Gradually shifting from policy-driven to market-driven, the production and sales of new energy vehicles have reached a new high, and a new automotive aftermarket has been bred. In the after-sales service link, new energy vehicle manufacturers, which are known for their direct sales model, were accustomed to adopting the authorization method in the early days and cooperating with independent third-party after-sales services. Nowadays, this after-sales "territory" is slowly being reclaimed by new energy vehicle manufacturers.
Recently, the securities times e company reporter visited the first Tesla directly operated sheet metal spray center in Pudong, Shanghai. Tesla's service leader in East China told reporters that the sheet metal spray center will provide after-sales service such as mechanical and electrical maintenance and sheet metal spray maintenance, and at the same time equipped with a maintenance workshop, which is completely directly operated by Tesla. Since the end of last year, Tesla has accelerated the layout of direct sheet metal spray business across the country, and before that, Tesla sheet metal spray center was more in the form of authorized third-party cooperation.
"It is inevitable that new energy vehicles will compete for after-sales service, because the number of new energy vehicles has increased significantly, and the corresponding demand for vehicle services is also growing." Cui Dongshu, secretary general of the National Passenger Vehicle Market Information Joint Association, said in an interview with the Securities Times e Company reporter that new energy manufacturers build self-built service centers, integrate sheet metal and delivery service functions, and integrate these service centers into a trend.
Tesla directly operated sheet metal spray center
Workers in white protective clothing clean the damaged parts, and then remove the sheet metal parts of the damaged parts of the collision vehicle from the original body by cutting, remove the old paint film, and then spray a new topcoat. Maintenance workers at Tesla Shanghai Kangqiao Service Center demonstrated a series of steps of sheet metal spray to a reporter from Securities Times E Company, which is also Tesla's first sheet metal spray center in Pudong, Shanghai.
Unlike the traditional fuel vehicle maintenance sparks, the smell of oil is fragrant, Tesla's sheet metal spray center is more like a semi-open transparent workshop. The surrounding walls are posted with notices such as equipment management system, personnel training system, maintenance precautions, etc., and various maintenance equipment is discharged according to the work area.
"Add the adjusted topcoat to the spray gun can, adjust the air pressure, paint output and spray width of the spray gun, and begin to spray evenly on the sheet metal." Maintenance workers while spraying topcoat, while introducing, sheet metal spraying operation process and process is more complex, each step has a precise operation process, paint needs five or six processes to completely re-maintain, after the completion of the paint paint, but also for the defective topcoat to do polishing and other treatment.
According to reports, Tesla's after-sales service system can be divided into four modules: physical service center, self-operated/authorized sheet metal spray center, virtual service center, and 400 customer service. On top of the perfect infrastructure, Tesla's after-sales service can provide users with remote diagnosis, offline maintenance, mobile services and other options, with 400 customer service as the link to cover a variety of service scenarios.
"The service center builds a workshop with high standards, equipped with a full-system, independent special maintenance workshop including machine repair sheet metal workshop, aluminum body grinding room, high-end painting room, and medium painting room." Tesla's service leader in East China told reporters that at the service level, the center has both service functions and direct sheet metal spraying in one, Tesla's owners can get a full range of after-sales service including mobile diagnosis, on-site maintenance, sheet metal spray maintenance and so on.
Tesla's official website shows that tesla has laid out more than ten direct sheet metal spray centers like this in the country. However, in terms of quantity, Tesla's authorized sheet metal spray center is still the mainstream. Tesla officials have made a prediction that by the end of 2020, Tesla will open more than 180 experience stores and service centers in Chinese mainland, covering more than 50 cities across the country. At the same time, in order to provide customers with more convenient after-sales service, it is expected that by the end of 2020, Tesla will authorize more than 100 third-party sheet metal spray centers in more than 60 cities.
According to the incomplete statistics of Tesla's official website, as of now, Tesla has authorized a total of 134 sheet metal spray centers. Since 2014, Tesla has laid out a network of sheet metal spray centers in China, which is different from the direct operation model that Tesla has always adhered to, and the sheet metal spray business mainly adopts the licensing model. However, starting from the second half of 2020, Tesla's direct sheet metal spray center has been landing.
