From the Sector

David Herberg, Vice President Engi-neering EMEA at automotive supplier Adient, has been named Rising Star 2022 in the Engineering category by Automotive News Europe magazine.

Every year since 2010, Automotive News Europe has recognized talents in the European automotive industry for their outstanding careers and special achievements in the service of their company and the industry as a whole. To be eligible, candidates must have a minimum of ten years’ experience in the industry, speak at least two languages and be aged 45 years or younger at the time of the nomination.

"The 19 people we are honoring this year are special," said Luca Ciferri, Associate Publisher & Editor of Automotive News Europe. "They’ve made it to the top from a pool of more than 130 candidates, making this year's selection process the most competitive in the history of the award."

Herberg, graduate industrial engineer and aged 45, looks back at a career spanning more than ten years at Adient, a leading supplier of seating systems for the automotive industry. After several years at the management consultancy McKinsey and various management positions at Adient as well as its predecessor Johnson Controls, Herberg has been responsible for around 1,200 employees in the development of seat structures, trim and complete seating systems since May 2020.

• Lectra contributes to Faurecia Seating Business Group Industry 4.0 readiness and “digital enterprise” transformation initiative

Paris, September 26, 2017 – Lectra, the world leader in integrated technology solutions dedicated to industries using fabrics, leather, technical textiles and composite materials, is pleased to announce the renewal of its partnership with Faurecia through the signing of a global agreement for its Seating Business Group.

The cutting process for the production of seat covers, headrests and interiors is an increasingly strategic part of Faurecia’s Seating activity. Faurecia Seating supplies vehicle complete seats, frames, mechanisms and trim covers to major carmakers worldwide, whose manufacturing processes are gradually evolving toward Industry 4.0.

Faurecia Seating aims to double the production of its existing manufacturing facilities by reinforcing operations with advanced manufacturing technologies. The company’s extended partnership with Lectra entails focusing on operational excellence initiatives across its automotive seating division.

Standardization of the Vector® fabric-cutting solution—endowed with preventive and predictive maintenance capabilities and the highest-performance cutting system available on the market to date—will be instrumental to the implementation of these initiatives throughout the division’s fabric cutting facilities. Faurecia currently has more than 60 Vector fabric cutting solutions in production worldwide.

“More than ever, we face major challenges in terms of flexibility, agility and productivity—producing more while reducing costs,” observes Hagen Wiesner, Executive Vice President, Faurecia Seating. “Our cutting processes have become strategic in reaching these goals. Faurecia’s ‘digital enterprise’ project aims to achieve operational excellence in virtually every aspect of our organization. Together with Lectra, we will make this a reality in the cutting room, with smart automation and predictive maintenance”.

“Given the profound transformations gripping manufacturing, helping our customers ready their operations for the Fourth Industrial Revolution has become without question our core mission,” remarks Daniel Harari, Lectra Chairman and CEO. “Faurecia is among the automotive suppliers at the forefront of this movement. Digital technologies and industry expertise are the business enablers that will allow manufacturers to connect inside and outside the value chain in the near future.”