Case Study — Mobility & Advanced Manufacturing
How Apex can help an automotive supplier improve profitability through cost & margin analysis
Client Profile
Mid-sized automotive components manufacturer (≈300 employees) supplying global OEMs with plastic, metal, or electronic assemblies.
The Challenge
Apex typically intervenes when a mobility manufacturer experiences:
- Margin pressure due to volume drops or customer price reductions
- Rising raw material, energy, and labor costs
- Lack of transparency on product-level profitability
- Inefficient cost allocation between programs, lines, and plants
- Fragmented data between finance, production, and supply chain
- Difficulty making investment or restructuring decisions with confidence
What Apex Delivered
Our comprehensive solution addressed every stage of the transformation journey:
1
Profitability Diagnosis & Cost Visibility
- Deep-dive on product and program margin (customer, reference, platform)
- Activity-based costing to identify true cost drivers
- Mapping of non-value-added costs in production and logistics
- Review of plant overhead structure and allocation logic
- Cost-to-serve analysis per customer and per program
- Clear identification of “high margin” vs “margin-destroyer” products
2
Profit Improvement Roadmap
- Actions to improve direct margins (scrap, rework, changeover time, productivity)
- Raw material and supplier cost optimization opportunities
- Pricing or renegotiation levers with OEM customers
- Line and equipment optimization to reduce cost per unit
- SG&A and overhead rationalization scenarios
- Investment prioritization based on ROI and payback
- Weekly/Monthly steering dashboards to track margin improvement
Expected Impact
- +3 to +7 points improvement in contribution margin
- Clear visibility on profitable vs. loss-making programs
- Faster and more confident decisions on costs, pricing, and investments
- Increased productivity and reduced waste
- Financial stability to support future program awards
