Meineke Car Care Centers Team up with Comdata to Provide Enhanced Flee

    Business Editors

    CHARLOTTE, N.C. & BRENTWOOD, Tenn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 7, 2005--Meineke Car Care Centers, Inc., a market leader in automotive services and repair, and Comdata Corporation, a leader in electronic payment systems for the transportation industry, have implemented a data logging system designed to bring online maintenance service tracking to Meineke's commercial fleet customers throughout the U.S. and Canada, at no additional cost to the customer.
    Using Comdata's "Fleet Team" online maintenance system, as vehicle services are performed and purchased, all data is captured in an online maintenance system that tracks, aggregates and reports maintenance intelligence to the fleet manager. Central billing capabilities will streamline data handling and account service, of particular benefit to large, regional and national vehicle fleet accounts.
    The system is scheduled to roll out to Meineke's approximately 900 franchised shops in North America over the next few months.
    Meineke Marketing VP Gene Zhiss said, "We believe our new Comdata capabilities advance Meineke's ability to expand products and services into the fleet business nationally. At the shop level, each Meineke dealer has yet another competitive advantage for expanding the shop's share of local maintenance services."
    The enhanced service level offered to Meineke's commercial accounts will come at no additional customer cost. Access to the system's full capabilities will afford vehicle fleet managers a fresh perspective on vehicle fleet data sorting and management. Managers can view comprehensive reports and, if they so choose, drill down to individual line items. In addition to providing comprehensive and real-time maintenance information, Fleet Team generates scheduled maintenance notification and automates a number of other day-to-day fleet management activities.
    Fleet Team also performs third-party billing through Comdata, enhancing franchisee cash flow and relieving franchisees of the cost and time involved in billing customers who use Fleet Team.
    Pat Madigan, Comdata's director of national sales and merchant services, said Fleet Team establishes a win/win situation for both Meineke and its vehicle fleet customers. "This system gives both parties new tools to enhance their respective business operations. Fleet managers are better informed with critical data that allows them to manager their assets more efficiently, while Meineke Car Care Centers can grow profitably in the fleet market segment without the cost and staffing issues of managing commercial customer payments."

    About Meineke

    Beginning in 1972 with a single shop specializing in exhaust work, Meineke Car Care Centers (formerly Meineke Discount Muffler Shops) has expanded product and service offerings while demonstrating steady growth, both domestically and internationally. Headquartered in Charlotte, NC, since 1986, Meineke is today the second largest specialist automotive service franchise in the Americas with approximately 900 locations throughout the US, Canada, Mexico, Ecuador, Guatemala, Venezuela, and the Caribbean.

    About Comdata

    Comdata Corporation (www.comdata.com) is a leading provider of transaction and payment services. Comdata provides credit and debit processing and reporting for commercial fleets and merchants, electronic cash, gift and smart/chip card programs for retailers and governmental agencies, pay card services for food, retail and other service industries, and point-of-sale equipment, software and auxiliary services for merchants and convenience stores. Headquartered in Brentwood, Tenn., Comdata employs more than 1,500 people nationally and internationally. Comdata is a wholly owned subsidiary of Minneapolis-based Ceridian Corporation (NYSE: CEN).

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CONTACT: Meineke Car Care Centers, Inc. Eugene J. Zhiss, 704-377-8855, ext. 8160 gene.zhiss@meineke.com or Comdata Corporation Deby K. Samuels, 615-376-6986 dsamuels@comdata.com

KEYWORD: MINNESOTA TENNESSEE NORTH CAROLINA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: HARDWARE SOFTWARE TRANSPORTATION TRAVEL AUTOMOTIVE PRODUCT MARKETING AGREEMENTS SOURCE: Comdata Corporation

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