Engine Performance & Maintenance; Exhaust System; Heating, Ventilation & Air Conditioning System; Steering & Suspension System; and Vehicle Inspection.
-Time Management Skills - This course will help you recognize the value of your time and help identify the benefits of good time management and ways to better manage time. You will also understand procrastination and how to avoid it.
-Understanding a Balance Sheet - Organizations are learning that financial training isn't just for the finance department. Educating all employees in financial basics will help them make better business decisions and be smarter with their own personal investments. Designed for the financial novice, this course is an ideal introduction to one of the most common pieces of a financial analysis, the balance sheet.

EXTRA COURSES AVAILABLE are --- ( al are $10 I think )
Business Writing Skills
Communication Skills
Computer Security Basics
Writing an effective e-mail
Effective Presentations
Enhancing Work Relationships
Goal Setting Skills
Keeping your cool
Personal Professionalism
Work Environment Flexibility

Marketing Basics

Supervisor Skills 101
Providing Effective Orientations
Meeting management
Drug & Alcohol Awareness
Supervisor Skills 201
Emergency Preparedness
Disciplinary Actions & Procedures
Generational Differences
Performance Management
Transition from peer to Supervisor
Workers Compensation

Recruiting Excellent Employees
Workplace Anger
Harassment Prevention for Management
Employee Recognition
Harassment Prevention Awareness
Diversity of the Workplace
Workplace Violence Prevention
Employee Retention

Basic Math
Understanding an Income Statement
Understanding a Cash Flow Statement
Understanding a Balance Sheet

Basic First Aid
Industrial Ergonomics
Emergency Preparation & Egress
Electrical & Fire Safety
Preventing Accidents in the Workplace
Workplace Ergonomics
Investigating Incidents

This is very much similar ( but not identical ) to the Bob Greenwood self help web site at www.aaec.ca - have you had a look at that site for comparison purposes?

Comments ??

Steering Stabilzers

I linked CCH steering stabilizers to KYB.
SSD127 = ss10309
SSD112= ss10323
SSD107=ss10317
I put a level in at D and T and AutoBarn.These cover F Super duty,Dodge and Jeep.Petes you can pull from others or add as you like
Greg Guyitt

One more time -- ERROR in e-cat -- options --- PLEASE READ

Greg Guyitt spotted this error in e-cat - this happened in the Dec issue of the Cdn e-cat --and errors like this can take several months to go thru the process to get corrected. We have to post a note on the CARQUEST-LINK( or e-mail them directly (see GH for details)) - then they have to verify what we say is true - then they have to contact the e-cat manager for the line and - then that person changes the data and submits correct to Activant - then Activant has to do the change - then Activant has to release a new monthly CD/DVD - then we have update our e-cat data ...a lot of steps .... in the upcoming system this will be vastly improved ...but that is not now --how do we handle NOW!!!!!

To Greg Guyitts credit -- he has done the EXTRA work and has explained his system. We have THREE images - click on any to EXPAND so you can see the detail ( see - if you have Firefox you could use a new tab - call GH to explain ...just a dig at the old ones who use IE 6.0 )

What Greg does --- 1) change the description of the part. When you do this - it changes it for all stores - only need to do it one ...notice the THIRD IMAGE - I call it MODIFIED Web Link ... you will see on Web-Link the customer will see the updated description ...in this case "---REAR ROTOR !!!" ...we are trying HARD to make someone ask -- ...but I asked for a FRONT ROTOR ...why would this say rear rotor... You can also see in WEB-LINK that the cross drilled rotor is the CORRECT part number ...take a minute and see this fact ...in web-link it shows easier because we have less fluffy extra lines of description.
What Greg does ---- 2) add the part message option in a 3-18 screen. NOTE --this has to be done for EACH STORE ...this part message will replace the description in J-Con e-cat. See what GG added --each store will be slightly different --but you catch the drift of this idea ---he says "THIS IS A REAR ROTOR CAT ERROR AS OF JAN07" ..... AND once the correction is made we can go in and replace/delete this message. We have a virgin and modified web-link example ---can you spot which one is which ????

Why is this such a BIG THING!!! One -- the REAR rotor is approx 50% more expensive than the front rotor ...so the customer thinks we are WAY CHEAP or worse --WAY TOO EXPENSIVE and we lose the sale.

We want you to understand the options we have in trying to help produce a temporary 'band-aid' while we wait ( and wait and wait ) for the correction ....

Hint --look at other parts -like the cross drilled -- ask your self --hmm ..I wonder why they have a different BASE number ... ( exclude the prefix ) .... see if we all can be more observant ...a good new years resolution.

