Skip the navigation

IBM, SAS join to help automakers comply with TREAD Act regulations

By Linda Rosencrance
April 3, 2003 12:00 PM ET

Computerworld - IBM and business intelligence software company SAS Institute Inc. have developed a suite of software and services designed to help the auto industry better comply with new government requirements that went into effect this week, the companies said in a statement.
Under the November 2000 TREAD (Transportation Recall, Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation) Act, automakers and their suppliers must report all safety-related information -- including consumer deaths and complaints, warranty and legal claims and production data -- to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA).
The new requirements, inspired by a rash of deadly SUV accidents caused by defective Firestone tires in 2000, went into effect April 1. The first quarterly report is due to NHTSA on Aug. 31.
Larry Stolle, IBM's global business development executive for the automotive industry, said IBM and Cary, N.C.-based SAS have the most comprehensive early-warning and warranty-analysis tool available to the auto industry.
According to Stolle, the amount of data that manufacturers are supposed to collect and analyze is daunting, and many don't have the capacity to do it. Large manufacturers will have to crunch terabytes of data to understand how to report the information they have and how to use it to improve products in the future.
Stolle said the early-warning and warranty-analysis package offered by SAS and IBM will help automakers integrate data from a wide range of sources, including service activities, customer surveys, call center contacts, production information, public records, part/product sales data and warranty information.
The tool combines SAS applications for analyzing structured data such as statistics on warranty claims with IBM software and services, including data integration tools, to analyze unstructured data such as handwritten reports, Stolle said.
He said one OEM, which he declined to name, is already using the product to pull information from 60 databases. The data is then analyzed and transformed into a final report it will submit to the NHTSA.
The product, which could cost several million dollars depending on a customer's preferences, will also help automakers harness the data to improve product design in the future, Stolle said.
Although individual automakers declined to comment on their compliance with the TREAD Act, Eron Shosteck, a spokesman for the Washington-based Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, said it is too soon to assess how the industry is faring.
Kevin Prouty, an analyst at AMR Research Inc. in Boston, said IBM and SAS have built a template that allows a business to take all of its existing data and comply with the TREAD Act. "What IBM and SAS havedone is unusual because they have gone out and become domain experts on the TREAD Act and how -- if you have all this warranty data and product data -- you comply with the TREAD Act," he said.

Read more about BI and Analytics in Computerworld's BI and Analytics Topic Center.



Additional Resources
Forrester Consulting - Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World
WHITE PAPER
Solving application issues over the WAN requires careful consideration. Based on their independent research, Forrester Consulting offers recommendations on how to tackle application performance issues, insufficient bandwidth and the inability to quickly restore users in a disaster.

Read now.

Security KnowledgeVault
WHITE PAPER
Security is not an option. This KnowledgeVault Series offers professional advice how to be proactive in the fight against cybercrimes and multi-layered security threats; how to adopt a holistic approach to protecting and managing data; and how to hire a qualified security assessor. Make security your Number 1 priority.

Read now.

Cut Communications Costs Once and for All
WHITE PAPER
New IP-based communications systems are being deployed by small and midsized businesses at a rapid rate. Learn how these organizations are enabling faster responsiveness, creating better customer experiences, speeding office or mobile interactions, and dramatically reducing existing communications costs.

Read now.

BI and Analytics White Papers
X-Ray of the PCI Process-4 Proactive Steps
This white paper from Forrester Research Inc., helps break PCI into understandable components. Security and risk professionals will gain knowledge and insight into...
Forrester: Economic Impact of Switching to Google Apps
Content provided by Google

Read this Forrester report on the "total economic impact" of Google Apps, and learn how switching to Google Apps creates...
Intelligent Systems: Unlocking Hidden Business Value with Data
An intelligent system enables data to flow across an enterprise infrastructure, spanning the devices where valuable data is gathered from employees and customers,...
Concepts of NonStop SQL/MX
For DBAs and developers who are familiar with Oracle solutions and want to learn about NonStop SQL/MX, this whitepaper provides an overview of...
HP Advanced Information Services for SAP In-Memory Appliance (SAP HANA)
Organizations are eager to connect the vast amounts of data available within and outside their businesses to compete more effectively and make better...
All BI and Analytics White Papers
BI and Analytics Webcasts
Quantifying the Business Value of VMware View - Webcast
Many enterprises have discovered that the use of virtualization to support desktop workloads creates a range of significant benefits. These benefits include price...
Good to Great - How to Take Business Analytics to the Next Level
By attending this webcast you will learn how you can implement an effective BA strategy that will deliver maximum strategic value to your...
Supporting Mobile Productivity With A Limited IT Budget
Join us and hear from Kaseya mobile IT management experts as we discuss core strategies for supporting the mobile revolution on a shoestring...
User Experience Monitoring
In this webinar, you will learn hints & tips for improving end-user response times from Forrester Research analyst, Jean-Pierre Garbani.
Hints & Tips Cisco
Overwhelmed by tracking your Vblock, Flexpod or Cisco UCS performance? Spend one hour with Nimsoft to learn how you can eliminate the overhead...
All BI and Analytics Webcasts
Newsletter Sign-Up

Receive the latest news test, reviews and trends on your favorite technology topics

Choose a newsletter
  1. View all newsletters | Privacy Policy
IT Jobs