This diploma thesis deals with block exemptions in the automobile industry. It analyses their position within EU competition law. The aim of the thesis is to answer the question whether the sector-specific block exemptions regulating the automobile industry comply with general aims of EU competition law and to analyse their relationship with EU competition law as lex generalis and lex specialis. In order to achieve these goals, the thesis is divided into 5 chapters. The first chapter deals with block exemptions in general. It describes the reason why block exemptions have been invented and their subsequent development. In the first chapter there is also an explanation of their structure and method of legal regulation. This chapter then describes development of the general block exemption for vertical agreements and of the block exemption in the automobile industry. Description of their development is based on the decision in BMW case because rules set in this decision were the basis of the first block exemption in automobile industry. Second chapter deals with the newest block exemption in automobile industry - regulation No. 461/2010. With the newest block exemption the era of sector specific rules for the sale of new vehicles has ended. Regulation No. 461/2010 creates specific rules only for the...

M.A. (Economics) / The high soaring motor vehicle prices put the accessibility of a new motor vehicle out of reach of the average South African consumer. The South African motor vehicle and related industry was protected to a point where it became virtually a monopoly. or a very small oligopoly. Curtailing costs and keeping prices low wasn't a priority and the consumer had to pay the price. The brunt of custom duties, excise taxes and high tariffs were paid by the consumer. in order to keep an inefficient local motor vehicle industry alive. When the General Agreement on Tariff and Trade (GATT) takes effect in 1995. the South African .motor vehicle and related industry will start losing its protective base. This is good news for the consumer. but bad news for the South African motor vehicle and related industry. which wouldn't be ready for international competition in time. It is therefore of the utmost importance that the industry will start curtailing costs wherever possible. The sharp and continuous increases in motor vehicle prices indicate that the industry isn't cost effectively organized. This causes the South African motor vehicle and related industry to be internationally uncompetitive. The general impression is that the South African motor vehicle industry's input mix is wrong. This study investigated the level of optimalization of the capital and labour input base in the South African motor vehicle industry, to ascertain where the problem lies. It was revealed that the South African labour force is too unproductive and production costs could be curtailed if thousands of workers are retrenched and more capital is employed. This study also made a contribution to the theory of production. Equations were developed which can determine the optimal input ratio; the optimal amounts that should be allocated to capital and labour inputs, respectively, if a specific budget outlay is available; and what the optimal values of the capital and inputs should be to deliver a desired output, for example the market demand. A unique method to determine and quantify capital and labour productivity, and especially the decline in labour productivity were developed. The possible gains that could be made if the total cost outlay were optimally allocated between the factors of production, and the cost savings that could be made if the market demand was met by an optimal input combination, were also shown.

M.Comm. / Change is inevitable in today’s world. Multinational companies are constantly being forced to adapt in order to survive. When companies are not able to adjust to the changing environment they run the risk of becoming obsolete. When General Motors (GM) returned to South Africa and bought back Delta Motors Corporation (DMC) in 2004, dealers were faced with new procedures, policies and management styles. This study aimed to establish how GM dealers viewed change, by exploring their views on the Delta Motors takeover in 2004. Five dealerships participated in the study and 15 employees were interviewed. The results were analysed through content analysis. Recommendations are made with regard to addressing the change process and the difficulties that accompany it. The study reinforces the importance of communication, planning and employee development in a change process. By encouraging involvement, people own the change process and do not feel that change is being forced upon them. Although change is critical, research shows that it is a complex process that needs to be planned thoroughly. This research includes lessons learned from the change process that GM went through when it took over from DMC.

A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Sociology. Johannesburg, 1997. / This thesis is an investigation into worker responses to restructuring of work and production organisation in a South African automobile manufacturing company. The orgnnisation of work and production is analysed as part of managerial strategies aimed at promoting flexibility Worker responses will be conceptualized in a general model of worker subjectivity. Subjectivity here means the process through which workers make sense of changes in factory life according to regulative ideas and general moral and cultural constructions of the meanings of industrial work. I adopted a method based on observational research and semi-structured interviews with a group of workers, integrated by archival research and interviews with managers and union organisers, The results of my enquiry confirm hypotheses and theoretical frameworks critical towards the notion of flexibility as representing a clear divide with traditional "mass production" methods. In fact, managerial promotion of flexibility coexists here with relevant continuities in hierarchical and authoritarian structures, paternalism, lack of skills' recognition, use of technology as a mainly cost-cutting device, routinisation and lack of worker responsibility and independence. [Abbreviated Abstract. Open document to view full version]

