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It doesn't take much examination of the global competitive landscape to see that India is emerging as a formidable competitor to the United States. Over the next decade, India's growing [...]

In our column in the January, 2007, issue of AD & P, we offered a leverage strategy that suggested re-deployment of a supplier's plant and real estate assets to modernize [...]

The rise in production of biofuels and ethanol is a factor in vehicle engineering, but perhaps it's not as dramatic as the near-term shift toward mass customization and its impact [...]

In the ever-changing and complex world of automotive suppliers, many are attempting to re-invent their business models not just to overcome global competitive threats, but most are looking to give [...]

The global automotive industry continues to create opportunities and skirmishes within the ranks of the supply chain due to massive change and never-yielding competition. Coupled with intense price-down expectations from [...]

With 2007 behind us and our budgeting processes long completed, now the hard work begins as we kick off 2008. In what may prove to be among the most challenging [...]

The article focuses on the status of the automotive industry in India in 2008. It states that the average automotive factory in the country looks more like how the U.S. plants operated in the 1960s or 1970s. According to the article, the industry will possibly create employment for 25 million people in the country by 2016. It is inferred that Tata Motors intends to position the Nano automobile as the cheapest in the world.

The author considers the significance of product design to the success of automobile manufacturers in the U.S. He cites that Toyota promotes mass customization in new vehicles. He points out that the market share of the Lincoln brand from Ford Motor Co. declined due to the company's lack of understanding of the preferences of Baby Boomers. He proposes that General Motors Corp., Chrysler Corp. and Ford must change their approaches to manufacturing and finance to meet future design and market requirements.

The article discusses the challenges that automotive suppliers face in increasing their profits and the contributing factors to these challenges. Among the options that suppliers explore to increase profit are to differentiate products, develop unique products, obtain new customer base and explore a different market. Among the factors that hinder success are the shelf life of strategic positioning, market and customer-focused business designs and poor execution of business development process.

The author reflects on accuracy in planning production volumes in the automobile industry. He believes that accuracy matters because the cost of miscalculating on a program can be expensive for suppliers. The author suggests that suppliers make some assumptions and break down the dollars allocated to additional costs including amortization of tooling, packaging, inventory carrying costs, underutilization of manpower, facilities and equipment and higher facility overhead costs.