BMW’s digital brain: Dr. Michael Nikolaides on AI, robotics and resilience in a complex global supply chain BMW’s Dr. Michael Nikolaides discusses how the OEM is leading with intelligent intralogistics, AI-powered automation, and data-driven decision-making. From real-time reallocation to humanoid robotics, BMW is future-proofing its production network in a volatile global landscape. Christopher Ludwig
Inside Dräxlmaier’s digital drive: COO Arno Güllering on AI, mindset shifts and global smart factory strategy In a revealing interview at the Automobil Produktion Kongress in Munich, Arno Güllering, chief operating officer of Dräxlmaier Group, shares how the global supplier is accelerating its smart factory transformation. From unexpected digital frontrunners like Tunisia to the growing role of generative AI in maintenance, Güllering discusses his first-year priorities and why a shift in mindset is just as critical as technology. Christopher Ludwig
Gestamp’s Paul Belanger on reducing EV production costs with giga-stamping and cross-functional collaboration At the AMS Automotive Evolution NA 2024 event, Paul Belanger, Director of R&D North America at Gestamp, shared how giga-stamping and customer collaboration are helping reduce production costs, making affordable EVs a realistic goal for the North American market. Christopher Ludwig
Stellantis’ Jeremy Keating on comprehensive lean practices: Achieving zero waste through organisational alignment and proactive problem-solving At the AMS Automotive Evolution North America conference, Jeremy Keating, Vice-President of Operations at Stellantis’ Kokomo Transmission Plant, shared insights on lean manufacturing’s value in achieving efficiency. He discussed early lean integration, financial assessments for cost control, and the critical role of union partnerships. Christopher Ludwig
Stellantis’ Asif Khan on driving cost control and profitability through lean manufacturing in a competitive market At the AMS Automotive Evolution NA 2024 event, Dr. Sardar Asif Khan, Continuous Improvement Lead at Stellantis, discussed the critical role of lean manufacturing in cost control and profitability. He highlighted the importance of leadership, workforce engagement, and the complementary role of digital tools in enhancing lean methodologies. Christopher Ludwig
Automotive leaders discuss strategies to bring electric vehicles within reach of the masses through cost-cutting, advanced technologies, and new approaches in North American manufacturing At the AMS Evolution North America Conference, Ford and Gestamp leaders outlined strategies to slash production costs, tackle supply chain hurdles, and enhance manufacturing efficiency, laying out the groundwork for affordable EVs that meet consumer demand Ilkhan Ozsevim
Toyota’s Jaime Moore on engineering transformation: Agile teams, early collaboration, and the impact of digital tools At the AMS Automotive Evolution NA 2024 event, Jaime Moore, Senior Principal Engineer at Toyota North America, highlighted the evolving role of engineers in manufacturing. She discussed the expanded skill set required, the need for cross-functional collaboration, and the potential of digital twins and AI in streamlining the automotive production process. Christopher Ludwig
AMS Chief Content Officer Christopher Ludwig wraps up the first evening of Automotive Evolution North America 2024 AMS
Ford’s Rajeev Kalamdani on smart factory transformation challenges: Legacy systems, workforce, and data integration Speaking at the AMS Automotive Evolution NA 2024 conference in Detroit, Rajeev Kalamdani from Ford shared his perspective on the complexities of digital transformation in smart factory settings. From integrating legacy equipment to fostering a tech-savvy workforce, Rajeev outlined key challenges and solutions for successful digitalisation in the automotive industry. Nick Holt
AMS Chief Content Officer Christopher Ludwig wraps up the second day of Automotive Evolution North America 2024 AMS
ZF’s Arno Güllering on smart factory innovations and navigating volatility AMS’ chief content officer Christopher Ludwig spoke to Arno Güllering, senior vice president, Operations – Electrified Powertrain Technology division at ZF at the Automobil Produktion Kongress 2024 at Munich to discuss the roadmap for navigating industry challenges and embracing the digital future. AMS
Ford’s Paul Stephens on EV opportunities and greenfield sites Following the ‘Greenfield of Dreams: Building the Future of Automotive Production’ keynote and panel discussion at AMS Automotive Evolution North America, AMS was eager to catch up with Paul Stephens, Manufacturing Transformation Lead for Ford Motor Company, to learn more.
