How is the Automotive Industry

being affected by Cloud Computing

Innovation is moving at a speed which we cannot imagine. The IT Giants are

working to reduce costs and implement new technologies like Cloud
Computing, Machine Learning (ML), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet Of
Things (IOT). The organizations need to change the way they work to keep
up with the changing environment.

Cloud Computing is a computing method the scale of which is dynamic

which means the resources which are provided over the internet as a service
can be increased or decreased as per the requirements. The users need not
be familiar with or have expertise with the technology infrastructure that
supports the cloud.

Cloud Computing is generally made up of the following components:

1. Infrastructure As A Service (IAAS)
2. Platform As A Service (PAAS)
3. Software As A Service (SAAS)

Cloud computing users try to reduce their costs in investing in the

infrastructure which serves as a host to the software. It is generally
consumed as a service and the users pay only for the services they
consume. Many companies use the traditional computing model for
providing cloud services, which is similar to how the traditional utility services
like electricity are provided to the customers.

In our daily lives, we might not have noticed how these components of Cloud
Computing are used in the automotive industry. Here are some instances:

COMPONENT
Infrastructure as a Service (IAAS)
Platform as a Service (PAAS)
Software as a Service (SAAS)
DESCRIPTION
Vehicles share their networking and data
processing capabilities with the other
vehicles
Certain vehicles provide their unused
storage space over the cloud to other
vehicles which need extra storage for large
applications
Live vehicle data services are provided
such as traffic information, lane change
warning, location tracker, adaptable cruise
control etc

WHO IS USING CLOUD COMPUTING?

Organizations in different sectors are using cloud computing solutions for a
wide variety of purposes like data backup, file storage, disaster recovery,
testing and development, big data analytics, etc. For instance, Online gaming
industry is using cloud computing to provide the gaming experience to
millions of users globally. Financial Services companies are using cloud
computing to detect real time fraud and prevention. Healthcare industry is
using cloud computing to provide more personalized treatment to their
patients. Tech giants like Apple are using cloud computing to provide cloud
data storage to the customers.

FORECAST OF CLOUD COMPUTING FOR THE AUTOMOBILE

INDUSTRY
According to Adroit Market Research, the global cloud computing market
size in the Automobile Industry is expected to reach $9.62 billion by 2025.
The sole reason to adopt cloud computing over traditional practices is the
Cost Efficiency.
The fastest growing markets adopting the cloud computing technologies in
the automobile industry are Asia-Pacific, North America and Europe.
Currently cloud based solutions in the automobile industry include:
• Lane Assist
• Adaptive Cruise Control
• 360° Camera
• Traffic Information
• Connected Mobile Applications

HOW IS IT HAPPENING?
Cloud Computing is one of the major technological forces in the automotive
industry. It makes the industry efficient, shares powerful insights, and
empowers new, intelligent plans of action over the whole supply chain.

• SUPPLIERS
The suppliers in the automotive industry are using cloud computing to
reduce the cost of their operations. This gives them better analytics which
allows them to maximize their productivity by increasing the uptime of the
machines and improving the quality of their products.

ASSET MANAGEMENT FORECAST ERRORS CLOUD CONNECTIVITY

The suppliers can track
expensive tools across the
whole supply chain to
reduce taxes, optimise the
usage of assets and retire
the assets at the right time.
The implementation of
cloud computing would
allow the suppliers to
predict the errors and failure
in their manufacturing
equipment.
The suppliers can
implement cloud
connectivity to reduce
operating costs and
improve their efficiency.