Com a globalização, a competitividade no mercado automotivo tem aumentado cada dia mais, e os produtos automotivos (veículos e componentes) estão sendo freqüentemente desenvolvidos em um determinado país todavia para construção, uso e aplicação em outros países. As condições de aplicação como altitude, condições climáticas, topografia, percepção dos clientes e outras variáveis podem ser diferentes de um mercado para outro e influenciar na confiabilidade dos produtos. Se as condições de aplicação não são consideradas na fase de desenvolvimento do veículo, pode ser que o produto não venha atender a função à qual ele foi projetado durante a sua vida útil, e pode-se também experimentar um nível de falhas excessivo e/ou modos de falhas específicos de determinados mercados, bem como arruinar a imagem da marca. Portanto é necessário predizer a confiabilidade dos produtos que são exportados e a partir dos dados de confiabilidade usá-los em projetos futuros, fazendo com que sejam projetados veículos para atendimento ao mercado global, ou então no mínimo atender aos requisitos ou demanda de qualidade de cada país importador. Portanto o objetivo deste trabalho é desenvolver um modelo para descrever o comportamento de um produto exportado e predizer a sua confiabilidade no campo. O modelo considera a utilização dos dados de falhas de campo no período de garantia, considerando também a existência de veículos que não apresentaram falhas ao final deste período. De posse da estimativa de confiabilidade para o veículo e seus respectivos subsistemas em cada país, propõe-se um modelo para análise de detecção de diferenças entre confiabilidades e a partir do qual se possa concluir as razões pelas quais há diferenças e usar estes dados para uso em projetos futuros. / Since the globalization, the automotive competition is growing every other day, and automotive products (vehicles and components) are often developed in one country though its made, used and applied in other markets. The operating conditions such as height, climate, topography, customer perception and other variables are often different from one market to another and could influence on the products reliability. If the market operating conditions are not considered in the vehicle development phase, the product may not fully perform its intended function over useful life period, and also may experience an excessive level of field complaints and/or failure modes specific to those markets and also damage the image of the brand. Therefore it is necessary to predict the export products reliability and based on the reliability data to use as lessons learned for future projects in order to fulfill the global market requirements or at least fulfill the requirements of quality from each country that imports the vehicles. Therefore the main objective of this study is to develop a model to describe the export product behavior and predict its reliability in the field. The model considers the use of warranty claims and also uses the data regarding the vehicles which did not have any claim under the warranty period. Based on the estimative of reliability for the exported vehicle and also their subsystems, its proposed a model to analyze and detect differences between reliability and so to use such data on future projects.

O projeto de um sistema de freios a tambor é altamente especializado, por este motivo é um produto terceirizado ou black box, onde os fornecedores investem em pesquisas e detém patentes de sua construção e materiais. Porém, cabe a montadora definir os requisitos do produto, propor o plano de validação do projeto do freio à aplicação no veículo ao qual se destina e interpretar os resultados para aprovação. Parte da execução deste plano é delegada ao fornecedor (DFMEA, simulações numéricas, ensaios acelerados em bancada), enquanto as partes de certificação governamental, desempenho e durabilidade em veículo são de responsabilidade da montadora. A metodologia existente para desenvolvimento de freios a tambor destina-se ao desenvolvimento conjunto de um novo carro e um novo sistema de freio completo. Assim, além das incertezas sobre parâmetros do projeto de veículo que influem no projeto do freio, existe uma maior facilidade de se alterar os sistemas de interface do freio a tambor, uma vez que ainda não existem ferramentais produtivos. Este trabalho apresenta uma metodologia para o desenvolvimento de um novo fornecedor de freios traseiros a tambor para veículos já em produção, sob o ponto de vista da engenharia de produto. A metodologia proposta pretende atender as necessidades das montadoras de automóveis instaladas no Brasil, uma vez que estas necessitam buscar alternativas no fornecimento de sistemas automotivos de grande responsabilidade, com qualidade e custos globalmente competitivos. Esta metodologia é destinada à substituição do fornecedor (e portando no projeto) do freio a tambor, visando especialmente redução de custos, para veículos já em produção, procurando manter inalteradas as peças de interface, além de preservar ou, se possível, exceder os parâmetros de qualidade, durabilidade e desempenho do sistema ao qual virá a substituir. Para comprovar a metodologia apresentada, esta é aplicada a um caso real para um veículo de passeio pequeno, e então são apresentados os resultados parciais. / The project of a system of drum brakes is highly specialized, for this reason is a third part product, so-called black box product, where the suppliers invest in research and withhold patents of its construction and materials. However, the car OEMs define the requirements of the product, propose the validation plan for the brake project to the application in the vehicle it destines and evaluate the results for approval. Part of the execution of this plan is delegated to the supplier (DFMEA, numerical simulations, speed up bench tests), while steps of governmental certification, performance and durability in vehicle are of responsibility of the OEMs. The existing methodology for drum brake development destines to jointly development of a new car and a complete new brake system. Thereby, beyond uncertainties on parameters of the vehicle project that influence in the project of the brake, it is easier to modify the systems of interface with the drum brake, therefore productive tooling not yet exists. The dissertation purpose is to propose a methodology for development of new supplier of rear drum brakes for vehicles already in production, under the point of view of the product engineering. The methodology proposed intends to attend the needs of the car manufacturers installed in Brazil, once those are searching alternatives of suppliers of great responsibility automotive systems, with globally competitive costs and quality. The methodology proposed is destined to replace the supplier (and also the project) of the drum brake, aiming for cost reduction specially, for vehicles already in production, looking for keeping parts of interface unchanged and to maintain or, if possible, to exceed the parameters of quality, durability and performance of the system which it will come to substitute. To confirm the proposed methodology, this is applied to a real case for a small passenger vehicle and then the partial results are shown.

