A customer, a booked slot and no parts
The customer took the day off work and brought the car in at eight. The advisor checks in the job and the technician goes to the parts counter. The parts are not there. The parts department ordered them last week; they were on back order from the manufacturer's warehouse, and the new date is next Tuesday.
The customer is told their car cannot be done today. They leave, unhappy, with the day wasted. The slot in the workshop sits empty, because nobody had time to fill it.
Parts and service work from different lists
The service department books the job. The parts department orders the parts. Each has its own screen, and the link between the order and the booking is often a note, if anything.
- Parts orders are not always linked to the booking in the DMS.
- Back order updates from the supplier go to the parts department only.
- Nobody checks parts availability for tomorrow's bookings as a routine.
- Customers are only told on the day.
The parts department knows the parts are late. The service desk knows the customer is coming. Nobody connects the two in time.
What the gap costs
A wasted journey for the customer, who may not come back. An empty workshop slot that could have been filled. A courtesy car handed out for nothing. And staff time on the apology and the rebooking.
Where the part is urgent, the delay can also affect whether the customer can drive the car safely, which is a conversation that needs time, not a surprise at the desk.
And the damage spreads beyond one job. A customer let down on a booked repair tells people about it, and the next time their car needs work they think twice about booking with a main dealer. The parts delay was the manufacturer's, but the disappointment belongs to the dealership.
How we link parts to bookings
- When a job needs parts, the parts order in your DMS is linked to the booking, or we link them by job number where the DMS does not.
- Supplier order status, including back orders and revised dates, is read from the manufacturer's parts system or supplier portal where an API or export exists, or entered by the parts team from a simple screen.
- Each evening, tomorrow's and the next few days' bookings are checked against parts status.
- Any booking with parts not in stock and not confirmed to arrive in time goes on an advisor's list with the customer's details.
- The advisor contacts the customer to rebook, and the empty slot is released for other work.
- When the parts arrive, the customer gets a message with a link to book the next available slot.
| Status | Service desk sees | Action |
|---|---|---|
| In stock | Green | None |
| Ordered, due in time | Amber | Watch |
| Back order, due after booking | Red | Rebook customer |
| No status | Grey | Parts to confirm |
Supplier data varies by manufacturer and supplier. We check what you can access before promising automatic updates.
Customers who arrive when the parts do
Advisors see parts problems days before the customer is due. Customers are rebooked before they travel, which is a far easier conversation. Workshop slots are filled with other work. The parts department and service desk look at the same status instead of shouting across the building.
Signs this is your service department
- Customers arrive for jobs when parts are not in.
- Parts back orders are not visible to the service desk.
- Nobody checks parts for tomorrow's bookings.
- Workshop slots are wasted when jobs cannot go ahead.