Freudenberg-NOK… A truly global supplier - ATRA

As a dedicated transmission professional
Rick Basta, owner of Transmission Kings,
knows the secret to a successful shop is
dependable performance and satisfied
customers. That’s why he rebuilds with
TransTec ® .
No surprises. Buy a TransTec ® kit and you
can bet the bank that all the parts required
for the job are there and that they all fit. It’s
no accident; our engineering department,
product development and technical staffs,
plus a proven QA system, combine to give
you the assurance you can’t get anywhere
else.
Manufactured to meet the strictest OE
standards, TransTec ® kits contribute to a
faster rebuild with virtually no comebacks.
And detailed technical inserts reinforce what
the technicians learn at various seminars.
These are just a few reasons why transmission
rebuilders request “the kit in the gold
and black bag”.
TransTec ® kits are produced by Freudenberg-NOK,
the American partnership with
more than $6 billion in resources. Yet it is
the close, personal support that impresses
transmission shops like Rick’s.
TransTec ® makes it easy.
ORIGINAL
The Aftermarket Business of Freudenberg-NOK
“MY GUYS
ALWAYS REQUEST
TRANSTEC ® .”
Rick Basta,
Owner of Transmission Kings
Cleveland, OH
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TransTec ® Kits:
Support Before and After the Sale
These days, it’s become almost
a requirement for companies
to identify themselves as “your
business partner,” letting you know
“we’re in this together.” But too often,
the partnership dissolves because of
lack of support and you realize your
business partner was only interested in
a quick sale.
The folks at Corteco who bring
you TransTec® brand transmission kits
have adopted a long-term philosophy
where they support their kits before
and after the sale. There’s no hard
sell or pressure to buy their kits; only
support in the way of a feature-rich
web site with technical references that
simplify rebuilding; literature available
online, in packaging and at seminars;
on-site engineering to improve kit performance,
and a whole lot more.
When you visit the company’s web
site (www.TransTec.com) you’ll find
virtually every kilobyte is used to provide
the visitor with technical support.
A Transmission Guide makes it easy
to identify transmissions in domestic
and import vehicles; New Product
Announcements, Technical Inserts and
Bulletins clear up confusion and simplify
rebuilding complex transmissions;
and a new Online Transmission Catalog
includes the latest kits and components
available.
You get all this because Corteco
believes support comes before the
sale… that it’s the more important
part of what they have to offer the
end user: the transmission rebuilder
and production remanufacturer. This
radical departure from the classic sales
approach highlights Corteco’s philosophy
that “Transtec® kits aren’t sold
until they’re installed.” As a result,
Corteco is putting more resources into
making sure that the transmission shop
has everything it needs to provide a
quality repair.
by Steve Bodofsky
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ORIGINAL
TransTec ® brand automotive replacement parts offer
the highest quality available in the aftermarket. TransTec ®
products contain the same quality, design, and materials
supplied to Original Equipment Manufacturers globally.
When it comes to automotive sealing components,
TransTec ® is a name you can trust for World Class
automotive parts and dependability.
The Aftermarket Business of Freudenberg-NOK ©2008 Freudenberg-NOK
It’s this long-term, end-to-end philosophy
that permeates every part of
their business; from initial development
through the final delivery of the vehicle
to your customer. And it’s a big part of
why they build quality into every kit
they sell.
A Solution Provider
Some rebuilders might mistake
Corteco, the company that brings you
TransTec® transmission kits, for a
Brad Norton - President Craig Stark - Director John Galloway - Sales Manager
20 GEARS January/February 2008

packaging company - but they don’t
know the whole story.
Corteco is the aftermarket business
of global automotive-parts giant
Freudenberg-NOK, the world’s largest
producer of elastomeric seals and custom
molded products with 160 facilities
throughout the world. So the majority
of parts installed in TransTec®
transmission kits are actually made
by Freudenberg-NOK. That’s a far cry
from simply being a kit packager.
Now granted, some components in
TransTec® kits are made by other companies,
but this provides rebuilders with
the quality assurance that comes from
O.E. parts. Labeling Corteco a parts
packager is about as accurate as calling
NASA an airline. After all, NASA
doesn’t build their own Space Shuttles;
they buy every piece, and then just have
their guys fly them around, just like a
commercial airline… right?
Of course that’s an absurd assessment…
no one would think of comparing
NASA to an airline. Sure, they buy
their space vehicles; but they buy them
based on exacting specifications that
they develop and submit for each and
every component that goes into them.
And every one of those elements has to
go through rigorous testing and certification
before it’s accepted for its first
flight to the stars.
