Specialists? commentary
Chevrolet NIVA: positive progress for future success
Engineering development
Olga Shopp, PE Director
The Chevrolet NIVA facelift project was agreed at the Board of Directors meeting at the end of November, 2006. After the key supplier of design engineering works (Stile Bertone, Italy) was chosen, actual work started in mid-January of 2007.
The following objectives were given to us: the vehicle should be more of present-day style and global CHEVROLET brand appearance; we should work on interior improvements (functional and ergonomic), at that, retaining the overall sizes to keep the best SUV off-road performances.
Over 60 engineering changes have been implemented to improve quality of the facelifted Chevrolet NIVA. The key areas for improvements were ergonomic of exterior / interior improved, roof rails for GLS, better ventilation inside the vehicle, noise reduction, and better lighting performances.
It is always more challenging to upgrade the existing model than to start developing a vehicle from the very beginning, because when implementing new elements, product engineers and designers are a bit hand tied by the current construction and design arrangements. Nevertheless, we believe, that our targets were achieved; and we hope that the project will be well appreciated by our customers.
It is worth to mention that the durability tests of the first facelifted pilot vehicles took place far before the actual SOP date. Summer validation tests were carried out under the hot temperatures of the Middle Asia climate, winter tests — under the severe climate of Siberia and the Baikal region, and vehicles showed themselves worth.
John Slack, Quality Director
We are currently introducing the new «Face Lift» Chevrolet NIVA.
From the initial build of the NIVA to current date we have seen overall improvements in quality. We can be happy with this improvement but never satisfied.
This improvement is gauged via two sources:
- Warranty — (information we receive via our dealer network as a result of customers returning to the dealer with issues they have on their car)
- Voice Of the Customer surveys.
These surveys are carried out twice per year for GM-AVTOVAZ by an independent company.
The survey covers 800 Chevrolet NIVA customers through out Russia — who have purchased a new NIVA in the past 6 months and seeks their response to 242 quality related questions over 13 specific areas of the vehicle.
The information gained from both of these sources is used back at GM-AVTOVAZ to resolve the issue and continually improve quality.
Can we be happy we are improving quality? I think it?s fair to say we are happy quality is improving but we can never be satisfied.
Quality is a never ending story as you close one chapter you open another. The day you believe you have resolved all the issues, is the day you have a problem.
Peoples? perception of quality is also changing. What was acceptable yesterday is not acceptable today and quite rightly so. We all want better products. This wanting better that drives continuous improvement.
So customer feedback in the form of warranty, Voice Of Customer surveys or individual feedback is vital to us. They are important ingredients to the never ending story of improving quality.
We and our customers have high quality expectations for the «Face Lift» NIVA.
With the outgoing NIVA we achieved our best ever warranty rating so we have given ourselves the best launch platform for «Face Lift» NIVA.
What we have to do now is as a minimum to meet our customers? expectations and preferably beat their expectations.
