COMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
MAKING THE CASE FOR
CONTENT CREATIONPEERLESS
2 • TOYOTA: Comprehensive Aftermarket Services • toyota.com
MAKING THE CASEMAKING THE CASEGAINING VISIBILITY INTO YOUR WORKFORCEMAKING THE CASECOMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
MAINTAINING A FORKLIFT FLEET shouldn’t be
a juggling act, but without the right balance of
equipment uptime, output, safety, and maintenance,
that’s exactly what it can turn into.
Despite what some �eet managers may assume, forklift
investments don’t end when the purchase agreement
or lease is signed and the equipment is put into service.
They extend out into the warehouse, DC, and plant,
where regular maintenance, upkeep, and repair converge
to ensure the lowest total cost of ownership (TCO) for
these critical material handling machines.
Along with struggling to keep their forklifts ef�ciently
maintained, companies also grapple with issues like
equipment manufacturers that go out of business, those
that don’t provide comprehensive maintenance programs,
and those whose vehicles simply don’t withstand the
test of time or deliver on their early promises. Untenable
in today’s high-velocity, multi-channel distribution
environment, these issues can severely hamper a
company’s ability to run smoothly, service its customers,
and stay competitive.
All it takes is one mechanical shutdown to create a
bottleneck on the DC �oor—a bottleneck that not only
hampers productivity but that also results in high repair
costs. “Whenever you have an emergency, you also
have truck downtime to contend with,” says Megan
McGriff, assistant manager, parts marketing, sales,
and promotions for Toyota Material Handling, U.S.A.
(TMHU). “When you have downtime, you have decreased
productivity and increased costs.”
By incorporating a planned maintenance guarantee
and a more extensive extended care plan into the forklift
acquisition process, companies can avoid these traps and
keep their �eets running in a very ef�cient and affordable
manner. Add product assurance and/or warranty options
to the equation and you get a comprehensive aftermarket
package that keeps operational emergencies to a
minimum while helping to improve employee safety in a
highly-productive environment.
By de�nition, aftermarket services encompass the
maintenance and running of a forklift after it has been
acquired. As such, anything that comes into play during
that period—servicing, maintenance, repair, reducing
downtime, ensuring safe performance of the forklift —
will all fall under the aftermarket umbrella. “Beginning
from the point where the truck is delivered and put
into operation,” says Bret Bruin, TMHU’s director of
aftermarket services, “aftermarket includes all of the
maintenance and repair, the disposal of the truck when
it comes off lease, and the steps involved with trading or
selling the truck.”
Why today’s �eet managers need a robust, OEM-supported aftermarket services approach to forklift maintenance.
Service After the Sale: Looking Beyond Acquisition Costs
“Whenever you have an emergency, you also have truck downtime to
contend with. When you have downtime, you have decreased productivity
and increased costs.”— Megan McGriff, assistant manager, parts marketing, sales,
and promotions for Toyota Material Handling, U.S.A. (TMHU)
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• TOYOTA: Comprehensive Aftermarket Services • toyota.com 3
average forklift technician is now 50+ years old and either at
or nearing retirement.
Poor visibility into total operating costs for the vehicles
is another stumbling block, with many companies looking
solely at acquisition costs when making their forklift
purchases. In reality, the maintenance associated with
keeping those vehicles running at optimal levels for the
next three, �ve, or seven years must also be factored into
the equation.
“The maintenance and upkeep of a unit is actually a much
bigger �nancial investment than just the acquisition cost, yet
a lot of companies don’t know how many forklifts they have
or what the costs are to operate those vehicles,” says Bruin.
Perhaps even more importantly, the same companies don’t
pay attention to the operator behaviors that impact the
safety and/or the cost of their �eets.
“When companies jump at the chance to decrease their
costs by using another service provider or by trying it DIY,”
McGriff explains, “they wind up getting hurt in the long run
because the techs they’re working with lack the speci�c
technical know-how to service the forklifts as well as the
speci�c OEM can.”
In this Making the Case supplement, we explore the use
of comprehensive aftermarket services for forklifts, show
programs like Toyota 360 Support work, and reveal the
return on investment (ROI) that comes from working with
a manufacturer like Toyota to create a program that meets
your company’s speci�c needs.
