Chrysler 2014 Annual Report Download - page 118

116 2014 | ANNUAL REPORT
Sustainability Disclosure
Research, Innovation and Sustainable Mobility
FCA is committed to meeting the mobility needs of customers, while reducing the environmental and social impact of
vehicles over their entire life cycle. The Group’s global research and innovation activities are focused on developing
solutions for increasingly sustainable mobility, by reducing fuel consumption and emissions, improving vehicle
recyclability and safety, and developing new models of mobility. Continuous innovation is essential to development of
products that are environmentally and socially sustainable, as well as affordable.
Innovating for Sustainable Products and Processes
All innovation activities worldwide are coordinated through a common framework, the FCA Global Innovation Process
(GIP). Developed in collaboration with, and on the basis of, input from the Group’s four operating regions, the GIP
covers all phases of the innovation process, from idea generation to pre-competitive development. As part of that
process, guidelines and targets are then formalized in the Strategic Agenda.
During 2014, the process was further enhanced through improved integration of the four regions in several aspects of
project definition and management. As a result, achievements for current projects were optimized and proposals for
new initiatives were harmonized on the global level.
The process is coordinated centrally by the Chief Technology Officer who, as a member of the Group Executive
Council, ensures alignment of the innovation process with the Group’s strategic objectives, and enables synergies and
the transfer of new solutions across the Group’s global product portfolio.
At year-end 2014, the Group’s research and innovation activities involved approximately 20,000 individuals at 85
centers worldwide.
During the year, the Group invested approximately €3.7 billion in R&D (Includes capitalized R&D and R&D charged
directly to the income statement), representing around 3.9% of net revenues from Industrial Activities.
The Group’s innovation activities have generated a significant intellectual property portfolio over the years and, at year-
end 2014, FCA had a total of 8,311 registered patent applications and 3,719 protected product designs.
Patents - FCA worldwide
Total patents registered at December 31, 2014 8,311
of which: registered in 2014 596
Patents pending at December 31, 2014 3,410
of which: new patent applications filed in 2014 414
Designs - FCA worldwide
Design rights registered at 31 December 2014 3,719
of which: registered in 2014 294
Centers of Excellence
CRF, headquartered in Orbassano (Turin, Italy) with additional sites across Italy, was established in 1978 as a focal point
for the Company’s research and innovation activities. It is a recognized center of excellence at the international level.
The mission of CRF is to:
develop and transfer innovative systems and features, materials, processes with innovation expertise in order to
improve the competitiveness of FCA products;
represent FCA in European collaborative research programs, joining pre-competitive projects and promoting
networking actions;
support FCA in the protection and enhancement of intellectual property.