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Side view of a car whizzing past blurring lights, indicating the pace of change in the automotive industry.

Automotive

Deliver innovative solutions on the road to new mobility, while running a profitable automotive business.

The race for automotive digital transformation

Carmakers, suppliers, and dealerships are under intense pressure to transform their businesses and prepare for the future of mobility. 

Image representing top of mind topics for automotive, including vehicle electrification, connected cars,  mobility services, operational resilience, and digital retailing
EV manufacturing and adoption

The race is on to meet demand for plug-in, hybrid, and fuel cell EVs – boosting EV battery, vehicle, and charging station manufacturing.

Connected cars and advanced driver assistance systems

Connected cars and ADAS systems are the future for carmakers, whose buyers will increasingly demand seamless send-and-receive car data.

Mobility as a service (MaaS) and shared mobility

Auto OEMs are bringing new car sharing options to the shared mobility and e-hailing market – driving sustainability and better value.

Resilient automotive supply chains

More resilient automotive supply chains are needed to meet demand for EV components and combat car battery and auto chip shortages.

Automotive digital retailing

Contactless car buying and online dealerships – pandemic necessities – are becoming preferred routes for sales, trade-ins, and services.

The drive to sustainability

Today’s buyers want sustainability in the automotive industry: low carbon footprints, ethical sourcing, sustainable vehicles, and circularity.

Featured automotive solutions

Experience Management solutions from SAP and Qualtrics

Build relationships that will last. Whether your customers are going for their first test drive, getting their new car delivered, or coming in for a service, you can make every experience matter.

SAP Industry Network for Automotive

Enable next-generation automotive processes through an open and intelligent industry network.

SAP E-Mobility

Build, monitor, and run EV charging networks at scale with a cloud solution that offers end-to-end functionality, from diverse charging scenarios to billing and communication. 

SAP Digital Vehicle Suite

Achieve a holistic approach to vehicle, sales, and data management and focus on the future of mobility with solutions that provide a vehicle-centric view of sales and car-as-a-service processes.

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The future of mobility

See how SAP can help you create a connected and sustainable automotive business.

What are the leading analysts saying about SAP?

Help reshape the industry for sustainability

Learn how automotive organisations are incorporating next-generation sustainability into their overall business with insights from SAP and Oxford Economics. 

Transform to thrive as the industry evolves

Automotive manufacturers are feeling the pressure of uncertainty more than most. Learn what sets leaders apart and discover how they’re adapting.

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Design innovative vehicle products and services – and get them to market first – with SAP solutions. Collaborate with partners across the automotive ecosystem, accelerate product development, and help ensure compliance with auto industry standards.  

  • Innovations based on actual vehicle data, incidents, customer feedback, and market analysis
  • What-if simulation for better decision-making – in auto engineering and downstream
  • Integrated, collaborative, and agile product development
  • Global product safety management and compliance 
  • Integrated everything – from R&D and manufacturing to aftermarket services and mobility

79% of automotive organisations consider it important to collect and analyse vehicle data in order to predict outcomes for design, service, safety, and operations – but only 20% are able to do so​.

Source: SAP Performance Benchmarking

Thanks to SAP solutions, this first-of-its-kind use of machine learning to eliminate superfluous quality tests has wide-ranging implications for manufacturing efficiency and a shorter product manufacturing lifecycle.

Bhuwan Lodha, Vice President (Digital), Group Strategy Office, Mahindra & Mahindra

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Run agile, highly autonomous automotive manufacturing, production, and assembly processes using Industry 4.0 and smart factory technologies from SAP. Combine business data with industrial IoT data to maximise manufacturing efficiency, improve sustainability, and cut costs.

  • Smart auto manufacturing systems in the cloud
  • Modular production and Industry 4.0 scenarios
  • Full visibility into shop-floor and top-floor operations
  • Environment, health, and safety management 
  • Integration with the extended supply chain and outbound logistics network 

15% reduction in manufacturing costs when the status and usage of operational machinery and tools are tracked in real time.

Source: SAP Performance Benchmarking

 

At each stage of our Industry 4.0 journey, SAP solutions have enabled us to deliver business value that is clearly recognised across the organisation.
Eric Godard, Group Deputy CIO, Faurecia S.A.

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Create a fast, responsive, and resilient automotive supply chain. Our solutions support collaborative supply chain planning; digitalised operations; and smart warehousing, inventory, and logistics, enabling you to proactively sense disruptions, reduce your carbon footprint, deliver ahead of demand, and more. 

