This presentation analyses the Volkswagen group platform strategy/policy to reduce cost and time to market: - Platform concept – design and process as defined by Volkswagen group. - Volkswagen Group Platforms – Platform policy, production data, by segment and model family, with a forecast until 2017 - Standardisation to reduce cost – concept, scaling process, parts and tools standardisation. - Advantages and dangers of a modular construction.

1. The Automotive
Modular Design
An innovative approach
to reduce cost and time to market
A thinking based on the
Volkswagen group platform
strategy/policy
Michel Costes
President
michel.costes@inovev.com
Jamel Taganza
Vice-President
Jamel.taganza@inovev.com
Jean-Michel Prillieux
Market director
info@inovev.com
http://www.inovev.com

2. Introduction
Automotive industry is a very competitive one.
Competition has still increased over the last 10 years with an enhanced globalisation.
In order to face this competition, carmakers:
 Develop their offer by:
• Adding versions to their range of models (e.g. SUV, crossovers, …)
• Adapting the design of the cars to the specific demand of the different countries where they sell their
products.
 Decrease the cost of their products by:
• De-contenting them every time that the de-contented products are sufficient for the targeted customers
• Decreasing the price of the products:
- By using a systemic approach.
- Standardise as much as possible to produce mass volume parts at low cost.
Platform is at the core of the know-how of the carmaker.
Designing sets of efficient platforms at an optimised cost provides those of carmakers which control technologies
with very significant advantages versus competition.
Many efforts are deployed to develop and engineer optimised platform
The concept of platform varies from one carmaker to the other one.
In all cases the platform is an ensemble composed of:
 The underbody (which is the structure of the platform).
 The systems that are attached to this underbody and that contribute to the mechanical properties of the car,
as the suspensions and the powertrain.
Considered systems are not the same from one carmaker to another
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3. Platform concept
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4. Platform concept
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5. Platform and underbody: design
Platform
Body shell
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6. Platform and underbody: process
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7. Platform and underbody: process
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8. Volkswagen Group Platforms
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9. Platforms to be build for a large number of vehicles
Volkswagen Group: several brands – many vehicles in each brand
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10. VW Platform policy
Production in Europe
MQB
(transversal engine)
MLB
(longitudinal l engine)
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11. From platforms by segment to broader concept
2005 : platforms by segment (in general one platform for each segment)
vehicles which will be produced from MQB platform in 2017
MQB: Modularer QuerBaukasten – Modular Transverse Matrix (Construction Box)
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12. From platforms by segment to broader concept
• 2017 : platforms over segments (same platform for different segments) – MQB example
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13. Standardisation to reduce cost
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14. Platform concept
The design of a platform needs a systemic approach.
The car must comply with a lot of constraints
 Design
•
•
•
•
Static (torsion, bending, acoustic)
Dynamic (front, rear and side crash, small shock, pedestrian safety)
Mass
Roominess
 Process
•
Installed tooling: flexibility
 Minimum cost
For cost reduction reasons, it is necessary to use a maximum of common parts over a wide range of
models and derivatives.
Generally, some basis systems of the car are designed, and then adapted to comply with the specification of
a maximum of models.
The attachment must also be standardised.
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15. Standardisation of general design
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16. Attachment points
Underbody B
Underbody A
•
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Underbody C
Important design approach
• Standardisation of attachments of modules
• Standardisation of parts
• Assembly flexibility on a same line by using adequate pilot processes
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17. Scaling Process
Build models with different models on the basis of the same platform
 Not multiply all the dimensions
 But keep identical or similar the maximum of parts
and keep identical the maximum of fixations (in particular holes used for assemblies)
 Change the dimensions of a minimum of parts
Use the same toolings
 Stamping tooling to produce parts on demand
Example: central floor
 Welding and assembly lines
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18. Parts standardisation
Underbody: around 100 parts from several grams to 10 kg (including around 30 parts> 1kg)
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19. Standardisation of position and attachments of modules
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20. Standardisation of tooling
Flexible factory
Up to 60 vehicles/hour
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21. Advantages and dangers of a modular construction
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22. Advantages and dangers of a modular approach
Advantages
 Reduce
•
Part cost
•
The cost of the tooling is spread over a larger number parts
•
Development cost
 Decrease
•
Time to market for new vehicles and/or new versions
 Focus R&D on
•
Less projects with more means
Dangers
 MQB platform can be by default over-designed and over-engineered for some basic segment models (A or B).
 Cost of adapting the MQB base to specific projects.
It may be more costly to adapt the MQB platform to a new project than to redesign a new platform
 First investment and replacement cost of the toolings to adapt them to the new concept
 Quality problems due a non-optimised design (due to the MQB platform constraints)
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23. Postal address:
34 rue Camille Pelletan
92300 Levallois-Perret
France
Phone: + 33-952 96 06 68
Contacts:
 Managing director
Michel Costes
michel.costes@inovev.com
 Sales and marketing
Jamel Taganza
jamel.taganza@inovev.com