For many �eet managers, the question becomes: Do I
attempt to service this equipment myself, do I outsource it
to a third party, or do I work with the original provider’s
aftermarket service plan? Many times, companies either
take the DIY or “self-service” approach. Others hire
non-OEM service companies to manage repairs and
maintenance on a one-off basis, never really knowing
how much money they’re investing, time they’re wasting,
and productivity they’re losing as a result. By not working
with a manufacturer-certi�ed technician, for instance,
companies miss out on the chance to get their equipment
repaired in the most effective and ef�cient manner
possible using OEM parts.
For example, companies that decide to service the units
themselves nearly always run into challenges �nding trained
technicians—a problem exacerbated by the fact that the
“Beginning from the point where the truck is delivered and
put into operation, aftermarket includes all of the maintenance
and repair, the disposal of the truck when it comes o� lease,
and the steps involved with trading or selling the truck.”
— Bret Bruin, TMHU’s director of aftermarket services
MAKING THE CASECOMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
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4 • TOYOTA: Comprehensive Aftermarket Services • toyota.com
MAKING THE CASEMAKING THE CASEGAINING VISIBILITY INTO YOUR WORKFORCEMAKING THE CASECOMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
FLEET MANAGERS CAN NO LONGER OVERLOOK AFTERMARKET SERVICES, nor can they wait until a major
interruption happens to spring into action. And while many companies still attempt to handle the problems
internally or call on a third-party for help, smart �eet managers are factoring the total cost of ownership (TCO)
on their forklift investments and turning to their vendors’ comprehensive aftermarket service programs instead.
Aftermarket Services Shouldn’t be an AfterthoughtBy leveraging comprehensive aftermarket services, �rms can readily adopt a proactive stance and begin tapping into otherwise-overlooked opportunities for improvement.
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• TOYOTA: Comprehensive Aftermarket Services • toyota.com 5
MAKING THE CASECOMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
technicians will be onsite at those
intervals, enhancing that vehicle’s
uptime. During that process,
the dealer will also help identify
potential safety-related operational
issues and effectively address
issues before they happen.
“It’s all about safety and keeping
the truck up and running,” says
Bruin, who adds that TMHU’s
commitment to stocking service
parts provides an extra layer of
assurance for �eet managers. “Our
parts availability is over 98%, so
we �ll 98%+ of the incoming parts
orders, every day.”
HOMETOWN HEROES
As one of the most important
elements of any comprehensive
aftermarket services programs,
quali�ed technicians play a key
role in keeping companies’ forklift
�eets running at optimal rates
and for the lowest TCO. Through
Through offerings like Toyota 360
Support, those �eet managers get
the bene�ts of:
• Toyota Certi�ed Technicians
– Rigorously trained experts in
Toyota forklifts.
• Toyota Genuine Parts – The
parts the forklifts were built with
and the Toyota techs were trained
with.
• 4-Hour Guaranteed Service
Request Response Time – Never
be in the dark about the status of a
maintenance need.
• Two-year Labor Warranty – If
you get it �xed, it stays that way.
• Toyota Standard and Extra
Care Warranty – To ensure longer
protection against maintenance
costs.
• Optional T-Matics Support –
Data insight into the forklift �eet.
• The Toyota Service App –
Submit service requests quickly.
Bret Bruin, TMHU’s director
of aftermarket services, says a
true aftermarket service program
starts with understanding the
customer, its operations, and its
individual service and maintenance
needs. “There’s no one-size-
�ts-all solution; our dealers are
trained to understand speci�c
industry segments and customer
applications,” says Bruin. “Then,
they design a maintenance
program for that speci�c
customer.”
For example, if TMHU
determines that a forklift needs
to be maintained every 500
hours, one of its certi�ed dealer
the Toyota 360 Support network,
these technicians work for dealers
and are regarded as true solution
providers that:
• Can be the touchpoint for dealer
resources when customers look to
enhance ef�ciencies
• Are trained in factory certi�ed
programs
• Come to your location equipped
with the correct tools to get your
forklift up and running on the �rst
visit
• Are employed by 66 different
dealers with over 225 locations
• Populate a group of more than
3,500 on-call technicians
• Have more than 2,600 service
vans on the road
“We call them our heroes; they
are the Tom Brady and the Lebron
James of our teams,” says Bruin.
