A conceptual framework for after-sales service risk reduction of Chinese agricultural machinery in South Africa

Abstract

After-sales service (ASS) plays a significant role following the agricultural machinery being sold. With the development of trade and economic exchange between South Africa and China. Chinese agricultural machinery has increasingly sold to South African and Africa. After- sales service becomes crucial important to maintenance the machinery. Results found that the people whose age was between 30 and 49 that much involved in the research findings. Comparison between South African and China found to be more males participate (79.2%) in China, and more females (29.2%) in South Africa. It found that South African female engaged more than Chinese females. The staff and directors made up the majority of participants, where staff and directors accounted for 54.2% in South Africa and 70.9% from China’s side. The percentage on the degree of high school level of Chinese interviewees showed the highest among these five items, which were 50% compared to the highest degree of South African participants at the college level (37.5%). There was no interviewer who earned a major in engineering in South African involved in this study and there was an endeavor to employ more engineers in South Africa. The highest point was the value of spare parts factor from the perspective of South African participants, followed by the factors repairing, maintenance, technician and training. The focus group was concerned with the other factors that impacted on the ASS of AM. The focus-group in China showed that except for the factors that influenced the ASS of AM, Sanbao; three Guarantees: repair, replacement and return, and customer’s satisfaction played a significant role in the process of ASS of AM. With this, the factors included the revisiting, maintenance, technology assistance, tracking service and customer’s satisfaction. The focus-group in South Africa found that after-sales service was faced a crucial effect to ASS of AM.