E-commerce’s Role In Parts Procurement

The trucking industry tends to lag behind other industries including automotive when it comes to adopting technology. While many businesses have moved more of their purchasing online, trucking has been a little slower to adopt this practice despite having online options. 

Historically, and depending on the age of the truck, fleets have bought parts from their local dealer or distributor. They either phone in an order, stop by the parts counter to get the part in person and in some cases, they still fax in orders. They know, like and trust their local parts distributor and usually are satisfied with the availability of parts and the service they get from those local businesses.

But then came COVID and the shutdown of manufacturing plants around the world. The ripple effects of those shutdowns are still being felt. First it was vehicle manufacturing that felt the shortage of parts needed to build new vehicles. But that quickly morphed into a shortage of replacement parts where certain parts were hard to get from traditional suppliers.

This caused some fleets to venture outside their normal parts procurement channels. Some tried sourcing parts from dealer or distributor locations miles from their terminals. Some were willing to switch brands or even move to private label parts in order to get what they needed. And some turned to the internet. Many found success online because of the depth and breadth of the inventories of these parts sellers.

It also caused some distributors to switch from ordering from their normal parts suppliers because those usually reliable sources suddenly were not able to fill distributor’s orders.

Rather than lose a customer, savvy distributors began to look elsewhere to find the parts they needed to fulfill their customers’ needs. One of the places they turned to was the internet. They sought out e-commerce sites that specialized in heavy-duty truck parts and met with some success.

But while they were online, distributors and fleets found that a wide array of parts were available online — many with favorable delivery terms. They seized the opportunity and beefed up their own inventories especially if they were able to locate hard-to-find parts online. 

After their initial e-commerce purchases, many distributors and fleets have made online purchasing a regular part of their parts purchasing strategy. And not just for hard-to-find parts. Many of them are now purchasing stock parts from their online vendors.