“They’re on the front line with our
customers, serving them on a daily
basis, establishing a high level of
trust with them, and taking care
of their �eets.” Using the Toyota
360 mobile app, customers can
instantly connect to a certi�ed
technician who guarantees 4-hour
emergency response times (and
what gets �xed stays �xed, with
a 2-year warranty on all Genuine
parts and labor).
At every dealer location, a
team of customer service and
sales representatives (CSSRs)
is responsible for customer
commitment. The technician does
the heavy lifting, and the CSSRs
ensure that all repairs were done
correctly, completed on time, and
“We call them our heroes; they are the Tom Brady and the
Lebron James of our teams. They’re on
the front line with our customers, serving
them on a daily basis, establishing a high level of trust with
them, and taking care of their fleets.”
— Bret Bruin, TMHU’s director of aftermarket services
toyotaforklift.com
6 • TOYOTA: Comprehensive Aftermarket Services • toyota.com
billed properly. The CSSRs are also trained on the Toyota
Production System (i.e., lean manufacturing management),
and are resources for customers looking to improve safety,
enhance ef�ciencies, and remove any waste from their
organizations by using lean management.
“This is unique to Toyota,” says Bruin. “No other forklift or
material handling provider has the Toyota Production System
and our culture of continuous improvement, which is taught
organization-wide.”
PREVENTING PROBLEMS IN THE FIRST PLACE WITH
TELEMATICS
As more and more technology is integrated into the
modern-day forklift, the use of telematics—software that
provides a 24/7 window into the operation and condition of
a forklift—is growing among �eets. With this data in hand,
companies can run a smoother and more ef�cient operation
that’s focused less on �ghting a rising tide of problems and
more on preventing them in the �rst place.
Whether a forklift �eet is made up of a single truck or
100 trucks, Toyota’s T-Matics solution provides data and
information for �eet managers to use when evaluating whether
their �eet is being utilized as smartly and ef�ciently as possible.
Fleet managers receive real-time, actionable data that helps
them make the smart calls on safety and training, maintenance
schedules, and other operational concerns that directly impact
their companies. Some of the most important metrics include:
• Forklift Fleet Tracking – Gain a window into your �eet at
all times.
• Electronic Safety List – Mandate automated operator
checklists before use, which eliminates paper and improves
accountability and safety.
• Maintenance Tracking – Receive timely noti�cations
on planned maintenance needs and link directly to your
dealership for time- sensitive service intervals.
• Web-based Reporting – Generate benchmarks and report
results daily, weekly, quarterly and/ or yearly, which help you
make more informed, data-based decisions.
• Impact Alerts – Be alerted immediately if any of your
forklifts receive an impact.
• Operator Limits – Set permissions to ensure forklift is
being used only by certi�ed operators.
Bruin says the data generated by forklift telematics is
helping companies work smarter in today’s high-velocity
distribution environment, where split decisions can mean
the difference between a smooth-running operation and
one where delays and bottlenecks can quickly turn into
customer service problems.
“When your truck talks to you and tells you what’s wrong or
what it needs, it gives you the opportunity to quickly address
any issues and ward off potential problems,” says Bruin. “With
this information in hand, we can readily provide accurate
recommendations on how a user should manage its �eet.”
READY FOR A MORALE BOOST?
A good aftermarket service program encompasses more
than just handling maintenance and repairs on a scheduled
basis; it’s also about the accompanying warranty on the
vehicle, the parts, and the services. TMHU, for example, pairs
the �rst year of planned maintenance with an extended care
plan, and all at an extremely competitive price.
“We make sure customers have guarantees in place
to help them feel comfortable and secure,” says Megan
McGriff, assistant manager – parts marketing, sales, and
promotions for TMHU. “We want them to know the service
is worthwhile leading up to their decision to invest in Toyota
360, and we deliver on our promises.”
