Latest automotive interviews

Faurecia Seating on Connected, Autonomous, Shared and Electrified

14 Jun 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Seats account for five per cent of a vehicle’s total cost and six per cent of its weight. As a result, they represent the second largest expense for automakers. Faurecia Seating is a leader in the design, development and manufacture of automotive seating. Continuing just-auto/QUBE’s series of interviews with tier 1 suppliers, we spoke to Nik Endrud, Vice President Strategy and Innovation at Faurecia Seating.

YFAI on auto interior surfaces, natural fibres and personalisation functions

6 Jun 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Yanfeng Automotive Interiors (YFAI), a joint venture between Yanfeng and Adient, is a pioneer in the development of new materials for vehicle interiors. With its activeSkin concept, for example, the company presents a vision of integrating intuitive controls into vehicle interiors, which blur the boundaries between the digital and analogue worlds. This new development concept enables the display of data on soft surfaces. YFAI expects that functional and decorative surfaces in vehicle interiors will increasingly merge in the future. To find out more about this trend and other innovations, we spoke to Volkhard Wick, Executive Director, Innovation and Product Management Europe & South Africa at YFAI.

IAC on upscaling interiors and automated driving

5 Jun 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Designers are continually reinventing the interior to appeal to occupants of all shapes, sizes, ages, and cultures.  Continuing just-auto/QUBE’s series of interviews with tier 1 suppliers, we spoke to Mike Clowry, Vice President Advanced Development & Materials Engineering, Europe, International Automotive Components (IAC) Group about the continually evolving car interior as we move closer to the age of autonomous driving. Headquartered in Luxembourg, IAC Group is a global supplier of automotive components and systems, including instrument panels, console systems, door panels, headliners and overhead systems to automakers around the world.

EVs to drive demand for steel, says Tata Steel

4 Jun 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Increasing demand for ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEV) will drive growth in steel supply to the European automotive industry by 4.2 million tonnes, according to a study by Tata Steel. The study predicts production of steel for vehicle structure will see a sharp increase if all new vehicles are to have zero emissions by 2050. To find out why steel will be more relevant to the automotive industry than it is today, we spoke to Paul Cremers, Marketing Manager Chassis and Suspension, Tata Steel.

Continental Powertrain on electric mobility, challenges and solutions

1 Jun 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Continental generated sales of some €44 billion last year, up 8 percent on 2016. One driver of growth is clean-air technology, which includes hybrid and electric drive systems, more efficient combustion engines, and systems for cleaner emissions. The supplier forecasts that 110 million vehicles will be manufactured in 2025 worldwide. About one in ten of those vehicles will be all electric and one in four will be a hybrid. And by that time, one in five will feature drive solutions from Continental. To learn more, we caught up with Nirad Pandya, Head of Strategy, Marketing and Communications Head of E-Mobility Programs, Engine Systems Business Unit, Powertrain Division, Continental Automotive.

Covestro on polycarbonate solutions for mobility concepts

31 May 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Covestro AG (which emerged from Bayer MaterialScience AG in 2015) brings new high-tech materials from the product areas of polycarbonates, polyurethanes, coatings and films into play. Continuing just-auto/QUBE’s series of interviews, we spoke to Ciro Piermatteo, Global Technical Marketing Mobility and Christoph Klinkenberg, Global Technical Marketing Mobility Exterior, Covestro about the application of polycarbonates for future mobility concepts.

Gentex on connectivity, biometrics and digital rear vision technologies

30 May 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Gentex Corporation is about more than just dimmable mirror systems. It has developed an array of connected car features, digital rear vision systems, biometric-based vehicle security, in-vehicle payments with Visa, and other emerging automotive features ready for commercialisation. To find out more, we caught up with Craig L. Piersma, Director of Marketing, Gentex Corp.

ZF on tomorrow’s occupant safety systems

29 May 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Continuing just-auto/QUBE’s series of interviews with tier 1 suppliers, we caught up with András Tóth, Vice President Product Planning & Strategy, Global Occupant Safety Systems, ZF Active and Passive Safety Technology Division. Here, we learn about how ZF is pushing back the technical boundaries of airbags and preparing passive safety systems for autonomous vehicles.

INTERVIEW - Ford Europe boss promotes safe cycling

25 May 2018 | Chris Wright

Steven Armstrong might be a car company chief but he thinks nothing of riding his bike for 300kms or 400kms around Europe or 1,000kms over the Andes in South America.

