Nissan And Renault To Set Common Platform. Business Ideas, Nissan Motor and Renault will develop a platform for at least 10 models of vehicle to strengthen suppliers and cut procurement costs. The Japanese and French companies which plan to design the common platform for medium-sized SUV and sedans. The two companies also plan to standardize 70 key components, including windows and brakes, the Nikkei business daily said.

The key components take about 80 percent of the total cost of parts and materials. With great purchasing leading to lower unit prices, the automakers expect to reduce parts procurement budgets for midsize vehicles by about 30 percent.

The common platform and standardized parts will be employed in vehicles from 2013 and account for about 1.5 million units anually. It is approximately a quarter of the total that the two firms sold worldwide last year. Nissan’s X-Trail and Dualis SUVs and Renault’s Fluence sedan and Megane are among the designs that will share the platform and components.

Nissan joined under Renault’s umbrella in 1999. The two firms created a joint procurement organization in 2001. They began buying all materials and parts through this entity in April 2009 but the cost benefits so far have been limited because the two copany share only eight types of components.