Like clockwork

The important thing is the result – and how it is achieved. In other words: Effectiveness and efficiency go hand in hand.

Times change, and processes have to follow
Automotive applications are becoming more and more complex. The rising number of systems and their growing networking significantly increase the complexity of the control equipment. In addition, there are increasingly higher demands on safety and security, which require a special approach and a great deal of care. Assistance systems for level 3 and higher, as well as AI systems, require their own procedures. The goal of reducing complexity by using a few large central computers, so-called “Silver Boxes” or ICAS (VW), only applies to the entire vehicle, not to the development of the systems themselves.

Development guidelines enable all project members to work hand in hand. The automobile manufacturers require that their suppliers comply with standards such as Automotive SPICE®, ISO 26262 and ISO/SAE 21434 to ensure the delivery of reliable high quality components.

We will be glad to implement the following steps for you:

Creation / Supplement of a development manual:
On the basis of detailed status quo analysis, we create all necessary process descriptions and drafts. The entire body of all guidelines has to be comprehensible, logical and updatable. And to include as much of your know-how as possible in the new processes, we create the documents based on detailed discussions with your specialists.

Specific pilot project work:
In parallel to creating the development manual, we start the implementation in a pilot project. This enables integration of improvement suggestions in the process. As we fill in specific roles in the project, we can support the project as agreed with the project manager.

Training and broad introduction:
We train all customer employees in the new processes. We create all of the necessary training documents with concrete exercises.

Establish competences:
After a certain time the processes run smoothly with minimal external support. We assist you in assembling your own team for quality assurance and other process improvements, after which our direct support will not be necessary anymore. As a consultant we will of course still be available to you.

Our services:
We can do the following to improve your processes:

• Coordination meetings with your customer departments for high acceptance of the specifications
• Specific project work in a pilot project to "show how it works"
• Assistance with the selection, adaptation and launching of tools
• Creation of guidelines in the form of an Intranet portal
• Creation of training documents and implementation of training
• Support in assessments by your customer to present your processes optimally

Everything okay?

Assessments show whether the right thing is being done the right way. We help you to fulfill the most demanding requirements in this respect.

Before you can go new directions, you have to know where you are
It has always been the philosophy of F+S to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the development with a condition analysis prior to the consultation. Since the SPICE standard is obligatory for suppliers by the automobile manufacturers, we carry out this condition analysis in the form of an Automotive SPICE® assessment.

All of our consultants are certified VDM QMC Automotive SPICE® assessors, including principal assessors. We have Software Quality Improvement Leaders (SQIL) certified by VW; our assessments are recognized by the OEMs. For many years, F + S has been actively involved in the further development and development of SPICE within the intacs™ assessors' association.

Our services
We will be glad to perform the following assessment tasks for you:

• Pre-assessment with information for supplementing and/or optimizing your results for optimal assessment
• Official or pre- assessment of your projects according to Automotive SPICE® (including adaptation of  process selection and assessment levels to your needs)
• Meaningful assessment report with detailed recommendations for improvement

Everything under control

Management has to have total control over the quality, scheduling and cost of development projects. We contribute to this with well-aimed management consultation.

Methodical goal orientation

Good project management is the prerequisite for a successful project. The basis is a meaningful plan that is much more than just a schedule and that is finally implemented and repeatedly adapted to reality.

We know what is important for good project management:

• Planning that corresponds to the reality of the development (planning in cycles, with general and detailed plans, traditional or agile)
• Implementation of the plan and adaptation to new circumstances
• Regular review of the progress of the project
• Easy-to-create, meaningful metrics that reveal weaknesses early on
• Risk management that allows action and not only reaction: safety or security management

Our services

What we as management consultants can do for you:

• Support in the creation and verification of the project planning with releases and cycles, e.g. by certified project managers, Scrum Product Owners or Scrum Masters
• Iterim project management
• Definition of meaningful metrics, including assistance with facilitating the (automatic) generation of metrics
• Strict compliance with schedules
• Advice with respect to the application of safety-critical standards
• Execution of risk workshops and monitoring of risk minimization

Experience contributes to success

Development projects require both detail and overall knowledge.  As consultants, we make our knowledge productive for our customers.

Become better economically
Our customers have to master complex challenges. However, nobody can know everything and always stay informed. The danger is to fall behind the state of the art if investments in improvements and innovations are not done.

As consultants we always want to stay in front so our customers can benefit from our experience. Competent consultation is complex,  creates high added value and  therefore has its price. But anyone who might run into a dead-end due to the lack of profound knowledge will have to invest more time and money in the long run.

Practical consultation with a theoretical background

Our consultants have many years of experience in assisting customers with complex development projects. And they know what they are talking about, because they have successfully developed automotive software themselves:

• They look for pragmatic solutions that support our customers
• They create development manuals that make use of existing strengths and eliminate weaknesses
• They implement the specifications in pilot projects to assess the practicability of the consultation service

In addition, our consultants always discuss new methods  with the development engineers. This helps early on to identify and improve  impractical or overly expensive practices.

Sought-after contacts

Assessments by automobile manufacturers confirm the effectiveness of our methods. Our pragmatic solutions recieve recognition also at the meeting of the SPICE assessors. Our know-how in the implementation of processes and for the solution of corresponding problems in demand at conferences and conventions. Some of such recent event and issues were: CONQUEST: „Project Planning“, EuroSPI: „Risk Management“, EuSEC: „Requirement Analysis“, VDA Automotive SYS: „intacs™ Cybersecurity SPICE“

Always well advised

Consulting is a broad field. We support our customers with management consulting, assessment implementation, process improvements and quality assurance. We have a lot of experience, especially in the area of safety, the "functional safety" of automotive software, and security, the protection against external attacks. There is also increasing demand for our expertise in assistance systems and level 3 and 4 AI systems.