TecAlliance is celebrating 25 years of the TecDoc Standard

TecAlliance is celebrating 25 years of the TecDoc Standard. The globally active data specialist introduced the data standard in 1994 in order to create a uniform data format for the collection, publication and distribution of high-quality spare part product information. Today, the TecDoc Standard allows the quick and precise identification of spare parts and vehicles, as well as optimised automated and digitised process solutions along the entire IAM supply chain. With the launch of version 3.0 of the TecDoc Catalogue – one of the world’s leading spare parts catalogues, which is naturally based on the data standard – TecAlliance is setting new benchmarks in spare part identification, to celebrate this 25-year success story.

“Data was and is our passion, so we shall consistently refine and maintain the TecDoc Standard, because it is an important building block in the standardisation and digitisation of the automotive aftermarket”, states Jürgen Buchert, CEO of the TecAlliance GmbH. “Due to this data standard, today a spare part can be identified and therefore sold, worldwide. Tomorrow, it will be the basis for the development and implementation of intelligent applications for the mobility concepts of the future.”

Comparability and transparency of product data worldwide

Then as now, TecDoc Standard is a byword for the highest quality data. It allows for comparability, efficiency, transparency and quality of the product data in the global automotive aftermarket. Until the mid-1990s, spare parts data was not standardised and was not checked as to whether its allocation to

a vehicle type is correct. There was therefore, considerable uncertainty in the identification of vehicles and spare parts, which not only cost time, but, due to the high error rate, was bad for business and customer satisfaction.

In 1994 therefore, 21 leading companies from the international automotive spare parts industry, established the standardisation initiative, under the name, TecDoc. Each vehicle type was clearly and unmistakably defined and linked with the associated spare parts. Thanks to the TecDoc Standard and the TecDoc Catalogue based on it, there has now been no doubt, which spare part matches which vehicle and that also applies all over the world, because the international standard enables smooth co-operation, not just in Germany and Europe, but in South America and Asia as well.

The highest quality vehicle and spare parts information available

All the players in IAM benefit from the TecDoc Standard, the reliable seal for high-quality spare parts, parts information and data. In the wholesale sector, the TecDoc Standard facilitates excellent quality data and web services for effective e-business, as well as customised online catalogues. Via the TecDoc Catalogue, workshops have the benefit of precise spare parts identification, in addition to comprehensive and correct repair and maintenance information (RMI). As for the parts manufacturers, the TecDoc Standard opens access to new markets and provides an entirely new global reach. In the competition for customers, visibility in the market is decisive and with the TecDoc Catalogue, one of the world’s largest spare part catalogues, TecAlliance data suppliers are able to reach them all over the world.

A strong international standard is the basis for the digital future. By launching the new version 3.0 TecDoc Catalogue at the beginning of 2019, TecAlliance is simultaneously, celebrating the 25th anniversary of the TecDoc Standard and setting new benchmarks in spare parts identification. The TecDoc Catalogue is one of the world’s leading aftermarket catalogues, and covers more than 110,000 vehicle types, data for 6.6 million articles from more than 700 brands, 254 million links and 48 article groups.