The surge in new energy vehicle penetration has pushed up demand for services
"Tesla attaches importance to after-sales direct sales and Tesla's ownership is getting higher and higher, in addition, Tesla's car general value is higher, maintenance profits are relatively high, before the use of authorized sheet metal spray means that this part of the profit should be shared with authorized stores." Authorized sheet metal spray centers may also have to repair other brands of cars, which are not specifically for Tesla, and may not fully meet the maintenance needs of Tesla owners. Zhang Xiang, an analyst in the automotive industry, said in an interview with the Securities Times E Company reporter that the direct operation of the sheet metal spray center is convenient for grasping more after-sales market share in the hands of car companies themselves, and it is also convenient for providing customers with higher service standards.
According to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, from January to November this year, the cumulative sales of new energy vehicles in China have exceeded the annual expectations, approaching 3 million. The market penetration rate of new energy vehicles also increased from 9.4% in the first half of this year to 12.7%. In November this year, the retail penetration rate of new energy passenger cars in China exceeded 20%, reaching 20.8%. The China Automobile Association believes that the sales of new energy vehicles in China will reach 3.4 million units this year, an increase of 1.5 times year-on-year. For the development trend of the domestic new energy vehicle market next year, the China Automobile Association also gave an optimistic expectation of 5 million vehicles and a growth rate of 47%.
The sales volume and penetration rate of new energy vehicles will increase rapidly month by month in 2021, which also means that China's new energy vehicle market has entered a new stage of explosive growth. The increase in ownership and penetration rate calls for a more mature after-sales maintenance market for new energy vehicles. According to the "2020 China Auto Aftermarket Maintenance Industry White Paper", the average maintenance customer price of new energy vehicles in China in 2021 is 1373 yuan, an increase of about 33% compared with the 1032 yuan of traditional fuel vehicles. Since the maintenance demand of new energy vehicles is lower than that of traditional fuel vehicles, assuming that the maintenance frequency of new energy vehicles is 1-2 times / year, it can be expected that the number of new energy vehicles in China in 2025 will generate 27.46-54.92 billion yuan of after-sales maintenance output value. According to the above calculation ideas, the output value of after-sales maintenance of new energy vehicles is expected to exceed 100 billion yuan in 2030.
"In the early days, some new energy vehicles were broken, such as the battery pack was broken, I directly replaced the battery pack, the electric drive was broken, the electric drive was broken, the new energy ownership was not high at that time, the space for consumers to choose was relatively small, and the 4S store only needed to split the battery pack. Now that each brand has a new model, consumers have a large choice, they will consider the timeliness of maintenance, and the refinement of services is more. Wang Jie, an expert in ideal automotive products, told reporters that many host companies have seen changes in the market and changes in consumer demand, and will delegate the unpacking and maintenance of core components to authorized repair shops. In addition, from the perspective of controlling the cost of manpower and venues, the early new car-making forces are more inclined to carry out after-sales service in the form of third-party authorization.
Can sheet metal spray centers become profit centers
So, in the after-sales maintenance link, Tesla and other new energy vehicle companies will value the direct operation of sheet metal spray center? Different from traditional fuel vehicles, the three-electric system and the maintenance of the electric auxiliary system of the new energy vehicle have high requirements for technology, personnel, equipment and sites. In addition, the after-sales maintenance of new energy vehicles also involves the relationship with upstream battery manufacturers and OEMs, etc., so that the after-sales system of new energy is relatively closed and the threshold for entry is high.
"Tesla's requirements for recruiting authorized sheet metal spray center partners are very high, the minimum construction area of the first-level authorized sheet metal spray center is more than 3,000 square meters, and the first application requires more than 5 years of operation and management experience in luxury car brand 4S stores or high-end maintenance centers." A Shanghai traditional fuel vehicle dealer told reporters that Tesla authorized sheet metal spray center screening strict, in the site selection, personnel qualifications and other aspects of clear standards, apply for authorization of the sheet metal spray center management team needs to pass the Tesla interview, and only one interview opportunity, although the initial investment in sheet metal spray center is not large, but it is not easy to enter the authorization system.
