The objectives of the audit were to evaluate the after sales services in order to ensure that they meet customers' needs and assess the efficiency and operational effectiveness with which the customer service carries out its responsibilities.

The audit covered the following areas: organization, processes, equipment, spare parts and service staff.
The final report detailed the auditors' findings and observations. It highlighted major key strengths and made a number of recommendations. The service staff was well balanced thus highly scored according to the auditors. SPAN team of technicians had the proper education and necessary know-how that enable them to accomplish any maintenance job, the auditors observed. They were also satisfied with the frequent trainings the technicians receive. This superior customer service performance made SPAN the sixth best “after sales service provider” among Jungheinrich's dealers worldwide. 

"Our technicians are constantly being trained and kept up to date with all the latest Jungheinrich technology. The recommendations made by the audit will help us improve the efficiency and effectiveness of our operation and the services we provide", comments Elias Najem, customer service manager. "Improving the way we operate will be an ongoing priority. A plan for ameliorating our after sales services have been already set, including the optimization of our tools, the availability of spare parts at any time and the expansion of our fleet of service vans," continues Najem.

As part of the plan, SPAN will be recruiting qualified service technicians to join the existing team, and developing on-field and on-job trainings in collaboration with dedicated Jungheinrich technicians.

Finally, 2009 will witness the opening of SPAN's new service center that will be located in JAFZA aiming at speeding the response time, and the reinforcement of the preventive maintenance contract plan that will be offered to customers at reasonable prices.