Is the Cost to Produce Your Spare Parts Manual Too High?
Why Parts Management Can Be Costly for OEMs
Most aftermarket leaders strive to be more proactive and cost-efficient. But getting there can be overwhelming and costly, especially if your business requires frequent updates to your spare parts manuals to keep them accurate.
Added to this complexity is the challenge of getting spare part manuals printed and distributed. An outdated spare parts manual can lead to a range of issues, from poor customer service to misaligned order delivery and revenue loss. However, keeping your parts manuals up-to-date can be very time-consuming and costly.
Aaron Smith, VP of Solutions Engineering at CDS Visual, recalls how a recent prospect from the global manufacturing industry discussed the headaches associated with updating their spare parts manual: “I spoke with a prospect who lamented the headaches of updating their parts manual. It involved heavy lifting from internal teams, and it took days to get parts manuals up to date.”
Most OEM leaders involved in the technical documentation for their products still rely on traditional paper-based or PDF data to update and manage legacy information. Unfortunately, legacy data exists in various standards, styles, and formats, leading to high lifecycle costs associated with updating and maintaining these diverse documents.
“Despite the growth potential for OEMs with genuine spare part businesses, customer experience in part identification and search capabilities is severely outdated. Many of our prospects still use PDF catalogs, some CAD files, basic digital product catalogs requiring a part number, or varying tiers of parts specialists to troubleshoot in order to complete a sale.”
Nick Thompson
Head of Marketing and Product
CDS Visual
So, how do you digitize your replacement parts business when your technical publication costs are too high?
Let’s Explore Three Ways to Digitize Your Spare Parts Manual (Without Breaking the Bank)
1. Publish data to Partable from various sources – ERP, PLM, PIM, CAD, CRM
Leverage AI algorithms to sort, clean, and accurately categorize spare parts data with minimal human intervention. This enables real-time updates to spare parts information in a single system instead of through multiple databases, giving you a digital thread that keeps all your data in sync
CDS Partable Uses Existing Data to Digitize Your Spare parts Catalog to Drive More Genuine Part Sales
Partable offers a new way for technical publications and spare parts data updates.
As an example, digitizing a traditional paper-based spare parts manual is particularly advantageous for industries like industrial manufacturing. It helps manage the vast amount of data produced from manufacturing data generated from the building of more complex types of equipment. This makes it almost impossible and costly to update paper-based manuals. By aggregating fragmented spare parts data into a single system, OEMs can gain the agility and accurate knowledge necessary to beat the competition to sell more parts, anticipate stock levels, and mitigate stockouts.
2. Easy integration with existing e-commerce, CPQ, CRM, and Customer Portals
Using a 2D and 3D model viewer with part selection and hotspots can further enhance the user experience and help understand the design component of your products. This enables an always-on and add-to-the-cart functionality for easy integration with existing eCommerce solutions and sales portals like Salesforce Commerce Cloud or Intershop. Eliminating the human element on your online sales portal is a long-term strategy for generating recurring revenue even while you sleep.
3. Decrease Technical Publication Cost
Implementing Partable decreases the cost of technical publication tremendously. Instead of updating multiple systems, only one system is updated. CDS Partable offers cutting-edge technical publication solutions from digitizing legacy data to transforming and personalizing spare parts data to better target your desired audience.
The Future of Spare Parts Technical Publication is Here
Depending on your online experience maturity, your ideal customer either spends a vast amount of time researching replacement parts on your site or effortlessly locates what they need. A paper-based parts catalog is not the solution; digitizing your parts data is a winning strategy for your manufacturing business. For spare part and services leaders, Partable heralds a new era—one that empowers them with the confidence and control needed to revolutionize their commercial genuine spare part sales strategy.
Here’s Why You Should Try CDS Partable Today
Partable provides an interactive and visual spare part search and procurement tool that leverages existing engineering data. Streamline OEM genuine spare part sales operations and manage parts search data in one easy-to-use solution.
Key features include:
AI-Powered Visual Search for Spare Parts
Part/Serial number search
Bill of Materials (BOM) part search
2D exploded view drawings with hotspots
Interactive exploded 3D model with part selection
Customer Data and Analytics
Scalable and secure cloud-hosted service
API based data ingestion and client app integration
Rendered product visuals for every spare part
CDS Partable empowers manufacturers to sell more spare parts by providing an AI-powered platform that seamlessly connects data, automates processes, and enhances the customer experience. With Partable, OEMs can optimize their spare parts operations, drive aftermarket sales, and build stronger relationships with customers and partners.
