DRIVING FORCES
Manning the gateway for the best products and services by Mike Ruff, GW Editor
Garage Equipment Association chief executive, Dave Garratt tells GW how the association has been upholding standards and communicating with government agencies for the last 71 years. FROM service tools to MOT bays and pretty much everything in between, the GEA’s 115 members are bound by a strict code of practice which means garages can be reassured that they are dealing with professional businesses that are responsible and answerable. During an exclusive GW interview at the GEA’s offices in Daventry, Dave Garratt told the story of how it all began. “After the war manufacturers could see that there was going to be a pretty big industry in garage equipment and quite a few that had been making tanks or machine gun posts decided that they wanted to go into manufacturing other large metallic items. “I think that’s where Bradbury came from, Crypton and Bradbury with their lifts. “A group of about ten of these manufacturers got together and decided to create a trade association,” he explained. Today the GEA provides an industry platform, which makes it easier to talk to government agencies including the DVSA, HSE, DfT and Defra.
"...the GEA provides an industry platform, which makes it easier to talk to government agencies..." Through a series of meetings held throughout the year, where members are invited to voice their concerns, Dave is able to represent the interests of the industry. He said: “It’s intelligence gathering from my own industry to make sure that when I represent our members I’m representing their interests not just my beliefs. “I’m able to talk from the industry.” Recent meetings have been concerned with emissions. The insolvency of a company that previously checked the accuracy of new diesel smoke meters has meant that manufactures of these meters have had no route to market for the last couple of years.
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