Does computer modeling, simulation really help design times? Just ask GM.

DETROIT—As General Motors engineers develop the auto maker's next generation of vehicles, they'll look to the upcoming GMC Hummer EV to guide them.

The development timeline for the electric pickup, scheduled to go on sale this quarter, was just two years, compared with three to four years for most vehicle programs, said Al Oppenheiser, the Hummer's chief engineer.

The speedy timeline, enabled by computer-aided engineering, helped BrightDrop, GM's electric delivery van business, set a company record of only 20 months to develop its first product, the EV600.

The Hummer assignment for Oppenheimer and his team was 117 weeks shorter than a typical GM program, he said. But instead of cutting corners, he wanted to work smarter.

Despite challenges related to the coronavirus pandemic, the global microchip shortage and other supply chain disruptions, the Hummer team hit the mark.

Engineers often wait up to 11 months to get the tools they need to build a vehicle—almost half the total development time the Hummer team was allotted. GMC relied on heavy simulation through computer-aided engineering to get the truck to the market quickly.

Traditionally, engineers would use computer modeling and then build prototypes that they would break and crash for testing. They would make necessary design changes and build more prototypes to test again.

"That all takes time," said Oppenheiser. For the Hummer, he and his team had to trust the data. "We made a company decision to rely on our analysis tools," he said.

They used vehicle modules in the test lab and drove vehicle simulators, he said. "We set up the ride handling, the ride character of the vehicle in a simulated environment that actually matches what happens when you build the first vehicle," Oppenheiser said.

By the time BrightDrop began planning its strategy for the EV600, Hummer had set the framework. The van's engineers applied the virtual, computer-aided process that the Hummer team pioneered.

"They learned from us on the fly," Oppenheiser said. "They share a lot of our components, actually. The suspension and the battery, they share that, which helps them save some time."

GM also applied a slow-build process for BrightDrop using a low-volume supplier plant in Livonia, Mich., while the van's assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ontario, is retooled. EV600 production is scheduled to move to Ingersoll in November 2022.

The BrightDrop team has used 3D printing to mock up parts and demonstrate changes right away, and engineers have solved problems on the smaller supplier floor, rather than at the Ingersoll plant, said Tushar Porwal, BrightDrop's head of manufacturing.

"It enabled us to get to market much faster than we would in a traditional approach," Porwal said. "We're that much further along in ensuring that we can have the right quality and scalability when we actually install tools in our production facility."