• AUTOMOBILE MANUFACTURERS
Auto industry OEM’s are deploying cloud computing practices and other
solutions ranging from Smart Factories Internet Of Things (IOT) for increasing
quality and efficiency to improve product design which enhance the
marketing, sales, customer service and aftermarket service to manufacturing
connected cars.
PRODUCT CONNECTED CUSTOMER INVENTORY
DESIGN VEHICLES CARE MANAGEMENT
The cloud A lot of data is OEM’s are providing OEM’s are
computing practices generated from complete customer integrating cloud
are enhancing the connected vehicles care services over solutions in their
product life cycle which allows the the cloud to provide working so as to get
management to manufacturers to instant support to connected with the
check redundancy provide solutions. the customer and suppliers in an
as compared to the also reduce costs at easier way thereby
previous products the same time. improving the
and offer new process of ordering
solutions. and procuring spare
parts
• DEALERS
The dealers have been implementing cloud solutions to reach out to the
market, enhance the experience of their customers and attract them with
more offers to lure them to the showroom. They also monitor the performance
of the customer vehicles to provide them better service.

INHOUSE RETAIL CUSTOMER ENHANCING

FINANCE MANAGEMENT INSIGHTS CUSTOMER
EXPERIENCE
The companies are Dealers are The cloud Cloud computing
deploying cloud deploying cloud computing practices allows the dealers to
practices to provide practices for allow dealers to get provide virtual
the customer with increasing insights on the experience of the
in-house trade-in automation in tastes and vehicles which
options for generating leads of preferences of the allows them to
increasing customer potential customers, shoppers and their reduce their
loyalty and enhance improve interests in the inventory thereby
their experience. relationships with vehicles. reducing operating
existing customers costs.
and spare parts
ordering as per the
demand.

• CONSUMERS
The consumers are delighted with the new technologies being implemented
which allows them to have a better shopping experience, saves their time
due to timely service, improved customer support etc.

CONNECTED CONNECTED VEHICLE PERSONALISED

INFRASTRUCTURE
Vehicles can connect with
the city infrastructure to
increase the safety of the
people inside and avoid
traffic etc
This allows the consumers
to explore options for food,
travel and other necessities
like petrol/diesel on the go
synchronising with the
location of the vehicle.
TRAVEL
The consumers can change
vehicles settings and store
them on the cloud. This
allows them to access
those settings and enhance
their driving experience.

CLOUD COMPUTING IN AUTOMOBILE AFTERMARKET

The cloud computing just does not end at the sale but it goes beyond that.
Cloud computing plays a significant role in the customer service post the
sale of the automobile. With the help of personalised communication and
analysis of the vehicles, providing more analytical reports with the help of
data analytics, cloud computing is striving to increase customer loyalty and
increasing service quality by touching all the pain points of the consumer.
On top of that, infotainment solutions have been innovating and transforming
from smartphone enabled solutions to fully embedded solutions. This
increases the connectivity of the user with the vehicle. This provides the user
with a lot of information like real time fuel consumption, location based
alerts, vehicle to vehicle communication and mobility related services. The
modern consumer wants built in connectivity for complete user experience
and hence the innovation is the only constant here.

Let us explore the utility and effectiveness of cloud computing in automobile

industry in detail:

• Cost Reduction
The traditional computing infrastructure is much more expensive than cloud
computing because it saves the cost of labor, power consumption, hardware
repair and depreciation. Updating the infrastructure to meet the up to date
technological advancements is also a challenge and hence requires a lot of
money being spent on the same. Thus cloud computing helps reduce these
costs and pay for what the user needs.

• Complexities of Automotive Sector

The manufacturing in the automobile sector is different from the other
manufacturing facilities. The requirements of automobile manufacturing
companies are related to demand, analytics, data and dealer network which
can prove to be quite a tedious task. Thus cloud computing makes it easier
for the automobile manufacturing companies. Cloud computing provides
dynamic storage and the time taken to implement is also very less.

• Infotainment Solutions
The performance of GPS and Infotainment solutions in the automobiles can
be enhanced with the help of cloud computing. The infotainment systems
provide a lot of information to the driver related to driving. These help in
predictive analytics personalised to each user and can also help in avoiding
traffic or forecast a future error in the vehicle.

• Increased Security
On the back end, there’s a staff working 24*7 to take care of the security of
the vehicles, the risks and probable failures.

