Ricardo and SupplierBusiness collaborate
In a major report published today, experts from all parts of the Ricardo organisation have supported SupplierBusiness to provide a comprehensive overview of the emerging technologies that will shape the future of the auto industry through the next decade and beyond
The Automotive Technology Roadmap is a unique collaboration between automotive business publisher SupplierBusiness, part of the IHS Global Insight group, and Ricardo. The report sets out the key drivers of change within the auto industry and analyses the current framework of competition for customers in terms of parameters including product performance, safety, OEM corporate structure, cost base and ownership, and supply chain issues and economies of scale. The report goes on to examine each aspect of the vehicle in turn, including body structure, electrical and electronic control systems, passive and active safety systems, climate control, brakes, steering, suspension, wheels, chassis, driveline and transmission systems, advanced engine technologies, alternative fuels, hybrid systems, energy management and fuel cell vehicle systems. In each case, a comprehensive analysis of current state-of-the-art products is provided, together with the vision of the authors for the deployment of new technologies – including major potential disruptors – over a time horizon of approximately twenty years. For each section Ricardo specialists have contributed their own insights and reviewed and validated the information gathered from external sources by SupplierBusiness. As such, while there is naturally much detailed level information which must remain confidential to Ricardo, the report provides a rigorous and well-researched vision of the future development of automotive technology which will be of significant value to SupplierBusiness customers.
Ian Kershaw, managing director of Ricardo Strategic Consulting in Northern Europe, said: “We are pleased to have partnered SupplierBusiness in the preparation of the Automotive Technology Roadmap report. Running to well in excess of three hundred pages, this report provides perhaps the most thoroughgoing examination currently available in published form of the likely technological development of the automobile over the next twenty years. Within the limits of what Ricardo can publicly disclose while protecting our clients’ confidentiality, the comprehensive nature of the analysis provided is likely to be extremely useful those engaged at all levels within the global automotive industry, including investors.”
NOTES TO EDITORS:
Ricardo plc: With technical centres and offices in the UK, USA, Germany, the Czech Republic, China, Japan, India and Korea, Ricardo is a leading independent technology provider and strategic consultant to the world’s transportation sector industries. The company’s engineering expertise ranges from vehicle systems integration, controls, electronics and software development, to the latest driveline and transmission systems and gasoline, diesel, hybrid and fuel cell powertrain technologies. Its customers include the world’s major vehicle, engine and transmission manufacturers, tier 1 suppliers and leading motorsport teams. Ricardo is committed to excellence and industry leadership in people, technology and knowledge; approximately 70 per cent of its employees are highly qualified multi-disciplined professional engineers and technicians. A public company, Ricardo plc posted sales of £197.7 million in financial year 2008 and is a constituent of the FTSE techMark 100 index – a group of innovative technology companies listed on the London Stock Exchange. For more information, visit www.ricardo.com.
Media contact:
Anthony Smith
Ricardo Media Office
Tel: +44 (0)1273 382710
Fax: +44 (0)1273 880218
E-mail: media@ricardo.com
For further information on the SupplierBusiness Automotive Technology Roadmap report contact:
Sarah Graham
Marketing Manager
SupplierBusiness
Tel: +44 (0)1780 481712
Email: sarah.graham@supplierbusiness.com