Lectra. Automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) have the reputation of being demanding customers, insisting that all suppliers make important progress in operational efficiency year after year, passing a proportion of the savings on. They encourage lean thinking and supply chain excellence and insist that suppliers, including tanners, capture and share important data. All suppliers have to work hard to keep these customers happy. Automotive companies, especially in the premium and luxury segments, are consumers of a high volume of the best-quality cattle hides in the market and have played an increasingly important role in keeping the leather pipeline flowing.
Automotive uses up a share of between 15% and 18% of the total number of cattle hides being processed at the moment, but this is expected to rise to at least 25% by 2020. Just as their demand for cattle hides seems likely to go up, automotive OEMs are certain to demand more efficiency and more information surrounding the production of automotive leather. Advanced technology, including automated cutting systems, can help tanners achieve the necessary operational improvements and generate the necessary data at the same time.
