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Internet Set to Revolutionize Motor Industry

15 January 1999

Internet Set to Revolutionize Motor Industry

    DETROIT, Jan. 14 -- The latest technology revolution -- the
Internet -- could save the motor industry up to $50 billion worldwide by
changing the way businesses handle information.
    At the upcoming Internet E-Commerce for the Automotive Industry
conference, 16 & 17 February 1999 at the Crowne Plaza Pontchartrain, Detroit,
businesses can discover how to cut costs, and maximize profits and efficiency
through the Internet.
    The industry's big players  -- including General Motors, Toyota, Motor &
Equipment Manufacturers Association, Subaru and Microsoft CarPoint -- will be
there to reveal their internet experiences and discuss the way forward.
    The conference explores all the hottest issues surrounding the internet,
including bringing the customer into the information loop, tightening the
supply chain, and the effect on corporate strategy.
    "In short, the conference will show businesses how to make the very most
out of new Internet opportunities.  Already, visionary companies are using or
actively exploring the possibilities for e-commerce," says Internet E-Commerce
for the Automotive Industry conference director Christopher Pett.
    "The potential is enormous.  Every business -- from the large retail chain
to the small aftermarket supplier -- can make huge gains by concentrating
their supply chain with the internet.  It's all about making sure information
and knowledge is dynamically handled."
    E-commerce (business on the internet) works alongside traditional delivery
systems, and in the most forward thinking business places it has already
replaced them.
    It gives OEMs, plus their suppliers and dealers a direct data connection
to the majority of their customers, which can be fed straight to the supply
chain.
    If the connection is managed effectively, the customer becomes the true
end of the chain, streamlining the process.
    Customers, for example, can custom-order their vehicles and take delivery
within days simply by using a supplier who uses the internet to manage the
order.
    The result is effective order-based production that dramatically reduces
work-in-progress -- and creates the worldwide saving of billions of dollars.