99
/
2
Min Read
Japanese automaker Suzuki Motor Corporation plans to halve the time required to develop new vehicles by 2030. The company will achieve this by changing the way its engineering and manufacturing teams collaborate during vehicle development.
Suzuki has set a target to improve development efficiency by 30% and production efficiency by 50% by 2030. The development targets will be measured against FY20 performance, while the production efficiency target will use the company’s Manesar plant in India as the benchmark.
The plan comes as Suzuki Indian subsidiary, Maruti Suzuki, is accelerating a major product programme. According to reports, the company is working to reduce its vehicle development cycle from 48 months to 36 months. It is also planning to introduce around nine new models over the next three years, including seven SUVs.
The growing number of powertrain options is adding complexity to vehicle development. Automakers need separate engineering, testing, procurement and supplier processes for petrol, CNG, hybrid, flex-fuel and electric powertrains, which can increase the time required to bring new models to market.
To reduce development time, Suzuki plans to bring different teams together from the early stages of a vehicle programme. Planning, design, production, quality and procurement teams will work in parallel. The company will also increase the use of digital engineering and shared modules to identify potential issues earlier and reduce delays caused by work being passed between teams.
Maruti Suzuki is also following a similar approach. The company is expanding the use of simulation and virtual testing, involving suppliers earlier in the development process, and working to develop components, tooling and manufacturing processes simultaneously.
Suzuki develops core technologies in Japan and shares them with Maruti Suzuki, which adapts the technologies and products for Indian customers and handles their production. As India becomes increasingly important as a manufacturing and export hub, this partnership is expected to take on a larger workload.
Suzuki aims to achieve an annual production capacity of around four million vehicles in India from FY2030 onwards. However, the company has not disclosed the current group-wide vehicle development time against which its 2030 target will be measured.
