right to repair
We have completed our series of articles written by Andrew D. Graham, managing director of SUPLEX GmbH, about the perceptions of quality, and how
these perceptions are formed. We now give you Andrew’s final thoughts on how to educate the market on these perceptions. And apologies for the pun, but
we at aBr couldn’t resist it, because we are indeed words in action ………..
Presenting Your Case
Springs and spring seats are a snug fit in
the foam insert and different inserts allow
me to display different types of spring.
The photographs show an OE taper wire,
progressive rate Miniblock spring with the
equivalent SUPLEX part and aftermarket
“matching quality” spring in the foam
insert, but there are occasions when I
want to discuss the latest generation of
curved, side-load springs which many
aftermarket suppliers are either unable to
manufacture or prefer not to manufacture.
..There is, I’m sure you’ll agree,
something fundamentally wrong with
an initiative that allows component
manufacturers and suppliers to selfcertify their products and subsequently
describe them as “matching quality“
when the physical differences between
them and the OE parts are so obvious,
so gross, that they can be pointed out
by my five year old daughter…
W
ith my own words ringing
clearly in my ears, I decided
that SUPLEX, in a similar way
to some members of OESAA, should
prepare a presentation case that clearly
shows the differences between an
Original Equipment (OE) coil-spring and
an alternative (unbranded) aftermarket
design promoted as a “matching quality”
replacement.
I designed my presentation case to
display three coil-springs; the OE design,
the SUPLEX equivalent part and an
aftermarket “matching quality” spring
linked, through TecDoc, to the same
OE part number. These three springs
are clearly labelled and lie in the lower
portion of the case. Where applicable,
I include the OE spring seats because
these often play an important part in coilspring operation. In the case shown here,
the aftermarket “matching quality” spring
is supplied by the manufacturer with its
own spring seats because the spring will
not fit the OE design of spring seats.
Matching quality indeed!
| words in action
30
june 2014
An iPad is recessed into the lid of the
presentation case and this is loaded with
material demonstrating the features of
the OE design; how the SUPLEX part
replicates these features exactly and
how, you have already guessed, the
aftermarket “matching quality” spring
falls short in almost every discipline.
So, in addition to the somewhat dry and
often bewildering technical information
describing the design and manufacture
of our parts and the obsessive attention
to detail we exercise getting everything
just right, I have included interesting
video clips showing all three springs in
operation, not just in laboratory conditions
but on a moving vehicle, often with
startling results. And not just for a five
year old.