As a professional automotive technician, you have invested unheard of amounts of money in tools to be able to perform your job. The last thing I want to think about is the amount of money I will be spending next year. I have compiled this list to help you decide which tools are going to provide you with the best return on investment.

1.Laptop Computer. The time has come if you do not already have one on top of your box. I cannot imagine what I would do without mine. I am always walking over to my laptop to look up torque specs, find a wiring diagram or even just to find out how much oil a car takes. I remember those days not so long ago where I had to make that long journey all the way to the office and fight the other technicians to use that one PC we had available to us. With the cost of laptops dropping by the minute, you no longer have an excuse. I consider them disposable and simply buy the least expensive one I can find. I figure that I can buy 5 $300 laptops for the price of one low end Toughbook, so if I threw one away every 2 years that Toughbook would have to last 10 years to justify the expense.

2.J2534 Pass Thru Interface. The days of repairing a check engine light by replacing a part and clearing the codes is quickly passing. If you have noticed a steady increase in the number of TSB’s for codes that include reprogramming the ECU as part of and sometimes the entire repair, you are not alone. In times like we are in now, you must be able to keep as much work in house as possible. If you are not performing ECU reprogramming, you are sending thousands of dollars out the door to the dealer or you competitor who is. I recommend the iFlash interface since it is the least expensive fully compliant interface currently available.

3.Smoke Machine. The prices have come down so low it is time to quit making excuses and buy one. You cannot properly diagnose an evap leak without one. You know you need it.

4.Identifix subscription. I know this is supposed to be about tools. I consider my Identifix subscription to be one of the most valuable tools I have. The amount of time saved diagnosing cars is amazing.

5.Training. Yeah I know this is supposed to be about tools. Do yourself a favor and get out there and learn something new next year. Whether it is attending a class, reading a book or watching a DVD, do something. The only way to rise to the top of this profession is to be continually learning. I would recommend a class on hybrids. This is a market that is going to be hitting the independent shops in the next few years. If you have not seen any hybrids, just wait they are coming.

To conclude, Spending your tool money wisely in the next year will certainly pay off in increased sales and ultimately more money in your wallet.

According to a Recent article in the St Louis Post Dispatch Ebay has grown to over 34 Billion Dollars in annual sales volume. That same St Louis Post Dispatch article went on to say over 2.2 Million Americans sell on Ebay. (Many as their Primary Source of income). Ebay is truly the home based business of choice for the new Millennium.

One of the biggest reason given by people for not starting an EBay business is lack of items to sell. While it is highly advisable to have multiple suppliers their is an Ebay supplier that stands above the rest especially for the new Ebay Entrepreneur.

Some of the features that set the Ultimate Ebay Supplier apart

1 – Drop Shipper

You don’t need to stock inventory or even pay in advance. As you are paid for the orders you forward them to the supplier and they pack and ship the item direct from their warehouse to your customer

2 – Products

Over 90,000 Products for you to choose from at wholesale prices

3 – One Click Ebay Integration

The Product descriptions, pictures and titles are already in place simply point and click and your Auction is automatically uploaded to Ebay.

4 – Auto Profits 24/7

The Ultimate Ebay Supplier will have your Ebay Auctions creating income and generating profits for you 24hours a days, 7 days a week, 365 Days a year.

A car that pulls or drifts to one side may have a tire problem, an alignment problem or both. Sometimes the tires can show some uneven wear that can result in pulling. Other times the tires can look perfectly fine and the car will pull to the right or left. Yes, it is best to have the alignment checked if there is any doubt about the alignment being out of specification. But, if the tires are wearing nicely and you have a very hard pull at slow speeds, it could just be caused by a tire.

Radial Tires. Radial tires are designed to grip the road. If the tire belts are slightly off the tire can grip the road unevenly. The tire belts can be off slightly from the factory or can be altered by an impact from the road such as hitting a pothole or an object on the road. If any of the tires have any bulges in the tread area, known as separations or slipped belts, the tire must be replaced. Failure to replace a tire with a slipped belt will most likely result in a blow out and possible vehicle damage. Very slight bulges on the sidewall, small dimples are normal and can be found on any tire. The dimples are the seams where the tires have been put together at the factory.

Cross Rotating. Older consumers may remember back in the 80′s when it was not recommended to rotate radial tires in any kind of cross rotation pattern. The truth is when this rumor was being spread, tire manufacturers were simply having problems with the design of radial tires and reversing the rotation was blamed as the cause of tires separating and blowing out. Reversing the direction of tires never really caused any blow-outs or tire failures. Now with that being said, if a tire pull is suspected rotate the front tires side to side and see if the pull is gone or reversed. Many times if a car pulls hard at slow speeds, it is just a tire pull. As stated before inspect the tires to make sure there are no unusual bulges, uneven wear or damage prior to just criss crossing the tires.

