RIGHT-TO-REPAIR ADVANCES

Right-To-Repair Law Passes,

Automakers File Federal Suit

BY DAN SHELL

While the legislation that passed in Massachusetts during the November election was targeted to the automotive industry, the same principle now applies to all equipment-servicing facilities in the state: When customers buy a piece of equipment (or car) they also buy complete access to the data streams that are generated during technical and diagnostic procedures as part of a service or maintenance job. The new Massachusetts law—which passed with 75% approval from voters— requires manufacturers to equip vehicles with standardized open data software platforms by 2022.

The legislation also states that such a standardized open data platform has to give vehicle owners and independent repair facilities direct access and the ability to retrieve mechanical data and run diagnostics through a mobile-based application.

Massachusetts voters had already passed landmark right-to-repair legislation in 2012 that required automakers to use a nonproprietary plug-in to access a machine’s onboard diagnostic port so third-party vendors could repair or service it, but that law had specifically exempted data that was transmitted wirelessly.

Yet as equipment systems and maintenance procedures have grown more sophisticated since the initial Massachusetts law was passed eight years ago, with more procedures and data now being handled online, right-to-repair advocateshad taken up the wirelessly transmitted data exemption as an issue to overturn in future legislation.

Within weeks of the November election, automakers filed suit in a U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, primarily claiming that the law’s short timeline is impossible to meet when vehicle development cycles run three to five years.

Now, major automakers allege in a federal lawsuit filed after the election that the revised law poses cybersecurity and vehicle safety risks and the short timeline sets an “impossible task” for compliance.

The Alliance for Automotive Innovation — which represents General Motors, Ford, Toyota, Volkswagen and other automakers —filed the suit Nov. 20 in U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, requesting that the court find the law “unenforceable because it is unconstitutional” and conflicts with federal laws.

Automakers are right to be concerned. Despite it’s relatively small size, Massachusetts’ requirement passed in 2012 requiring standard plug-ins to data ports was soon extended to cars nationwide, and the industry doesn’t want to see the same thing happen with data platforms.

On the face of it, the issue seems clear-cut: I bought it, I own it, and I need access to all hardware and software to repair it.

Manufacturers counter that consumers already have or can find all the information and equipment they need to handle all standard repairs and maintenance— but complete access that includes the ability to modify software settings poses serious safety, security and enOPEI members say they will provide end users with increased resources, but draw the line at allowing third parties to alter or change settings on pieces of equipment. vironmental risks.

According to the Outdoor Power OPEI members to provide end users Equipment Institute (OPEI), state legisla- with increased resources by 2023 that tion on the issue, in Massachusetts and in includes fleet management information, other states where similar laws have been electronic field diagnostic tools and all proposed, is too broad and mixes the related information and materials. more acceptable right to repair with the However, OPEI and its members draw unacceptable “right to modify.” the line at allowing third parties to alter

OPEI, as part of a coalition of suppli- or reset security features such as immoers, OEMs and groups including multi- bilizer systems, reprogram engine conple dealer associations, has made itspo- trol units, change any settings related to sition clear in a statement of principles. emissions or safety compliance or access

This includes a commitment from any embedded software or code. PET

The Perfect Time

To Reflect

It’s always useful at the end of a year to reevaluate our practices as owners and managers, planning what we will do in the coming year.

BY SAM STEARNS

One of the things we dealers need to look at is our shop labor rates. I was recently in a Facebook conversation with other dealers about labor rates, and one dealer expressed fear of raising his rate because that would put him higher than the dealers around him. I completely understand being afraid to stand out in that way. I remember back when I was new in the industry that an older customer of mine was giving me some counsel about how to do business, since he had been a businessman himself. He told me that having a reputation of being “high” would be the death of a business. And being the young impressionable pup that I was, I took his words to heart. In theory, it makes perfect sense: Have higher labor rates than your nearest competitors, and you’ll drive all your customers to them. For years, I was afraid to exceed the labor rate of my nearest competitor.