Final point --we have asked that Raleigh stop BLOCKING the images we post ... if you are looking at this post and don't see any images -it is because WEB-SENSE is blocking them --turn off your VPN ( or if you are at a store or DC with VPN is set at the router -- go to your home computer ) --we will ask AGAIN to have web-sense adjusted to stop blocking this url ...http://photos1.blogger.com

Keep this idea's coming -- happy new year

Bill Wypij Named Operations Manager For The Marshfield DC

We are pleased to see Bill get an advancement in CARQUEST -- Bill was our Warehouse manager in Toronto ....here is info ... ( we do not yet know who wl replace Bill in Toronto --- Rob Scott the Ops manager can handle anything in the interim.
======== press release ==========
I am pleased to announce that Bill Wypij has accepted the position of Operations Manager of the Marshfield Distribution Center.
Bill started with CARQUEST five years ago as the Shipping Supervisor in the Buffalo Distribution Center. He quickly demonstrated his leadership skills and earned the opportunity to be the Warehouse Manager in Buffalo.

Bill’s most recent assignment was in our Toronto, Ontario DC as the Warehouse Manager where he excelled and will be missed. We look forward to having Bill take this next step and continue his leadership in this key position in our Company.

Bill will be relocating to Marshfield right after the Holidays along with his wife Kate and his children Shannon (3), and Alex (1). Please help me congratulate Bill and his family and wish them luck in this next step.

How many SEAFOAM Video's can YOU find on the Internet

Here is one of over 100?? Seafoam video's posted on the internet. hey - these guys shake the camera as much as I do. This was a test to see how we linked video to our blog site.

E Cat error

On 1999-2002 chev silverado pick up the front and rear rotors are mixed up.Front s/b 55054 but reads 55084 and rear s/b 55084 but reads 55054.There is big price difference so we either get outclassed or we give away the farm.I have asked for this to be fixed ASAP.Our weblink customers have the same issue.It is correct on GMC sierra but that only helps us(if we remember) not a Weblink guy.
Greg Guyitt

Walker Cat Converters - waranty issues ...

here is what Dean from Walker says on cat converter warranty claims ....
Dead writes to Ryan ...."Our policy on converters is that we need to see the units and we require a copy of the failed Drive Clean emission test as backup. Obviously if the units that you sent to the Carquest DC are no longer available then we will have to make an exception and Dawn will look after you. The majority of the time it is not the fault of the converter but an improperly tuned engine that causes the converter to fail - either dumping raw fuel or engine coolant through the exhaust causes the substrate in the converter to overheat and melt down - often this overheating shows up in the form of pink , blue and purple colours on the external body or heat sheild of the converter. That's why our people need to see the actual units."

Seems to me - that we need to get out customers out to CTI -then they would understand the next CTI class -- Fuel Trim ... hmm ...options ?

Dawn is our new rep for Walker - expect her in Jan

Carquest Driver saves Christmas!!

FROM: Const. Janet Hayes RELEASE: Thursday, December 21, 2006 10:30am

Overnight Release

Kingsville:

Kingsville Officer on routine patrol initiated a vehicle stop on Jasperson Road at 2:50am. As a result the 20-year-old male driver from Kingsville was issued a 12-hour-suspension.

THE GRINCH HITS KINGSVILLE - HERO SAVES A SPECIAL CHRISTMAS TREE! - IS NOTHING SACRED ANYMORE?

On December 21st at 3:10am, an employee for Car Quest, 60-year-old Greg BAKER from Pickering, observed the Christmas Tree on the corner of Main Street and Division Street on fire. Mr. BAKER immediately exited his vehicle, and was able to extinguish the fire with a fire extinguisher from his vehicle, before any major damage was incurred. As police arrived on scene, it was observed that the suspect(s) had emptied a decorative planter of it's greenery, placed it at the base of the tree, along with a wooden pallet and set it ablaze. Kingsville Fire Department attended on scene and ensured that the fire would not start up again. The Fire Chief advised that Mr. BAKER had saved the tree. If it had not been for the efforts of Mr. BAKER the fire would have totally engulfed the tree and it would have been destroyed, Christmas Lights and all! This tree is a focal point for the Town and had recently been decorated to celebrate the festive season. There appears to be minimal damage to the tree, however, the lights and some bows were destroyed. Extensive Patrols of the Town were made in an attempt to locate and bring to justice these suspects, unfortunately, with negative results.

Anyone with information of the arsonist(s) is asked to contact Cst. Wilson at Kingsville Detachment or Crime Stoppers!!! ative results.

