By Vince Edivan
As the world slowly returns to the new normal, I am excited to look at my calendar, and see it filling up with shows, events, and meetings. At the time of this writing, I thoroughly enjoyed attending FADRA in July, and also hosting ARA’s first networking event in well over a year. ARA on the Road – Tampa took place in the days leading up to FADRA in, yes, you guessed it, Tampa!
This newest ARA event offers a unique opportunity for “up and comers” to meet and spend time with seasoned veterans of the industry and tour some of our best facilities. Each planned event will be attended by at least one of our Executive Committee members.
Don’t worry if you missed this one!
We hope to host several of these events each year and we believe these will be excellent opportunities for learning, networking and fun!
During the last week of July, myself and the entire Totaled Treasure crew filmed yet another episode at a secret location! We can’t wait to bring our unique brand of infotainment to everyone. This Internet show has done way better than we even anticipated, and we’re excited to be scheduling more episodes, as well. If you have an interest in hosting and sponsoring an episode, don’t hesitate to reach out!
Earlier this year, ARA hosted a team from the General Motors Future of Sustainability group on a tour of Fox Auto Parts in Belleville, MI. Well, they loved it so much that they reached out and asked if we could arrange a tour of a shredder facility.
“Many of us commented that we focus so much on the ‘assembly’ of vehicles, it opened our eyes to spend a day focused on observing the end-of-life ‘disassembly’ of our vehicles!” said Suzette Malek, General Motors, Global Research Manager, Global Societal Trends & Innovation Insights.
So, at the end of July, we will return to the Detroit area to host the group on a tour at OmniSource. Stay tuned for pictures and a follow-up story.
Also planned, ARA will soon be releasing our third installment of our Virtual Facility Tours featuring Nordstrom’s Automotive, in Garretson, SD. In this four-part series, we are looking at Nordstrom’s process for purchasing, grading, inventory, depolluting, sales, shipping and receiving.
Led by Shannon Nordstrom, who is the chairperson for ARA’s Certification Committee, and Jonathan Morrow, Immediate Past President of ARA, this is a fascinating tour of one of the most advanced auto recycling facilities around. The focus of this tour is not only on how Nordstrom’s operates, but we will also show how they have incorporated ARA’s CAR program into every aspect of their operation. Watch for our announcement of when you can expect to see these tours, as well as a live Q&A with Shannon and Jonathan.
For now, here are just some of the events and shows I will be attending in the coming months:
URG – August 5-8 in Dallas, TX
ARNE/ARANY – Sept. 23-25 in Albany, NY
PARTS – Oct. 1-2 in Pittsburgh, PA
ARA’s 78th Annual Convention & Expo – Nov. 10-13 in Dallas, TX
I’m very much looking forward to seeing you all out on the road!
Vince Edivan is ARA’s Director of Member Relations. In his role, he represents ARA at state industry events, working to connect with current and potential members.