In return for their investment, companies get tangible
bene�ts like improved safety, better service, and
improved uptime bene�ts as a result of using OEM parts.
They also get peace of mind, higher productivity rates,
and improved employee morale. “You’d be surprised at
how morale goes through the roof,” says McGriff, “when
you no longer have employees sitting around, waiting for
their forklifts to be repaired.”
MAKING THE CASECOMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
“When your truck talks to you and tells you what’s wrong or what it needs, it gives you the opportunity to quickly address any issues and ward o�
potential problems. With this information in hand, we can readily provide accurate recommendations on how a user should manage its fleet.”
— Bret Bruin, TMHU’s director of aftermarket services
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• TOYOTA: Comprehensive Aftermarket Services • toyota.com 7
THE CASE FOR THE FLEET MANAGER: The negative impacts of forklift downtime, service calls, and
failed parts can create major headaches for operators and �eet managers who need reliable material
handling equipment in their warehouses, DCs, docks, and yards. Focused on ROI metrics like vehicle uptime,
cost-per-hour, and forklift utilization, �eet managers that leverage comprehensive aftermarket services, a
planned maintenance guarantee, and an extensive extended care plan into their forklift acquisition strategies
gain signi�cant, tangible ROI..
Comprehensive Aftermarket Services
MAKING THE CASECOMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
MAKING THE CASE FOR
What’s the ROI for �eet managers, CFOs, and CEOs?
“If a �eet manager doesn’t have a maintenance
plan or an additional, extended care plan, then the
ownership costs are uncertain,” says Megan McGriff,
TMHU’s assistant manager – parts marketing, sales,
and promotions. “For example, just one major repair to
a forklift could disrupt your budget.”
With a comprehensive aftermarket services
package, however, the likelihood of expensive
repairs goes away, and allows companies
to save money and reduce total cost of
ownership (TCO) over time. “Because you’re
maintaining the forklift as you go along, and
not just addressing issues as they surface,”
says McGriff, “you more readily see good ROI
in the form of better vehicle uptime, lower
cost-per-hour, and improved utilization.”
— Megan McGriff, assistant manager, parts marketing, sales, and promotions for Toyota Material Handling, U.S.A. (TMHU)
“Because you’re maintaining the forklift as you go along, and not just addressing issues as they surface, you more readily see good ROI in the form of
better vehicle uptime, lower cost-per-hour, and improved utilization.”
toyotaforklift.com
8 • TOYOTA: Comprehensive Aftermarket Services • toyota.com
Because Toyota 360 Support Plus is offered at
an extremely competitive price, the upfront �nancial
risks associated with the aftermarket services plan
are signi�cantly reduced. “We offer the peace of mind
associated with maintaining your critical material
handling equipment,” says McGriff, “and lessen the
worry over how to cover those costly repairs that
could come up.” Recently, when working with a major
transportation company, Bret Bruin, TMHU’s director
of aftermarket services, says the company’s CFO was
focused on two key metrics: cost per hour to operate
the unit and vehicle uptime.
With the help of Toyota’s comprehensive aftermarket
services program, that company boasts a 97.7%
uptime (with some of the 2.3% downtime allocated
to regular maintenance) across its �eet of 5,000
forklifts. “That’s a great uptime rate for a company that
operates around the clock,” says Bruin, noting that for
CFOs, the most valuable ROI comes in the form of low
equipment downtime (and associated costs).
“When there’s an end customer relying on you to
have a forklift to move the product around and get that
product to them,” McGriff adds, “at the end of the day,
if that forklift is down, then you are losing money and
potentially even losing customers by not being able to
meet their expectations and needs.”
MAKING THE CASECOMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
THE CASE FOR THE CFO: Tasked with making the initial forklift investment, CFOs will
ultimately see the cost of constantly replacing parts, having to make service calls, and
repairing vehicles that are no longer under warranty. They’re also uniquely positioned to see the
�nancial impact of a comprehensive aftermarket service approach.
