CAR Leads 16-Company Team on a $10.8M NIST ATP Project To Develop the Digital Body Development System

ANN ARBOR, Mich., Oct. 1, 2003 -- The Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Michigan, has been awarded a $5.3 million grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Advanced Technology Program (ATP). This grant will be used to develop the Digital Body Development System (DBDS), an innovative software with the potential to save the U.S. automobile manufacturers $3.5 billion in vehicle launch costs by shortening lead times, reducing the number of physical evaluation builds, and improving quality. The total project cost of $10.8 million includes $5.5 million of industry cost share.

"We are extremely pleased to receive this grant award because it signifies the continuing importance of the automotive industry to the U.S. economy," said Jay Baron, president of CAR. "This activity helps us to build on the critical relationships between the tooling suppliers and their customers with the objective of developing a competitive niche in vehicle development."

The four-year research project will involve the development of the software, as well as a validation phase where the software will be implemented on two vehicle launches -- one at Ford Motor Company and one at General Motors Corporation. The overall goal of the DBDS is to enable the implementation of a virtual functional build methodology where designers and vehicle launch teams will be able to make better decisions faster and understand the quality, cost and timing impacts of those decisions. "The DBDS will help Ford continue producing world-class vehicles while reducing development lead-time," said Al Ver, Ford vice president for Advanced and Manufacturing Engineering. "We value the knowledge and expertise of our suppliers and are excited to be a part of this collaborative effort."

In addition to Ford and GM, the DBDS interdisciplinary research team is comprised of the following organizations: EDS, Altarum Institute, American Tooling Center, Atlas Tool, Autodie International, Cognitens, ComauPICO, Perceptron, Riviera Tool Company, Sekely Industries, and Thunder Bay Pattern Works. The University of Michigan and Wayne State University are also key research participants. All companies either have headquarters in Michigan, or have a strong Michigan presence. Additional information regarding the project can be found at http://jazz.nist.gov/atpcf/prjbriefs/prjbrief.cfm?ProjectNumber=00-00-5521 .

The ATP provides cost-shared funding to industry-led teams which can include non-profits and universities to help advance particularly challenging, high-risk R&D projects that have the potential to spark important, broad-based economic or social benefits for the United States. The program supports projects that industry cannot fully fund on its own because of significant technical risks.

ATP awards are made on the basis of rigorous, competitive peer review of the scientific and technical merit of each proposal. The program accelerates enabling technology research, but does not support product development work. Further information about ATP is available at www.atp.nist.gov ; further information about CAR is available at www.cargroup.org .