According to the above dealers, the aftermarket of automobiles is mainly divided into two channels, the first channel is the maintenance shop of the host enterprise, and the second channel is the independent after-sales repair shop. With the hot sales of new energy vehicles, some traditional automobile manufacturers are also gradually increasing the maintenance business of new energy vehicles. In terms of independent after-sales, more is that some large chain enterprises cooperate with new energy vehicle manufacturers to authorize the after-sales of new energy vehicles.
"Most of the independent after-sales enterprises are happy to cooperate with new energy vehicles, and the initial entry threshold is high, but the input-output ratio after entering the new energy vehicle after-sales system is still relatively high." Some people in the auto maintenance industry said that a repair shop in Shanghai that originally majored in Rolls-Royce undertook Tesla's after-sales business, with a monthly output value of about 2 million yuan and a gross profit of about 40%.
The "2021 China Auto Aftermarket Maintenance Industry White Paper" shows that from the perspective of after-sales business, new energy car owners pay more attention to "appearance", especially pure electric vehicles, and the unit price of customers in beauty, sheet metal spray and other businesses is significantly higher than that of traditional cars. Based on the prediction of the consumption tendency of new energy vehicle owners, the future quality is reliable and the network is stable, and the washing chain and sheet metal spray chain may usher in greater growth space. According to the white paper, the unit price of the traditional power car sheet metal spray service passengers with an age of less than 6 years is 1299 yuan, and the unit price of the pure electric vehicle sheet spray service passengers is 1969 yuan.
The after-sales direct operation model has gradually become a trend
A person in the auto maintenance industry in Shanghai admitted to the Securities Times E Company reporter that in the early days, the host enterprise authorized the after-sales service business to a third party for an objective reason. "To be honest, no host company is willing to open its core components and core technologies to a third party for repair or maintenance, which is subjectively unwilling." For example, the early new car-making forces did not have a cumulative maintenance technology and personnel base, but they needed to quickly expand maintenance channels, so they would choose independent after-sales to help them build their own after-sales system. Traditional car repair shops have accumulated in this regard, and they only need to do some transformation. This is a mutual achievement for the main engine business and the independent after-sales service.
"It should be said that the profits of the sheet metal business are relatively rich, and the requirements for new energy vehicles in the after-sales field are relatively high in terms of qualifications and other aspects, so Tesla will initially lay out some authorized sheet metal spray centers, but in the future, it will definitely do self-operated sheet metal spray centers, or in the self-operated service center, bring sheet metal spray centers." The integration of self-built service centers, the integration of sheet metal and delivery services, and the integration of these service centers will be the trend. Cui Dongshu told the Securities Times e company reporter.
In addition to Tesla, Weilai also lays out its own stores in the capital cities of various provinces across the country, and the industry believes that the possibility of replacing models such as licensing with direct operation is not ruled out. From the perspective of customer experience, the direct after-sales service of new energy vehicle companies can better meet the needs of customers, and it is also a good strategy for continuously and deeply binding customers.
"Driving new energy vehicles is sometimes more prone to bumps, the insurance rate is relatively high, and many insurance companies feel that it is easy to lose money when buying insurance for new energy vehicles." But on the other hand, the business of directly operating sheet metal spray centers will be good, and there will be many orders. Zhang Xiang said.
Correspondingly, the new energy vehicle insurance market is also rising. According to China Bancassurance, the scale of new energy vehicle insurance premiums in 2017 was 10.16 billion yuan, accounting for 1.4% of the total car insurance premiums. It is predicted that the premium scale of new energy vehicle insurance will be 34.8 billion yuan in 2021 and 154.3 billion yuan by 2025. Even the "New Energy Vehicle Insurance Market Analysis Report" shows that the premium scale of new energy vehicles in 2030 will reach 470 billion yuan.
