[Editor’s note]
In March 2024, Car Quality Network and Carrefour Consulting jointly launched the annual China Automotive Product Quality Outstanding Contributor Selection Promotion Campaign, with the aim of showcasing the innovative practices of managers in the process of redefining and continuously improving product quality in multiple dimensions, and providing the industry with new ideas to deal with quality challenges.
In-depth corporate visits and research, and dialogue with outstanding contribution managers are an important part of this event. In this interview, Zhang Yue, senior vice president of Carrefour Consulting, talked to Li Jiayao, senior director of quality management of Lantu Automotive, and had in-depth communication on issues such as the construction of a large-quality platform system, a one-stop customer satisfaction system, and the creation of a "three ones" market "double fast" mechanism.
Zhang Yue (right), Senior Vice President of Carrefour Consulting, in-depth conversation with Li Jiayao (left), Senior Director of Quality Management at Lantu Automotive | Photography: Yang Shuo
During the exchange, Li Jiayao said that the quality concept of Lantu Automobile is user-centered, striving for quality refinement and user experience quality to the extreme. Establish a comprehensive user-centered quality management system, in product quality building, to comprehensively benchmark high-end brands, committed to providing quality experience that always exceeds customer expectations.
Can withstand the user’s pixel-level "look, hear and ask"
Li Jiayao, Senior Director of Quality Management at Landmap Automotive | Photography: Yang Shuo
As a high-end new energy brand created by Dongfeng Group, Lantu has completed the listing of three categories and three vehicles in three years, and recently launched new models, forming a product matrix spanning SUV, MPV, and sedan. The quality and safety of each vehicle are closely related to the construction of quality management system capabilities.
Since the establishment of the brand, the quality management team has built and improved the whole-process quality management system from the pre-quality planning of the whole vehicle to the improvement of the after-sales market. Li Jiayao said that relying on the quality management system, Lantu Automobile currently has the dual evaluation standard of "VES + exquisite quality". On the one hand, the items that customers focus on are constrained by VES evaluation; at the same time, for higher experience requirements, the bonus items that can bring surprises to customers are improved through exquisite quality evaluation, so that users can see, hear, hear and touch, all showing high-end enjoyment.
Previously, in the trial production stage of a certain model of Lantu, the touch button of the glass lift switch was introduced. Lantu has always adhered to independent innovation, but after the actual measurement, it was found that the experience effect was not good: problems such as insensitivity and easy accidental touch occurred frequently. Li Jiayao judged that there was a great risk of customer complaints in the future. The quality management team put forward suggestions in a timely manner, upgraded the CFT team (cross-functional team), and followed up the process on a daily basis. Finally, the new plan was officially introduced before mass production, and it was also recognized by users after listing.
Li Jiayao believes that Lantu Automotive is promoting quality management from the perspective of user experience, linking development, design, and production to connect the entire value chain, and ultimately forming a high-quality platform system.
Dynamically adjust Quality Standards based on user requests
The automotive industry pursues extreme efficiency, but there are no shortcuts. Relying on Dongfeng Group’s more than half a century of car-making heritage, Landmap Automobile has established an independent and controllable full-link system for research, production, supply and sales.
Li Jiayao said that in recent years, Lantu Auto has adopted a number of new technologies to improve product quality, and these measures run through multiple links such as Product Research & Development, manufacturing, and supply chain management. For example, in the stage of production capacity climbing, Lantu 4.0 digital factory integrating advanced technologies such as big data, edge cloud, AI, and the Internet of Things has played an important role.
Lantu Automobile uses numerical control hydraulic pad technology to match the high-speed synchronous stamping line of steel and aluminum mixed production, so that the error control of each process is at the industry first-class level (0.1mm); in the welding factory with 100% automation coverage, laser welding, ARPLAS welding and traditional welding technology are combined; 195 sets of high-precision servo tightening equipment on the final assembly line, through the self-developed TMS digital torque control system, to achieve 100% accurate control of the key torque of the whole vehicle, which can be traced back to nearly 10 years of torque data.
At the same time, the Landmap 4.0 digital factory uses AI technology to conduct more detailed inspections. Li Jiayao introduced: "In chassis inspection, AI is used to liberate manpower to prevent errors. And in terms of instrument door nameplates and other aspects, deep algorithm learning is carried out by the model, which can achieve automatic error prevention and timely correction of sound and light alarms. Through long-term learning, AI systems can evolve and iterate independently, and this technology is widely used in quality inspection."
