It refers to both perceived quality (the aesthetics of parts, the comfort felt in vehicles...), compliance with various technical and regulatory specifications (particularly in terms of safety), execution performance, but also the overall relationship with the customer and consideration of their general satisfaction throughout the lifecycle of the developed products. More than a function, it is a culture of "zero-defect" that involves discipline, daily rigor but also creativity, common sense, and transparency. A daily challenge, as the automobile undergoes its greatest transformation since the invention of the internal combustion engine.

Quality: a fundamental differentiator in our industry

One might think that, for an automotive equipment supplier like FORVIA, only technological innovation allows it to stand out to its OEM clients. However, quality remains a key differentiator in our industry. First, because it is an area (if not the only one) that each player in the sector can still fully control within their scope of action. Then, because the car product is improving and thus becoming more complex - maintaining a uniform level of quality throughout the production process is a real challenge. Finally, because this quality imperative concerns the entire lifespan of the vehicle, far beyond just its manufacture.

For an equipment supplier, this first involves understanding and knowing how to translate the client's requirements into a good product design, that is, a technical design of parts and manufacturing processes that perfectly meets the OEM's standards and expectations in terms of perceived quality – sometimes integrating, for the same part (and without affecting securities or solidity attributes), two levels of aesthetic finishes depending on the range of vehicles developed by the OEMs. And all this, from the first try! Hence the need to rely, from the innovation phase, on a solid foundation of standards from which developments will be made.

It also involves building a robust industrialization process using standards and simulation, to succeed in the crucial phase of launching mass production – a pivotal moment in our industry where Quality processes take on their full meaning. The challenge is then to succeed in manufacturing hundreds of thousands of parts each day over time, with a minimum of waste (defective parts as well as technical waste) to reduce our environmental impact and costs, in sites with very diverse specialties. This requires in-depth expertise in engineering and logistics, as well as rigorous application of all procedures, both internally and with our suppliers.

Achieving excellence in quality finally involves following the product throughout its life, through an in-depth customer relationship that allows problems to be resolved as soon as they are detected. At FORVIA, we have thus developed the 5Star application, to get direct and almost immediate feedback from our clients throughout the program's lifecycle.

Quality processes becoming more complex, at the heart of the automobile's transformation

The automotive industry has always had to meet major safety requirements, and not meeting a certain level of quality can potentially have very serious consequences for vehicle passengers. Hence the need to integrate, in quality management, the risk analysis of products and processes to ensure the reliability and safety of manufactured vehicles. For example, some Quality processes in our Seating activity are specifically dedicated to ensuring the occupant's integrity by respecting biomechanical constraints in the event of an accident.

Facing the imperative to accelerate the decarbonization of mobility, new environmental standards are now being added, requiring the reinvention of certain industrial processes while maintaining our Quality standards. At a time when bio-sourced and recycled materials are being integrated into the manufacture of parts, it is necessary to find the right formulations to design low-carbon materials as efficient as existing materials, in terms of visual and tactile quality as well as resistance to temperature or shocks, which are subject to meticulous specifications in the requirements. The challenge is to absorb the variability linked to these new materials through manufacturing processes that maintain consistent product quality: a matter, once again, of rigor and unwavering demand.

Increased connectivity, with the electrification of vehicles and new consumer expectations, is another factor complicating the equation. As electronics take an ever-greater role in cars, to the point where the notion of Software Defined Vehicle (SDV) is now prominent, it brings new complexity and challenges: potential bugs and the need for updates throughout the product's use. For an automotive equipment manufacturer aiming for quality excellence, this means being able to align the launch of new versions of its mechanical systems ("hardware") with that of new versions of software architectures ("software"): a real challenge, across the entire automotive chain. (To know more about the impacts of connected cars on our industry, read our latest article here.)

It is because all these sometimes-opposing forces act simultaneously on the industrial tool that the automotive industry is one of the most regulated in the world and that the level of quality is so difficult to maintain. Hence the need for constant discipline and a quest for continuous improvement, supported by the constant development of the skills of our Quality teams and all people at FORVIA.

A challenge of speed and competitiveness

With the arrival of new manufacturers, particularly Asian ones, the development times of automotive programs have been considerably reduced, from 3 to 4 years to less than 18 months for some current vehicles. These shortened deadlines are a major challenge for our Quality processes as they put the entire system under tension and mechanically result in much shorter process development times. They also require gaining speed in detecting, occurring errors, and implementing appropriate corrective measures, to the point of being able to anticipate defects before they even occur.

To meet this speed challenge, inseparable from the competitiveness of our industries, it is essential to be clear about our fundamentals and extremely rigorous in applying our rules and standards. These internal execution processes are often proprietary know-how of automotive industry players. At FORVIA, they are grouped in the FORVIA Excellence System: this comprehensive operational excellence system offers a 360-degree approach and integrates our best industrial processes and practices, coupled with our sustainable development requirements and digitalization projects.

This is indeed key to maintaining a high level of execution quality in this acceleration context. Hence the massive use, in factories, of digital assistance tools such as the use of thermal imaging, in FORVIA Interiors factories, when parts come out of the mold to detect possible deformations due to a cooling defect. Or the cross-referencing of data captured on interconnected machines from one country to another, to identify the "influential" parameters of a process and avoid defects at the production line level.

The generalized integration of artificial intelligence, throughout the value chain, should allow us to take a new step, helping us evolve towards proactive quality management. Thanks to the use of GenAI, engineering teams will be able to simulate product design to predict quality.

These advances are decisive in meeting the speed imperative and thus remaining competitive, at a time when new electronics players are disrupting our habits, challenging our methods, and disrupting our processes. Because quality remains a "must-have" and the automotive industry is undergoing the greatest transformation in its history in a very short time, we have no choice but to anticipate our risks as much as possible, reduce our variability, and improve the reliability of our execution processes.

Thus goes our Industry, in constant search of optimization.