Shortly afterward, I met Bob Clements, who was giving wildly different advice! I was reluctant at first, but I started raising my labor rates. And as I did, I started to discover that my business wasn’t failing at all! Fast forward to the early 2020, when Bob’s crew advised me to raise my labor rate from $80 to $85 in the spring. That adjustment would make me a full $30/hour more expensive than my nearest competitor, who I believe is still operating (nominally) at $55/hour. And how has 2020 been for Mr. Mower Man? 2020 YTD labor sales are 16% over what it was in 2019. Not a bad reward for pricing myself out of the market! So if you’re confident that your shop provides great value to your customers, you don’t need to be afraid of raising your rates.

Dealers should also look at service billing practices beyond the labor rate. I recently took part in a BCI workshop on this topic, and I saw how much money I have been losing by not implementing better practices! Many of us know that flat rate billing is the way to be most profitable in our shops, but one thing I haven’t been doing well is taking into account the condition of the machine and adjusting the flat rate time accordingly. Let’s say a mower spindle needs to be replaced on a clean, well maintained zero-turn mower, which your technician can do in 20 minutes. Let’s also say that a mower spindle needs to be replaced on a zero-turn mower that has been poorly maintained and abused, where the blade bolt is rounded off and hasn’t been removed in over 2 years, and half the spindle bolts break off when you try to loosen them. Anyone been there? It takes your technician twice as long to do this job. Does it make sense to charge the same amount for the same job on both mowers, when one is clearly going to require more time to complete than the other? This is something that Mr. Mower Man will be doing differently, and maybe I can see another 16% (or more!) increase in labor sales as a result! PET

Sam Stearns owns and operates Mr. Mower Man, Scottsburg, IN, 47170; e-mail mr.mowerman@hotmail.com. The views of Sam Stearns do not necessarily represent those of Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc.

February Powerlines

Diversity Builds More Than Sales. Page 5.

J.R.’s Lawnmower Shop: Diverse Product Line Works

Carts, grills, coolers and deer food complement lawn and garden. Page 10.

Dealer Speak: Developing Sales Opportunities. Page 14.

Winter Product Preview. Page 18.

Dust & Rust: February 1995. Page 23. April Powerlines

Gearing Up For War. Page 3.

A Spring Unlike Any Other.

Dealers grapple with health

2020 Editorial Index

concerns, business impacts as the coronavirus pandemic affects the lawn and garden industry. Page 8.

Dealer Speak: Spring Service Challenges. Page 12. Industry Voices: OEMs Weigh In: COVID-19.

Page 18.

Dust & Rust: April 2000. Page 19.

June Powerlines

Give Us Your Thoughts.

Page 3.

2020 PET Dealer Survey Report. Page 8.

Business Maintains Niche, Grows Through Diversity.

Once a one-stop logging, Northwest Logging Supply is growing with new markets and customer demand. Page 14.

2020 Chain Saw Specification Charts. Page 20.

2020 Chain Saw Products. Page 26.

Rotary Corp. Makes A Difference With Community Cleanup Effort. Page 24.

August Powerlines

Dealers Deliver Right Hook To Virus. Page 3.

In It For The Long Haul.

Morrison Power Equipment is hopeful for life after COVID-19. Page 6.

2021 Mower Preview. Page 11.

Survey Says… Service Sells. Page 22.

Dealer Voices: Dealers Adapt, Overcome Virus.

Page 31. October Powerlines

2020 Is Wild Y’all Super, Super Wild. Page 3.

Solid Sales, Service Year For Colorado Dealer.

Craig’s Power Equipment customer service focus includes quick turnaround times. Page 10.

Expo Elite. Page 14.

Dealer Voices: Take Time To Think Ahead. Page 20.

Dealer Speak: Reacting, Adapting To Extreme Weather Around The Country. Page 22.

December Powerlines

Right-To-Repair Only Tip Of Iceberg. Page 3.

Deep Rooted Dealer Takes Care Of Customers.

For the Adams family, their four-location dealership sells products for work and for play.

Page 8.

2021 Trimmer, Brushcutter Preview. Page 11.

Right-To-Repair Law Passes, Automakers File Federal Suit. Page 21.

Dealer Voices: The Perfect Time To Reflect. Page 22.

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Nationwide

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Central & Western U.S.

The COVID-19 Vaccine Is Coming Here Are Some Things To Think About

With the possibility of a COVID-19 vaccine on the horizon, many employers are starting to ask themselves how they’re going to handle this eventuality. Below are considerations for employers to keep in mind from the perspectives of employment law, employee safety and health, and labor-management relations.

