Using automotive standards can offer a set of powerful business and marketing tools for automotive organizations of all sizes.

You can use them to fine-tune your performance and manage the risks you face while operating in more efficient and sustainable ways; they’ll allow you to demonstrate the quality of what you do to your customers, and they help you to see how to embed best practice into your organization.

Automotive standards are voluntary, which means that businesses and other organizations are not legally obliged to apply them. However, in certain cases standards may facilitate compliance with legal requirements, such as those contained in European directives and regulations.

Automotive industry trends

The automotive industry has seen a great amount of growth over the past decade.

Challenges stemming from both economic and environmental factors have changed the way vehicles must perform, and automotive manufacturers have been required to take measures to adapt to them. Standards help automotive businesses to make these changes and embed best practice processes into the core of every organization. Many trends in this industry have come about that call for a change in automobile manufacturing practices, but the primary ones include:

• Enhanced safety requirements, such as those related to carbon dioxide emissions

• The rise of new technologies, such as connective systems and autonomous vehicles

• Having to be cost-effective despite complex supply chains

• The increased need for transparency and good governance from automotive companies, such as during recalls on certain vehicles

• The growing demand for electric vehicles and the need to stay competitive

What are the benefits of automotive standards?

Automotive standards are valuable tools that can help your business to:

• Ensure the quality and safety of products and/or services

• Achieve compatibility between products and/or components

• Access markets and sells to customers in other countries

• Satisfy your customers’ expectations and requirements

• Reduce costs, eliminate waste and improve efficiency

• Comply with relevant legislation including EU regulations

• Gain knowledge about new technologies and innovations

Key automotive standards

The most common standards related to the automotive industry include:

• BS EN ISO 14001: As the international standard for environmental management systems (EMS), this standard has been implemented by more than 250,000 organizations around the world. This best-selling standard maps out a framework that a company or organization can follow to set up an effective environmental management system (EMS).

Business benefit: As the global standard for any business that wants to manage and positively control all aspects of its environmental impact. It is a proven way to demonstrate that you’re serious about your business’s environmental and economic sustainability.

• BS ISO 26262 Series: These standards provide guidance on how to achieve Functional Safety of a vehicle system through the implementation of a safety lifecycle that provides an approach to risk management during product development. The focus of BS ISO 26262 standards is how to address the malfunctioning behaviour of automotive systems, caused by software or hardware faults.

Business benefit: Implementing this set of standards provides automotive businesses with requirements for validation and confirmation measures to ensure a sufficient and acceptable level of safety is being achieved. It also facilitates better collaboration with suppliers.

• BS EN ISO 45001: Along with offering reliable products and services, automotive manufacturers must constantly strive to provide their workers and visitors with a safe and healthy business environment. With the goal of providing businesses with a framework for controlling and eliminating factors that can lead to illness and injuries, implementing the BS EN ISO 45001 Health and safety standard is a prudent move for any organization’s senior management to support.

Business benefit: This standard will help you to protect and enhance your most important asset, your people, to drive business excellence. It helps your business demonstrate brand responsibility by committing to a safe, healthy, and sustainable work environment.

Start your journey with standards today by adding all the key automotive standards and start reaping the benefits for your automotive business.

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Standards make trade easier by ensuring compatibility and interoperability of components, products, and services. They bring benefits to businesses and consumers in terms of reducing costs, enhancing performance, and improving safety. Our tailored BSI Knowledge subscription service provides flexibility, access, visibility, and control over the standards and insights your organization needs to achieve this objective. Request to learn more.