BERLIN — Volkswagen Group’s chief procurement officer, Murat Aksel, is specializing in the formation of nearer partnerships and deeper cooperation with suppliers.
Aksel desires to contain them in new tasks at an early stage as he tries to cut back materials prices by 7 p.c by the top of this 12 months.
Aksel, who was appointed to VW’s high buying publish in early 2021, stated the automaker’s relationship with suppliers is being redefined by way of a distinct mind-set.
“We need to contain the suppliers a lot earlier. With the 100,000 or so engineers at our suppliers who work on our tasks alone, we type an enormous inventive pool of high engineers with our personal technical growth division, who contribute many revolutionary concepts,” he stated. “Why ought to we not make the most of that?”
Aksel stated the outdated customer-supplier relationship is a factor of the previous, and in the present day’s partnerships should be redefined by a lot nearer and deeper cooperation.
“Neither the suppliers nor we as a bunch will be capable of form the longer term efficiently on our personal; for that, we’d like all of the companions,” he stated in an interview with Automotive Information Europe sister publication Automobilwoche. “And that’s the reason we additionally must cope with them as companions.”
He pointed to VW’s Trinity challenge that’s growing a flagship electrical self-driving sedan as proof that this new method was already underway.
“We have now already organized a provider day within the fall of 2021, 5 years earlier than the deliberate begin of collection manufacturing. We invited lots of our key suppliers, but in addition potential new companions, confirmed them what we bear in mind, but in addition defined that the idea will not be but prepared,” he stated.
“And we known as on the suppliers to contribute their concepts. Now we’re transferring on to the person trades, the place we’ll talk about with the suppliers what they’ll contribute.”
Aksel stated buying would additionally play a vital function within the strategy of revolutionizing manufacturing practices on the new Wolfsburg plant the place the Trinity challenge shall be constructed.
“Take the concept of utilizing giant modules for the physique, which is at the moment being examined. The place do these modules come from? From the provider,” he stated. “That’s the place we are available. That’s the reason we’re already working very intently with growth.”
Aksel stated usually, this course of begins about three years earlier than the beginning of collection manufacturing, however with the Trinity challenge, VW is beginning 5 years prematurely.
He stated the purpose with the Trinity plant is to design, construct, and run an meeting facility that’s on par, if not much more environment friendly, than what Tesla has achieved with its gigafactories.
“If an organization that has solely been constructing automobiles for ten years can construct a state-of-the-art, environment friendly plant in Germany, simply two hours away from us, then we, as an automaker with many many years of expertise, will in all probability be capable of do the identical,” he stated. “I’m satisfied of that. Even when many individuals say the group is just too sluggish and too advanced, as soon as the tanker’s course is about, you’ll be able to see how a lot energy is behind it.”
Aksel stated previously, an unbelievable quantity of vitality was spent on additional lowering prices within the present collection, one thing he wish to refocus extra on the start of the collaboration with suppliers, in order that they don’t have to speculate loads of effort in additional negotiations later.
“Getting issues proper as soon as firstly after which having the ability to depend on it on either side is our purpose,” he stated. “We name this the ‘Finest Value at Begin of Manufacturing’ technique. There are powerful negotiations till you’re a provider with us. However as soon as you’re one, we’re dependable and long-lasting companions.”
He defined this technique first began in 2021 and can be applied for the primary time in tasks beginning in 2023. The primary VW model challenge the place VW is making use of this technique is the brand new Tiguan.
All these modifications are in movement as Aksel is meant to chop materials prices by 7 p.c by the top of 2022, regardless of exploding costs for uncooked supplies.
“These are solely the pure gross prices. Inflation and uncooked materials costs are working counter to this, after all,” he defined. “We can not compensate for that, and that was by no means the expectation. Nobody can handle seven p.c web.”
He added that the Group has agreed surcharges on materials prices with a few of their suppliers, and “after all” the group is paying them. “Anything can be irresponsible,” he stated. “Nonetheless, now we have managed to attain web financial savings as nicely.”
He stated for the transition interval of 2021 and 2022, by which the outdated contracts nonetheless apply, the group desires to leverage the potential they haven’t exploited previously. In laborious numbers, that’s 7 p.c, 3.5 p.c per 12 months.
“It is a stage that now we have already achieved in earlier years,” Aksel stated. “From 2023, we could have aggressive costs proper from the beginning.”
Carlos Tavares, CEO of VW rival Stellantis, has additionally stated suppliers must grow to be extra intently concerned with the transfer to electrification. Calling the prices “the gorilla within the room,” Tavares stated suppliers might want to bear among the burden of elevated prices.
Tavares stated 85 p.c of the worth of a automobile when it leaves the manufacturing facility is in exterior parts, “so there is no such thing as a shock that when you must take in 50 p.c of extra prices popping out of electrification, your suppliers must be a big contributor for this extra productiveness.”