From another point of view, new energy vehicle companies that adopt the direct after-sales model are more likely to obtain the driving big data of car owners. After these big data are accumulated to a certain extent, they can feedback the data to the production and research and development end, which can be used to improve the automobile manufacturing process and create products that are more in line with customer needs. In addition, new energy vehicle companies can also study the driving habits of car owners through direct after-sales big data, and judge the places that are prone to accidents, so as to facilitate the "tailor-made" new energy vehicle insurance for car owners.
●Reporter observation: The time has come for new energy vehicles to compete for after-sales service
The ownership of new energy vehicles is as increasing as the demand for after-sales sales by car owners. Data show that vehicles with an age of 4-7 years will be the focus of competition between independent after-sales stores and 4S stores. At present, the main engine factory and the 4S system strengthen the operation of users and the construction of the owner ecosystem, and increase the stickiness with the owner in insurance, extended warranty, second-hand cars and other aspects.
For new energy passenger cars, each mileage driven, will be sent to maintenance, although the maintenance fee is not high, but the frequency is easy to fix, in some maintenance links, the unit price of new energy vehicles is higher than that of traditional fuel vehicles. In addition, after the new energy passenger car is insured, the insurance company will send it to the authorized after-sales maintenance shop, and the claim will usually not be greatly discounted, and the gross profit margin of the new energy accident car is also considerable. In terms of maintenance, due to technical complexity, the threshold for entering the new forces of car manufacturing to authorize after-sales is higher.
According to the "New Energy Vehicle Industry Development Plan", the sales volume of new energy vehicles in China will account for 20% in 2025. Assuming that the annual sales of cars in 2025 are 25 million, it can be roughly inferred that the number of new energy vehicles will reach 20 million in 2025. With the growth of the number of new energy vehicle users, it will inevitably bring new problems to user services. For a long time, the sales, delivery and after-sales of new energy vehicles have been separated. As far as after-sales is concerned, there are usually three models: licensing, direct operation and hybrid licensing. A large number of new energy vehicle companies choose to authorize maintenance services to independent third-party after-sales. In recent years, more and more new energy vehicle companies have chosen the direct after-sales model.
"The traditional automobile maintenance business owned by the host enterprise repair shop is gradually transforming, or increasing the new energy vehicle maintenance business." Dealers interviewed by reporters expect that the number of traditional OEMs that will transform into new energy vehicle maintenance business will increase next year, and the next few years will be an explosive growth period. It is precisely because of the opportunity that new energy vehicle manufacturers have also quickly "recovered" the position of the after-sales system and firmly grasped the after-sales operation right in their own hands.
The huge new energy vehicle maintenance market contains opportunities and challenges. "As far as the whole of Weilai is concerned, how to maintain our service quality in the case of our continuous expansion of the user base, in the case of the continuous expansion of our own employees and team." Whether it's in China or around the world, I think the challenge is very big. Not long ago, Weilai CEO Li Bin publicly said that unlike a car's sensor, not like a computing power, not like performance, it was done, and the service was reflected in many contacts. When it comes to whether the new energy vehicle industry is more important than technology or capital, and what changes will occur in the industry, Li Bin said that the automotive industry is a high-input industry, and high investment is not only about fixed assets, but more importantly, in terms of research and development and service system.
It is foreseeable that in the future, in the products and technologies of new energy vehicle companies, it will become more and more important to build a refined after-sales service system. We can even imagine that in the future, new energy car owners will be able to obtain high-quality after-sales service through online diagnosis without leaving home. To achieve this long-term goal, much supporting infrastructure is needed. Remote diagnostics require a lot of work, including communication modules for auto parts and upgrading the repair shop management system. From policy-driven to market-driven, the time has come for new energy vehicles to compete for after-sales service, and we hope that the new forces of car manufacturing will build an after-sales service system including "digital diagnosis and early warning technology, convenient charging and replacement program, and worry-free maintenance program" for the user's charging, repair and maintenance needs. Only with a more refined service system can we make the new energy vehicle line stable and far-reaching.
(Editor-in-charge: Zhang Qianye; Photo: Mei Shuang)
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