Test Lab Management at Great Wall Motor Company
Seamless integration and efficient test lab management with Peak Test Management Suite
How a subsidiary of Great Wall Motors overcame test management challenges
Great Wall Motor Company Limited (GWM), one of the largest automobile manufacturers in China, faces the immense challenge of managing complex test processes for the development of its own engines, gearboxes, and drivetrains. The company's subsidiary, Hycet Transmission Technology Hebei Co. Ltd, is responsible for product development and manufacturing of hybrid and pure electric platforms. With multiple test bench systems from various manufacturers in use, the department struggled with test item allocation conflicts, lack of workflow control, and inefficient resource utilization.
In other words, it was an immense effort for Hyce's test planners to collect all information on upcoming tests, allocate the necessary resources and manage test commissioning and execution. Without a central management system, coordination between the various parties was difficult, often leading to scheduling conflicts and delays in test execution.
The Solution: implementing the Peak Test Management Suite
To overcome these challenges and ensure compliance with international safety, environmental, and quality standards, GWM sought to bring its test planning and execution processes up to state-of-the-art standards. The solution needed to streamline workflows, optimize resource utilization, and provide centralized management of test activities.
GWM partnered with Peak Solution to implement the Peak Test Management Suite (PTMS). PTMS offers a comprehensive solution for test lab management, allowing test field managers to efficiently manage, precisely plan, and thoroughly monitor all test activities and resources. With intuitive drag-and-drop features, automatic availability checks, and early conflict warnings, PTMS ensures optimal resource utilization and conflict-free test scheduling.
As part of the introduction of PTMS, a multi-stage planning process was implemented at GWM. Today, the head of vehicle development creates long-term development projects and defines the test series required for them. The heads of the test departments then assess the laboratory's capacity and approve the tests accordingly. After that, the test engineers gradually refine the planning. PTMS supports the process with powerful functions for test description, detailed scheduling, conflict resolution and real-time communication between participants.
Leveraging German expertise and local support
GWM chose to work with Peak Solution due to the company's extensive experience with testing departments of leading German automotive manufacturers. This expertise, combined with the available on-site support in China, made PTMS the ideal choice to manage GWM's complex testing processes.
PTMS's ability to organize complex test processes transparently and efficiently was a key factor in GWM's decision. The system's flexibility and scalability allowed it to seamlessly integrate with GWM's existing IT infrastructure, ensuring a smooth transition and implementation.
Benefits realized: increased efficiency and transparency
Since implementing PTMS, GWM has seen significant improvements in test bench utilization and overall efficiency. The solution provides greater transparency across the test field, allowing for real-time monitoring and management of test activities. PTMS ensures that all test-related information, including capacity utilization, productive times, and downtimes, is documented and available for process optimization.
One of the main advantages of PTMS is that it can avoid allocation conflicts at test benches, ensuring that test equipment, test objects and other resources are used optimally. The system also optimizes the process by monitoring the existing test bench systems and automatically uploading test data to the server for analysis.
Mr. Zhai Xu, responsible for test planning in Hycet's transmission department, praises the cooperation: "The cooperation with Peak Solution has significantly improved our test management processes. The Peak Test Management Suite has not only streamlined our workflows, but also improved our ability to effectively manage resources and avoid conflicts."
After the successful implementation of PTMS, GWM is now considering the further expansion of the system. The scalable and flexible nature of PTMS makes this easily possible.
Trustful cooperation as the key to success
The collaboration between GWM and Peak Solution has resulted in a state-of-the-art test management system that meets the highest standards of efficiency and transparency. PTMS has empowered GWM to optimize its test processes, reduce conflicts, and ensure the smooth execution of complex testing procedures.
For automotive testing departments looking to streamline their operations, the Peak Test Management Suite offers a proven solution that delivers measurable results. Partnering with Peak Solution can help you achieve conflict-free test planning, global control of test activities, and a future-ready testing environment.
