Dr. Rudolf Müller

Dear Readers,

Editorial by Dr. Rudolf Müller
(Technical Editor at OEM&Supplier)

… reading the official statistics of the German Federal Motor Transport Authority, one could get the impression that times for the German automotive and supplier industry could not be better. A growth of 7.5 per cent in February 2018 compared to the same month of the previous year seems to send a clear message. Even the export markets, which are so important for our industry, are developing more than expected.

However, if we look a little deeper into the registration statistics, the not so surprising significant decline of almost 20 per cent in diesel vehicles catches the eye – and this is before the publication of the Federal Administrative Court‘s decision on the admissibility of municipal driving restrictions. Once again, the market seems to be reacting much faster than politics and administration, who are only just starting to discuss how to deal with the situation. In Germany at least, a further diesel reduction can surely be expected and this poses considerable structural problems for both OEMs and suppliers.

Although the whole world is discussing all facets of electric mobility, new registrations of electric vehicles remain modest. With 2,546 nits, electric passenger cars account for just one per cent of all new registrations. Things look somewhat better for the hybrids with 8,289 new registrations amounting to a share of 3.2 per cent. Nevertheless, in both vehicle categories, the number of new registrations has increased significantly by more than 60 per cent, compared to the same month of the previous year. The trend seems to agree, although Germany, as the largest European passenger car market, lags behind other markets. Just as a reminder: even if the proportion of electric vehicles in Norway and the Netherlands is significantly higher than in Germany, the pressure for the further development of electric mobility comes from the Far East. In China, more than 200,000 electric vehicles are newly registered each year, and the number of vehicle registrations is tripled every year. This makes it clear that the Asian markets will continue to be a major growth engine in our automotive and supplier industries.

Against this background, it is no wonder that topics connected to the development of electric mobility are again a focus in our latest edition of OEM&Supplier. Almost every contribution in some way touches on the great challenges faced by the automotive and supplier industry. The mega topics autonomous driving, connectivity, digitisation and electric drive can be found in almost all contributions.

And this is a good sign because it demonstrates how well the German automotive and supplier industry is positioned to overcome these enormous challenges and, above all, to influenceand shape them.

We at OEM&Supplier look forward to providing a forum inwhich the German industry and its service partners can present and showcase their latest developments, technologies, innovations and products – and not only in tried and tested print format, but also cross-media.

Dear Readers, this opens up much more background and contextual information, via the interactions, links and the Networking to web contents and the social media, than is possible in the print edition.

We hope you enjoy reading and networking. We would like tothank all authors, interview partners and advertisers for their cooperation and cordially invite you to contribute to the success of the magazine with contributions, interviews and advertisements for the next issue, hich will be published in autumn 2018.