The Landmap 4.0 digital factory plays an important role in improving product quality | Photo: Landmap Automotive
In terms of supply chain, Lantu Automotive is committed to being "the setter and leader of the quality system and technical standards for new energy vehicle suppliers", establishing and improving the supplier quality system evaluation standard (VQS), summarizing 12 core processes and their management requirements, which can systematically and comprehensively identify the quality weaknesses of suppliers, and focus on the control of processes that affect key and important characteristics, early warning of quality risks, and make targeted improvements. "For suppliers, Lantu has established a supplier quality system auditor qualification certification mechanism, and regularly conducts part quality training including parts expertise, quality system, quality tools, etc., to continuously improve the auditor’s ability." Li Jiayao said.
Start from research and development to ensure the quality of each part | Photo: Lantu Automotive
For quality management, Li Jiayao believes that Lantu Automobile insists on user-centricity, and must start from R & D and production to ensure that the quality of each loaded part is qualified, and the quality evaluation standard is also dynamically adjusted according to user feedback. Taking the old model as an example, the odor index standard requirements are already within the industry-leading 3.0 level, but there are still a small number of users who put forward higher requirements. Finally, the standard was adjusted to 2.7, although only 0.3 different, but it is extremely difficult to achieve. Therefore, "the suppliers of key parts under our control have been extended from primary suppliers to secondary or even tertiary suppliers."
Such actions have received positive feedback from the market: a total of 42,547 vehicles were delivered from January to August, an increase of 90% year-on-year, and monthly sales also achieved "four consecutive increases"; during the period 2021-2023, the company’s products have no major/batch defects, and there are zero recalls. According to the data of Car Quality Network, the number of complaints of Lantu Automobile is lower than the average of its own brands, and the withdrawal rate and the manufacturer’s response rate are higher than the industry average.
6 years to meet the needs of overseas 500,000 users
At present, the development cycle of a new model in the industry has been shortened from 48-60 months in the era of fuel vehicles to 12-15 months for new energy vehicle conversions. The pace of conversions is trending towards consumer electronics.
"At the key juncture of the intensive launch of new cars, we have further strengthened the process control. For the change points of new models, key management characteristics such as process characteristics and product characteristics are included in the special feature control. At the same time, we fully implement the’Three Ones’ principle around improving user satisfaction," Li Jiayao said.
The "Three Ones" principle is the hard requirement put forward by Lantu Automobile for the whole value chain, that is, the problems reported by users must be responded to within 10 minutes, replied within 1 hour, and solved within 1 day, with the aim of improving user satisfaction. To this end, the factory quality field holds a special project promotion meeting for market problems at 1 noon every day, and a market quality feedback countermeasure meeting at 9 o’clock every night.
In the planning of Landmap, future users will be located in 60 countries around the world.
In September 2022, 500 Lantu FREE smart electric SUVs were officially shipped to Norway from Wuhan, and they were delivered to users quickly after arrival. Previously, the model has obtained the European Union Vehicle Type Approval (EWVTA) and can be officially registered in European Union countries. Subsequently, Lantu cars have successively entered Finland, Denmark, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Italy, Spain and other countries.
Lantu Auto Italy Released | Photo courtesy of: Lantu Auto
At the Beijing Auto Show in April this year, Lantu Automobile officially released the Let’s VOYAH "Total Lantu" overseas strategy, and announced the core goal of "6655": by 2030, it will be deployed on six continents in the world, enter 60 countries around the world, and build a total of 500 sales and service outlets. Overseas sales have exceeded 500,000 vehicles.
How does product quality support the achievement of goals and tasks? Li Jiayao frankly said that the quality management of overseas exported automobiles faces many pain points and problems. The first is cross-border cultural nuance; the second is that Quality Standards, consumption habits, laws and regulations are different from those in China; in addition, regulatory requirements are also different. The quality management team is faced with actual situations such as long problem confirmation and analysis cycles and after-sales services to be improved.
But he also stressed that the quality management team is actively and deeply understanding the local market, and strengthening the construction of after-sales services system, continuous improvement and innovation, striving to meet the needs of global consumers and create a "new business card" for Chinese car companies to go overseas.
On July 29 this year, the Lantu Automobile brand officially entered its fifth year since its establishment. The next practical challenge is how to take the scale to a higher level in the serious involution of the new energy vehicle market. Li Jiayao said that in this process, the quality management team will do a good job in product quality at the same time, by continuously improving the processing and analysis capabilities of quality big data, identify users’ personalized needs, potential quality problems and laws, cooperate with internal departments to respond efficiently, create a win-win situation with users, and comprehensively improve users’ experience of intelligent functions to meet users’ higher needs for safety.
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