****NOTE: GREG BAKER HAS GRANTED PERMISSION TO USE HIS NAME IN THE MEDIA RELEASE!!

K&N Filter --getting better - but ...

K&N Filter is getting better -- but in a month or so --should be even better ... until then-- do NOT trust the e-cat in J-Con. Please use the e-Keystone e-cat ( using the CARQUEST log-in ) or the paper catalog. In a month or so - we should have more numbers that show in e-cat ...and I think we will see a separate LINE CODE for K&N --right now we use KST. Stay tuned...

new improved fuel pump connection

Hello

click here to read page on improved fuel pump connections for various GM models .... if anyone can FIND this same posting for the Cdn CQ-Link site --let me know .... this darn Cdn site is like aBLACK HOLE of knowledge --

Temporary E-Cat problems

We updated the Activant e-cat yesterday evening

here are known problems : - will add more as you tell me

1) the SHK line of strut mounts is NOT showing - will try to get this back asap. I do see the RCH line of strut mounts shows for my test ( RCH Mevotech is notoriously bad at e-cat )

feedback on any other change you see?
I see that Greg G beat Ryan to the punch in showing the K&N filters - we added the image - you can click on any image to see the larger size if that helps

Keystone

We now have K and N filters catalogued and priced.Check it out and look for problems.We are in the process of asking for more numbers in the warehouse.Also see your manager for a list of KST line codes.You will need it to bill out anything you order from KST.Jan 1 XBO or new numbers will no longer be acceptable.
Greg Guyitt

web links ?? best option ??

Hello to all

Would you like to have a WEB page that lists all known links? Or can you work it on keeping your BOOKMARKS up to date

Comments ??
Regards
Greg H


From: "greg guyitt"
Date: Thu, 14 Dec 2006 15:35:38 -0500
To: ...snip ....
Subject: Fw: web sites

Opps flowmaster s/b www.flowmastermufflers.com
Wix s/b www.wixfilters.com

----- Original Message -----
From: greg guyitt
To: ...snip ....
Sent: Thursday, December 14, 2006 3:11 PM
Subject: web sites

www.spectrapremium.com
www.mevotech.com
www.crosscanadaparts.com
www.dormanproducts.com
www.knfilters.com
www.radlimited.com
www.gates.com
www.stant.com
www.wixfilter.com
www.cardone.com
www.dns-2000.com
www.flowmastermuffler.com
www.mrgasket.com

easier way to look for parts on OBSOLETE RETURN ....doh!

Colour us partially stupid --it took us this long to figure this out .... hmm ...how many other things are we doing the DUMB way .... ???

Got a list of obsolete parts ...say 150 numbers in Walker ... the dumb way is to enter each part in a 3-18 ir 2-2 screen and see if we have it -- right ... or ignore and hope we did have any ( the lazy way )

WELL -- here is the SMART WAY -- try it out on te next obsolete list we receive.
Steps
1- wait for a list -- say WALKER as =mentioned above
2-run a 2-20 report and use a SAVED format -- # 9
3- for heavens sake -- DO NOT DELETE this or any other saved format ..it is easy to do if you are NOT watching what you answer to
4-just run for the line in question --or if you must run for al lines -- NEVER ...I repeat ...NEVER run to a printer ...what a tree killer , -- if you want all lines -- call Greg H and you can see how to save to a capture file on our emulator

Neat - or what --if you have anything --it will show --if it shows nothing --then you are free & clear ...we have used the following logic ( in case someone from another store is reading this --this is what we dod with Mikes HELP)
set to display mfg code ( hmm --don;t see this on report - might have to tweek it
set description to print
set to print ONLY if movement code is EQUAL to zero
set to print ONLY if on hand is GREATER THAN zero
set to show cost

enjoy --like i said at the start --one dumb problem solved --how many more dumb problems do we need to find and fix ...

INSTANT FILL E CAT

Trying to look up the new Instant Fill gas caps and you can't find a listing in e-cat. Try this . . .

http://stant.com/part_locator/index.cfm?go=stant_part_locator

CARQUEST Credit Card Update

BIG NEWS seen on the CARQUEST Link today.

You can now pay your CARQUEST or TECH NET credit card online. Wells Fargo now supports online banking from:

TD, Royal Bank, Scotiabank, Bank of Montreal, CIBC, National Bank, Desjardins.