Este texto analisa as formas pelas quais os sindicatos metalúrgicos de duas unidades produtivas de uma mesma empresa automobilística organizaram suas ações a partir de um contexto de grandes mudanças, iniciado a partir da década de 1990. São objetos de análise os trabalhadores de duas unidades da Toyota Motors Co. do Brasil: a de São Bernardo do Campo, localizada na região do ABC paulista, e a de Indaiatuba, localizada na região de Campinas-SP. Procuramos colocar em discussão as práticas do Sindicato dos metalúrgicos do ABC, localizado em uma tradicional região industrial e também as do Sindicato dos Metalúrgicos de Campinas e Região, que representa um novo território produtivo brasileiro. No contexto das recentes transformações ocorridas no setor automotivo brasileiro, especialmente a partir da década de 1990, as estratégias de racionalização do processo produtivo desconfiguraram as formas tradicionais de ação sindical e de organização do trabalho, fazendo com que os atores sociais se repensem nesse contexto de mudanças. / This paper discusses the ways in which workers unions from two brazilian Toyota automobile plants organized their actions in a context of changes, starting from 1990s. I analyse both metalworkers union´s practices of ABC Paulista region located in a traditional industrial area and Campinas metalworkers union located in a new industrial cluster. In a context of recent changes lived by the brazilian automotive industry, especially from the 1990s, the rationalization strategies in the production processes have been changing traditional forms of union activity and work organization, so these workers and their unions started to rethink their possibilities of action.

Este texto analisa as formas pelas quais os sindicatos metalúrgicos de duas unidades produtivas de uma mesma empresa automobilística organizaram suas ações a partir de um contexto de grandes mudanças, iniciado a partir da década de 1990. São objetos de análise os trabalhadores de duas unidades da Toyota Motors Co. do Brasil: a de São Bernardo do Campo, localizada na região do ABC paulista, e a de Indaiatuba, localizada na região de Campinas-SP. Procuramos colocar em discussão as práticas do Sindicato dos metalúrgicos do ABC, localizado em uma tradicional região industrial e também as do Sindicato dos Metalúrgicos de Campinas e Região, que representa um novo território produtivo brasileiro. No contexto das recentes transformações ocorridas no setor automotivo brasileiro, especialmente a partir da década de 1990, as estratégias de racionalização do processo produtivo desconfiguraram as formas tradicionais de ação sindical e de organização do trabalho, fazendo com que os atores sociais se repensem nesse contexto de mudanças. / This paper discusses the ways in which workers unions from two brazilian Toyota automobile plants organized their actions in a context of changes, starting from 1990s. I analyse both metalworkers union´s practices of ABC Paulista region located in a traditional industrial area and Campinas metalworkers union located in a new industrial cluster. In a context of recent changes lived by the brazilian automotive industry, especially from the 1990s, the rationalization strategies in the production processes have been changing traditional forms of union activity and work organization, so these workers and their unions started to rethink their possibilities of action.

