Toyota was the big winner at the inaugural Equipment and Tool Institute (ETI) OE Awards.
The institute honored Toyota as the OE Most Supportive of Scan Tool Companies and the OE Most Supportive of ETI Events.
Toyota also received the institute’s first annual Industry Recognition Award. The award recognizes the automaker ranked highest overall by ETI member companies, as aggregated from all criteria rankings.
Fiat Chrysler was recognized as the OE Most Supportive of Service Information Companies. The voting delegates viewed Fiat Chrysler as best at providing service information companies with easy-to-consume content at reasonable prices.
ETI said it created the OE Awards to:
- Inform automakers what the perception of them is by the industry relative to “OEs as partners”
- Educate the ETI’s membership and industry on perceptions of the OEs by the industry
- Recognize those OEs that clearly have better engagement with the tool, information and equipment providers that comprise the ETI membership
- Provide all OEs with a “balance sheet” each can use to better measure their industry perception and participation
“ETI considers itself as the liaison between the companies that build service equipment, tools and service information and the vehicle manufacturers,” said Ben Johnson, director of product management for Mitchell Repair Information Co. and host of the OE Awards session. “It allows us to facilitate a dialogue that provides us with insights into what those new vehicles are going to be and can ensure we are delivering the right products to help the aftermarket service/repair industry support those new vehicles.”
To determine the award winners, the institute sent an 11-point survey to all delegates, who were asked to rank the OEs based on the criteria in each query. The delegates’ responses were tabulated to determine rankings by criteria, and when grouped, overall award winners.
“The Equipment and Tool Institute values our relationship with the automakers and understands the importance of working together to better the industry,” said Jessie Korosec, ETI marketing and events manager. “We feel it is important to recognize the automakers that make significant efforts to supply our member companies and the aftermarket with access to complete information to ensure mutually beneficial outcomes are achieved. It’s also vital to make sure that our members’ voices are being heard so that we can better serve them and act as a conduit to industry partners to ensure that vehicles are being repaired safely and correctly, which, in turn, influences customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.”
