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AIAG Executive Calls for CEO Support of Industry Initiatives

7 August 1997

AIAG Executive Calls for CEO Support of Industry Initiatives

    TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. August 7 -- Participation in AIAG
activities is "the best investment a CEO can make," and can lead to $2 billion
dollars in savings, said AIAG Executive Director Thomas S. Hoy today as he
challenged auto industry executives to become more involved with the
cooperative industry efforts of the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG).
Hoy made the challenge to more than 1,000 of the auto industry's top
executives at the University of Michigan Automotive Management Briefing
Seminars held here.
    Highlighting the potential for more than $2 billion in annual industry
savings, Hoy demonstrated how AIAG's supply chain communication, CAD, quality
and electronic commerce initiatives could help save companies throughout the
supply chain time and money while eliminating non-value added business
processes.
    Focusing in on the conference theme of "Vanishing Boundaries," Hoy
discussed the advantages of AIAG's Automotive Network eXchange(SM) (ANX)
initiative -- now entering a pilot stage with the industry -- and the benefits
of bringing down the traditional communication roadblocks through a single,
dedicated communications network for the auto industry.
    "The public Internet has more than 50 million users ... and, because of
its historic decentralized nature and lack of administration, it has become an
unreliable and dangerous place for auto industry trading partners to
interact," Hoy said.  "In stark contrast to the public Internet, the ANX has a
central administration and management role, and it provides for network level
security, dependable performance and a new degree of reliability."
    Hoy added that billion-dollar savings and history-making projects like the
ANX don't happen without the support of the industry and dedication of many
volunteers.  He continued to challenge supplier CEOs to increase their support
of AIAG volunteer efforts.
    "AIAG is a volunteer organization.  Senior management awareness and active
participation in AIAG activities is crucial," Hoy said.  "With industry
cooperation and executive support, we can all begin to realize the numerous
supply chain savings."
    Founded in 1982, AIAG is a not-for-profit trade association of more than
1,300 North American auto and truck manufacturers and their suppliers.
Originally recognized for its efforts to standardize electronic data
interchange (EDI) and bar code standards to assist Tier One suppliers, AIAG's
mission has expanded to cover all levels of the OEM supply chain, as well as
to include numerous programs and initiatives aimed at improving its members'
productivity and quality.
    More information about AIAG and its annual AUTO-TECH Conference &
Exposition -- August 26-28, 1997 at Detroit's Cobo Center -- can be found on
 the World Wide Web at http://www.aiag.org.

SOURCE  Automotive Industry Action Group