Audi 2013 Annual Report Download - page 167

ECONOMIC REPORT
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT // PROCUREMENT
MANAGEMENT REPORT
164
A
Audi active lane assist actively supports the A3 driver if desired
by providing gentle steering impulses to keep the vehicle in lane.
Using a complex system of radar sensors that monitor the traffic
near the vehicle, the optional lane-change assistant Audi side
assist warns the driver if he or she tries to change lanes in a
potentially hazardous situation.
There are also a number of systems available to provide greater
ease when parking. The optional park assist with selective
display can steer the A3, for instance, into parking spaces with
the help of ultrasonic sensors that detect obstructions all
around the car. The function handles the steering work for the
driver in perpendicular and parallel parking spaces, performing
several separate steering maneuvers if need be. In addition,
the optional park assist helps to find suitable parking spaces
by gauging the size of spaces along the side of the road as the
vehicle passes at moderate speed. As soon as it detects a suit-
able one, this is indicated on the display.
Audi is also working intensively on the development of various
technologies for piloted driving. As well as giving the driver the
option of assistance in congestion, these can also help in multi-
story car parks and when entering parking spaces and garages.
At the start of 2013, we received two awards in the United
States for our development work in this area. The magazine
POPULAR SCIENCE named the Audi system for piloted parking
in parking garages its “Product Of The Future,” in recognition of
the developments that Audi presented at the International
Consumer Electronics Show 2013 (CES) in Las Vegas
(www.popsci.com/gadgets/article/2013-01/best-ces-2013-
popular-sciences-products-future). The specialist media net-
work THE VERGE also celebrated the new Audi system as “Best
Automotive Technology” at last year’s International CES
(www.theverge.com/2013/1/11/3865786/verge-awards-ces-
2013/in/3608257).
// VEHICLE SAFETY AWARDS
The “European New Car Assessment Programme” (Euro NCAP)
consortium, which brings together international representa-
tives of European departments of transport, automobile clubs,
insurance companies and consumer bodies, again presented
awards for the A3’s safety systems in 2013. With the Audi A3
having already received multiple accolades for its safety in
2012, the Euro NCAP also awarded five stars for the A3 Sedan
and the A3 Sportback at the end of 2013 (www.euroncap.com/
results/audi/a3/480.aspx).
// CHILD SAFETY INITIATIVE IN CHINA
Driving safety for our customers is extremely important to us.
We advocate improved safety in the international arena too,
and within the Volkswagen Group we and five other Group
partners are involved in the Child Safety Initiative in China. The
aim here is to sensitize Chinese road users to the importance
of child safety and promote general awareness of this topic.
Under this initiative, more than 5,000 child seats have already
been donated in China, for example.
PROCUREMENT
The long-term partnership-based collaboration with top-
performing suppliers worldwide is a key aim for Audi Group
Procurement. Alongside overall economic efficiency, various
other criteria such as quality, innovativeness and reliability are
decisive. In order to derive maximum benefit from Group-wide
synergies, we select suppliers in close cooperation with
Volkswagen Group Procurement.
The cost of materials for the Audi Group amounted to
EUR 32,491 (30,265) million in the 2013 fiscal year. This
includes expenses for raw materials and consumables used,
as well as purchased goods and services.