Trends

Automotive Technology Accelerating Faster Than Ever

We may have reached the point where the potential that modern technology makes available to automotive manufacturers is outpacing OEMs’ and suppliers’ ability to adapt and adopt. Cars that talk to us. Cars that can listen to us. Cars that can self-diagnose. Even cars that can drive themselves.

The ability to access, mine, understand and visualize literally hundreds of thousands of data points that the modern automobile processes each second has actually never been easier.

Technology is in overdrive…and not slowing down anytime soon. As cars begin to have brains, ears, eyes and voices quicker than anyone imagined, OEMs, retailers, the aftermarket and suppliers are struggling to understand if their current IT processes, solutions and systems are equipped to keep pace.

But is promise outpacing practicality? The ability to access, mine, understand and visualize literally hundreds of thousands of data points that the modern automobile processes each second has actually never been easier. Modernizing systems, technology and processes to harvest this abundance of intelligence and insights is the next great leap forward for carmakers, tier suppliers, retailers, service centers and the aftermarket.

Diagnose. Decipher. Deliver.

How does the automotive industry bridge the chasm from mere data to actionable intelligence? It’s all in an organization’s ability to visualize the vital metrics that drive systemic innovation and efficiency.

Sophisticated systems like the custom-developed Insights platform provide service technicians and other automotive outfits access to a virtually limitless library of resources that was heretofore cumbersome and difficult to mine in an efficient way.

The caption!

Our team works closely with Chrysler’s staff to produce the best solutions possible.

Double Check, a custom app developed from the ground up and deployed for Chrysler service engineers, allows users to improve the service and diagnostic content they rely on to service vehicles more efficiently, even allowing them to collaborate and work on content quality in a “wiki”-type environment.

Eschewing paper manuals (and even online libraries that simply store information), the system not only has the ability to predict what assets a given service technician will need, based on diagnostics that are becoming increasingly automated, but to directly deliver those assets in intuitive ways that inject efficiency and precision into a service process that grows more and more complicated as our cars get smarter and more autonomous.

Moving forward, usage data is being monitored to understand which assets are the most utilized, which are in need of updating or upgrading, and which are becoming obsolete. It’s a system that learns and thinks, as much as it teaches.

Connecting the Dots

In the seeming blink of an eye, the world has moved from online to on-demand. It is no longer enough to simply provide access to data and information online; users in the automotive manufacturing and aftermarket space demand information be served up…in the time, device and manner of their choosing.

Whether it be via networked computers, laptops, tablets, or mobile devices, the integration of multiple, disparate systems and devices is critical.

All races have winners…and runners-up. Technology has never been moving faster, advancing further or unlocking bigger ideas. Are you leading, or lagging?

The Cloud reigns. How every interested stakeholder accesses the same data will vary from OEM to supplier, from manufacture to dealer, from service to sales, from retail to aftermarket, from storefront to e-commerce. Each has their own preferences, benchmarks and drivers as to why they’ll need those assets and how they will leverage them. Integrating the proper technology to transcend device and delivery converts disconnected data into the currency of intelligence.

All races have winners…and runners-up. Technology has never been moving faster, advancing further or unlocking bigger ideas. Are you leading, or lagging?

Simply understanding what’s possible — and what’s priority — can move an automotive company from placing to pole position. That’s why we always begin engagements by first understanding the problem and discovering the potential.

Because how you finish is determined by where you start.

Building a Culture of Innovation

How to Remove the Two Most Common Barriers to Innovation and Invention By Paul Tibbert, CEO of GRID If you were to ask most senior leaders and members of the C-suite at corporations large and small whether they wanted their companies to innovate, you’d likely get a resounding affirmative in response. Yet, in survey after survey, like this one conducted…

Read more

Feast Nor Famine

A Better Way to Manage Projects, Develop Teams, and Nurture Expertise By Paul Tibbert, CEO of GRID Hurry up and wait. Feast or famine. All or nothing. I doubt that many would advocate an on/off approach to resource allocation in the business world. However, the recent turn of a new calendar year brought with it a surprising number of conversations…

Read more

When a Complex Problem Requires a Simple Solution

How to Avoid Over-Engineering (and Overspending) to Take a Path of Lesser Resistance By Paul Tibbert, CEO of GRID Dr. Spencer Silver, a 3M scientist working in a laboratory, didn’t set out to invent the Post-It Note. But when his colleague, Art Fry (another 3M scientist), discovered a practical application for a solution Silver had stumbled upon by mistake, a…

Read more
Copyright 2017, Grid LLC Technology + Design