Origins
The MachineStock.com trading platform was the FDM’s (Fachverband
des Deutschen Machinen- und Werkzeug-Grosshandels e.V. – Trade Association
of German Machine and Tools Wholesalers, registered association)
reaction to the success of young companies that were mainly trading
on the Internet. These so-called dot-coms themselves only partly
originate from the used machine industry, but recently their virtual
market places and portals had increasingly poached customers away
from the long-established dealers. At the end of October 2000 the company LogoTech
oHG in Werne was commissioned to develop a machine trading system.
The main components of the machine trading system
- Internet market place
www.MachineStock.com
- MHS2000 (a special
retailing system for trade in used machines)
- Dealers’ internal
database of used machines (FDM intranet)
- Transfer of machine
information onto the dealers’ own homepages
A survey carried out by Aachen
online market research company Dialego confirmed that although FDM launched
its Internet service late, it was still just in time. It revealed
that of more than 200 e-business decision-makers asked, three-quarters
of them believed that industry portals had better prospects than non-industry-linked
solutions from the dot-com companies. In that respect, the trade in
used machines – which as an industry grew evenly – is seen to offer
the best long-term opportunities.
The old economy companies that
build their own Internet strategies also benefited from the availability
of a qualified workforce. The machine tool trade
can quite reasonably play on strategic strengths such as its degree of worldwide recognition, its strong customer relations
and knowledge of the markets, logistics, concepts for business and
alliance partners, as well as a high level of trust with the suppliers
and the financial world. Kames explains that "anyone looking
to buy a used machine tool at machinestock.com will find a broad range,
that makes decisions transparent."
In reality, the FDM dealers’ function
is no longer restricted to buying, worldwide marketing or know-how. Now,
they offer more of a service package comprising dismantling, transport,
electrical, electronic and mechanical inspections, revision and retrofitting,
right through to demonstrating the machines in operation, with acceptance
protocols, sample processing and financial services. That these packages
have to be seriously presented was just in the nature of the issue
for Kames: "Very few people buy a Euro 50,000 machine just on
the basis of Internet photos." In contrast to less complex products,
advice and trust are fundamental issues when buying a machine tool.
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