Turning Brainpower into Horsepower: Proprietary software is driving FEV Engine Technology's new business growth, says North American boss Gary Rogers - Trends: Management Q&A - Brief Article - Interview

Automotive Industries,  Feb, 2002  by Lindsay Brooke

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Fifteen years ago it was a tiny research spin-off of the University of Aaachen. Today, it's a globally respected R&D force with more than 1,000 employees. As automakers face the ever-stringent demands of fuel economy, emissions and vehicle performance, they've increasingly turned to FEV Engine Technology to help them deliver the goods. From in-cylinder combustion analysis to complete engine design and calibration, FEV works with virtually every major gasoline and diesel enginemaker. It's also a key research partner with the U.S. EPA and Dept. of Energy and is building its own fuel-cell and hybrid expertise.

The privately-held German company boasts the industry's largest non-captive NVH team, has one of the industry's largest engine-benchmarking databases, and holds nearly 130 patents on camless valvetrain technology, to name just a few of its strengths. Al recently spoke with Gary Rogers, president of FEV's North American operation based in Auburn Hills, Mich. Rogers detailed his company's direction, some of which is presented here.

(To read the entire interview, go to www.aionline.com)

Q: Are OEMs handing over more base-engine design to FEV and your competitors AVL, Ricardo and others?

A: Yes. Where FEV's business is growing in the next 10 years is more on the application side -- into real product. At any one time in our worldwide organization today, we're developing at least five production engines on which we have all the responsibility, including base design. That's not the majority of our business, but for some customers it is still more cost-effective to hire us to do the entire engine. They may not have the resources. Or they're busy putting out fires with their current production. In some cases, we're supporting emerging companies getting into the industry.

Q: Is FEV growing its engine Tier 1-supplier client base?

A: Yes. Supporting them is our fastest growing market. For example, we have the advanced R&D and systems capability that companies getting into supply of complete cylinder heads don't have.

Q: How do you balance developing FEV's technology resources with controlling the company's growth and cost structure?

A: The software side is changing more rapidly every day. Historically, we've tried to limit the expense of developing software. We've got over 200 proprietary computer codes, all basically structured for our own use. If we were going to turn them into product for sale, we'd need a tremendous resource to make it happen and do it right. We've looked at partnering and have cooperated with Gamma Technologies and others, so we don't have to maintain the tool.

The database behind the tool is our proprietary know-how. We sell those services to our customers. We go in and analyze an engine for a customer; we can tell them where they stand against the benchmark. It's beyond the state of the art. We will have data that the customer cannot have.

Q: What if a customer wants one of your codes?

A: We try to figure out a way to make it available to them. Maybe that will change in the future - the technology of developing more flexible codes like the Adams code from Mechanical Dynamics (Ann Arbor, Mich.). We're cooperating with them now to develop a proprietary sub-routine that will interface with a more generic code. The subroutine will bring in our know-how on vehicle drivelines, or transmissions, or crankshafts, for example, and provide an interface to give our customers a tool they can use.

Q: Isn't that giving away the farm?

A: No. I consider it to be giving them confidence in our know-how. In our business, the customer tells us what they want three years or more from now. We're proposing those kinds of longer-term agreements and cooperations.

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