Siemens PLM Software’s Technology Used by more than 90 % Automakers Participating in the Washington Auto Show

WASHINGTON & PLANO, Texas - Siemens PLM Software today announced that its technology enabled the development and manufacture of more than 90 percent of the vehicles that top selling automakers are exhibiting at this year’s Washington Auto Show.

“The Washington Auto Show is extremely important for the automotive industry. It’s a great chance for the leaders of our country to experience the incredible vehicles auto manufacturers are producing today,” said Chuck Grindstaff, executive vice president, Products and Chief Technology Officer, Siemens PLM Software. “The complexity of producing safe, consumer friendly automobiles is constantly increasing and we are proud to be partnering with automakers to manage this complexity throughout the product development, manufacturing and support lifecycles.

“The auto industry has been using our software for years to innovate the best products at the lowest possible cost. But that’s only part of the story, sustainability is the larger goal. We have enabled storage, management and collaboration for the broad set of interrelated information automakers need to drive their decisions. This speeds creation and selection of the best options, to produce the most attractive products and do so in a sustainable way. The next phase will help automate the application of this product and production information to help meet this sustainability challenge. This will help our customers gain a competitive advantage over those without a comprehensive strategy,” added Grindstaff.

“For the auto industry, sustainability isn't just about one issue or one product. It's about addressing a combination of environmental, social, and economic issues, such as customer expectations, government regulations and financial pressures, all at the same time, knowing the risks and opportunities across every aspect of the business and across the lifecycle of every product. It's this complexity inherent in sustainability decisions that makes PLM such an important component for a company's sustainability efforts. We expect PLM to be essential for companies in the auto industry to evaluate vehicle platforms and pick the optimal design,” said Kimberly Knickle, practice director, Emerging Agenda, IDC Manufacturing Insights.

Siemens PLM Software’s industry leading technology is used by automakers and suppliers to plan, evaluate and coordinate the development and manufacturing engineering of vehicles. Siemens PLM Software satisfies the mission critical needs of leading automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEM’s) for managed collaboration across complex engineering functions and throughout the extended supply chain. By breaking down barriers between engineering functions, providing real-time access to information, and performing analysis and simulation, Siemens PLM Software has delivered double-digit efficiency improvements.

Siemens PLM Software is used extensively in the automotive industry. Of the 68 million vehicles produced in 2008 by the top 50 global OEM’s, Siemens PLM Software was used on more than 64 million. Additionally, of the 16 OEM’s producing over 1 million vehicles a year, 15 of them use Siemens PLM Software technology. And overall, of the top 30 OEMs, 26 use Siemens PLM Software’s technology in the development and manufacturing of their vehicles – more than any of Siemens PLM Software’s competitors.