The shift from internal combustion engines to electric and autonomous vehicles isn’t just a technological revolution, it’s a supply chain revolution. Automotive programs today are under intense pressure to balance innovation, cost control, and resilience while dealing with raw material shortages, shifting trade rules, and technologies evolving faster than most organizations can adapt.
And while electric vehicles (EVs) and autonomous platforms come with a new set of challenges, they’re still vehicles at their core representing complex machines made up of 25,000 to 35,000 individual components sourced from thousands of suppliers globally. Managing that level of complexity while integrating new technologies demands a fundamentally different approach.
That’s where design-to-source comes in. It’s not just a process or a tool—it’s a methodology that bridges the gaps between product engineering, manufacturing, and sourcing, creating a unified, data-driven strategy that keeps pace with change and sets the stage for sustainable competitiveness.
The Procurement Gap in Mobility
With many years of experience in indirect procurement managing items like office supplies and other non-production materials, I’ve seen firsthand how organizations can achieve impressive ROI by automating and integrating the procure-to-pay process. Direct materials procurement in manufacturing, however, is a very different challenge, with far greater complexity and risk.
In many organizations, procurement is invited into the conversation only after engineering has locked down the design. By then, as much as 80% of the product’s cost is already baked in, and the sourcing team is left trying to manage risks and costs with limited options.
Read this article in full in our Integr8 Playbook, “Innovative Tech Drives Mobility Solutions,” here.
George Stasiw is a recognized thought leader in manufacturing, supply chain, procurement, and technology innovation. With a foundation built at IBM and advanced AI studies at MIT, he is now a prominent voice for design-to-source solutions at Samsung SDS. George thrives when brainstorming with organizations looking to enhance procurement processes, optimize BOM management, and connect their design and sourcing teams. Start a conversation with him at g.stasiw@samsung.com.