If you have any questions please call: 1-888-467-5559 (CARQUEST)
1-800-377-0024 (TECH-NET)

brake lines - new sku's stocked

We have added some new stock in BL Brake Lines

DT Auto -- 5300 US Bubble + PA-300 plated series
Petes - above two and missing 6300 import added as well
A Barn - US Bubble only - others in stock

stores have been asked to get a holder and set up - limited stock for all

Remember the line of special adaptor lines --as image shown --see page #127 & 128 in current cat for more idea's of what you can sell.

Keystone update

Here is some more info

Auto Barn - at Joe's request - I called and asked that they contact Exeter PA warehouse and change their address to the correct address. FYI --when you log into the CQ account it says welcome 1045 and when you log in with the direct account it says welcome Greg-Joe. Only the CQ account has e-cat -- try it out !!

D&T -- when you log in with CQ account - says welcome 1010 -- on direct account is says welcome CHRIS. ps - 1010 is your floor shipping # at CQ

Petes - we have REQUESTED the CQ account to say 1020 - right now it says MIKE ...the direct account says welcome PETE.

PLEASE try the e-cat in the CQ account -- comments .......

**** UPDATE *****
Matt says the TWO accounts if you bring up in IE 7.0 using tabs -- on a search on one tab the other tab will change to the first account --making it difficult to do a quick comparison - he suggests that until ( or if they ever ? ) fix it --open two separate pages. He also goes on ( and on and on and on ) about how Firefox doesn't; handle this site well -- eKeystone need to fix this as well ... it is not that I was kidding Matt on why he should use Firefox ... eh?

extra effort to link value items in Worldpac

I have asked Matt at D&T, Abe at Petes and Jason at Auto Barn if they would spearhead an extra effort to LINK value items to the existing CARQUEST part ...see the example for 95-06 BMW oil filter ... once you find an item that fits the CRITERIA of being a VALUE ITEM ...we want to link like he have done here -- and SET a re-order level when the sales warrant. We will be ordering weekly for the stocked items. We have set the vendor code to the Misc XXX code for your store ( D&T is 4. Petes is 8 and Auto Barn is 5 ) -- so you can create a suggested order in WPC in that vendor #. Comments?

Click on the e-cat image to see it larger

new line of NEW distributors -- NDS

CARQUEST has a new line of NEW Distributors --arriving very soon -- if you have a minute --look at this web site

www.richporter.ca

Try a listing in e-cat?

I see they also have hydraulic cam tensioners in their product line -- are we getting calls for these? See the web site and replies appreciated.

idea's on how to sell more mirrors & lens ??

The CPB line from NewCastle should be a much bigger line with us -- idea's on how you can help us sell more?

What is FET on oil filters ??

Joe spotted an interesting problem ...he was selling a sku in CFI and it would add .50 to the INVOICE and was labeled as F.E.T. Well - we have found out more ...are you interested and curious?

You can CREATE this problem -- by doing this
step 1 -- find a part number that we don't have in our system. Grab a CFI price list and look for something odd. You can
VERIFY we don't have it in our system by punching in the part # into a 2.2 screen for instance.
step 2 -- once you have a VERIFIED non-stock number -- go to invoice and sell it ( it gets pulled from our Parts SourceCD )
to some understanding account ( that is wondering why you are doing this ) ... look at the invoice ...see
the .50 in FET
step 3 -- go to 3.18 and look at field #18 Excise Tax ..see that the value is .50 for the part number you have picked.
step 4 -- SOLUTION -- *** UPDATED *** 12-6-06 *** we need to run a 3-3 and clear back all Excise Tax values - see your manager - or you can run a 3-18 and change the specific KNOWN problem sku and re-invoice ---we had originally posted that there is an automatic daily update for this--there is NOT!!

More info -- if you need to invoice right away -- go into 3.18 and correct the excise tax and re-bill

This is a work around for having multiple provinces with various excise tax of waste oil filters -in a new system we will avoid this. Thanks to Joe for spotting this problem.

We have asked why this sort of repetitive problem isn't posted somewhere on the link.

how to make things happen -- just ASK

Pete asked for more stock in ECC. When we looked -- we wondered at what Windsor was doing --when we ASKED -- we found they had to level 6 -- we ASKED them to increase to level 7 ...they have just confirmred that they have an additional 35 skus and are full 7 in ECC.

ps - Petes also got what they asked for --more in their stock ... so think about what you need --and ...then ask. At worst you have made your point visible and the next time you ask - you are one step closed ...at best -- you get it right away.

top selling vehicles YTD in Canada

Data on top selling vehicles --- what do you see on our roads ... we will need to have these parts on hand in the near future - some parts needed quickly ( like oil & air filters ) and others like rad hoses seem to take over 5 years to hit any demand.

CLICK ON IMAGE TO MAKE LARGER !!