Mandatory Or Voluntary? Pre-COVID regulatory guidance authorized mandatory vaccine programs, provided that medical and religious accommodations were honored and free from retaliation. (EEOC guidance, OSHA guidance) With the presumptive public health case for a COVID-19 vaccine being at least as strong as historical vaccines (like seasonal flu, H1N1), one can anticipate that the historical guidance will hold for a COVID-19 vaccine. Vaccines are medical examinations under the ADA and, if they are to be required, must be job-related and consistent with business necessity or justified by a direct threat. Historically, this has meant that flu vaccines can be mandated for employees in a patient care setting where there is interaction with vulnerable populations. Outside this setting, a voluntary program to start may be prudent, with the option to escalate to a mandate in the future. It remains to be seen if the EEOC will say that the COVID vaccines can be mandated on the theory that COVID-19 presents a direct threat in the workplace.

Minimizing Political Distraction. Employees may perceive any employer action or inaction regarding vaccines as politicized. Employees’ varied concerns might be eased by building a scientific, business and humanitarian case for any course of action. Focusing on the safety of patients, customers, and coworkers—and avoiding political talking points and justifications—can help to legitimize an employer’s plan in the eyes of employees and defend against novel legal challenges and claims. Employers will do well to set a tone of apolitical safety and corporate responsibility.

Rooting Out Malingerers, Fraud. Separating bona fide medical and religious accommodations from opportunists and malingerers is important to workforce planning and employee morale. This challenge presents itself whether a vaccine program is mandatory or voluntary. Employees may seek to avoid work either due to a mandate to take a vaccine perceived to be unsafe or being put to work in an environment with unvaccinated colleagues. Employers should anticipate an influx of accommodation requests and proactively train human resources staff to process accommodation requests involving vaccines or working around unvaccinated persons. Informed by existing disability accommodation and leave laws, employers can map out processes for detecting and deterring employee abuse and fraud associated with vaccine programs and, more broadly, returning employees to the workplace.

Business Leaders Rolling Up Sleeves. Unlike annual flu vaccine programs of the past, employees may be skeptical (for various reasons) of any COVID-19 vaccine offered by an employer. Business leaders should consider bold demonstrations of personal commitment to any mandatory or voluntary vaccine program, as a way to build employee trust and compliance.

Potential For Tort Or Workers’ Compensation Claims.

Employers may face claims of negligence sounding in tort when they decide not to institute vaccination programs; however, a plaintiff’s ability to identify a relevant duty and to demonstrate an employer’s breach of that duty would likely prove difficult. Whether workers’ compensation laws apply to harm and side effects allegedly caused by COVID-19 vaccinations will vary case-by-case and state-by-state. State systems could cover injuries suffered as a result of employees’ reactions to such vaccinations, particularly where employers mandated or strongly encouraged that employees receive those vaccinations.

The Occupational Safety And Health Act. Historically, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has not mandated employee vaccinations, but has indicated that employers can do so. The whistleblower provision at section 11(c) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act may afford protections to an employee who refuses to be vaccinated under an employer vaccination program because of the reasonable belief that a medical condition may cause a reaction to the vaccine resulting in serious injury or death. Separately, employees may allege that employers without vaccination programs have failed to provide safe and healthy work environments, as required by the OSH Act’s general duty clause at section 5(a)(1).

Source: NEDA newsletter, Chicago-based law firm Seafarth Shaw LLP

PETevents

FEBRUARY 21-23, 2021—Combined annual meeting of Midwest-Southeastern Equipment Dealers Assn., MSEDA, United Equipment Dealers Assn. and Deep Southern Equipment Dealers Assn., Marriott Riverfront, Savannah, Ga. Visit mseda.com/about/annual-meeting.

APRIL 1-4, 2021—Equipment & Engine Training Council annual meeting, Lodge Kohler, Green Bay, Wis. Call 888406-1810; visit eetc.org.

OCTOBER 20-22, 2021—GIE+EXPO, Kentucky Exposition Center, Louisville, Ky. Call 812-949-9200; visit gie-expo.com.

NOVEMBER 16-18, 2021—2021 North American Dealer Conference, Dallas, Tex. Visit nadealerconference.com.

Listings are submitted months in advance. Always verify dates and locations with contacts prior to making plans to attend.

