December 01, 2023
Wholesale: Spotlight (3)
America’s Names GM for Charleston, Savannah Auctions
Staff Writer
November 14, 2023
Laura Taylor will return as general manager of America’s Charleston and America’s Savannah auctions, while Bill McCready will take on duties as Regional Vice President of the Southeast.
“Helping America’s Auto Auctions renovate and grow over the past few years has been an exciting time in my life,” said Taylor. “I have loved the work and my involvement with the accomplishment our auctions have achieved. And now I am really happy to be returning to my home auction, and to be at home again with my beautiful granddaughters. I have a lot of time to make up with them, and a great desire to get back to my auction roots.”
Chuck Tapp, CEO of the company, stated, “Laura has been an important part of the expansion and development of America’s Group, just as she has been a dynamic force in our industry. Bill’s transition to Regional VP will be a smooth adjustment, as Bill and Laura have worked together for so many years.”
Bill McCready, who helmed both America’s Charleston and Savannah auctions when Taylor was named Senior Regional VP, will now be Regional VP of the South, as Taylor takes over as GM of both auctions.
“It’s an exciting time at America’s Auto Auction, and I am eager to begin this new role, and to continue our winning trajectory in 2024,” McCready said.
AAA Senior Vice President Brian Thomas offered his gratitude to Taylor for her work.
“A sincere thank you to Laura for her contributions and leadership while managing the SE these last two year,” he said. “Congratulations and best wishes to Bill on his new promotion. We look forward to leveraging his experience and leadership as we move forward into 2024. Congratulations to you both.”
Auto Auction Donates to Children’s Charity
Staff Writer
November 12, 2023
Clark County Auto Auction, with the help of its employees, friends, and business associates, has donated $33,222 to Childplace Family Services.
Childplace Family Services houses and treats children who have been removed from their homes by the courts for abuse, neglect or other chaotic issues.
Childplace offers therapy services, educational support, and opportunities for spiritual growth inside a structured environment, while also providing opportunities to play, exercise, socialize and participate in community activities. There are currently 50 children in the care of Childplace.
While Childplace provides many services to care for the needs of our displaced youth, they often grapple with the mounting costs of providing gifts during the holiday season. With help from businesses like Clark County Auto Auction, Childplace can meet its goal of providing “a want, a need, an article of clothing, and an item to read” to each child in their care. Donations are also used to purchase stocking stuffers and group gifts.
“I’m so excited we were able to reach our goal! I want to give a special thanks to everyone that helped us get there,” said Paul Fetter, general manager of the Clark County Auto Auction “Thanks to our many customers, vendors and friends that made donations. Thanks to the local car clubs and enthusiasts for all their hard work and fund raising. And thanks for all the hard work put in by the CCAA Employees and their families and friends.”
For the last 7 years, Clark County Auto Auction has made a goal of raising at least $20,000 to support the efforts of Childplace Family Services. Through fundraising events like a Classic Car Show and a Halloween Trunk-or-Treat, CCAA hopes to continue this tradition for years to come.
Manheim PA Launches Fixed Imaging Tunnels
Staff Writer
November 12, 2023
To drive even more client confidence in wholesale buying and selling, Manheim has launched three fixed imaging tunnels at Manheim Pennsylvania, the world’s largest wholesale vehicle auction. These tunnels, powered by Fyusion AI technology, set a new standard for vehicle imaging by delivering the industry’s most consistent and complete view of each vehicle. As the first company to utilize an AI-driven imaging tunnel for wholesale in 2022, Manheim now has 10 fixed imaging tunnels across six locations, with 31 planned by year end.
“We have seen what a huge difference these images have made for Manheim’s buyers and sellers, as the quality and consistency can’t be beat,” said Brad Burns, associate vice president, Vehicle Information at Manheim. “With several successful launches under our belts, we’re accelerating the pace of deployment to enable even more clients to benefit from this technology, sooner.”
Currently, around 3,000 sellers are having their vehicles imaged with a fixed imaging tunnel, informing wholesale decisions for over 23,000 clients across the Manheim Marketplace.
Manheim’s fixed imaging tunnels boast nearly 50 cameras and 90+ light panels to capture virtually every vehicle exterior from multiple angles.
The tunnels capture approximately 2,500 images of each vehicle in seconds, outputting 90 for analysis and automatically selecting the 12 best to include in a condition report. Beyond providing the same angles each time with a distraction-free background, the tunnels also capture areas of the vehicle that a human can’t easily get—like extremely high and low views, as well as the undercarriage.
This level of detail gives clients the industry’s most comprehensive view of each vehicle, helping sellers make more informed reconditioning and ROI decisions while significantly elevating buyer trust and confidence in condition reports—and ultimately, their purchases, according to Manheim.
The fixed imaging tunnels are also paving the way for condition reports that are more consistent than ever. That’s because the Fyusion AI imaging technology not only captures still images—it also understands the vehicle in three dimensions.
The more than 16 million images already captured by the tunnels are training the expansive Fyusion machine learning model, which can identify and report damage with the utmost speed and accuracy. This automated damage detection capability, which the Manheim and Fyusion teams have already invested millions of dollars in and spent years training, is on target for deployment starting in 2024.
Fixed imaging tunnels are in operation at Manheim Atlanta, Manheim Minneapolis, Manheim Tampa, Manheim Ohio, Manheim Dallas Fort-Worth and Manheim Pennsylvania. Several more are under construction, with the goal of covering 25% of Manheim’s check-in volume by the end of 2023. That coverage is expected to double by the end of the first quarter in 2024, accounting for 50% of Manheim’s check-in volume.