• Enhanced Customer Support

Data gets updated on the cloud on real time basis. Hence, the customer care
is able to provide better support to the customers in case of a fault in
vehicles or vehicle breakdown. This is only because the real time data gets
updated on the cloud and the customer service executive can see in the
system what exactly is the fault in the vehicle. This would allow the customer
care to provide support to the customer in a more enhanced way. Also, an
alert of the location is also sent to the nearest workshop.

• Boosting Collaboration
In the automotive supply chain, collaboration is a very important aspect. The
manufacturers need to communicate with each other internally as well as on
the external side, they need to communicate with distributors, spare parts
vendors, and other stake holders to manufacture their products.
After the sale of the vehicle, the workshops have to collaborate with the
spare parts vendors and other suppliers for the smooth working of their
workshop thereby increasing customer satisfaction.

How is Cloud Computing used by Workshop Management Solutions ?

The after sales service holds a great importance in the automotive industry.
Computers, software, internet have become a part of various businesses
irrespective of the size of the business. In a workshop, there are various
stakeholders which have to be brought together to enhance the working of
the business and increase customer satisfaction. Thus a Cloud Based
Workshop Management Solution is a blessing for the automotive aftermarket
industry. It provides real time access to the data from any device that is
connected to the internet. The accessibility of data over the cloud helps in
increasing the effectiveness of the workshop in the following ways:

• Effective Customer Management

The software will have access to the complete database of the customer. It
will record the data and transactions of the customer in a very structure
manner which will enable the workshops to understand the need of the
consumer and touch all his pain points.

• Effective Data Management

The traditional approach of storing data has become outdated. Data is
stored in software which handles the data in a structured manner and a cloud
based software allows the accessibility of data on any device that is
connected to the internet. This allows the workshops to improve their
decision making for increasing the profitability of the business.

• Effective Time Management

As the vehicle enters into a workshop, it has to go through a lot of processes
before it comes out for delivery to the customer. To increase the efficiency and
the profitability of the workshop, it is very important to satisfy the customer.
Hence the most important factor in customer satisfaction is
 delivery of the vehicle on time. For this, each activity of the workshop has to
be recorded and monitored to prevent the wastage of time in various
processes. The accessibility of data on the cloud helps find the areas of error
and hence reduces the time spent on a vehicle.

• Effective Resource Management

An optimum utilisation of the available resources both labour and parts is
very important to run a workshop effectively. All this data is managed by the
software and the availability of data on the cloud allows the workshop owner
to keep a check on the working of the resources.

• Effective Stakeholder Management

Every business has a lot of stakeholders who play a major role in the
functioning of the business in an effective manner. The cloud based system
binds all the stakeholders together in an improved manner which helps the
workshop owners to nurture these relationships and upscale their businesses.

Little bit about GMS

How is RAMP using Cloud Computing?

Ramp is a SAAS based workshop management software aimed at digitizing
the end-to-end business processes in multi brand automobile workshops. It
is a cloud based software that works both on web and mobile platforms and
can be accessed from anywhere. Thus, SAAS and Cloud Computing allow it
to be accessible from anywhere on a device connected to internet and
hence the software gives complete control of the business to the workshop
owner.
Ramp provides Garage on Cloud giving an aggregation platform as a service
thereby bringing the various stakeholders of the industry together.
It is a complete software package for individuals/businesses/companies that
want to operate as an aggregator.
This includes:
• Workshops
• Vendors for Insurance, Roadside Assistance, Emergency Services,
Payment Solutions, e-commerce etc.
CONCLUSION
Cloud Computing is changing the face of the automobile industry in a very
comprehensive manner. The change is to an extent that it would truly change
the business work and sell their products.
“We live in a world where innovation is the only constant. The world is
witnessing unprecedented change driven by digital revolution. Everything is
changing from how organizations function to how people work. Digital
transformation is the buzzword across industries and cloud-based tech is
leading that digitization of processes and supply chains,” said Shashank Dixit,
CEO, Deskera, a global cloud provider.
The implementation of modern technology along with cloud computing
practices, Internet of things (IOT), Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
are transforming the automobile industry. This shows how the automobile
industry of the future will keep evolving itself over the years.