Global uncertainties and the pandemic like COVID-19, are resulting in technological advancements with new operational challenges and opportunities for the automotive sector. The automotive industry is no longer a stranger to technological disruption. Digital transformation is increasingly changing the automotive industry. Consumers are becoming more demanding when it comes to gaining access to digitization in the automotive industry. Automotive players are adopting digital technologies across their processes of product design, production, procurement, supply chain and sales and marketing. Companies in the automotive industry are transforming to meet customer demands and are going digital. Many automotive companies have gradually enhanced their digital capabilities by re-organizing their business units and task forces. While many others are forming, acquiring and partnering joint ventures to create a resilient business.
To quote a few examples of increasing usage of digitization in the automotive industry includes,
- BMW’s plant in Munich, Germany is increasing the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to integrate various production processes combined with smart data analytics to enhance the efficiency in vehicle production. It helps in identifying recurring patterns in the production process. It is based on real-time data that helps in gaining a clearer picture of the manufacturing process.
- Mercedes Benz has partnered with Circulor for blockchain to track climate change gases and the amount of secondary material across the supply chain of batteries.
- Cisco has partnered to demonstrate seamless and secure sharing of high-volume data by autonomous fleets in a cost-effective way.
The enterprise digital transformation follows the trends on digital and data-driven operations enhancing planning capabilities of the companies. The digital transformation of the automotive industry is also synchronized with automatic brakes, autonomous driving, shared mobility and electrification. The adoption and innovative usage of digital technologies is leading the business beyond the product itself. The top enterprise digital transformation in automotive industry are discussed below,
- Connectivity:
Connectivity is a necessity demanded by consumers. Vehicle managers are striving for building vehicles with apps, music and social media accounts to keep up the ability of their businesses while driving. Manufacturers have realised that it is difficult to sell or market your cars without connectivity features.
- Personalised Consumer Experience
The personalised consumer experience will allow for more transparency in the supply chain and lower costs of production. It will help the vehicle manufacturing units to speed up the processes of design, manufacturing and delivery. The direct feedback will improve the performance and production of vehicles overcoming the obstacles in building small factories.
- IoT Connectivity Tools
The enterprise digital transformation with this solution provides data on vehicle performance, risks of potential failure and predictive improvements of more than 30% in maintenance uptime. The technology eliminates the need for guesswork. It notifies the driver about the service or necessary maintenance to avoid failure or accidents.
- Data Security
The automotive industry is the second-most data-driven industry. Smart and newly launched cars collect data/feedback on traffic patterns, frequent destinations, drivers and much more. The data is useful for communicating and engaging drivers to understand their needs better. To protect the driver information, manufacturers are looking for better advancements in data security and protection.
- Digital Transformation in Vehicle Manufacturing Industry
2020 was another exciting year of challenges and opportunities that took the world several steps closer to a digitally advanced future. However, the automotive industry is changing for good. Iot, Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain and other digital technologies are already making an impact in the automotive industry. With a few cars on display, video digital screens are used to display information about the cars.
Conclusion
The enterprise digital transformation in the automotive industry is facing a paradigm shift. The data-driven operations across the business, including, production, manufacturing, supply chain, sales and marketing and after-sales services are showing a remarkable impact. The industry needs to accelerate digital enterprise management with a clear focus on integrated systems solutions and data analytics and management to create value from data. There are several technologies, such as automation, advanced robotics, machine vision, IoT, data management and analytics that will enhance operations across the value chain. The pressure to digitize creates the need for automotive industries to collaborate with technology solution providers. The courses offered by IIM Udaipur in Digital Enterprise Management provides a thorough grounding in developing managerial skills and perspectives on decision making and innovation in the digital world.
