This monograph adresses the challenge of the environmental assessment of leightweight electric vehicles. It poses the question whether the use of lightweight materials in electric vehicles can reduce the vehicles' environmental impact and compares the environmental performance of a lightweight electric vehicle (LEV) to other types of vehicles. The topical approach focuses on methods from life cycle assessment (LCA), and the book concludes with a comprehensive concept on the environmental assessment of LEVs. The target audience primarily comprises LCA practitioners from research institutes and industry, but it may also be beneficial for graduate students specializing in the field of environmental assessment.

In this insider guide, former Harley-Davidson executive Dantar Oosterwal offers an exclusive look at how Harley-Davidson was able to adapt in an ever-changing world to stay on top and stay in existence. From near-extinction in the early eighties, Harley-Davidson rose to worldwide recognition and is still today one of the great, iconic American motorcycle brands. In this insider guide, former Harley-Davidson executive Dantar Oosterwal offers an exclusive look at how Harley-Davidson was able to adapt in an ever-changing world to stay on top and stay in existence In The Lean Machine, you will learn about their secret weapon and go-to formula for outstanding success as well as: the day-to-day transformation at Harley-Davidson their adapted Knowledge-Based Product Development identifies universal change and improvement issues so that any company can incorporate this Rooted in Japanese productivity improvement techniques, the Knowledge-Based Product Development method helped Harley realize an unprecedented fourfold increase in throughput in half the time--powering annual growth of more than ten percent. The Lean Machine is part business journal, part analysis, and part step-by-step toolkit that will help companies in all industries achieve predictably excellent results.

This is the first book on the global auto industry viewed through the lens of technology. It starts by tracing how innovation shaped the first century of its history, then it examines the industry's shifting footprint in Europe and North America, and the rise of new producers, particularly China. Succeeding chapters emphasize the role of suppliers in what is now a high-tech industry. This book describes new forms of collaboration that challenge traditional supply chain relations, analyzing regulation as a driver of innovation, and the enabling role of the materials science revolution, such as the shift of steel from a commodity to a highly engineered product. It covers innovations in management, from computer-aided engineering, roadmapping, and just-in-time methods to the evolving role of workers and public policy. The authors finish with an overview of electric vehicles, shared mobility, and autonomous vehicles, concluding that they will not prove disruptive.

This monograph adresses the challenge of the environmental assessment of leightweight electric vehicles. It poses the question whether the use of lightweight materials in electric vehicles can reduce the vehicles' environmental impact and compares the environmental performance of a lightweight electric vehicle (LEV) to other types of vehicles. The topical approach focuses on methods from life cycle assessment (LCA), and the book concludes with a comprehensive concept on the environmental assessment of LEVs. The target audience primarily comprises LCA practitioners from research institutes and industry, but it may also be beneficial for graduate students specializing in the field of environmental assessment.

In mid-2015, Volkswagen proudly reached its goal of surpassing Toyota as the world's largest automaker. A few months later, the EPA disclosed that Volkswagen had installed software in 11 million cars that deceived emissions-testing mechanisms. By early 2017, VW had settled with American regulators and car owners for $20 billion, with additional lawsuits still looming. In Faster, Higher, Farther, Jack Ewing rips the lid off the conspiracy. He describes VW's rise from "the people's car" during the Nazi era to one of Germany's most prestigious and important global brands, touted for being "green." He paints vivid portraits of Volkswagen chairman Ferdinand Piech and chief executive Martin Winterkorn, arguing that the corporate culture they fostered drove employees, working feverishly in pursuit of impossible sales targets, to illegal methods. Unable to build cars that could meet emissions standards in the United States honestly, engineers were left with no choice but to cheat. Volkswagen then compounded the fraud by spending millions marketing "clean diesel," only to have the lie exposed by a handful of researchers on a shoestring budget, resulting in a guilty plea to criminal charges in a landmark Department of Justice case. Faster, Higher, Farther reveals how the succeed-at-all-costs mentality prevalent in modern boardrooms led to one of corporate history's farthest-reaching cases of fraud-with potentially devastating consequences.

This book focuses on the small car segment of India's automotive industry to explain the emergence of lead markets. The authors contend that the current understanding of lead markets does not sufficiently explain the business practices that are born out of the intensified globalization of innovation. Lead markets are considered crucial for the global diffusion of new products and this book investigates whether sustainable lead markets can also emerge in developing economies, and if so, under which conditions. The authors question the conventional wisdom and propose updates and extensions to the lead market theory to better reflect the changing ground realities on ground.

This book, in contrast with previous research and popular discussions that focus on the productivity of workers, identifies the critical influence of supervisors and engineers as key drivers of productivity differentials. To do so, it analyzes productivity at a Japanese car component plant and its three offshoot plants located in the United States, Thailand, and China and how productivity evolved at these plants from the mid-1990s to the early 2010s. The author's participatory observation approach reveals that productivity and work practices converged to a limited degree over the years at all four plants. Particularly influential are the persistent differences at these plants in the extent to which workers learn how to combine and integrate their production skills with troubleshooting skills. Supervisors play a key role in developing this integration in Japan, while worker skills remain separated in the other countries. Integrated skill development is promoted in Japan through the trusting relationships that first-line supervisors enjoy with their workforce. In the plants abroad, in contrast, the persistence of workers' control over their individual skill development and careers impedes the development of integrated skills. Manufacturing engineers at the Japanese mother plant also play key linking roles, thereby enhancing communications and problem-solving on the shop floor, whereas manufacturing engineers at the US, Thai, and Chinese plants play more limited and compartmentalized roles. As a result, productivity remains high in Japan and lags in the other plants. Surprisingly, Japanese managers remain reluctant to introduce these more productive work practices in the offshoot plants.

This book introduces the issues and problems that arise when implementing smart energy management for sustainable manufacturing in the automotive manufacturing industry and the analytical tools and applications to deal with them. It uses a number of illustrative examples to explain energy management in automotive manufacturing, which involves most types of manufacturing technology and various levels of energy consumption. It demonstrates how analytical tools can help improve energy management processes, including forecasting, consumption, and performance analysis, emerging new technology identification as well as investment decisions for establishing smart energy consumption practices. It also details practical energy management systems, making it a valuable resource for professionals involved in real energy management processes, and allowing readers to implement the procedures and applications presented.

The application of systems theory to today's businesses is a direct result of the enhancements that stem from globalization. In order to remain competitive in the new global environment, companies must alter their managerial methods and strategies. Systemic Approaches to Strategic Management: Examples from the Automotive Industry addresses the issues that industrial companies face in the current era of globalization and how the application of systems theory has affected their performance. Highlighting issues such as theoretical approaches of systems theory, production strategies, and organizational structure, this book is a pivotal reference source for practitioners, students, engineers, technicians, business managers, and economists interested in systems theory application in the management of industrial companies.