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GREG GERMAN

Now Is

The Time

While winter might be fun and games for kids, for dealers it is time to plan ahead.

As a kid, I used to love winter. Playing in the snow, building forts, snowball fights, sledding, getting cold and then solving all my problems with multiple cups of hot chocolate. As my hair has gotten a bit thinner, along with an added coloring of wisdom, my outlook on winter has changed and I don’t look forward to it near as much. Our dealership is one of those that is located just far enough north that we do get snow, but just far enough south that it is not consistent. We really don’t measure our success by the selling of hundreds of snow blowers (more like a few dozen), or dozens of snow plows (more like a handful). We really rely on our traditional business of tractors and light construction equipment, along with steady service business, to provide enough cash to get through those much leaner months. So, when retail activities are less involved, what I do have more of, is time.

The question I always have to ask myself is, how am I going to use it. This winter, I have a list of key activities that I was supposed to get completed before last spring’s selling season that I am going to complete.

Key Activities

● It started with the development of a planning tool for our sales team to map out their goals for 2021. On an Excel spreadsheet, I broke down the various manufacturers, by types and series of equipment. Then I projected an average sale price and gross margin % based on historical data.

I have presented the sales projection tool to each of our sales team and gave them a deadline to complete. Over the next couple of weeks, I will meet with each of them and make sure their goal is realistic, but still causes them to stretch in order to reach it. We will couple their goals with our manufacturer’s goals in order to meet their market share requirement. This will then be the driver for our corporate sales budget.

By holding each salesperson accountable to the plan on a regular basis through our weekly sales meetings, I am hoping to drive more productive use of their time now that they have individual unit sales goals versus just a corporate sales goal. Individual ownership of the goals is what I’m hoping is dramatically different in our sales team in the New Year. ● Marketing for more technicians is already going at a fevered pitch. Our service business has grown a lot this past year and we simply don’t have enough techs. Our goal was to add four additional techs prior to spring 2021, and as of now, we have already hired two of them. Plus, a more robust compensation plan that is made more affordable by raising our billing rates to attract the right kind of employees who can grow the business. It is imperative that our service departments grow more quickly than our whole goods sales. Our ability to take care of customer’s needs in a timely and efficient fashion will determine our success. If our sales teams introduce equipment in to the marketplace more quickly than our service team has the capacity to repair them, it will cause customer dissatisfaction and will detrimentally affect future growth of the business. Telling a customer, “We are booked out three to four weeks right now,” is not a recipe for success. ● Having the right parts on the shelf at the right price has never been more critical. Today’s traditional brick and mortar dealers are continuing to have our advantages eroded by online marketers who may offer lower prices and faster delivery than what we can even do in our dealership settings. Almost all manufacturers offer some sort of pre-season programs for purchasing. Dealers should be taking advantage of these programs to make sure you have the right parts on the shelf. Some pre-season programs are better structured than others, but comparing the pre-season to in-season programs are critical. Today, freight costs and other “add-on” costs that are sometimes part of the daily orders that manufactures provide can drastically affect your real gross profit margin. Use your business system and make sure you are stocking those items on your shelf in the proper quantities based on historical data.

Plus, if you have had equipment models that have been added in recent years where you are gaining traction in unit sales, you will need to project for replacement parts sales even though your historical data might not show that you have had many past sales. Example: Make sure you have blades, belts, filters and other maintenance items. No better way to lose a new customer than to not have the necessities on the shelf when they come in. Guess what, your online competitor will have it in stock and can ship it to their home in just a few days.

I know 2020 has been a good year for many of you and you have had to deal with a lot of extra hassles this season. Take some of the downtime that many of us are feeling this time of year and plan for the 2021 season to make sure that all of your departments and personnel are operating at the best levels possible. Remember, “Expect what you inspect.” Hoping you have a blessed Christmas season. PET

Greg German is President of German-Bliss Equipment, Inc. in Princeville, Ill., which operates three power equipment dealerships that market products for the lawn and garden, industrial and agricultural sectors. He can be contacted at P.O. Box 440, Princeville, IL 61559; fax 309-3852540; e-mail ggerman@german-bliss.com. The views of Greg German do not necessarily represent those of Hatton-Brown Publishers, Inc.