PADOVANI, C.B. O papel da governança na cadeia de suprimento automotiva nos fornecedores de primeiro e segundo nível. 2007. Dissertação de mestrado - Escola Politécnica - Universidade de São Paulo - SP O estudo das cadeias de suprimentos tem evidenciado que a partir da sua gestão, qualquer organização pode obter vantagens competitivas para seu próprio negócio se conhecer as estratégias da governança da cadeia na qual está inserida. A pesquisa bibliográfica pôde mostrar que os ganhos dessas organizações são divididos conforme a hierarquia de poder (governança) da cadeia, pela forma como são usados os recursos comuns e pela atuação do conjunto de empresas em um mercado específico. Dessa forma, o objetivo deste trabalho foi entender como a governança da cadeia automotiva influencia os fornecedores de primeiro (tier 1) e segundo nível (tier 2) isto é, fornecedores e subfornecedores das montadoras em relação a seus próprios negócios no que diz respeito à competitividade e à lucratividade. O trabalho visou identificar se os fornecedores de primeiro e segundo nível são capazes de traçar essas estratégias a partir do conhecimento da governança. Foi escolhido o estudo de caso múltiplo para se fazer a pesquisa, pois o que se desejava investigar era à aderência a teoria já existente. Também foi proposta deste trabalho verificar como a montadora e os fornecedores de primeiro nível entendem a questão da gestão da cadeia de suprimentos no segundo nível. Para isso, foi feita uma pesquisa exploratória que mostrou algum entendimento do fornecedor da segunda camada quanto à influência da governança. Durante a pesquisa, constatou-se que as organizações percebem a governança de modo diferenciado e que existem pontos positivos e negativos dessa governança. A pesquisa revelou que, comparando os fornecedores de primeiro e segundo nível, é bem mais difícil identificar pontos positivos nos fornecedores de primeiro nível, enquanto, no segundo nível, já foi possível verificar a gestão da cadeia de forma a obter vantagens competitivas e aumento de lucratividade. / PADOVANI, C.B. The role of governance in the automotive supply chain in tier one and tier two suppliers. 2007. Master degree dissertation - Escola Politécnica - Universidade de São Paulo - SP The supply chain study has evidenced that, starting from supply chain management, any organization can obtain competitive advantage for its own business if they know the governance strategies of the supply chain in which they are inserted. The bibliographical research was able to show that those organizations tend to split their gains according to the power hierarchy (governance) of the chain, to the way that common resources are used and to the performance of the company group in a specific market. In that way, the purpose of this research was to understand how the automotive supply chain governance influences tier one and tier two suppliers, that is, the vehicle assembler suppliers and the supplier of their supplier, relative to their own business, regarding competitiveness and profitability. The research sought to identify weather or not tier one and tier two suppliers are capable to draw those strategies, starting from governance knowledge. For the purpose of this research, the multiple case studies have been chosen, because we wanted to investigate the adherence to the existent theory. This paper also had the purpose to verify how the vehicle assembler and the tier one supplier understand the supply chain management issue in the tier two supplier. An exploratory research was performed, showing some understanding from the tier two suppliers regarding the influence of the governance. During the research, it was observed that the organization notices the governance in a differentiated way, and that are positive and negative points of this governance. Comparing tier one supplier and tier two suppliers, the research revealed that it is much more difficult to identify positive points in the tier one, while in the tier two it is possible to verify the supply chain management in order to obtain competitive advantages and to increase the profitability.

Alors que la production de masse représentait le paradigme industriel dominant dans les années 80, le Toyota Production System, le système d'amélioration continue exemplifié chez Toyota, a suscité l'intérêt de nombreux chercheurs et industriels à la recherche de moyens d'améliorer la performance opérationnelle et financière des organisations. L'objectif de la thèse repose sur la caractérisation de la dimension humaine dans les systèmes de production intégrant une forte composante d'amélioration continue dans le but de la considérer lors du processus d'adoption. Pour cela, la thèse s’oriente autour de trois contributions majeures : la définition de la dimension humaine inhérente au Lean, l'évolution historique des éléments constituants cette dimension humaine et son opérationnalisation au travers du rôle des experts du Lean dans le processus d'adoption. / While mass production was the dominant industrial paradigm of the 1980s, the Toyota Production System, Toyota's exemplary continuous improvement system, has attracted the interest of many researchers and industry in seeking ways to improve operational and financial pe1formance of their organizations. The aim of this thesis is to characterize the human dimension in production systems including a strong component of continuous improvement in order to consider it during the adoption process. For this, the thesis focuses on three major contributions: the definition of the human dimension inherent to Lean, the historical evolution of the elements that represent this human dimension and its operationalization through the rote of Lean experts in the adoption process.