A second supplier only creates resilience if it removes the same underlying dependency. Procurement teams need to trace the constraint, then test the recovery plan.
A VDA 6.3 process audit scores each question from 10 to 0 and classifies the result A, B or C, but downgrading rules and star questions can override a good percentage. Suppliers should confirm the edition and prepare element by element.
A PFMEA built on the AIAG and VDA handbook follows seven steps, rates risk with high, medium or low action priority instead of RPN, and only works if its prevention and detection controls are carried into the control plan.
Just in time supply still suits robust, short lead time parts, but the chip shortage showed the cost of low stock and short commitments. Protect single-source, long lead time parts with defined buffers and keep lean flow elsewhere.
Factories, supply chains and the transition ahead, connected in one reading list.
Public charging reliability matters, but operators and fleet buyers need to know whether a driver can complete the required stop at the required location.
A competitive cell quotation is the beginning of the calculation. Vehicle makers also need a clear view of usable performance, production consistency and replacement support.
The number of vehicles is a weak starting point for an electrical connection request. Arrival times, energy demand and departure deadlines reveal the actual requirement.
Software changes the responsibilities that continue long after a vehicle leaves the factory.
Follow the topic ↗Automotive software procurement creates obligations that continue after production starts. Support, dependencies and exit rights deserve the same scrutiny as the launch specification.
Remote delivery can simplify an update, but the business still needs to manage configuration, customer timing and the vehicles that fail to complete it.
A software defined vehicle runs most functions as updatable software on a few central computers. That changes supplier roles, makes over-the-air updates a regulated activity and keeps the product changing long after sale.
Retail groups need to understand which workshop tasks change with electrification, which remain and where new skills or equipment constrain a profitable service operation.
For 2026/27 a privately used company van carries a £4,170 benefit and £798 fuel benefit, but none arises if use is limited to commuting and business. Zero emission vans are nil-rated, and most double cabs now count as cars.
Read the explainer ↗Commissioning establishes important technical readiness, but fleet acceptance also needs an operational view. Representative vehicles, concurrent charging, access, reporting and staff handover should be tested against the work the depot expects to repeat.
Read the explainer ↗Automotive businesses need to prepare for policy change without confusing a proposal, a government response and an obligation that has entered into force.
Proposals and operative rules need different decisions.
Open the policy reading list ↗Practical starting points for the next fleet, energy or procurement conversation.
Can your available power and overnight window deliver the energy your fleet needs?
Open the tool 02 / OPERATING ECONOMICS£ / kmCompare fuel and electricity costs with depot charging, public charging and upfront investment.
Open the tool 03 / PROCUREMENT✓ / ?Build an evidence-led record of the questions to resolve before a business purchase.
Open the tool 04 / PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE↗ UKExplore mapped UK charge points, connector records and directions.
Open the toolCars and bikes. Selected international rounds, with links to the organisers.
Las Vegas Strip Circuit
United States
Autódromo Internacional do Algarve
Portugal
Lusail International Circuit
Qatar
Ongoing means the event weekend window, not a live track session. Schedule checked 2026-11-02.
Industry moves.
Context matters.
UK-first coverage for the people building, supplying, selling and operating the next generation of vehicles.
Inside The Automobile Daily ↗
