The Auto Industry: Entering a Post-pandemic World
The 30th GERPISA conference in Michigan in June 2022 will be held jointly with the Program on Vehicle and Mobility Innovation (the successor to the MIT International Motor Vehicle Program). This is GERPISA's first conference in Detroit, the historic heart of the modern industry. The conference will provide joint in-person/virtual paper and plenary sessions in the morning, to enable participation by those unable to attend in person. Afternoons and evenings will focus on in-person events, such as visits to historic industry sites, factories, R&D centers and meetings with regulators.
The coronavirus epidemic buffeted the industry these past 21⁄2 years. Supply chain issues will continue to affect new vehicle production for months to come. As of early 2022, both used and new vehicles remain in short supply in North America, with record prices for used and new vehicles, and record profits for dealerships and car companies (but not for Tier I's). Mobility took a hit, as ride hailing operations lost drivers and ridership. Uber and Lyft, the primary local players, continue to operate below pre-pandemic levels with fewer rides but at higher prices. Separately, mergers and new entry continue to buffet car companies and Tier I suppliers, with electrification threatening profits and jobs. Finally, production within North American continues to evolve, with the new rules on local content, labor and tariffs with the November 2018 replacement of NAFTA by the USMCA.
The conference's three research tracks reflect this context, and the historic interests of the GERPISA and PVMI networks. One set reexamines the industry structure, post-Brexit, as the US-Mexico- Canada Trade Agreement takes effect, and as tensions with China continue. How have markets in the automotive core – Japan, China, US/Canada, and Europe – fared? How does that differ for those on the semi-periphery of Mexico, Korea, Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe and Turkey? The smaller producers of Brazil, South Africa, Russia and India? What transformations under COVID will persist, such as the decline of ride hailing and the increase in remote work by engineers and other skilled staff, and continued online purchasing by consumers?
In addition, policies to limit greenhouse gases and to improve safety are imposing demands for electrification and for sensor-driven active safety systems. How will the move to alternative powertrains shape the industry? Experimental fleets of autonomous vehicles are now in use as passenger shuttles and for fixed-route trucking. How is that experience improving our understanding of the potential for new mobility technologies? How will such services be regulated?
A selection of the best papers presented during the colloquium, including the winner of the young author’s prize (see below) will be included in a special issue of the International Journal of Automotive Technology and Management (IJATM).
Guidelines
To submit a proposal, please click the link below the chosen theme. Proposals should range between 500 and 1,000 words. They should present the outline of the research question (purpose), the methodology (design), the main results (findings) and their significance (practical and theoretical implications).
Instructions on how to submit final articles will be sent by email following the proposal acceptance. Proposals will be accepted on a rolling basis, and those submitted at the 18/03/2022 deadline will be accepted by 31/03/2022. Powerpoints and/or papers,
as well as the recorded video of the presentation (see instruction here: http://gerpisa.org/node/6041) should be posted on the GERPISA website by the start of the second week in June (deadline 8th of June) 2022, so that they can be linked to the program. Final articles should range between 5,000-7,000 words (excluding figures, tables and references) in order to be considered for the IJATM special issue. High-quality articles that exceed 7,000 words will be also considered on a case-by-case basis.
IJATM special issue
The International Journal of Automotive Technology and Management (IJATM) published by Inderscience publishes a special issue each year selected from papers presented during the GERPISA yearly colloquium. One or two papers from young authors will also be published in this special issue. An evaluation committee, composed of members of the GERPISA International Steering Committee, will assess the papers during the colloquium (young authors and others) and invite those chosen to submit to the IJATM Special Issue. After the decision of the GERPISA’s steering committee, the selected papers will be refereed through a double-blind process prior to final acceptance.
The criteria of the assessment are the relevance of the topic, the quality of the presentation (for works in progress), the strength of the results, the quality of the methodological work, and the review of the literature. Work across the social sciences (including history, management, economics, sociology, geography, and political science) dealing with the automobile industry is welcome.
Gerpisa Young Author Prize
The Young Author’s Prize of GERPISA, consisting of the publication of the winning paper in a special issue of IJATM and a €1,500 award, recognizes the work of young researchers on topics related to the automobile industry. Our goal is to encourage scholars to focus on topics related to the automobile industry early in their career.
Requirements to submit a paper proposal for the young author’s prize:
1. Masters and Ph.D. students, post-docs and junior faculty are eligible. Applicants should be under age 37. Papers co-authored with a senior researcher will be assessed only for masters and doctoral students. We exclude those at the associate professor level or above, and senior researchers.)
2. Paper based on the analysis (whether theoretical, methodological, or empirical) of the automobile industry (topics have to cover one of the five themes of the colloquium);
3. Presentation of the paper by the young author during the 29th international colloquium online.
4. Submission online (in line with one of the 3, specifying that the authors wish to be considered for the prize). They should also email basic information (name, date of birth, nationality, status, university/research affiliation, topic, and abstract) to Giuseppe Calabrese (
giuseppe.giulio.calabrese@ircres.cnr.it), and Tommaso Pardi (
tommaso.pardi@ens-cachan.fr)
before 18 March 2022, for the proposal and 15th May 2021, for the final paper.
Paper Preparation
An original article would normally consist of 5000-7000 words (excluding figures, tables and references).
All articles must be written in UK English. If English is not your first language, please ask an English-speaking colleague to proofread your article.
Submissions may be formatted in single or double spacing, preferably in Times New Roman size 12 font.
The paper should include the following:
Title: as short as possible, with no abbreviations or acronyms.
Abstract: approximately 100 words, maximum 150.
Keywords: approximately 10-15 words or phrases. Keywords are important for online searching;
Address*: position, department, name of institution, email address for each author.
Biographical notes*: approximately 100 words per author, maximum 15
Text: no more than 7000 words (excluding figures, tables and references),
Tables and figures: please put in the text where tables and figures are positioned
References: IJATM papers are recommended
Notes: the less the better
Acknowledgment: in case you have any
