European e-mobility shaping the future for global auto suppliers, strategy expert warns

Speaking at this week's Frankfurt IAA International Motor Show, US strategy consultant Paul Eichenberg advised automotive suppliers seeking to protect or grow their business as automobile electrification rapidly emerges in Europe to ‘build the future now’. Eichenberg said that Europe is leading the automotive electrification charge globally. German automakers are already developing the electric technologies that will help them meet the next regulatory hurdle for emissions – the proposed Euro VII rules –
September 8, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
Speaking at this week's Frankfurt IAA International Motor Show, US strategy consultant Paul Eichenberg advised automotive suppliers seeking to protect or grow their business as automobile electrification rapidly emerges in Europe to ‘build the future now’.


Eichenberg said that Europe is leading the automotive electrification charge globally. German automakers are already developing the electric technologies that will help them meet the next regulatory hurdle for emissions – the proposed Euro VII rules – which are expected to come between 2025 and 2030.

Over the decade of 2020 to 2030, which Eichenberg calls the ‘decade of electrification’, the European market will define the future of automotive powertrain architecture.

He claims that, as e-mobility progresses, automakers will turn to a new group of suppliers to be the system integrators for the electrified powertrain – companies with both electrical expertise and the scale of consumer products manufacturing, such as 954 LG, 5392 Toshiba, 311 Bosch and 598 Panasonic. He said other suppliers who want to participate in this mega trend need to start aligning now with those giants, before they are shut out of the game.

E-mobility will cause more disruption to the automotive supply chain than it has ever faced, Eichenberg said. To succeed amidst this disruption, auto suppliers – especially those with engine, transmission and exhaust components in their portfolios – will need seven or eight years to transform their companies to be able to compete in the new ecosystem.

Eichenberg estimates that as many as three-quarters of the world's top 100 automotive suppliers will be affected by the global industry move toward electrification.

In his white paper, titled: "Electrification Disruption: How not to get shocked, jolted and fried by the coming shift in automotive power sources," Eichenberg says that unless they rethink their approach and secure electronics and software competencies, few traditional auto suppliers will be able to succeed in the electrified auto future.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Mild hybrid 48V vehicles 2017-2027
    April 13, 2017
    Vehicle emissions regulations for 2025 and 2030 are unlikely to be met by conventional vehicle technology as applied to most vehicles beyond small cars, according to IDTechX researchers. Going to strong hybrid and pure electric powertrains involves considerable expense and delay and often totally new platforms. However, an intermediate technology has reached a stage where it can incrementally improve traditional powertrains by replacing the alternator with a reversible 48 V electric machine and adding a
    Read More
  • ITS industry needs more effort to get to the future
    January 19, 2012
    Eric Sampson, visiting professor at Newcastle University and City University London and ambassador for ITS-UK, provides a retrospective on the last couple of decades and takes a look at what the ITS industry still needs to do to get to where it needs to be
    Read More
  • Smarter transport remains key to smart cities
    January 9, 2018
    Colin Sowman looks at some of the challenges and solutions that will provide enhanced transport efficiency in tomorrow’s smarter cities. However you define a ‘smart city’, one of the key ingredients will be an efficient transport system. As most governments and city authorities face financial constraints, incremental improvements in the existing systems is the most likely way forward. In London, new trains and signalling are improving the capacity of the Underground but that then reveals previously
    Read More
  • Data protection - a road-block for driverless cars?
    May 27, 2016
    A new report by international law firm Gowling WLG warns that autonomous and connected vehicle manufacturers will need to get their head around new European data protection rules if driverless cars are to become a reality. Published just two years before Europe's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into force, the report, Are you data driven? explores the latest issues in data protection and driverless vehicles and what they mean for consumers, featuring input from leading experts across the
    Read More

Highlighted Content