ERA Show Earns High Mark By Traci Matt STAFF WRITER Phil Moore had been waiting nine years. Thomas Rinn flew over from Germany. Someone at JIMCO even did some sewing—all for the Electrical Rebuilder’s Association Trade Show held in the greater Cincinnati area May 21 to 23, 2004. So was it worth it? Most definitely, said Moore of Universal Starter & Alternator, Inc., Matewan, W. Va., a first-time attendee who had been waiting until the show moved close to his home. He used to think he couldn’t afford to go—now he said he can’t afford to miss it. “There’s a big difference between talking to someone on the phone and working a deal face-to-face. It was a solidifying kind of a deal to meet people, put faces to names. I wish a lot more of the suppliers had come, but the ones that were here were extremely impressive,” Moore said. “My truck broke down on me but I still had a great time. When you have car trouble and still have a ball you know it was good.” The most remarkable event of the weekend for Moore was his tour of the Prestolite Leece-Neville plant, which was the first activity on the docket for the active weekend. “I was very surprised that an OEM would open up their facility so freely to their competition. I am thankful they did open their doors,’ he said. The tour included a look at everything from ship- ping and receiving operations to some completed units. He was even able to ask a few technical questions. “T was really impressed,” he said. Show promoter and ERA National Vice-President Polly Shea said that although show attendance was lower than the 400 she had anticipated—just over 300 rebuilders registered—the plant tour size was double the usual count. Dave Kaplan, technical services man- ager for Transpo, a division of WAI, did double-duty both at his exhibit and a training station. His presentation includ- ed different ways to test new and salvage regulators and salvage rotors, as well as Internet resources. He said last year he had a number of phone calls after his training station presentation, and looks forward to more this year. Other training stations included presentations on marketing by Larry Hagemeister of Hagemeister Auto Electric, Lebanon, Ore.; Prestolite Leece-Neville heavy duty systems by Gary Hunter of Leece-Neville; and soldering by Richard Vensel of Vensel Enterprises. “The whole goal is to generate inter- est and raise the level of training. That’s why we print the information to hand out to rebuilders. We know small businesses can only afford to send one or two people, but that way everyone gets the information,” said Kaplan. One of the show highlights for Kaplan was viewing the new ERA Web site. “A rebuilder who hasn’t seen the preview or who didn’t join immediately has really missed the boat,” he said. (You can find more information about the Web site, electricalrebuilders.org, on page 3 of this issue.) The ERA booth was full of activity, as usual, with 18 new members joining. Ongoing Web site tutorials, and sales of the new “Terms, Definitions and Symbols for the Auto Electric Industry” booklet kept volunteers busy. A number of board meetings were held over the course of the weekend, and some new officers were elected (see page 15). Bill Sundberg of Boston Auto Electric won the ERA “Most Creative Installation” contest with their system of 5-108 amp Leece-Neville alternators created for ham radio operation by Paul Lavoie. New ERA member Randy Jones of G & G Generator in Henderson, Ky. was the lucky recipient of a new Dell Computer, complete with a full library of rebuilding software from AIM, Apptrak, Lester Catalog and WAI, awarded in a drawing held Sunday. “IT was only able to attend Sunday because of prior commitments but it was definitely worth the trip, even if I hadn’t won the computer,’ said Jones. “I was able to put faces with the voices I had dealt with over the year from different vendors. It was good meeting a lot of the ones you’ve talked to for years. I was also able to locate a couple of new ven- dors for items we had yet to find from someone else. All in all, I think the show was of benefit for me and my business.” First-timer Jim Hudock of Hudock Alternator and Starter Service, Uniontown, Pa., said he picked up a lot of business and technical ideas and even bought a regulator tester, among other things. “Tt was a good show. I found out a lot of the people in different parts of the country have the same problems we do,” he said. Joe Davis’s “Keep It Current” semi- nar was, as always, a big draw. Davis said the atmosphere in his day-long pre- sentation was one of camaraderie and allowed those who were new to “open up and ask questions.” About 75 percent of those present had never been to his seminar before. New Twists This year boasted a number of new twists, including a “Swap ’n’ Shop’ area located at the rear of the show floor. Participation was slim and reviews were sketchy, although Aleshya James of Reuben James Auto Electric, Falcon, N.C., said they made abo