Auto Care Association Announces Retirement of Vice President of Emerging Technologies Joe Register

BETHESDA, Md. – May 31, 2022 – The Auto Care Association today announced that Joe Register, vice president, emerging technologies, will be retiring from his role at the end of June, after nearly five decades in the automotive industry. 

Register joined the Auto Care Association’s technology department in 2016, serving as director, technology solutions, and brought with him more than two decades of industry knowledge and experience in data and information technologies to the association. In his most recent role as vice president of emerging technologies, Register has been responsible for bringing the aftermarket perspective to vehicle technology development as new technologies are designed and introduced to the marketplace. This includes working with his global counterparts in industry standards-setting organizations, such as the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and SAE International, to identify and address potential opportunities and threats that recent vehicle technology innovations create. 

Ever-focused on equipping the aftermarket with the tools it needs to compete in an evolving technological landscape, Register’s most recent undertaking has been to lead the Auto Care Association’s effort in defining an internationally recognized technical architecture for the safe, secure, standardized and direct access to vehicle data, in support of its Right to Repair initiatives. 

“The auto care industry has been a wonderful place, watching it develop and mature in recent years has been really rewarding,” said Register. “I feel very fortunate to have spent these years at the Auto Care Association with some of the best people in the industry and working on things that I hope we'll see the fruition of in the coming years.” 

During his time with the Auto Care Association, Register oversaw initiatives that served the entire aftermarket industry through the development of automotive solution designs, including the development and enhancement of Auto Care standards such as iShop and Internet Parts Ordering (IPO). Additionally, Register has long been a passionate supporter of all the Auto Care standards, including the Aftermarket Catalog Exchange Standard (ACES) and Product Information Exchange Standard (PIES), which is part of the Auto Care Association’s Vehicle Information Portal (VIP). 

In 2008, the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA, now Auto Care Association) presented Register with its Aftermarket Visionary Award. The award recognized individuals whose words and deeds demonstrate vision and imagination in the application of technology for the betterment of the aftermarket industry. 

“Our industry owes a great debt to Joe,” said Bill Hanvey, president and CEO, Auto Care Association. “In his 49 years of service to the aftermarket, Joe has dedicated his life to thinking critically about the biggest challenges we face and presenting innovative technological solutions for the benefit of our entire global industry.” 

Prior to the Auto Care Association, Register worked for an energy consulting firm specializing in renewable fuels legislation and regulation.

If you would like to send a message of congratulations or well wishes to Mr. Register, he can be contacted at joe.register@autocare.org.