Alignment. Finally, if the pull is still there after cross rotating the front tires, a suspension and steering inspection is in order. Alignment may be necessary to remedy the pull. The alignment will consist of four alignment heads being attached to the wheels and all the angles checked and adjusted if necessary. Caster is the angle that most commonly causes an alignment pull. Camber and toe will also be checked and adjusted if necessary to insure even tire wear. The last step is to test drive the car after the alignment and verify the pull is gone, a slight drift to the right if only present on some roads may be normal due to the crown or slope to the road (the crown is necessary for road drainage). Make sure the steering wheel is centered, this is mainly cosmetic since the steering wheel can be off center and the car can be perfectly in alignment otherwise. A centered wheel allows the instrument panel to be seen easily and if the alignment changes in the future, especially the toe adjustment, the steering wheel will be off-center indicating that an alignment may be needed.

There have been some very grim headlines from automotive industry news feeds for about 2 years now, since the beginning of the 21st century recession. The auto industry was one of the hardest hit markets to fall victim to the economic slump, but it looks as though this downturn is now looking up. Analysts in the auto market have been forecasting positive recovery for the year to come. Companies who have been keeping their focus on the future, beyond the recession, will most likely be the first companies to jump start their recovery.

A double whammy recession for the auto industry is not likely, according to analysts. On the contrary, they predict. Good things are to come to auto makers and retailers this year. Many car makers are putting back in place some of the jobs they cut due to the recession. Although some companies are reluctant to do such a thing because they still have not healed from the recession, you will find a surprising number of companies that are reinstating jobs that were lost.

Some of these reluctant manufacturers have barely made it through the recession and still bare the battle scars. It will take some absolute numbers for them to recover. Their logic makes sense. They want to be able to hold on to new employees once they are hired. Just like consumers, these types of companies just need some confidence that the economy is really back on the road to recovery.

Stock piled supplies are not as large as they used to be in retail car shops or manufacturer warehouses. Although you will not see an overly loaded car dealership, you will see new models coming in for the bright predictions of recovery, just not in the quantity we are used to seeing. The economy is sending signals that we should get ready for a recovery, but it will still take some more time to encourage both the consumer and the retailer to spend on new cars.

Auto industry specialists gathered to come up with innovative ideas to move the car market forward. Most companies are moving forward but with extreme care. They are being encouraged to take the lead and stimulate the economy for further gain. After nearly two years of abiding to strict budgets, consumers are now ready to splurge on a big ticket item such as a car, and dealers are being encouraged to take advantage of this big spending nostalgia.

It is precisely due to this reason that after the recessions of both the 80′s and 90′s one of the first places on the market to recover was the auto industry. Experts are hopeful this will happen now as well. When people see positive signs of an economic recovery the chances of them buy a car increases.

Finally, some good automotive industry news! A positive forecast is much needed for this market. But wait. There may be a downside for you as a consumer. A car that you will purchase this year could cost you a little more than it would have if you had bought it last year at this time. After several months in a recession car makers really want to see profits rise. One way to see them rise is to charge you more. Although not all car makers are raising prices it would be wise to do your homework before you go out and buy a new car.

Dental billing software is an essential part of the medical billing industry. Dental offices either take care of their own dental billing or hire a medical billing specialist to take care of it. Either way, the need for dental billing software that is fast, effective, and inexpensive, is a prevalent one. Do you need to purchase dental billing software? Here is some advice that will help you.

Your first step in purchasing dental billing software is to do your research. Which dental billing software programs are considered the best? Which ones have the best prices? Find reviews of the software in magazines and on websites. Ask other dental billing specialists which software they use. The more information you can find, the easier it will be to make a wise purchase decision.

After you do your research, you will need to purchase the dental billing software. Once you have a particular software package in mind, you can start comparison shopping on the price. Check online, in stores, and in catalogs. Make sure you understand the warranty information and the return policy. When all the factors meet your approval, you can make the purchase with confidence.

Good dental billing software has a few functions. It helps manage patient accounting. It issues bills and invoices. It also manages patients? insurance and helps make the process of submitting a claim much easier. It is also important for the software to be easy to learn and easy to use.

When it comes time to purchase dental billing software, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, do research to find the best product. Search for information online, in magazines, and ask other billing specialists. Once you are confident you found a good product, you can start to compare prices. Keep in mind that you want the software to be easy to use.

