For today’s global automotive enterprise, the complexity of product development continues to increase as software, advances in electrification and connectivity become integral to innovation
Here are a few proof points:
- A recent Pricewaterhouse Coopers report shows that software contributes more than 90% of new features in automotive product development.
- And traditional car companies are not standing still when it comes to disruptive innovation. Industry research from Thompson Reuters finds that automotive manufacturers lead Silicon Valley in driverless car patents designed to advance the autonomy and connected car revolution.
- In another example, Google's Self-Driving Car Project and Fiat Chrysler last week announced that they would integrate autonomous vehicle technology into 2017 Chrysler minivans. It is the first time Google has worked directly with a car manufacturer to integrate its self-driving technology into a passenger vehicle.
- In terms of the connected car, just this week, General Motors introduced what they cite as the industry’s first predictive technology, designed to warn drivers over potential maintenance issues with the car’s starter motor, fuel pump and 12-volt battery and other components. It is touted as technology that’s similar to innovations found on the Boeing 787, which can send in-flight messages to ground crews alerting them of parts needing inspection before the plane arrives.
Continued Disruption
Additional market forces disrupt vehicle markets in the form of extended international supply chains and collaborative partnerships. New competitors, mergers, and acquisitions change the landscape of the automotive industry overnight, complicating the process of managing increasingly complex product development.
To thrive — and survive — the entire sector must better manage the business of engineering. That translates to working collaboratively to reduce time to market, increase new product throughput while improving product quality and safety, and ensuring complex design and production processes are managed as efficiently as possible. No small matter.
Transforming PLM for the Automotive Industry
Given the unprecedented change facing the automotive industry, there is no more room for data silos in the product lifecycle – a common scenario with traditional, monolithic PLM systems.
Product development requires a systems approach where the management of mechanical, electrical, and software components can all be seamlessly integrated, creating a unified digital thread of product data.
Aras recently published an automotive industry white paper that highlights a new approach to enterprise PLM that is as flexible and innovative as the products it helps to create.
The paper touches upon some of the key elements of a new platform approach to PLM. This approach helps automotive companies drive their digital transformation and achieve their long-sought PLM visions to fully support the business of engineering for the design, manufacture and service of complex, connected vehicles.
Download the paper Transforming PLM for the Automotive Industry: Beyond the Status Quo to see how today’s automotive supplier can leverage a platform approach that enables efficient collaboration to optimize resources, minimize costly errors, and reduce development cycles, leading to better products and increased profitability.
