LONDONDERRY, N.H. -

The latest forecasts for the auction industry were a little disheartening. It’s hard to take when you hear information about an industry as a whole and try to understand just where you fit in.

We are certainly aware of the challenges that we have encountered in the last few years as an industry, but there is good news, too. I knew we were doing well this year but after reading about the "sorry" state of the industry, I decided to take a closer look.

Here is what I found:

The Auto Auction of New England consigned 11 percent more vehicles from Jan. 1 to June 30 of 2011 than in the same period of 2010.

The strongest gain was made in the franchised car dealer segment, where we enjoyed a consignment increase of 16 percent and a sales increase of 11 percent.

Additionally, the average sale price at AANE has risen 4.8 percent in 2011 over 2010.

Online sales at AANE have grown by 10 percent, and we have added several remarketers to our fleet/ lease portfolio, including Westlake Financial, Enterprise Holdings and U-Haul.

Remarketing Services of America has ranked AANE as the top auction in the country operationally and for marketing.

Why all this growth when much of the industry is being challenged?

One of the most important reasons is the simple fact that we are an independent auto auction. We have the freedom to look at each one of our guests’ situations and make decisions based on what would work for him or her.

Do the vehicles need to be seen by a wider market? We can have them uploaded to Auction Pipeline, OVE.com and/or SmartAuction very quickly.

What types of vehicles do our buyers need? Familiarity with our buyers and an understanding of their needs helps us match our dealers with the vehicle that they need. The fact is that we are big enough to do the job well, and we are small enough that we have the opportunity to get to know ever dealer’s needs.

Auctions have changed dramatically in the last decade, and the consistent efforts of the NAAA, the Independent Auction Group and ServNet have been instrumental in providing an invaluable forum toward continued growth.

These affiliations have helped us stay above the curve in the Northeast market. We have partnered with franchised dealers to become part of their wholesale plan, not just where they send the cars that they can’t retail anymore.

Gone are the days that the auction was the place to send cars as a last resort. Now we are part of the equation for a successful operation.

Our fleet and remarketing business has improved as we have improved, and we have benefited from learning how to incorporate updated arbitration rules and vehicles that can now go through a post sale inspection.

The credibility of auction practices has made buying vehicles online not only possible but effective.

Sure, there are still some bumps in the road and some improvements to be made, but the industry is strong and united in its efforts towards continued growth and innovation. This is an exciting time in the automotive industry.

The country benefited from the strength of the auto industry before, and I believe it will continue to provide a benchmark for others industries to follow once again.

Dave Blake is the general manager at Auto Auction of New England.