Automotive seating specialist Johnson Controls Inc. has been named one of five winners of the "Successful Practices in Technology Management 2012" benchmarking project from the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology (IPT) in Aachen, Germany.
IPT joined a consortium of partners to analyze technology management in a multi-stage process at 160 companies that volunteered for the nine-month benchmarking project.
The project evaluated aspects such as the companies' organizational structure of technology management, strategic technology planning, and early recognition of new technologies.
Johnson Controls was commended for its early recognition of new technologies, which was considered advanced compared to other participating companies, JCI said in a news release. The consortium also recognised Johnson Controls' support for technology management through IT tools.
"Johnson Controls has impressively demonstrated that technology management can definitely be put on a successful footing in even a short space of time given the necessary management attention and appropriate resources. Well-thought-out, globally standardized processes with specific IT support have proven the key to its success in this instance," said Günther Schuh of the Fraunhofer IPT.
Andreas Eppinger, group vice president of Technology Management for Johnson Controls automotive seating, said the company was "absolutely delighted" to have been recognized by the Fraunhofer IPT.
"Being named one of the best companies in Europe for technology management is both an endorsement and an incentive. Participating in the consortium benchmarking has given us numerous valuable insight and the momentum for our work," he added.