Interview with Greg Everly, Molex - Automotive Wire Harness & EDS Conference 2023 Automotive Wire Harness delegate Greg Everly, Molex, speaks about his experience of the conference and the most prominent issues facing the industry today. AMS
Interview with Garrett McIntyre, APTIV - Automotive Wire Harness & EDS Conference 2023 Automotive Wire Harness delegate Micah Durham, Schleuniger North America, speaks about the growth of the US Wire Harness & EDS Conference and the biggest challenges facing the automotive industry. AMS
Interview with Micah Durham, Schleuniger North America - Automotive Wire Harness & EDS Conference 2023 Automotive Wire Harness delegate Micah Durham, Schleuniger North America, speaks about the growth of the US Wire Harness & EDS Conference and the biggest challenges facing the automotive industry. AMS
Interview with William Bieniek, KOSTAL Connectors - Automotive Wire Harness & EDS Conference 2023 Automotive Wire Harness delegate William Bieniek, KOSTAL Connectors, speaks about the importance of the second Automotive Wire Harness Congress in Detroit for networking and addressing the challenges of electrification and rapid technology AMS
Interview with Manuel Fey, Sonosystems - Automotive Wire Harness & EDS Conference 2023 Automotive Wire Harness delegate Manuel Fey, Sonosystems, speaks about the success and challenges in the Automotive Wire Harness industry AMS
Interview with David Gonzalez, SE Bordenetze Mexico SA de CV - Automotive Wire Harness & EDS Conference 2023 Automotive Wire Harness delegate David Gonzalez, SE Bordenetze Mexico SA de CV, speaks about the importance of networking and new technologies in wire harness production AMS
Interview with Thomas Mathews, APTIV - Automotive Wire Harness & EDS Conference 2023 Automotive Wire Harness delegate Thomas Mathews, speaks about the importance of collaboration in a disruptive marketplace AMS
Delegate Interview with Jud Estes, Daimler Truck North America - Automotive Evolution North America 2023 Automotive Evolution North America delegate and speaker Jud Estes, Daimler Truck North America, spoke about his experiences at this year’s conference and what he’s looking forward to in 2024 AMS
Delegate Interview with Maggie Gehrlein, General Motors - Automotive Evolution North America 2023 Automotive Evolution North America delegate and speaker Maggie Gehrlein, General Motors, spoke about her experiences at this year’s conference and what she’s looking forward to in 2024 AMS
Delegate Interview with Leonel Leal, Stealth-mode EV - Automotive Evolution North America 2023 Automotive Evolution North America delegate and speaker Leonel Leal, Stealth-mode EV, spoke about his experiences at this year’s conference and what he’s looking forward to in 2024 AMS
Delegate Interview with Greg Ruscak, Telsonic - Automotive Evolution North America 2023 Automotive Evolution North America delegate Greg Ruscak, Telsonic, spoke about his experiences at this year’s conference and what he’s looking forward to in 2024 AMS
Delegate Interview with Mark Miller, GM - Automotive Evolution North America 2023 Automotive Evolution North America delegate Mark Miller, GM, spoke about his experiences at this year’s conference and what he’s looking forward to in 2024 AMS
Highlights - Automotive Evolution North America 2023 View the highlights from both days of AMS Automotive Evolution North America 2023 AMS
Day 2 Wrap-up - Automotive Evolution North America 2023 Day 2 of Automotive Evolution North America has now wrapped, and what a day it was! Watch above as AMS Editor-in-Chief Christopher Ludwig covers the day’s events and our various panels and VIP speakers. AMS
Day 1 Wrap-up - Automotive Evolution North America 2023 AMS Editor-in-Chief Christopher Ludwig introduces the inaugural Automotive Evolution North America 2023 conference AMS
Reactive problem-solving - Interview with Humam M. Alwan, Stellantis Humam M. Alwan, Software X Quality Management at Stellantis discusses reactive problem-solving at Automotive Evolution North America 2023 AMS
Expansion, new gigafactories, and sustainability - Interview with Abby Chitwood, Panasonic Energy of North America Abby Chitwood, Director of Expansion Engineering for Panasonic Energy of North America discusses sustainability and more at Automotive Evolution North America 2023 AMS
Watch: The advance of automation: what next-gen vehicles and batteries mean for robotics OEMs are transforming not only their respective vehicle types, transitioning to electric and connected models, but also the manufacturing operations to build these new vehicles. This creates challenges in integrating new vehicle architectures, powertrains and electronics into existing manufacturing facilities, boosting demand for more advanced automation.
