Trade News

Seven years ago, Del Grande Dealer Group was as far away from digitized as possible. Daily sales numbers, old automaker statements, payroll, inventory reporting and pricing mechanisms for new and used cars were mostly compiled by hand, recalled CEO Jeremy Beaver.

"We felt like there were a lot of inefficiencies in data integration," Beaver told Automotive News. "It would take hours to calculate a spreadsheet and send it out to the organization."

Beaver hired Jagdish Rajan to help solve the problem. As Del Grande's first-ever chief technology officer, he was charged with modernizing how the group gathered and used its data to make daily operations and processes more efficient. That mission has succeeded on multiple levels, Beaver said, thanks to Rajan and his team's creation of what's known as a data lake — a virtual repository that holds massive amounts of data from multiple sources in the organization, which has stores across Northern California.

Using…

Automotive lidar technology, which uses lasers to map the driving environment, has been criticized for being too expensive to produce at scale for the self-driving vehicle sector. Many industry observers believe future iterations of the technology must have fewer moving parts and use smaller, solid-state lidar for widespread adoption. Lidar makers are developing products that move toward those goals, with self-trucking company Aurora Innovation one that's heading in that direction. In July, the Pittsburgh company said it integrated optical components of its proprietary lidar sensors onto a series of semiconductor chips and demonstrated their functionality. Integrating lidar technologies onto a chip now enables mass production of its sensors, Aurora said.

The transportation industry has been working for years to cut back on carbon emissions from gasoline-powered vehicles or eliminate them through electrification. Michigan startup Remora has a different solution: capturing emissions emitted by semi-trucks as they are driven. The company developed a retrofitting technology it says captures the carbon dioxide emitted from a truck's exhaust, preventing it from entering the atmosphere. That carbon can then be turned back into diesel use to power the truck via a system powered only by renewable energy, creating a circular solution preventing more CO2 from entering the atmosphere.

Automakers and suppliers are hunting for greener versions of basic materials that go into their vehicles and parts. Many basic materials have remained the same for decades, but a new determination to improve its environmental impact is spurring the industry to make changes in the way future vehicles are built. In November, Forvia, the world's seventh-largest parts maker, launched Materi'act — a brand dedicated to developing and manufacturing sustainable materials such as bio-based foils, low-CO2 carbon fibers and "green steel" that emits less carbon in production. Continental, meanwhile, has launched several green surface materials in recent years, including Xpreshn. The supplier says Xpreshn can line car doors and instrument panels and be made with green or recycled materials. Steelmakers are also moving toward the production of green steel.

Now that automatic emergency braking is becoming a common safety feature across the industry, the next shoe to drop is likely to be automatic emergency steering. Several automakers and suppliers are developing the technology, in which vehicle sensors and artificial intelligence detect an impending collision that can't be avoided by only braking. In response, a smart steering system takes control of the wheel to reposition the vehicle to avoid or reduce the impact. According to Nexteer Automotive, the feature will be a natural outgrowth of electronically controlled steer by wire once manufacturers adopt that technology in future autos.

For years, automakers, suppliers and technology companies have been creating more software-driven and high-tech vehicle cockpits. And the results today are cabin environments that are highly technical and complex. But many companies are looking to simplify what the industry has done. Diverse technologies won't go away in next-generation vehicles — but how drivers and passengers interact with them will be simpler and less distracting, many believe. New digital cockpits, likely fitted with pillar-to-pillar touchscreens, will integrate entertainment, vehicle data and comfort features through software and artificial intelligence. One small glimpse into what's coming: German electronics supplier Preh has rolled out a physical, rotary knob that adheres to digital touchscreens as a way to make multifeature cockpits easier to navigate.

he frenzy to produce and sell more electric vehicles is haunted by the image of an EV battery on fire. But engineers at Teijin Auto-motive, the Detroit supplier of materials, battery enclosures and pickup boxes, have managed to produce an advanced flame-retardant material that should ease consumer and automaker worries about such fires. Called phenolic, the material is better known in the aerospace industry, but Teijin has redeveloped it for use in autos. That task included altering its chemical composition and rendering the material odor-neutral. The company plans to quickly get phenolic into prod-uction globally to create battery enclosures that do not go up in flames.

Bicycle detection systems are beginning to catch on in new vehicles — and could soon be a standard safety feature. Volvo's new EX30 electric crossover comes standard with the equipment, which gives occupants visual and audio cues if they are about to throw open a door in front of an oncoming bicyclist or pedestrian. Cadillac also began offering a side bicyclist alert system, which indicates when it might be unsafe to change lanes or open a door, according to the brand's website. If safety advocates have their way, the technology could soon become more commonplace as they urge federal regulators to include bike detection in proposed rules on automatic emergency braking.

The goal of a truly autonomous supply chain is moving closer to reality at international shipping giant Maersk.

In a recent interview with Danish newspaper Børsen, Maersk CTO Navneet Kapoor said the goal is to create a supply chain of “zero touch logistics.”

”It’s not just hopeful thinking. We believe it’s possible to digitize almost the entire supply chain. It takes time, but we are working on an AI engine. When it becomes fully functional, it will be possible to integrate data automatically, and that’s where the magic happens,” he said.

Kapoor estimated that Maersk is using artificial intelligence for as much as 20% of its logistics tasks with hopes that it reaches between 70% and 80% within seven years.

The comments were translated into English by Shipping Watch.

Maersk’s ambitions have been well-known, and company leaders have discussed the important role AI can play in logistics moving forward.

In May, Silvia La Face, digital cu…

Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama plans to invest $290 million to enhance U.S. production of crossovers.

Hyundai designated $190 million for tooling and equipment upgrades to prepare for production of the fifth-generation Santa Fe.

"Today, the legacy of the Santa Fe continues with HMMA investing $190 million to prepare our assembly plant for the next generation of this popular SUV," Ernie Kim, the plant's CEO, said in a statement. "An additional $100 million will be invested to support ongoing production of the Tucson SUV and Santa Cruz Sport Adventure Vehicle."

The plant in Montgomery began assembling the Santa Fe in 2006. This will be its first full redesign since 2018.

The 2024 Santa Fe will feature a bolder exterior design, enlarged tailgate and cabin, a more refined interior with sustainable materials, and a variety of high-tech features including a 12.3-inch panoramic curved display.

When assembly begins this year, the updated San…

United States Steel Corp. said on Thursday that its labor agreement with the United Steelworkers does not afford the union the right to veto a sale of the company that may arise from its recently announced strategic review.

U.S. Steel's statement came after USW said this week it would only back Cleveland-Cliffs Inc. as a suitor for the company. The union said that "over the years, Cliffs has shown itself to be an outstanding employer to all of its workers."

Both U.S. Steel and Cliffs are major suppliers to North American automakers.

U.S. Steel, which rejected Cliffs' $7.3 billion cash-and-stock offer as inadequate, has said it is exploring "multiple unsolicited proposals". It has attracted a $7.8 billion all-cash offer from Esmark Inc. and as well as potential acquisition interest from ArcelorMittal, another key auto industry supplier.

In a regulatory filing, U.S. Steel said its agreement with the union gives the latter the right to counter with…