The main objective of the presented work is the identification of success factors critical for the management of collaborations in a product development department in automotive industry. These collaborations take place between original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and system suppliers (suppliers who deliver complex systems directly to the OEM) as well as component suppliers (suppliers who deliver indirectly to the OEM). Due to rising product complexity, the need for collaboration in the product development of car components is still increasing. For instance, in the design of an automotive seating system for a certain model more than a hundred industrial designers, design engineers, project managers, accountants, and prototype experts need to collaborate effectively and efficiently in order to achieve the technical and economic objectives. Recent publications even highlight that the ability to collaborate with innovative supplier companies represents a distinctive quality of premium car companies. Extensive work has already covered this area, especially in the field of collaboration in industrial production (supply/value chain management). However, in daily practice many problems on a technical, personal, and organisational level still hinder efficient collaboration. This paper presents a collection of success factors identified in exemplary product development processes. In these processes the success factors were found to support the collaboration processes in a pragmatic manner.     «

The main objective of the presented work is the identification of success factors critical for the management of collaborations in a product development department in automotive industry. These collaborations take place between original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and system suppliers (suppliers who deliver complex systems directly to the OEM) as well as component suppliers (suppliers who deliver indirectly to the OEM). Due to rising product complexity, the need for collaboration in the produc...     »