Silverlake Automotive Recycling [Silverlake] welcomed the President of the ARA [Automotive Recyclers Association - America], Shan Lathem, and Second Vice President, Eric Wilbert, to its Authorised Treatment Facility in Shedfield, Hampshire at the end of May. The visit had been recommended by the ARA Past President, Marty Hollingshead, as an opportunity to see best practice in auto recycling in the UK, and the UK Director of the ARA, Darren Combellack accompanied the ARA representatives.
The site visit included a tour of Silverlake’s offices and operational facilities. The ARA guests were able to meet and speak with all department heads and their teams; gaining insights on systems and processes used by the business to gain maximum efficiencies and deliver outstanding customer service. The pride taken by staff in the services offered demonstrated the customer centric business culture that Silverlake is known for, which has been integral to its success and growth in market share in the UK.
The ARA representatives were impressed by the volume of vehicles handled at Silverlake’s 10-acre site and took away a number of ideas to include tyre processing, the imaging of reclaimed parts for online sales and ways to better leverage the Pinnacle system.
Shan Lathem, President, ARA commented: “Silverlake’s site, its people and the way they manage their systems and processes to achieve maximum performance seriously took my breath away. The visit was extremely valuable and we have some great insights to take back to our members. We received such a warm welcome and we were grateful for the opportunity to see what best practice looks like in the UK.”
Allen Prebble, managing director at Silverlake said: “It was our pleasure to show Shan and Eric around our facility and share how we do things in the business. I was incredibly proud of the staff who really enjoyed demonstrating the part they play in Silverlake’s success. I felt humbled by visit from the ARA, which for me signposted recognition of many years of hard work by all the team at Silverlake.”