KYB is riding high on active suspension technologies

23 May 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Continuing just-auto/QUBE’s series of interviews with Tier 1 component suppliers, we spoke to Mike Howarth, Vice President, KYB Europe about recent damper innovations, active suspension systems and the European market for shock absorbers.

Yokohama expands European customer base

23 May 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Continuing just-auto/QUBE’s series of interviews with tyre makers, we spoke to Tetsuo Ikegami, Manager, Yokohama Rubber about the trends in the European tyre market, new products and smart tyres. A spokesman for Yokohama also contributed to this Q&A.

ZF’s vision of steering systems in AVs

21 May 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Although autonomous vehicles (AVs) are on the horizon, steering wheels will be fitted as standard to new cars for a while yet. Continuing just-auto/QUBE’s series of interviews with global automotive component suppliers, we spoke to Thilo Bitzer, Senior Vice President, Steering Engineering, ZF Active and Passive Safety Division, about steering systems for AVs as well as active front steering and dual-pinion electric power steering systems.

Designing transmissions for autonomous vehicles

18 May 2018 | Matthew Beecham

The lack of a driver in an autonomous vehicle (AV) re-writes the rules on many aspects of vehicle design, including the powertrain and driveline. Continuing just-auto/QUBE’s series of interviews, we asked Lee Sykes of powertrain engineering consultancy, Drive System Design, what the future might bring.

VW’s vision of car interiors – a mobile living space without a steering wheel

14 May 2018 | Matthew Beecham

In today’s car interior, space in front of the wheel remains a priority with the explosion of added content and features. In tomorrow’s self-driving car, space behind will be transformed into a comfortably designed control and entertainment centre. Continuing just-auto/QUBE’s series of interviews with OEMs, we spoke to Klaus Bischoff, Head of Design Volkswagen Brand to learn more about I.D. VIZZION, consumers’ desire for individuality, new mobility concepts and the implications for automotive interiors.

Interview - Avtovaz Renault Nissan Purchasing Organisation

2 May 2018 | Simon Warburton

Avtovaz Renault Nissan Purchasing Organisation's (ARNPO) scale in Russia is quite staggering in a country which specialises in the colossal and the gigantic. ARNPO Alliance localisation director, Denis Chirkov outlined some of the issues in this challenging country, but which is coming back strongly after years of recession at the recent Russian Automotive Forum organised by Adam Smith Conferences in Moscow.

Interview - VW Group Rus purchasing director Patrick Huseman

2 May 2018 | Simon Warburton

Volkswagen Group Rus says it has learned from the crisis years not to rely too heavily on imported components as a weak rouble made imports uncompetitive.

OEMs evaluate driving simulators as AVs loom on the horizon

25 Apr 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Modern driving simulators are delivering some unprecedented levels of realism and can extend the role of the simulator in areas of vehicle dynamics and ADAS development but, to ensure that a simulator will deliver on its promises, OEMs must take a rigorous approach to evaluation. We spoke to Dr Adrian Simms, Business Director (Laboratory Test Systems) at AB Dynamics about how to assess a simulator effectively.

Interview - Turkey ripe for major development - ODD

24 Apr 2018 | Simon Warburton

Those robust enough to venture out onto Istanbul's choked roads might react with some incredulity to suggestions car penetration rates could rise substantially, but it's important to take Turkey's business and cultural capital as a one-off and not representative of the country as a whole.

Harman on the Mercedes-Benz User Experience

24 Apr 2018 | Matthew Beecham

Most carmakers are working on ways in which to weave in some level of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and voice assistance into their model range. The Mercedes-Benz new A-Class incorporates the Mercedes-Benz User Experience (MBUX), the carmaker's latest interactive telematics platform. This intelligent, voice-controlled infotainment system - co-developed with Samsung-Harman - is characterised by its ability to learn using AI. To learn more, we caught up with Harman’s Senior Vice-President of Operations Daimler, Connected Car Division, Gerhard Nuessle. In this interview, he explains the intricacies of the MBUX system and why he believes it will revolutionise the UX.

Interview - Turkish Automotive Suppliers Association - Taysad

23 Apr 2018 | Simon Warburton

Turkey today stands at something of a crossroads both literally and metaphorically as this enormous country of 80m people – whose average age is just 30 – looks to leverage its attraction as a manufacturing powerhouse and availability of a significant labour pool. Just-Auto Business Editor, Simon Warburton visited the Turkish Automotive Suppliers Association, Taysad in Istanbul to take the temperature of the country's most important manufacturing sector.