Global automotive technology provider, Multimatic, has announced the creation of a Special Vehicle Operations group (MSVO). The new organization, led by Larry Holt, executive vice president MSVO, has been formed in response to Multimatic’s continued growth and diversification throughout the global automotive industry. The company’s engineering organization has correspondingly grown over the past 30-plus years to encompass a varied and diverse number of operations around the world with an impressively large and talented technical community. In the interest of maintaining agility, technical focus and the ability to provide customers with the dedicated and committed support that has become a Multimatic trademark, the company determined that a bifurcation of the original organization into specific areas of expertise was required.
MSVO will be responsible for all vehicle engineering developments as were undertaken for the Ford GT, motorsports engineering projects like the Mazda DPi, and all race team operations, continuing the use of the Multimatic Motorsports identity. Additionally, low volume vehicle body/chassis manufacture, carbon fiber part production and low-volume niche component supply also will be incorporated within the new MSVO. Multimatic Motorsports will continue to operate on both sides of the Atlantic, from dedicated facilities, providing a unique proposition in the global GT and prototype competition space.
The Multimatic Engineering group will now be led by Jim Holland, a highly experienced automotive engineering executive, with a focus on providing the industrial manufacturing groups of Multimatic with continued product and technology development while maintaining a close relationship with Holt and MSVO to assure a two-way flow of expertise, resource and technical culture.
Commenting on the restructuring, Multimatic President and Chief Operating Officer, Raj Nair, said, “Multimatic continues to grow, in both size and technical diversity and this restructuring means we can remain true to our decentralized, agile and innovative operating philosophy. Multimatic is capable of engineering and manufacturing at extremely low and extremely high levels of volume; as well as engineering and manufacturing at the individual component level all the way to a full vehicle level; not to mention our capabilities and accomplishments at the highest levels of global motorsports, this now demands a higher level of specialization and that is what the split will facilitate.”
“This new structure will allow Larry to focus on vehicle engineering and motorsports, while Jim manages the Engineering Group. Jim brings more than 35 years of experience in the automotive industry at Ford Motor Company and Jaguar Land Rover, where he served in progressive engineering leadership roles. Refocusing our engineering leadership team provides a clear structure that will allow us to continue to deliver on our commitment to Strength Through Technology.”
“Multimatic’s model has always been to break the growing businesses down into smaller, more agile operations, and so it has become time for Engineering,” explained Holt. “After 32 years of continued growth the size and diversity was becoming limiting. High-volume component and systems engineering ultimately requires a different approach to the development of an entire low volume vehicle and so the management of those types of projects has now been split. However, as in the past, engineering resource will be shared as it makes no sense to try and duplicate functions like the best predictive methods organization in the industry; simulation will stay with the engineering group and continue to grow in size and capability.
“I will now focus on what has become a personal passion and so our motorsports and performance vehicle customers will continue to receive my full commitment. I’m delighted that Jim has agreed to join us to take over the existing engineering operations. It’s extremely gratifying to have a guy of his experience and stature consider it something that he wanted to be involved with. I have known Jim for a long time and can’t think of a better man for the job; I expect to pick-up some wisdom and tricks. We will be working tightly together to move both groups ahead into the future. Although the engineering business continues to work flat-out through the present global crisis we now need to focus on how to emerge safely into a more interactive world than what we have recently been experiencing, as well as figuring out what it will take to test development vehicles and go racing.”
Holland commented, “I have worked with Multimatic for many years as a customer and so know what an incredible pool of talent we have here. The opportunity to lead the Engineering Group was something that I just couldn’t refuse. I believe that my experience in high-volume product and technology development combined with the unique capabilities of this outstanding group will lead to a great outcome.”