  • Real-time demand management and order promising
  • Response, supply, inventory, and operations planning  
  • Smart warehousing, transportation, and logistics 
  • Supply network collaboration 
  • Green and sustainable supply chain management 

76% of automotive organisations consider it important to enable a digitally connected supply chain to avoid supply disruptions – but only 17% are able to do so.

Source: SAP Performance Benchmarking

 

Based on the holistic planning approach, we built the foundation for improved availabilities and reduced inventories within our multi-echelon supply chain.

Rainer Scheuring, Vice President Corporate Finance, IT, M&A AC Market and Materials Management, ZF Friedrichshafen AG

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Deliver personalised, differentiated automotive experiences that create customers for life. Connect data from all sources – sales, service, marketing, and connected cars – to get deeper insights and proactively meet customer needs on every channel, and leverage solutions for real-time contextual marketing, omnichannel sales, billing, and more. 

  • 360-degree customer profiles and personalised engagements
  • Digital automotive retailing and omnichannel sales
  • Smooth billing and buying experiences
  • Robust sales performance management
  • Optimised vehicle distribution chains

79% of automotive organisations consider it important to capture customers' preferences and then deliver the products and services customers desire – but only 21% are able to do so.

Source: SAP Performance Benchmarking

 

Smart Europe’s vision is to "create an inspiring digital-first experience that enables easy online commerce and makes smart a brand customers love to engage with.” 

Björn Schick, Director Customer Experience, smart Europe GmbH

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Grow revenue and drive brand loyalty by offering automotive aftermarket services that exceed customer expectations. SAP solutions support omnichannel customer service, parts management, warranty claims processing and complaint handling.

  • Omnichannel customer service management
  • Aftermarket auto parts management 
  • Warranty claims management 
  • Complaint handling

76% of automotive organisations consider it important to predict an asset failure, determine the cause, and recommend the best maintenance plan – but only 18% are able to do so.

Source: SAP Performance Benchmarking

 

Enabled by SAP technology, we are transforming the battery storage industry, improving customer experiences, and gaining significant competitive advantage.
Gautam Chatterjee, Chief Executive Officer, Exide Industries Ltd.

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Create value and monetize new business models for autonomous, connected, electric, and shared vehicles with SAP. Our solutions can help you personalise in-car services, support subscription-based contracts, manage e-fleets, build and run EV charging networks, and more. Embrace change in the industry and shift toward mobility as a service (MaaS). 

  • Connected vehicle data hub
  • Urban and remote EV charge-point operations 
  • End-to-end fleet management
  • IoT-based logistics and transportation management 
  • Subscription billing and invoicing

60% of automotive organisations consider it important to predict driver needs and deliver appropriate networked mobility services, such as fuel, parking, navigation, and commerce, directly to a vehicle – but only 11% are able to do so.

Source: SAP Performance Benchmarking

 

For smooth operations, SAP E-Mobility has exactly the right range of functions without losing sight of the user experience. The detailed API documentation gives us and our customers the possibility to create tailor-made solutions.
Tobias Wagner, CEO, ChargeX GmbH

Get started with SAP's cloud solutions for automotive

SAP can help you start or enhance your digital transformation – no matter where you are in your journey. If you have yet to move to cloud ERP, you can get started with RISE with SAP for Automotive. If you already have cloud ERP – from SAP or any vendor – you can enhance your ERP capabilities with our automotive industry cloud solutions. 

RISE with SAP

Achieve greater speed, agility, integration, and extensibility with RISE with SAP, a comprehensive solution made up of key products, such as SAP S/4HANA Cloud; industry next practices; business process intelligence; and services from SAP and our partners. RISE with SAP also includes solutions for: 

  • Product lifecycle cost management
  • Integrated cloud MES and analytics
  • Centralised vehicle repository to support mobility as a service
  • Returnable packaging management across the supply chain
  • Streamlined and automated self-billing processes
  • Collaborative supplier problem-solving

Industry cloud solutions for automotive

Built by SAP and our partners on an open platform, SAP’s industry cloud solutions address specific industry needs for the auto sector. Designed to work with your existing SAP and third-party systems, these specialised cloud applications can help you drive cost-effective transformation and sustainable growth. 

  • Cloud-based automotive solutions 
  • Built by SAP and our partners
  • Work with existing systems
  • Extension of your current investments

Seize the future of mobility

Tomorrow’s success is contingent on embracing innovation today.  Explore five key industry cloud solutions that can help you adopt next practices and innovations – for a connected and sustainable automotive business that’s well-positioned to meet the road ahead.

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