High standard equipment

As one of the industry’s longest standing independent associations, established in 1945, the Garage Equipment Association continually strives to find new ways to support member companies and to ensure their views are heard. We asked chief executive Dave Garratt to fill us in on the latest association news

What are your main concerns as an organisation?

Maintaining the high standards and professionalism of the garage equipment industry. The GEA was established in 1945 and since then it has been upholding the standards of equipment sold and services provided by all members.

What are the key issues affecting your industry at this time?

At the moment we are busy assessing all of our members vehicle lift engineers, testing their knowledge of industry regulations and standards. Once this has been completed we will be able to insist that vehicle lifts 
are installed and maintained by competent engineers.

How do you assist your members?

We provide information on all government issues, legal services and assist them when dealing with VOSA and the HSE.

How do you promote new products entering your marketplace?

We do not promote equipment, that's our members’ job, but we do promote GEA events, like our Technical Workshop, which provides technical information to delegates from garages and our charity events such as the GEA/BEN golf day.

How do you work with government and the other business sectors?

We work on the DfT's liaison group and sit on VOSA and the HSE forums. We also work in Europe with the Commission.

What key events/exhibitions are you responsible for and how are they perceived within your industry?

The Workshop Zone is seen as the only National Exhibition for Garage Equipment in the UK We are not responsible for the Workshop Equipment Zone at the Commercial Vehicle Show, but we do fully promote it.

Do you lobby on behalf of your members?

Not for individual members, but yes for our industry.

How do you inform public policy?

Via the GEA website www.gea.co.uk, which is also a gateway to the products and services provided by the very best companies in the garage equipment industry.

Are you engaged in encouraging best practice within the industry?

Yes, we work with BSI and CEN to create European Standards and publish our own code of conduct, which is also available on our website. The GEA logo means that a buyer can feel at ease as all of our members follow a strict Code of Practice; only companies that have been trading successfully for a full year qualify to join; and full arbitration service is offered.
    
GEA members come from all sectors of the market - manufacturers, importers, distributors, installers, service providers, publishers, finance and training companies, to name but a few. All are very different but have one thing in common - they share a common interest in the long-term future and standards of the garage equipment industry. As a member of the Garage Equipment Association, not only will you be fully informed about changes and how they may affect your company, you will be part of an association that has the weight to represent your views both here in the UK and in Europe.

New update for the Multi-Tester Pro
New update for the Multi-Tester Pro gives emphasis towards the very latest applications in service functionality.
  
Autodiagnos, manufacturers of diagnostic tool the Multi-Tester Pro, has announced the release of its update CD for December. The latest release (CD3-2008) is another balanced package of application updates with an emphasis on additional service functionality. Following the success of the BMW ‘Short Test’ function it was decided to add a ‘Global ECU Test’ to the Ford and GM applications; these automatic tests allows thorough system checks to be made through a single menu selection.
 
This update also sees the introduction of additional functions such as ‘Steering Angle Calibration’ on BMW and Ford CAN systems and particulate filter (FAP) regeneration on a range of PSA models. Other important additions include further CAN module support being added across the Ford, GM and Land Rover applications and additional functions such as ‘Activations’ and ‘Adaption Resets’ being added to the PSA and Fiat group vehicles.
  
John Watkins, chairman of Autodiagnos, said: “Once again we are very pleased with the commitment and dedication of our engineers that ensure these updates are packed with new applications and that they arrive on time. This shows both individual and team effort from the Autodiagnos staff to meet customer expectations on time, every time. Autodiagnos has a reputation of exceptional customer and product support and may I congratulate staff on their on-going commitment to sustaining this – and I know customers of Autodiagnos and the Multi-Tester Pro would certainly agree.”

For more information
For specific application coverage or more details on the Multi-Tester Pro diagnostic tool please visit www.autodiagnos.com or call 0870 949 3799 and ask for your free information pack.