From the Sector

Adient, a leader in automotive seating, has presented its latest innovations at the IAA 2023.
 
The current automotive business landscape is marked by shifting industry dynamics, showcasing a strong desire for mobility, with an emphasis on digitalization, cost, and sustainable products. In line with this, Adient’s overall approach is characterized by responding to the need for more sustainable material use, while taking advantage of the potential that sustainable practices hold for streamlining processes.

Responding to the need for overall cost and complexity reduction in manufacturing, the Pure Essential seat is especially lightweight. Environmentally-conscious practices such as material separation and recycling, and design for disassembly are embedded into the manufacturing process from the development stage. The visionary seat consists of two materials only – green steel and recyclable polyester (PET).
 
New customer needs in terms of premium comfort are met with the Autonomous Elegance seat, specifically developed to fit Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). State-of-the-art findings on ergonomics and human body kinematics have been incorporated following extensive occupant research. They are complemented by advanced comfort assets such as noise cancellation and advanced climate functions. “Our seat demonstrators provide solutions to our customers’ main concerns, and we are looking forward to continuing the strategic product dialogue with them, based on our new demonstrators” highlights David Herberg, Vice President Engineering Adient EMEA. Most features of the seat can already be offered for sourcing, such as the metal structure and seat kinematics (adjustment functions and mechanisms).

Considering optimized use of space as well as sustainability aspects, the automotive supplier has also given its Smart Efficiency seat an update: the seat features a slimmer appearance than its predecessor without compromising on comfort. This design does not only help save space, but also paves the way for new mobility concepts based on battery packaging in electric vehicles.
 
The showcased products will be available for demonstration in customer roadshows as of December 2023.

Adient, a leading global supplier of automotive seating systems, has won the "German Innovation Award 2022" in the category "Information Technologies and Functional Software". Adient's concept of "Mixed Reality as a key to efficient induction training", developed as a pilot project by employees at Adient’s Saarlouis production site, was able to convince the interdisciplinary jury of experts from science and technology.

Adient's concept aims to efficiently train new employees in production areas with the aid of mixed reality glasses. These glasses can be used to scan QR codes that are attached to each workstation. The QR codes call up corresponding videos in the field of view of the glasses which visually help the user to learn about the processes at the respective workstation, thus replacing the previous paper-based work instructions.

With this concept, Adient is using the technology to design and develop world-class seating solution for its global customers. New employees can thus be given a comprehensive understanding of the complex structures of a car seat much better, faster, and in a more realistic way. In addition to optimized communication, changes in the process such as product modifications can be implemented more easily than with printed work instructions.

• 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.”