Welcome to Automotive Evolution Europe 2022! The 1st Automotive Evolution Europe took place December 6-7 in Munich. We welcomed colleagues and industry peers before the conference at the SZ Tower’s Panorama Lounge followed by a full day of back-to-back discussions with leading experts across Europe and more. Christopher Ludwig
Hyper-flexible microfactory - interview with Dr Matthias Preuß, Next e.GO Mobile Christopher Ludwig caught up with Dr Matthias Preuß, Vice-President, Global Microfactory Technology, Next e.GO Mobile to continue the conversation following the panel discussion ’Assembly in motion: speed and flexibility in vehicle production’. Christopher Ludwig
Future-proof Plant Munich - interview with Peter Weber, BMW Christopher Ludwig caught up with Peter Weber, Director Plant Munich, BMW Group following the closing session of AMS Automotive Evolution Europe 2022. Christopher Ludwig
Transforming plant and production processes - interview with Rüdiger Eck, Audi Following the opening session ‘Data at the heart of Europe’s manufacturing evolution’, Christopher Ludwig caught up with Rüdiger Eck, Director of Data Governance and Analytics for Digital Production, AUDI AG to continue the conversation. Christopher Ludwig
Blossoming brownfields: rejuvenating Europe’s car plants Peter Weber at BMW and Kjell Walöen at Volta Trucks joined the closing panel discussion at Automotive Evolution Europe to discuss how Europe is revamping production plants and ensuring their existing production plants can be as flexible and efficient as any greenfield. Christopher Ludwig
Engineering the future of manufacturing Dr Seonhi at Ford Research and Advanced Manufacturing Europe and Erich Barnstedt at Microsoft joined the ninth panel at Automotive Evolution Europe to discuss some of the steps Europe’s automotive industry is taking to future-proof factories and quicken the rollout of new technology, battery and EV production. Christopher Ludwig
Painting a brighter day: increasing speed, reducing errors in paintshop Sébastian Salze at SAMES and Robin Kaufmann at FANUC joined the eighth panel at Automotive Evolution Europe to discuss optimising processes and reducing waste in the paintshop. Christopher Ludwig
Assembly in motion: speed and flexibility in vehicle production Dr Matthias Preuß at Next e.GO Mobile and Johannes Buehrle at Trumpf joined the fifth panel at Automotive Evolution Europe to discuss strategies to simplify production processes and increase flexibility. Christopher Ludwig
Tier-1 transformation: fast-changing production for automotive suppliers Arno Güllering at ZF and Stephen C. Nunn at Hardinge joined the sixth panel at Automotive Evolution Europe to discuss how to better understand what electrification means for tier-1 suppliers. Christopher Ludwig
Material matters: body, forming and process transformation Michel Peña at Teknia, Jesse Paegle at ArcelorMittal and Jonas Adolfsson at SSAB joined the seventh panel at Automotive Evolution Europe to discuss how new technology and materials are ushering in new innovations in manufacturing. Christopher Ludwig
Managing an uncertain future in manufacturing S&P Global Mobility, Magswitch and Next e.GO Mobile joined the fourth panel at Automotive Evolution Europe to discuss the volatile production environment, to which OEMs and suppliers must respond to mitigate disruption to production. Christopher Ludwig
A tipping point: European automotive manufacturing outlook Henner Lehne at S&P Global Mobility joined the third session with an in-depth presentation on the latest analysis and forecast for the European sector, including volume, regulations and OEM strategies in the face of disruption and changing business models. Christopher Ludwig
Scaling up battery production in Europe The second session of Automotive Evolution Europe was joined by Matthias Zentgraf at CATL, Francisco Carranza at Basquevolt and Lars Carlstrom at Italvolt to discuss production strategies, constraints and opportunities in ramping up output of EV batteries in Europe. Christopher Ludwig
Data at the heart of Europe’s manufacturing evolution Rüdiger Eck at Audi, Timothy McGrath, at BMW and Karthik Krishnamurthy at AWS joined the opening session of Automotive Evolution Europe which focused on opportunities in data analytics, artificial intelligence, digital simulation, cloud services and the digital tools that support them. Christopher Ludwig