It is important to work with companies that care about the environment. In a perfect world we would all help to reserve out earth’s natural resources more efficiently. I find it very comforting to know that there are auto repair shops that are helping with the cause. But what exactly are they doing to contribute? Let me explain…

Now days there are tons of ways to recycle more in auto repair. There is a machine called ‘Systems One’ and it allows auto shops to recycle used solvent from the shop. There are even Noble oil services that make it possible to recycle antifreeze and use it as an energy source. Pretty cool, huh? It doesn’t stop there…

Not only are auto shops going green by recycling old solvent and oil, but they are taking extra precautions to do so in the shop. Extra precautions are being taken such as using recycled paper and printer toner, sending bottles and cans to local county pick up sites, and sending old tires, batteries, and lead wheel weights to off-site recyclers. They are even sending out captured Freon from air conditioning repairs. Then are going green from every angle they can think of on the job.

Another green idea they practice is ordering things in bulk. This helps to reduce the amount of materials used on packing. There is no such thing as going too green. Matter of fact, we should team up with auto repair shops and recycle as much as we can.

Most of us have at least one vehicle to serve our commutation needs, and if you belong to the group and do budgeting, you would know that even minor repairs sum up to a significant amount of money by the end of every year. This is when we can (and some of us do) repair most of the minor glitches by ourselves provided we have the right set of automotive shop equipment and the knowledge to carry out basic jobs. Hence, if you are a DIY person, having your home workshop will help you save a huge amount of money in the long run.

When trying to build a home workshop, first you need to decide the repairs you would like to perform in your workshop. Some of the simplest repair service jobs that most of us would be able to carry out are light bulb replacement, engine belt replacement, oil and air filter replacement, fuse replacement, brake oil replacement, coolant refilling, engine oil replacement, wiring corrections, flat repair, minor dent and scratch repair, etc. The ideal way to select the jobs to be performed is by categorizing all the jobs, so that you can buy automotive shop equipment accordingly.

Besides some basic hand tools such as pliers, wire cutter, wrenches, L-keys, screw drivers and hammers, you will also need some advanced tools such as engine repair tools, body repair tools, flat repair tools, etc. If you own a high end car, chances are that you will need some vehicle specific tools as well. However, when shopping for vehicle specific tools, you should buy only those tools which are absolutely necessary as these tools may not be of any use when you will replace your car.

When shopping for automotive tools, you should always buy tools of premium quality from a trusted store. Cheap equipments may seem to offer you saving initially, but they are a sheer wastage of money in the long run. Thanks to the internet, now you can easily find the best names in the business using any web search engine. No matter whether you are looking for some basic hand tools or vehicle specific engine repair tools, online tool stores will be able to everything you need for your home workshop.

If you’ve ever listened to Warren Buffett talk about investing, you’ve heard him mention the idea of a company’s moat. The moat is a simple way of describing a company’s competitive advantages. Company’s with a strong competitive advantage have large moats, and therefore higher profit margins. And investors should always be concerned with profit margins.

This article looks at a methodology called the Porter’s Five Forces Analysis. In his book Competitive Strategy, Harvard professor Michael Porter describes five forces affecting the profitability of companies. These are the five forces he noted:

Intensity of rivalry amongst existing competitors Threat of entry by new competitors Pressure from substitute products Bargaining power of buyers (customers) Bargaining power of suppliers

These five forces, taken together, give us insight into a company’s competitive position, and its profitability.

Rivals

Rivals are competitors within an industry. Rivalry in the industry can be weak, with few competitors that don’t compete very aggressively. Or it can be intense, with many competitors fighting in a cut-throat environment.

Factors affecting the intensity of rivalry are:

Number of firms – more firms will lead to increased competition. Fixed costs – with high fixed costs as a percentage of total cost, companies must sell more products to cover those costs, increasing market competition. Product differentiation – Products that are relatively the same will compete based on price. Brand identification can reduce rivalry.

New Entrants

One of the defining characteristics of competitive advantage is the industry’s barrier to entry. Industries with high barriers to entry are usually too expensive for new firms to enter. Industries with low barriers to entry, are relatively cheap for new firms to enter.

The threat of new entrants rises as the barrier to entry is reduced in a marketplace. As more firms enter a market, you will see rivalry increase, and profitability will fall (theoretically) to the point where there is no incentive for new firms to enter the industry.

Here are some common barriers to entry:

Patents – patented technology can be a huge barrier preventing other firms from joining the market. High cost of entry – the more it will cost to get started in an industry, the higher the barrier to entry. Brand loyalty – when brand loyalty is strong within an industry, it can be difficult and expensive to enter the market with a new product.

