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Guests, from more than 15 different countries, representing the automotive seating, airbag and interiors value chains, convened with ����AV experts and external thought leaders at ����AV’s International Advanced Technology Center (IATC) in Bordeaux-Cestas, France to share their industry knowledge and present best insights on how Industry 4.0 is transforming the car interiors of the future.

The series of thought-provoking presentations, solution-demonstrations, and animated discussions examined the new challenges automotive suppliers face in today’s fast-moving manufacturing environment. Industry 4.0, and how it will help companies to think strategically and increase revenues, with its promise for production flexibility, operational agility, and cost minimization, was a recurring topic of conversation.

The prevailing idea of the VIP auto symposium is that interiors will transform to replicate the comforts and design of a living space. This new trend for comfort and luxury underscores the importance of leather. Quality leather interiors are expected to match the global automotive outlook market projections, which is predicted to remain positive through 2025 on the back of sustained growth in the sports-utility vehicle (SUV) and premium segments.

To meet this growing demand and their operational excellence objectives, forward-thinking automotive leather suppliers are investing in digital transformation initiatives and following Industry 4.0 best practices. This means finding the right blend of production flexibility, operational agility, and cost minimization through process optimization and continuous improvement.

The wide attendance of the VIP auto symposium was a testimony to the growing importance of Industry 4.0 and the leadership role ����AV has in helping companies to navigate this change. The two-day experience was also an opportunity to display ����AV’s innovative applications based on Industry 4.0 principles, and enabled participants to discover close-up the evolving range of solutions and services for the automotive cutting room.

A highlight of the event was the unveiling of Versalis 2019, ����AV’s new digital leather cutting solution. Versalis 2019 is expertly designed to meet the new challenges automotive leather suppliers face in today’s fast-moving manufacturing environment. Adapted to automotive production needs and promising higher productivity and performance capabilities, Versalis 2019—offering a best-in-class cutting solution, value-added software, and complete range of services—confirms ����AV as a leader in Industry 4.0.

Marc Douay, Automotive Marketing Director said, “The success of this event exemplifies ����AV’s premium value to the industry. The power to bring together key automotive players, from around the world, in conjunction with our ability to offer practical solutions that enable companies to build an integrated approach in solving their challenges, reaffirms our commitment to being a major partner in the automotive interiors space.”

The ����AV VIP auto symposium has underscored the importance of Industry 4.0 to the automotive industry. The arrival of new digital technologies and process innovations are rapidly changing the way manufacturing businesses operate. To cope with these changes, automotive suppliers will need to re-evaluate and improve their production processes. Within this context, the integration of smart solutions and services, and the replacement of production tools that are incompatible with connected factory concepts will be vital.