Watch: The future of production planning Britishvolt, Jay Global Techno Alliance, HiveMQ and ABB experts agree there are opportunities for manufacturers and consumers in a globally connected manufacturing ecosystem. Nick Holt
Watch: The AI/data loop leading the digital revolution Tomorrow’s digital smart factories will be more efficent, improve quality, cut costs and unlock insights into deeper automotive manufacturing say this panel of experts from BMW, Secondmind, ATS Global and Lancaster University. Christopher Ludwig
Watch: Meeting the recycling challenge head on Jacqui Murray, Jason Muccioli and Sam Haig discuss the future of battery recycling and the challenges with second life, safe disassembly and the role of car manufacturers. Nick Holt
Watch: Transforming Factories from ICE to EV Car factories need to transition in the next few years - our panellists agree there will be challanges and opportunities in the new era of automotive production. Christopher Ludwig
Watch: New magic in the dark art of lightweighting Ignacio, Jérôme and Prof. Volk explain the magic behind the art of lighweighting all whilst factoring in cost, performance, safety concerns and the impact on manufacturing process. Nick Holt
Watch: Flexible factories - future-proofing automotive manufacturing Cengiz Kizilkan and Romain Herry explain how flexibility and adaptability is playing a major role in next-generation production lines and helping manufacturers create models simultaneously and quickly. Nick Holt
Watch: A holistic approach to sustainable vehicle production Hans Pehrson, Owain Griffiths and Thomas Hörnfeldt emphasise the importance of moving towards a greener model to meet sustaibility targets - whether it’s whole-of-vehicle manufacturing or greening the global supply chain. Christopher Ludwig
Watch: Keeping pace with battery demand and technology Rising costs and fast-changing battery technology will make it hard to meet EV targets, but localisation and new business models can mitigate issues, according to Automotive Cells Company’s Francisco Carranza and Airbus’s Greg Ombach. Christopher Ludwig
Watch: Reinventing the wheel – Ree’s flexible EV architecture and modular production approach The Israeli startup is rolling out low-cost, flexible plants for its EV platforms based on drive-by-wire technology, according to COO Josh Tech. Christopher Ludwig
Watch: Value over volume – biggest is no longer best in vehicle manufacturing The global vehicle production outlook is murky, while rising costs and supply chain issues are changing manufacturers’ business model, according to analyst Joe McCabe from AutoForecast Solutions. Christopher Ludwig
Watch: Partnerships to establish the battery value chain Scania, Tata Consultancy Services and Recharge discuss supplier partnerships needed to ramp up EV battery cell and battery pack production. Christopher Ludwig
Watch: Scaling up battery cell production AMTE Power’s Kevin Brundish and Hexagon’s Ignazio Dentici discuss the challanges and opportunities in battery gigafactory development. Nick Holt
Watch: Partnering for power – working together to accelerate EV manufacturing Polestar’s Dennis Nobelius and Atlas Copco’s Lars Eklof discuss the ramp up in electric vehicle and battery production and call for collaboration across the industry. Christopher Ludwig
Watch: Tata Motors in an era of change Tata Motors Mohan Savarkar describes how manufacturers are adapting their end-to-end processes all whilst meeting aggressive sustainability goals. Nick Holt Christopher Ludwig
Watch: How ZF is empowering people in the transition to producing electrified powertrains ZF’s Arno Güllering reveals how the tier-1 is upskilling and motivating its workforce in the transition from producing ICE to electrified powertrains. Christopher Ludwig
Watch: Preparing BMW’s Plant Munich for a new class of EV manufacturing Plant Director Peter Weber demonstrates how BMW is revamping production in Munich ahead of a new EV architecture with a walk through the factory and interview as part of the AMS Automotive Evolution Summit. Christopher Ludwig
