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Automotive component suppliers today are subjected to many new pressures. Vehicle manufacturers, who understandably want to reduce their work load and produce higher quality products, have the avowed aim to reduce the number of suppliers that they deal with through single sourcing and tiered levels of supply. Those component suppliers who have survived thus far, are finding themselves in a new environment, one in which national boundaries are often no longer sufficient protection against foreign competition. One in which their OE customers (particularly Japanese customers) produce basically similar products in similar plants at various locations worldwide, and are therefore able to compare the performance of suppliers to the various markets. One in which joint ventures or technical agreements are often necessary to provide the strength and the expertise necessary to supply competitive product at competitive prices and most importantly at the required quality levels.