Our experience at Silverlake Automotive Recycling [Silverlake] mirrors the findings of the 2022 ABP State of the Industry Report which reports that a record 79% of bodyshops are using reclaimed parts and 74% said their use of reclaimed parts had increased in the last year.
Silverlake has seen a 49% increase in sales of reclaimed parts to bodyshops and a 29% increase in new bodyshop customers in the last 12 months. We continue to build strong relationships across the bodyshop sector and our nationwide delivery service with our in-house fleet of vans expands our reach and sees us servicing national bodyshop groups including Halo, Apollo and bodyshop parts supplier, JustParts.app.
It is no surprise that 68% of bodyshops fit reclaimed parts when the new part is not available in a reasonable time frame and 74% when the new part is no longer available. The difficulties and delays experienced by bodyshops when trying to source new parts have put immense pressure on the whole industry. Silverlake made a strategic choice to actively take on their bodyshop customers’ parts problems as their own. The parts team developed a ‘managed approach’ system to monitor individual customer back-order lists daily and proactively notify the bodyshop when their required parts were in stock and available for delivery. This added value service removes the need for the bodyshop parts manager to use valuable time checking on back orders and has further built Silverlake’s reputation as the ‘go-to’ point of call when bodyshops need reclaimed parts.
60% of survey respondents cited parts availability issues as the reason for their increased use of reclaimed parts in 2022. This represents opportunity for the vehicle recycling industry to embed reclaimed parts in the repair process by ensuring the delivery of a consistently high-quality, sustainable, reliable service. Silverlake is investing in its facilities, technology and people to reinforce its reclaimed parts proposition for bodyshops. Data analysis is used to predict and inform the business on market requirements so that it buys the vehicles and dismantles the parts that are in high demand. Consequently, fulfilment rates and bodyshop customer satisfaction is high. As well as its own stocks of reclaimed parts, as a member of the e2e Total Loss Vehicle Management network, Silverlake also has access to the network’s inventory of over 5Million reclaimed parts; the largest in the UK.
Carlo Vaccaro, Parts Sales Manager at Silverlake comments: “Confidence in our reclaimed parts quality and service is what will convert new bodyshop customers, who have reverted to reclaimed parts to overcome new parts supply issues, to long-term users of the solution. The carbon reduction benefits of using reclaimed parts will also add to its attraction as ESG compliance becomes essential for businesses operating in the motor industry supply chain in the future. Addressing the 61% of respondents who stated that inconsistent quality was the reason that they didn’t use reclaimed parts or increase their usage of reclaimed parts in 2022; please ensure that you buy your parts from vehicle recyclers who are certified to the VRA UK Standard for Reclaimed Parts, which includes the quality grading of parts and a warranty scheme. Silverlake has just renewed its certification to this standard for the second year running.
