SPO, as it exists today, was officially organized in 1986, but the roots of our organization go back to the beginning of the automobile industry and are firmly anchored in the soils of experience, dependability, technology and performance.
The oldest of our two main roots can be traced to 1916, when United Motors Corporation, the forerunner of ACDelco, was organized by William Durant. He consolidated five companies and subsequently added two more to supply parts to General Motors, the automobile manufacturing company he had founded eight years earlier. These companies were Hyatt Roller Bearing, Dayton Engineering Laboratories (Delco), New Departure Manufacturing, Remy Electric, Perlman Rim Corporation, Harrison Radiator and the Klaxon Company. Alfred P. Sloan, the president of Hyatt Roller Bearing, was named president of the new company and a few months later established United Motors Service to distribute and service the parts made by United Motors Corporation.
In 1918, General Motors purchased United Motors Corporation and its assets were liquidated. United Motors Service remained a viable entity and became a unit of General Motors.
United Motors Service was renamed United Delco Division in 1971. United Delco's sales organization merged with AC Spark Plug's sales organization in 1974 to form AC-Delco Division.
The other main root of SPO -- GM Parts -- traces its official history to 1935, when GM Parts Division was formed by merging Chevrolet warehousing with the B.O.P. (Buick-Oldsmobile-Pontiac) Sales Company to handle distribution of all Chevrolet replacement parts and the fast-moving replacement parts from the Buick, Oldsmobile, and Pontiac field warehouses. This new unit was headquartered in Chevrolet's Flint, Mich., manufacturing plant.
In 1963, responsibility for the warehousing and distribution of replacement parts for Cadillac was transferred to GM Parts Division, and in 1969 responsibility for warehousing and distributing all car division replacement parts to GM dealers was assigned to GM Parts when it became a separate unit within the corporation.
In 1973, the Service Parts Operations Group was formed to streamline and coordinate the distribution and sales activities of four GM divisions handling the service parts aftermarket. United Delco and GM Parts Divisions reported directly to the executive-in-charge, while the service parts aftermarket activities of GMC Truck & Coach and AC Spark Plug Divisions reported on a dotted line.
In 1974, the GM Parts Sales activity was born when responsibility for sales and marketing to GM dealerships, which was previously handled by the vehicle divisions, was assigned to GM Parts Division. Also that year, responsibility for GMC Truck & Coach Division's service parts field warehouses was assigned to GM Parts Division. Three years later, the sales and administrative functions for GMC Truck & Coach Division's service parts were also assigned to GM Parts Division, bringing responsibility for the sale and distribution of all GM vehicle division aftermarket parts to GM dealerships under one centralized organization.
GM Warehousing and Distribution Division was created in 1981 by merging the warehousing and distribution operations of AC-Delco, GM Parts, AC Spark Plug and GM of Canada. The sales activities were not included in this merger.
In 1986, GM Warehousing and Distribution Division and the sales activities of ACDelco and GM Parts were consolidated into the Service Parts Operations Group (GMSPO) and the organization restructured for improved effectiveness and dropped the Group from its name.
In 2002, Service Parts Operations and GM Service Operations integrated to form GM Service and Parts Operations.
For more than 80 years our organization has been providing the highest quality automotive replacement parts in the industry. As SPO moves forward in the new millennium, we will continue to provide -- for all makes of vehicles -- world-class parts and service around the world!