Sticking Together Ihave seen numer- ous changes in our industry over the past couple of years, some major and some minor. We’re working with things we normally wouldn’t even want to rebuild or mess with. We are now scrambling for a piece of the pie, com- peting with the OEMs—who thought we would ever have to do that? OEMs are wanting their piece of the pie also. Another change was bringing prod- uct from overseas. We are all guilty, we are scrambling to stay alive, and we adjust as needed. It used to be that we would buy the oddball stuff and build the common stuff. Now we buy the common stuff and want to rebuild the oddballs. What a change. Now another major issue is the new trade association. It seems as though in the Automotive Parts Rebuilders Association (APRA), the electrical rebuilder was forgotten. When we went to a trade show, there were so many other rebuilders there—clutch, brake, engine, and so on—that we didn’t have time to get the training and support that we needed. And it was getting worse as the days went by. But now we have this Electrical Rebuilder’s Association (ERA) group, which is electrical rebuilders only. I think this was a great move. We need this organization to survive. We need all the suppliers and rebuilders to pull together as a team. We need people in this industry such as Joe Davis. He has devoted a lot of time and effort into this industry to train rebuilders with new items that come out on the market. If we did not have him, who would do it? We need him. Dick Vensel is another guy we need. He stays up to date with the new tooling. Just think how hard it would be to take time to design a new tool to get a stator out, or to pull a certain bearing out of a certain application. Vensel has always been there for us. And we need all of the suppliers. Let’s face it, no one carries everything. We need numerous suppliers to buy from. Our suppliers are also good about getting product we need, when we need it. Imagine this industry with no suppli- ers. You could not order parts, so what would you rebuild with? We need to keep our suppliers alive, and they need us as well. I have said all this to emphasize that we must stick together. We needed the ERA and I encourage everyone to become a member. Let’s face it, this is a dying industry and we need to make it come alive again. The ERA is a great group. You can post questions online and there are a lot of people that will answer your questions. I have seen numerous questions posted and within a few minutes, it will be flooded with answers. This is great. And please attend the training seminars. It is worth the money you spend. I am asking that if you are not an ERA member, please join our organiza- tion. Not only will it help us, but it will help you as well, and will help keep our industry alive. We need to stick together. Chris Thompson is owner of Electric Motor Service, Stollings, WV.