United Kingdom 
Singapore 
AustraliaHave you recently visited a local automobile workshop to service your car?
Chances are that you may have recently discovered that your friendly local technician now proposes to repair a faulty component, instead of just replacing it with a brand-new OEM part.
Fixing as the only option
In the past few decades before the emergence of China as the world’s factory, fixing was the only option available for the budget-conscious consumers. Fixing itself is a time-consuming process that requires specific skill sets not available to the less-experienced labour.
These specialists in repair works who have dedicated their whole life towards a particular machinery and have well adapted to its demanding and uncompromising nature. The years spent with tinkering and troubleshooting on the same type of machinery is just part of the devotion given towards a fix. In short, it takes a whole lot of patience to achieve such mastery.
Besides that, machinery used in the past in Southeast Asia were most likely imported from the UK or US and were long-lasting, durable and obviously more reliable. Just imagine the cost of importing a new part from the UK or US to Singapore back then, along with the host of challenges with extensive non-digital paperwork needed to clear the customs. Perhaps the pricing was kept high to include such costs.
Just imagine if a product part manufacturer based in the UK had to factor in returns for faulty goods back in the 80s to Singapore? It would take a long time and a whole lot of money just to get these parts replaced under warranty.
Many senior citizens in the present age may well understand the cost implications in the past. Perhaps this is why they may tend to always consider fixing a faulty machinery when it breaks, down rather than replacing it with a brand new part. However, the younger generation may assume that such emotions are all purely sentimental, or to a certain extent suggesting that they are having a borderline hoarder mentality when it comes to salvaging used goods. This emotion is related to especially when the older generation tend to cling on to broken down machines despite having a new replacement unit at home. The assumptions based on my research done points to their past experiences in purchasing behaviour and after-sales challenges which gives them this different mindset towards fixes, if compared to the current generation.
Even my own parents had just in the past week requested to repair our 10-year-old branded washing machine at home without even realising that the cost to replace it with a new lesser-known brand was just about the same if factoring the warranty and peace of mind.
The rise of the world's factory
Since the dawn of the new Millennium, a cheap brand-new OEM part from China has become the best plug-and-play solution that supposedly “fixes” the issue in hand at a relatively affordable pricing point. Even technicians during the peak of the just-replace-it era when consulted, would rather nod their heads in agreement to convince you that you would be better off by just replacing a broken part rather than to fix it.
Furthermore, such parts were relatively cheap, reliable for a minimum of 1–2 years and were available instantly due to the proximity of China.
The winning argument- such parts do come with its own limited warranty which provides an instant solution with a lower price point and excludes any delays in shipment or the need to engage with professional installers.
So yes, when your local automobile technician suddenly proposes a fix rather than a replacement, this is a sign of changing times. The reality we are facing as we enter a new norm is when global procurement and also shipping lines are greatly affected due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Such extreme lock-down measures taken by the world’s factory severely impacts supply chains, causing longer delays in the sourcing of new parts and shipping it to your local automobile workshop. Furthermore the rise of labour costs in China has also impacted prices of goods sold which no longer provides the benefit of being cheaper.
With such a dilemma in hand, the new breed of technicians are now forced to learn again the steps to fix faulty machinery and undertake repair work — thus ditching their just-replace-it mindset, perhaps temporarily until the situation improves.
Embracing the circular economy
The silver lining in the cloud — actual repair work and the awareness of preventive maintenance is on the rise again. The significance of this is that eventually it will reduce consumption and unnecessary wastage of resources. The world would see a huge drop in waste production and unnecessary industrial pollution with the reduction in manufacturing of these cheap OEM goods. The recycling industry would also potentially see lesser volume over time.
In line with the adoption of a new circular economy model being embraced by our current generation, perhaps this shift could mark a new era with the reopening of workshops dedicated to repair work, and retailers providing better warranty management in their after-sales processes. These may include custom workshops targeting consumer electronics, automobiles, fashion ware and even for furniture repairs (IKEA Circular Hub). No more cheap consumer goods with inferior parts, perhaps signalling the end of fast fashion. Cars that were once meant to last a decade (or a lifetime) would possibly also return back to showrooms. You can read more about the TESLA million-mile battery here.
By moving away from this just-replace-it mindset, we believe that consumers would demand better after-sales support for products that they purchase in future. This is to extend the lifespan of the product.
Ideally businesses that once thrived with brand loyalty by selling overpriced but subpar goods should certainly take the cue in increasing their investment in after-sales engagement with customers. A product that is sold at an inflated price tag as compared to the competitive substitutes available in the market, should be guaranteed to last longer with higher quality materials used bundled with scheduled maintenance throughout its lifespan.
Conclusion
Secqrd.com was launched in 2021 as a tool that promotes an accelerated response towards maintenance issues. We strongly believe that if proper maintenance is performed throughout the lifecycle of a product purchased, it would definitely increase its overall lifespan. Ultimately we had repositioned Secqrd towards a B2B2C product targeting retailers with a large sales inventory. Secqrd gives your customers a better after-sales experience especially when it comes to warranty management and the purchase of additional support services. This could extend the lifetime of a product purchased over the course of its intended lifecycle. Hence, we strongly believe that with the end of this just-replace-it mindset, your customers would demand better support in their quest to reduce unnecessary cheaper replacements while championing the cause of overall global waste reduction.
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