Leyland CAT licks factors at their own game
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WHEN YOU WALK into the parts department of any cv dealer, two things can happen. The part you need is either in stock or it isn't.
If it's available off the shelf, everyone's happy. End of story. But if it's out of stock nobody's happy. Leyland has identified the consequences.
First the customer won't necessarily wait for it to come In; the average parts customer is very fickle. He wants the part low, so he will go to another iistributor's parts department, ar to a factor.
And secondly, out of stock )arts give the distributor and _eyland headaches. The distri)utor's parts staff will phone the _eyland main parts warehouse Chorley in Lancashire for availability information and to nake an urgent VOR order. In he past the Chorley owitchboard could be jammed vith this type of inquiry.
Leyland also had a commuoications problem. It had a lot of 'arts information — such as the uperseded parts numbers and pdates — to convey to the listributors.
So what was needed was a peedy communications system 'filch could pass on vast mounts of information to the istributors and at the same me accept and react to parts aquiries and actual orders. And must be fast, or else the cus)mer was lost. And that, if ever aere was one, was a cue for the amputer.
So Leyland's computer "bofns" went to work and came up fth the CAT system which went n stream three years ago.
CAT stands for Computer Acan Terminal and the emphasis on the Action. The heart of the (stem is an IBM 3031 computer nd that's a big one) housed at ralton Summit just outside
It stores information on all the 35,000 different Leyland ueline parts held at the Chory warehouse, plus the Redline arts stored at Cowley. (Leyland phasing out the Redline/Bluele distinction). The computer 5o has information on all the perseded parts numbers.
To get at this data, the Leyland stributor needs a computer terminal. This is a relatively simple piece of gadgetry consisting of an electric typewriterstyle keyboard and a printer, linked by a conventional phone line to the Walton Summit computer.
This terminal serves three purposes. It gives the distributor's counter-staff access to all the parts information on the computer — instantly.
Secondly, it enables the distributor's counter staff to make an urgent VOR parts order while the customer waits, knowing that this will be converted to an actual picking order at Chorley within an hour or so of the order being placed.
And finally, the terminal handles the re-ordering of the normal stocks held by the distributor to keep his shelves and bins full.
Let's take the case of a customer who walks into his Leyland lorry distributor. The parts department hasn't got the particular part he needs, but it does have a CAT terminal. The terminal is often actually on the parts counter — the counter-staff operate it and the customer can see results of his inquiry, which Leyland reckons is an important psychological plus.
Because the part is out of stock, the storeman decides to find out if it is available in the central Chorley warehouse. The CAT stirs.
The storeman first dials the Walton Summit computer phone number and logs on using a code number which identifies the particular distributor. The computer responds and the printer chatters away, listing all the types of information on offer.
Assuming this to be a normal parts availability inquiry, th storeman taps in the appropriat parts number and the quantit needed. Straightaway, the com puter repeats the number an gives a brief description of thl part.
It says how many are in stoc in the Chorley warehouse, hov many are in the special VOf stock at Chorley, how much eact part costs, and the value of thE total number ordered.
If the part in question has beer superseded, the computer auto matically gives the new par number applicable. \t the end of this information computer asks: "Do you 3nt this order to be )cessed?" If the storeman is in Yes, this inquiry becomes
actual VOR order and the 3 It o n Summit computer relays lown to the end of the line in
Chorley warehouse where a rts picking order is produced. 4s orders are processed, the mputer calculates the stock of rts remaining at Chorley and continuously updates the ailability information.
Leyland guarantees that if the stributor places the VOR order fore 11am then the part will be :livered to the distributor ither by Leyland's own de'ery fleet or Securicor) within 24 hours, no matter where in the country the distributor is based.
In practice, orders that are made as late as 4pm are often picked that day and still arrive at the distributor the next morning.
Leyland acknowledges that this is the sort of service level that operators need for VOR parts and if a part is not even in stock at Chorley (there are £35m worth) it will be taken from the production line where possible.
This VOR and inquiry service is obviously a necessary part of any parts organisation, but it's an expensive way of replenishing the normal stock of parts held by the distributor.
Remember, the CAT terminals are linked to the computer by a normal phone line and a stock replenishment order can take 30 minutes or so, leaving the distributor with a big phone bill.
This would also tie up the phone lines in to the Walton Summit computer which should be kept free for the more urgent VOR orders and inquiries. Up to 24 distributors can 'talk' to the computer at once.
To keep the non-urgent replenishment orders separate, the CAT terminals have a "memory" facility. The storeman taps out his list of parts to be replenished in the usual way. But instead of them being transmitted to the computer, the terminal records them on a cassette that looks similar to a musicassette. At the end of the afternoon when the distributor closes, the terminal is switched to automatic answer.
During the night, when lines are free and phone charges are cheaper, the Walton Summit computer will dial the distributor's terminal and the recorder automatically plays back the cassette, relaying the order to the computer and thence to the Chorley warehouse for picking.
Though the main benefits of the CAT system are greater speed and easier access to more updated parts information there are two other spin-offs.
First, accuracy is improved. Nothing is more infuriating than patiently waiting for a part only to discover it's the wrong one that is delivered. These errors can creep in during transmission — a verbal or written order could be easily misinterpreted at Chorley.
But now this possible source of error is replaced by the storeman keying in the part number at the terminal. The chance of this being incorrect is reduced by the description of the' part that the computer provides.
So if the storeman taps in the number for a piston and the computer confirms this as a spring, then the storeman knows he's done something wrong before a spring arrives!
There are currently 82 terminals in operation, including five abroad. Most of these are in the large Leyland distributors but there are also a few in major operators such as London Transport and Greater Manchester Transport who order enough parts to justify a terminal of their own. It is cost that deters other Leyland distributors getting terminals. Though Leyland actively markets the terminals and encourages distributors to use them it doesn't supply them. The distributors lease the terminals from the manufacturer, ITT, at a cost of around £1,100 each per year. So the distributor needs a fairly substantial parts business to make a CAT worthwhile.
Cost is kept down as far as possible by the use of printers rather than the more usual vdu screens at the terminals.
The CAT system is central to Leyland's ambitious parts division's plans. The parts operation is not solely there to support the vehicles on the road; it is a business in it's own right and is expected to show its own profit.
A couple of years ago, Leyland estimated the total UK competitive parts market for all vehicles over 31/2 tons to be worth a staggering £497m a year. Leyland had just five per cent.
The company had seen motor factors cream off this competitive parts business; the fasi moving, easiest items like filters bulbs, fan belts and so on. So, ir early 1980, Leyland launched ar aggressive new thrust to wir back this business under th( Multipart name and using th( CAT cat as a mascot.
Not content with just winninc back sales of its own fast moving lines, Leyland last Octo ber expanded the Multipar range to cover these parts fo another 12 major lorry manufac turers including the likes of Forc Bedford and Volvo.
At present, the Multipart rang covers 13 product groups sucl as hose clips, pistons and wipe arms. This will increase to 3 product groups by the end of th year and ultimately to 70 b 1984. Already, Leyland's shar of the "competitive" parts ma ket has risen to 6.4 per cent.
Other evidence of Leyland' intentions in the parts busineE is the expansion of the mai Chorley warehouse, A larg extension is currently under cot struction and when completed i a few months time will mea that Chorley is the largest con mercial vehicle parts warehou( in Europe.
The advent of the computer the parts operation has been a important. Without the Comp ter Action Terminal system, Le land readily admits that it wou have been struggling just keep on top of its own parts c ganisation.
It's now hoping that throuc the Multipart all-makes busine the Leyland CAT will help lick tl factors at their own game.