From the January 2016 issue
You may not be surprised to hear that cars do not spring all shiny
and dew-studded from beneath lily pads, ready to hit the road. In fact,
the car-creation odyssey makes NASA’s Journey to Mars program seem like a
Caribbean luxury cruise. While we frequently address elements of the
design and development process on this page, this is the first time
we’ve presented the entire start-to-finish plan; this year’s 10Best
celebration seemed like the perfect time and place to do so. One
domestic and one import manufacturer—both requesting anonymity for
competitive reasons—helped compile this guide to how cars are made.
We gathered related tasks under five headings.
The time required is the most interesting and secretive part of a
car’s gestation; a crash program to replace a dead-on-its-wheels product
may take only half the time invested in a normal, full-redesign effort.
In our illustrations, the clock begins when the generals gather to
spur their troops to action. The end is when the new model reaches
showrooms. On average, the entire process takes 72 months. There’s
overlap to save time, as revealed by the start and finish months listed
in each of the five category headings. After-sale activities—including
service issues, continuous improvement, and midlife face lifts—are not
included in this account. That’s for another 10Best.
 |
|
1. INVENTION
MONTHS 0–72
- Research market, including in-house and field investigations, to
identify the role of this product and its components in the global
portfolio; define separation from similar models sold by sister brands
- Identify special features, advantages, and potential world, U.S., or segment firsts
- Define competitive set, target customers; set curb-weight, fuel-economy, and performance goals
- Competitive assessment
- Powertrain selection
- Budget, funding, pricing, investment considerations
- Computer-aided-engineering (CAE) analysis
- Customer, press, analyst clinics
|
2. DESIGN
MONTHS 0–72 (FOLLOWING MARKET RESEARCH)
- Interior—sketches, theme selection, model build, continuous reviews
- Exterior—same as above until design freeze
- Exterior colors, interior-trim materials selection
- Wind-tunnel assessment of theme models
- Concept creation for management presentation, potential auto-show use
- Additional CAE
- Management and engineering reviews
|
|
 |
 |
|
3. ENGINEERING
MONTHS 0–72 (CONCURRENT WITH DESIGN)
- Additional CAE
- Customer clinics aimed at gathering current model feedback, suggestions for improvements
- Research advanced technologies—engines, transmissions, motors,
electronic controls, manufacturing techniques (painting, metal forming,
plastic molding), and emerging trends
- Package, layout studies
- Body design and development for crashworthiness, weight, durability (in conjunction with CAE efforts)
- Aerodynamic development
- Design, development, tuning, validation (in-lab and on-road) of:
Powertrain
Chassis
HVAC, infotainment, seats, lighting systems
- Hot-, cold-, wet-weather tests
- Crash tests
- Fuel-economy evaluations
- Design for manufacturing and assembly studies
- Component and manufacturing cost analysis
- Collaborate with suppliers for R&D of purchased components
- Safety and emissions certification
|
4. MANUFACTURING
MONTHS 36–72
- Design for manufacturing and assembly
- Construct or modify production facilities
- Tooling design, construction, validation
- Pilot builds to validate process and parts
- On-line preproduction builds
- Quality improvements
- Confirm that production vehicle meets performance targets
- Train workforce
- Collaborate with suppliers
- Commence production of saleable autos
|
|
 |
 |
|
5. LAUNCH
MONTHS 60–72
- Market research
- Naming research (if needed)
- Define pricing
- Develop marketing theme
- Introduce product to dealer body
- Plan logistics (flow of vehicles to dealers)
- Create promotional (media and advertising) materials
- Craft presentations for management, auto shows, press, social media, dealers, analysts
|
No comments:
Post a Comment