Every production challenge has a cloud solution at ZF Chief digital officer René Deist tells the AMS Evolution Summit how the global tier one supplier is using the cloud to transform manufacturing and better leverage data analytics and artificial intelligence AMS
Global powertrain and battery production forecast: ever-evolving complexity With diverging regulations, infrastructure, market trends and manufacturing bases, the path to EV and battery production will vary across regions, adding more variation for OEMs and suppliers. Ultima Media analyst Daniel Harrison shares the latest data on powertrain and battery forecasts AMS
Factory futures: networked, data-driven, flexibly automated Manufacturing experts share their vision for current and future automotive production technology, including leaders from Ford, Cognex, Symbio Robotics and Jay Global Techno Alliance AMS
End-to-end sustainability: accelerating to zero emissions and the circular economy Manufacturers are increasing efforts to reduce waste and to reuse and recycle material, including packaging and battery materials. In this session, executives from Magna, CSR Europe and Li-Cycle discuss initiatives in the circular economy and to reduce overall emissions AMS
Global outlook: the disruptive forces shaping automotive manufacturing Vehicle manufacturers are facing ongoing disruption in the supply chain, but at the same time must manage a paradigm shift in manufacturing and business models. AFS’s Joe McCabe shares the latest vehicle production forecasts AMS
End of conference: evolution and revolution At the end of the event, it’s clear that automotive manufacturing will see both incremental and radical change, and that the industry will need to work together to adapt AMS
It all adds up to zero – counting the ways to net carbon zero manufacturing Sustainability leaders from Audi and Lear explain how the companies are working across the value chain to decarbonise manufacturing AMS
Scaling battery pack production Increasing production of battery enclosures at scale will be essential to launching EVs in line with targets. ABB’s Patrick Matthews and Zeiss’s Paulo Cruz discuss automation and quality control opportunities. AMS
India’s manufacturing evolution: competitive, agile and frugal The country has been hit hard by the pandemic and disruption, but automotive manufacturing is roaring again and leaders from Mahindra, Switch Mobility and the Indian automotive supplier association, ACMA, explain what the industry needs to do to stay competitive AMS
Getting giga with it – ramping up battery cell production Manufacturers require huge investment and must carefully consider production locations and technology to build batteries at ‘giga scale’, reveal leaders from Italvolt, AMTE Power and Zeiss AMS
From assembly to modular production lines Automotive manufacturers need to manage more part variety and complexity than ever, which is why more are implementing autonomous logistics, cobots and other technology to support more flexible, modular concepts. Experts from ABB, Conductix-Wampler and Panasonic discuss the technology roadmap. AMS
Better than the real thing: digital factory simulations Increasing production of battery enclosures at scale will be essential to launching EVs in line with targets. ABB’s Patrick Matthews and Zeiss’s Paulo Cruz discuss automation and quality control opportunities. AMS
Electrifying heavy truck production at Scania Plant general manager Mathias Wijkström discusses the process, technology and planning considerations as Scania starts production of battery electric trucks AMS
Porsche’s smarter, greener paintshop Hear from leading paintshop experts at Porsche’s Leipzig plant on strategies for improving quality and reducing errors in paintshop, including new automation and processes to reduce overspray waste AMS
Day 1 wrap up: now that was electrifying! After the first half of the AMS Evolution Summit, it is clear that digitalisation, electrification and sustainability are converging in automotive production AMS
The evolution will be televised: welcome to the online AMS Summit The Automotive Manufacturing Evolution Summit is focused on accelerating partnerships across the industry as vehicle production is increasingly electrified, digitalised and sustainable AMS