That’s also a terrific description of
how Corteco develops its transmission
seal kits. OEM standards are only a
starting point for Corteco. And, just like
the Space Shuttle, every piece that goes
into a TransTec® seal kit has to meet
their exacting specifications.
“That sounds great,” you say, “but
I’d be happy with OEM quality. Why
do I need more than that?” Because
OEM quality is adequate — maybe
even ample — for a new transmission,
right off the assembly line, when every
Jeff Rayburn - Sales Manager
bore is pristine and every surface in
perfect alignment with the rest.
But over time, those cases and hard
parts wear. And many of the seals that
were sufficient for use in a shiny, new
transmission case fall short when asked
to perform in a transmission that’s
been around the block a few times. No
amount of planning beforehand can
predict just how those units are likely
to wear in the real world.
This is why Corteco’s Research
and Development (R&D) team finds
it critical to work hand-in-hand with
transmission shops, production remanufacturers
and distributors: To provide
real-world data on transmissions that
are no longer pristine. And it’s why
TransTec® kits are far superior to OEM
and other brands when used in higher
mileage transmissions.
Customer-Driven
Development
Corteco’s business model of better
serving its customers begins in your
shop. Corteco has increased its sales
force to provide more direct contact
with transmission shops and production
remanufacturers.
This allows them to discover exactly
what shop owners and rebuilders
deal with in today’s transmissions. And
it allows them to take a more active role
in correcting the problems that those
shops face.
The sales force brings that information
back to Corteco’s R&D team
to be analyzed and addressed. The
R&D team includes degreed engineers,
who are uniquely qualified to analyze
raw failure data from the shops, and
develop newer, better ways to compensate
for the sealing problems caused by
wear in aging components.
And it’s why Corteco equips its
development team with the latest mea-
Bill D’Agostino - Sales Manager
suring and diagnostic equipment; equipment
such as the Surveyor® WS 3040
by Laser Design Inc., a highly sophisticated
device that measures components
with patented laser technology. This
enables Corteco’s engineers to evaluate
component sealing demands, and
provide high-quality solutions that will
meet and exceed those demands.
“We’re sealing experts,” explains
Craig Stark, Director. “It’s our job to
examine sealing components, and create
newer, more advanced solutions for
the sealing challenges our customers
face.”
Addressing Problems in
the Field
So how does Corteco’s R&D team
deal with a technical issue from the
field? “Our first priority is to help the
shop get the car out the door,” explains
John Wozniak, Product Development
Manager. “That may mean sending an
alternative component or a prototype
out overnight, just to address the immediate
situation. Once that’s handled, we
need to study the facts and determine a
course of action.”
From there, they add the details of
the condition to their comprehensive
research database. This database allows
Corteco engineers and technicians to
look for failure trends that need to be
addressed through design changes or
additions to their kits.
“Once we’ve identified a failure
trend, we know it’s time to begin looking
for the root cause, and to develop a
solution,” explains Wozniak. “In other
words, significant failure trends are a
call to action for us.”
Most of the data that enters their
evaluation process comes from transmission
repair shops, just like yours.
And they receive additional information
through their relationships with a
John Wozniak - Product Development Manager
GEARS January/February 2008 21

TransTec® Kits: Support Before and After the Sale
Don Cottrell - Product Technician
Product Engineer, Chad Geretz uses a
Micro-Vue measurement machine to
extract measurements and critical seal
features for O.E. performance.
number of production remanufacturers.
Once a pattern of failure has been
identified, the R&D begins in earnest.
They start by collecting the actual
failed components, for measurement
and examination. This step is critical
Chad Geretz - Product Engineer
A TransTec ® kit is compared to the
inspection board that contains each part
on the bill-of-material. Since accuracy
and consistency are critical, comparison
with this inspection tool takes place each
time the packaging line changes and at
random points during the production run.
A Surveyor® WS Series Scanner by Laser Design Inc., a highly sophisticated device
that measures components with patented laser technology.
because the key to creating a successful
solution is in first identifying the root
cause of the failure.
“Usually the cause is due to
wear,” explains Don Cottrell, Product
Technician. “Remember, we’re often
Patty Richards - Marketing Manager
dealing with transmissions that have
traveled over 100,000 miles. In that
time, bores and sealing surfaces wear.
Then it’s left for us to create new sealing
solutions that can compensate for
that wear.”
Those sealing solutions may
include new sealing materials, designed
to withstand the stresses placed on them
by the additional wear they’re dealing
with. Or they may involve altering the
size of the seal or using a totally different
style of seal. In some cases, it may
require identifying the condition for the
technician, showing him what to look
for, so the worn components can be
replaced.