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MAKING THE CASECOMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
THE CASE FOR THE COO: Responsible for ensuring that their business operations produce rising key
performance indicators (KPIs), COOs want their operations to run smoothly without having to worry
about the everyday management of forklifts. In fact, when they do have to deal with forklifts, COOs aren’t
happy about having to get that deep into the day-to-day management of those machines—often across
dozens or even hundreds of locations worldwide.
“They want a �eet that just works so they can
worry about what their company is good at,” says
Bruin. “Toyota 360 helps make that a reality with its
comprehensive aftermarket services solution.” With its
4-hour (or less) response time, for example, TMHU’s
dealer network is onsite and working quickly to get
repairs or regular maintenance handled promptly. In
fact, there are over 3500 Toyota Certi�ed Technicians
backed by 2-year parts warranty that includes labor.
Bruin says Toyota is dedicated to their clients both
small and large. For smaller companies, the Toyota
360 Support promise comes with focused attention
from their certi�ed Toyota dealer to make sure that
response times are maintained and that customers
are as comfortable with their material handling
equipment as possible. For companies with larger
�eets, Toyota can track maintenance and repairs
across their equipment and locations, delivering a
single consolidated invoice to HQ each month.
“We look at every single repair invoice to ensure
that the work is done within a reasonable and
standardized repair time for these large companies,”
Bruin explains. “We scrub every invoice to make
sure customers get consistent labor hours and parts
pricing.” For all customers, Toyota is dedicated to
making sure technicians are as minimally-invasive as
possible. “We strive to make sure that everything is
�xed right the �rst time.” Finally, Toyota’s T-Matics
solution provides real-time data to �eet managers
so they can determine whether the forklift �eet is
being used as smartly and ef�ciently as possible
via vehicle management software (T-Matics) that
provides a 24/7 window into the vehicle’s operation
and condition. “We’re able to give customers very
detailed insights,” Bruin says, “right down to the
operator behavior level.”
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10 • TOYOTA: Comprehensive Aftermarket Services • toyota.com
Let the Certified Technicians Handle the Heavy Lifting
MAKING THE CASECOMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
YOU WOULDN’T TRUST YOUR CAR to an inexperienced mechanic, nor would you allow an unlicensed
contractor to work on your home. Yet companies still attempt to service and maintain their forklifts in-
house—or, allow untested, non-certi�ed outside technicians to repair their vital material handling equipment.
These approaches are not only costly
and time-consuming, but they are also
unsafe and unpredictable. “Where it may
seem like a bene�t to self-service and
save money upfront,” says Megan McGriff,
assistant manager—parts marketing, sales,
and promotions for TMHU. “In reality, your
employees should be focused on strengthening
your �rm’s position in the marketplace—not
�xing and maintaining forklifts.”
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• TOYOTA: Comprehensive Aftermarket Services • toyota.com 11
MAKING THE CASECOMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
When it’s time for repair or service, utilizing a
comprehensive aftermarket services solution that
includes a service request mobile app (for making
automatic service requests without the need for
phone calls) and Toyota 360 Support’s pool of
certi�ed technicians can be a big win for most
operations. “All of our dealers guarantee a 4-hour
emergency response time,” says McGriff, “so you
know that help is going to be there and be there
quickly when you need it.”
Through Toyota 360 Support, companies
also get a 2-year warranty on parts and a labor
guarantee, as long as those parts are replaced
by a Toyota-certi�ed technician. These are just a
few of the many bene�ts of working with Toyota, a
company that prides itself on its lean operational
practices and culture of continuous improvement.
And if you’re still not convinced, Bret Bruin,
TMHU’s director of aftermarket services,
encourages you to come and see for yourself.
“Come for a visit at one of our customer sites
or dealerships to see our program in action, and
then do some competitive shopping around,”
says Bruin. “You’ll see a signi�cant difference in
the way our aftermarket programs work and how
much value they add for our customers.”
toyotaforklift.com
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MAKING THE CASECOMPREHENSIVE AFTERMARKET SERVICES
TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT WHAT TOYOTA CAN DO,
VISIT WWW.TOYOTAFORKLIFT.COM
CUSTOMER SUPPORT: 1-800-381-5879
toyotaforklift.com