Operational Automotive Excellence
Combining efficient operations with strategic locations to enable future-ready transformation.
Germany is considered one of the world's leading economies, known for its strong exports, diverse industrial base and innovation. However, industrial sites are facing structural challenges such as decarbonization, digitalization, and the need to rapidly adapt to new manufacturing processes. Combined with high costs, increasing operating expenses, and growing competitive pressure, these factors are limiting investment capacity and jeopardizing profitability.
Strengthening Competitiveness Through OPEX Control
We support automotive companies in preparing their sites for a sustainable and successful future through OPEX reduction (Operation Expenditures), smart investment decisions, and transparent total cost ownership (TCO) models.
Industrial sites with efficient operating cost structures are far better equipped to withstand market fluctuations, supply bottlenecks, and demand volatility.
OPEX has become a global factor in site attractiveness, with locations that have lower operating costs expanding, while higher-cost sites fall behind. As a result, OPEX is critical for growth, resilience, and crisis readiness.
CAPEX Verse OPEX
A business’s predictable, ongoing operational costs, such as personnel, energy, utilities, maintenance, services, and production. Examples include:
- Production and operating costs
- Energy
- Water consumption
- Personnel and maintenance
- Service contracts and facility management
- Spare parts and consumables
- Lifecycle equipment costs
One-time capital investment in buildings, equipment, machinery and infrastructure. Examples include:
- New construction and building conversions
- Production systems and machinery
- Infrastructure (energy, utilities, IT/OT)
- Planning and engineering
- Permitting and construction
The sum of all OPEX and CAPEX costs over an entire lifecycle. It is used for:
- Location decisions
- Manufacturing footprint planning
- Decarbonization initiatives
- Performance-based contracts
The OPEX Structure
The OPEX structure is built around key levers for cost reduction, highlighting areas where businesses lose performance, experience cost inefficiencies, and can improve productivity while lowering expenses. The goal is to sustainably strengthen the competitive advantage of industrial sites by analyzing the entire lifecycle process.
While improvements in performance and procurement processes can reduce OPEX, asset-related measures are more focused on optimizing CAPEX structures. By analyzing and evaluating cost drivers and key factors, organizations can develop a comprehensive, holistic program for industrial sites that measure cost, productivity, and long-term viability.
An integrated, cross functional approach is more effective than managing OPEX and CAPEX in isolation. For example, many automotive companies operate separate sites for development and production; the challenge is to create a unified program that effectively combines both.
Our Services
We help you identify your largest cost drivers, pinpoint areas of performance loss, and uncover opportunities to increase productivity while reducing expenses. We can support you from the earliest stages of a project with feasibility analysis, highlight key areas for improvement, and assist with program setup and implementation.
Process and Production Optimization – Increasing outputs while reducing costs
- OEE analysis and bottleneck management
- Reduced setup times and optimized material flow
- Manufacturing automation and AI-driven analytics
- Condition-based maintenance to reduce unplanned downtime
How you benefit: Increased equipment availability, stable processes, lower unit costs.
Energy Optimization – Sustainably reducing operating costs
- Energy efficiency audits and load management
- Zero- and low-carbon factories with economically viable roadmaps
- Optimization of heating, cooling, compressed air, and technical systems
- Sector coupling and integrated renewable energy solutions
How you benefit: Reduced energy costs and improved CO₂ performance.
Site Operations and TCO – Enabling transparent, lifecycle-based decision-making
- TCO models for investments and modernization
- Digital lifecycle models and scenarios for energy and carbon costs
- Operation strategies for optimized facility management
- Benchmarking for factories and technical systems
How you benefit: Clear investment priorities and an economically resilient site.
Why Choose Drees & Sommer?
We combine our expertise across the industrial, engineering, and real estate sectors to develop a comprehensive, holistic view of your industrial sites. Our goal is to make your operations more efficient, cost-effective, and future-ready—while keeping sustainability at the forefront.