Sometimes the failure is a result of
something other than a worn hard part.
In some cases it is the seal that has
worn prematurely – often times due to
poor equipment maintenance or common
cleaning detergents being used.
If it is a seal failure, this is the effect
of the problem, not the cause. The
fix here may be simply educating the
technician in the importance of maintaining
his cleaning machine properly
and offering suggestions on alternate
cleaning solutions.
But whatever the condition — and
the ultimate solution — the Corteco
R&D team is there to identify the condition,
isolate the problem, and develop
a real-world solution to address it.
So What About You?
Have you discovered a problem
that hasn’t been addressed at the kit
level? Is there something you’d like to
see added or changed in your rebuild
kits? Then the folks at Corteco would
like to hear from you. Visit www.
TransTec.com and let them know what
kind of problem you’re facing, and how
you’ve been dealing with it.
Try to provide as much information
22 GEARS January/February 2008

Sara Bruns – Product Technician
Bill Kay - Product Technician
as possible. To even consider working
on a solution, the Corteco R&D
team will need to know the transmission
affected, the specific condition
and what parts were involved. And if
you’ve come up with a solution on your
own they want to hear about that too.
If you can, try to get pictures of
the components involved. Even better,
hang onto the worn components for
further evaluation.
Who knows? You could be the
source for the next set of improvements
to the TransTec® kit line.
Supporting Our Industry
One thing the folks at Corteco® are
quick to acknowledge is the importance
of taking an active role in helping support
the transmission repair industry.
Whether it’s a booth at ATRA’s annual
Expo, attending a customer sponsored
weekend technical seminar or lending
its sponsorship to ATRA’s new Phone
TransTec ® automatic transmission
overhaul kits are produced by Corteco ® ,
the aftermarket business of global automotive-parts
giant Freudenberg-NOK.
The company is a general partnership
of Freudenberg of Germany and NOK of
Japan. The partnership was established
July 1st, 1989, but Freudenberg’s history
dates back to 1849 and NOK was
founded in 1939. The Freudenberg-NOK
Global Partnership integrates Japanese,
German and American technology, has
total global sales over $7.5 billion and
over 30,000 employees serving customers
worldwide.
Freudenberg-NOK’s headquarters is
located in Plymouth, Mich., just a few
miles from Detroit and is an 80,000square-foot
complex. This state-of-theart,
facility includes a $30 million Technical
Center, which is the most extensive
Answering Pads, Corteco is a leader
in its support for the Association and
the individual transmission shops it
represents.
If you’re a regular reader of
GEARS, you’re probably very familiar
with the TransTec® ads and logo. They
buy a full-page ad in every issue.
Sure, those ads are designed to
reinforce the TransTec® name, and, yes,
they’re supposed to help them sell more
kits. But they’re also one of the ways
in which Corteco is helping support
this industry — our industry — by providing
support for GEARS Magazine.
Without that support, GEARS would
quickly become a memory, and with it
would go a valuable training and news
resource that you’ve come to depend
on. Corteco considers that training a
valuable addition to our industry, and
it’s a large part of why they’re so
Customer Service Personnel: Sue Jesberger, Leslie Holm, and Claudia Balduff
Freudenberg-NOK… A truly global supplier
supplier-operated facility for developing
and testing sealing products in the
Americas.
Since many manufacturers today
seek suppliers who are innovative and
have global reach, much of Freudenberg-
NOK’s success has come as a result of
its close working relationship with its
parent companies and ability to tap the
technology and expertise of its partners
in Europe and Asia.
Extending its technology expertise
beyond the automotive market,
Freudenberg-NOK also provides
an extensive portfolio of precision
molded products to the aerospace,
aftermarket, fluid power, oil and gas,
marine, healthcare/medical, off-highway
equipment, recreational, industrial,
chemical processing and semiconductor
markets worldwide.
aggressive in their support for ATRA
and GEARS.
Why is Corteco so involved with
the industry at large? Because they
know that a strong transmission repair
industry profits everyone… including
them. So it’s to everyone’s benefit for
Corteco to provide as much support as
possible, to help ensure a brighter business
picture for all of us.
Better solutions for real-world
problems… providing complete support
for customers… because at Corteco,
they recognize the importance of support
before and after the sale.
To that end, you are invited to contact
Corteco and request a personal visit
to your shop. Just go to www.TransTec.
com and click on the “Contact Us” link.
Let them know you want to schedule
a visit. Corteco considers these visits
paramount in developing a better
understanding of the challenges you are
facing. Even if they don’t hear from
you - don’t be surprised if you see
one of their associates knocking on
your door in 2008!
GEARS January/February 2008 23