Non-critical thinking. (WIP).

The integration of electronics into vehicle platforms is accelerating, as are concerns about component cost. However, liability--a not-insignificant fear for automakers--may be one reason costs aren't dropping as quickly as they might.

"Liability and cost are the two biggest issues we face," says Jerry Kolbe, market segment group manager for Murata Electronics North America [5myrna, GA], the largest supplier of both ceramic resonators and capacitors to the automotive market. "We can cut costs by integrating functions to add value and create a unique product, but we have to be involved in the project very early. Otherwise, you're locked-in by decisions that already have been made."

Moving beyond this level of cost containment, however, becomes very difficult when dealing with the OEMs. "Automotive components are over-designed for many non-critical functions," says Dave Kurtz, Murata North America's automotive global sales manager, "and a lot of cost can come out of these systems by using less-expensive consumer-spec components."

Kolbe and Kurtz agree it has been easier to convince the suppliers--the folks on the front lines in the continuing cost-containment debate--of the need to follow this path than the OEMs. "It has opened their eyes to the cost containment possible with this strategy," says Kurtz, "but the liability concerns at the OEMs are such that automakers aren't willing to even consider this change." With memories of GM's legal troubles with its "side-saddle" gas tank pick-ups, and Ford's recent travails with its Explorer SUV fresh in their minds, it's hard to fault a platform chief demanding tougher specifications as an insurance policy.

Kurtz, however, insists: "The failure of a non-critical item is an inconvenience at worst, and many consumer electronics can be made to survive in the automotive environment without meeting the automaker's tougher specifications." The key, Kurtz believes, is For the automakers to enter into a partnership with their suppliers. Each member, he observes, sees trends the others don't. As a result of working together, costs will drop, circuit board space will increase, and new materials will have a greater impact in design. "As part of this partnership, we should agree that the complete system meet a specific standard without mandating that every item in that unit meet a certain specification. It is," he says, "an inevitability."