OREANDA-NEWS.  General Motors today announced the restructuring of its Global Vehicle Engineering organization to improve cross-system integration, deliver more consistent performance across vehicle programs and address functional safety and compliance in its vehicles.

“A vehicle is a collection of 30,000 individual parts. Fully integrating those parts into cohesive systems with industry-leading quality and safety is key in this customer-driven business,” said Mark Reuss, executive vice president of Global Product Development, Purchasing and Supply Chain.

Global Vehicle Engineering is being restructured to form two new organizations: Global Product Integrity and Global Vehicle Components and Subsystems.

The Global Product Integrity organization, which is effective immediately, will build on specific actions GM has taken in recent years to lead the industry in vehicle dynamics including ride and handling, steering and braking. GM is applying the same approach to overall quality and safety performance and ensure the highest levels of execution across all its vehicles.

Ken Morris, currently executive director, Global Chassis Engineering, has been named vice president, Global Product Integrity. The newly created role and organization will include vehicle, powertrain and electrical systems engineering as well as vehicle performance, industrial engineering and validation. It also includes the recently formed Global Vehicle Safety organization led by Jeff Boyer, who is overseeing the addition of 35 product investigators. Supplier Quality will now become part of the new Global Product Integrity organization.
Ken Kelzer, currently vice president, GM Europe Powertrain Engineering, has been named vice president, Global Vehicle Components and Subsystems. His new role and organization includes engineering operations, components development, advanced vehicle development and other engineering business initiatives.
The Global Product Integrity organization will use advanced analysis tools and processes to flag and prevent issues during vehicle development, while also mining field data to react quickly to safety and product quality issues customers may experience.

Morris joined GM in 1989 as a brake systems engineer from Borg Warner Automotive Transmission Systems where he was a test engineer.  He has held several key engineering roles at GM, most recently executive director for Global Chassis Engineering, where he was responsible for design and execution for the fuel systems, suspensions, steering, brakes, tires and wheels as well as powertrain interface systems for all GM vehicles. Morris previously was executive director for Global Vehicle Performance, Proving Grounds and Test Labs.

Morris holds a bachelor’s degree of science from Purdue University in Mechanical Engineering.

Kelzer joined GM as an intern in 1982. Most recently, he was vice president of General Motors Europe Powertrain Engineering, where he was responsible for GM’s powertrain operations in Europe. Some of Kelzer’s prior roles include executive chief engineer of full and midsize vehicles, global vehicle chief engineer for rear-wheel drive and performance vehicles, and global functional leader of chassis and accessories.

Kelzer holds a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Minnesota and a master’s in Business from the University of Michigan.

With the restructuring, John Calabrese, vice president of Global Vehicle Engineering, has elected to retire after more than 33 years with GM. Calabrese began his GM career in 1981 as an experimental engineer, and has served in a variety of leadership roles in Engineering and Purchasing.  He will remain with the company through August to assist with the transition.

“Under John’s leadership, GM has developed industry-leading vehicles in practically every segment in which we compete,” Reuss said.  “He raised the bar in Engineering and has us well-positioned for the future. We thank John for his many contributions – and I thank him for his friendship – and wish him the best."