Automakers are vowing to reduce the industry's massive carbon footprint. But their success in doing so will come down in large part to whether their suppliers cut down on theirs.
Tier 1 suppliers "are an OEM's gateway toward the entire supply base," said Michael Karrer, senior vice president of sustainability at ZF Group. "Our [automaker] customers are generally dealing with a small number of Tier 1s. But behind companies like ZF, a huge complexity starts.
"We have over 10,000 production material suppliers that we're dealing with," he said. "We're only reaching our carbon goals if we're bringing that supply chain along with us."