AIAG: Bridging gaps for the Chinese-American automotive supply chain

Shanghai. August 27 (Gasgoo.com) - "AIAG's mission in China is to address its member companies' needs and help the Chinese suppliers improve quality, materials management and e-commerce,"said Dr. Yilong Chen, General Director of Asia Pacific Affairs & Chief Representative in China, AIAG (Automotive Industry Action Group), in an exclusive interview with Gasgoo.com.

Dr. Chen pointed out a dilemma in Chinese-American automotive supply chain: on the one hand, America OEMs can't find suitable suppliers that could help them reduce their costs; on the other hand, most Chinese suppliers can't obtain orders from American OEMs even if they could offer a good price. AIAG's mission in China is to solve the problem by helping Chinese suppliers better understand OEMs' requirements on quality, materials management and e-commerce, such as the TS16949, five quality core tools, MMOG/LE, EDI.

In supplier selection process, AIAG can help its OEM member companies in China in pre-screening suppliers by providing certifications and gap assessments. After the gap assessments, AIAG will come up with a detailed assessment report telling Chinese suppliers where they have met the standards and where they haven't and offering them an action plan.

As to the impact of the appreciation of Chinese currency and lower exports tax rebates, Dr. Chen said, "China's auto industry and auto parts exports will be impacted, but I don't believe the momentum of China's auto part exports will be fundamentally impacted. I believe China's auto industry and auto parts exports will continue to grow, though it may slow down a little bit. "