Substitute Products

This is probably the most overlooked, and therefore most damaging, element of strategic decision making. It’s imperative that business owners (us) not only look at what the company’s direct competitors are doing, but what other types of products people could buy instead.

When switching costs (the costs a customer incurs to switch to a new product) are low the threat of substitutes is high. As is the case when dealing with new entrants, companies may aggressively price their products to keep people from switching. When the threat of substitutes is high, profit margins will tend to be low.

Buyer Power

There are two types of buyer power. The first is related to the customer’s price sensitivity. If each brand of a product is similar to all the others, then the buyer will base the purchase decision mainly on price. This will increase the competitive rivalry, resulting in lower prices, and lower profitability.

The other type of buyer power relates to negotiating power. Larger buyers tend to have more leverage with the firm, and can negotiate lower prices. When there are many small buyers of a product, all other things remaining equal, the company supplying the product will have higher prices and higher margins. Conversely, if a company sells to a few large buyers, those buyers will have significant leverage to negotiate better pricing.

Some factors affecting buyer power are:

Size of buyer – larger buyers will have more power over suppliers. Number of buyers – when there are a small number of buyers, they will tend to have more power over suppliers. The Department of Defense is an example of a single buyer with a lot of power over suppliers. Purchase quantity – When a customer purchases a large quantity of a suppliers output, it will exercise more power over the supplier.

Supplier Power

Buyer power looks at the relative power a company’s customers has over it. When multiple suppliers are producing a commoditized product, the company will make its purchase decision based mainly on price, which tends to lower costs. On the other hand, if a single supplier is producing something the company has to have, the company will have little leverage to negotiate a better price.

Size plays a factor here as well. If the company is much larger than its suppliers, and purchases in large quantities, then the supplier will have very little power to negotiate. Using Wal-Mart as an example, we find that suppliers have no power because Wal-Mart purchases in such large quantities.

A few factors that determine supplier power include:

Supplier concentration – The fewer the number of suppliers for a given product, the more power they will have over the company. Switching costs – suppliers become more powerful as the cost to change to another supplier increases. Uniqueness of product – suppliers that produce products specifically for a company will have more power than commodity suppliers.

It’s important to analyze these five forces and their affect on companies we want to invest in. The Porter Five Forces Analysis will give you a good explanation for the profitability of an industry, and the firms within it. If you want to know why a company is able, or unable, to make a decent profit, this is the first analysis you should do.

If you are looking for used or recycled parts for your imported car, do not even think about going from one salvage yard to another. The process of locating import auto salvage parts is much easier today given the penetration of the internet. It does not matter what model or make your car is and what country it belongs to, you can do a search online and get the used parts you have been looking for.

You got yourself a brand new imported Honda, and now you guard it with your life. Even a single scratch drives you crazy. It is been over two years and you are still scared. You are worried that you will have to pay hundreds of dollars if anything were to happen to any of the parts. So you do not let anyone drive it, your wife has been begging you since the car first parked itself in your driveway, but you wont budge.

What if we told you that you did not have to spend as much money of import auto salvage parts? Would that lessen your paranoia? You can now avail of any part that is not working through auto salvage yard across the country. So do not protect your car from people you love the most. What if your wife crushes the rear view mirror or the tail light gets smashed into pieces. You can simply replace it by getting in touch with the best auto salvage yards.

And do not worry about the time, you can simply find out if the parts are available online. There are a number of websites who offer import auto salvage car parts services. They will either put you in touch with the best salvage suppliers or you could either check if they have the car parts themselves. The process is easy and only takes a few minutes.

You will first have to identify if the website that holds parts to the car you are looking for. Once you identify a website, just type in the name of the parts you need. It will throw up a list of suppliers who can help you. Or give you a list of availability of the part. Do your research, ask for multiple quotes and make your choice. You do not have to worry about the credibility of these websites as they are in the business for a long term, so they will not provide you with a product that will reflect badly on them. Once you have made your choice on the supplier crack the deal and wait for your import auto salvage part to reach your home in record time.

You will be surprised at the service you receive from these suppliers. It is impeccable and once you are happy with what you get for the first time, you can forget about buying spare parts that are new forever, just call up your import auto salvage supplier and he will grant your wish.

Your imported car needs genuine spare parts, import auto salvage suppliers can hook you up with genuine and affordable spare parts in excellent time. These suppliers assure quality and price, and do not you need both by your side, when you are driving a sweet ride?