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Seated at the table:
- Nolan Johnson, managing editor, SMT007 Magazine
- Arik Vrobel, founder and CEO, Cableteque
- George Jacob, Managing Director, E-Tron Systems
- Monesh Singh, Senior Manager for Supplier Industrialization, Lucid Motors
- James Green, Interconnect Technical Expert, MBDA UK
To fully understand the modernization of wire harness design and assembly, we met with members of the Innovation Advisory Team for the Wire Harness Manufacturer’s Association (WHMA) to outline the current challenges facing wire harnesses and the specific steps to implement a digital data flow from OEM to manufacturer and back. In some ways, the wire harness industry is moving from 19th-century to 21st-century technology. But in the meantime, the real challenge isn’t building the harness—manufacturers are very good at that. The challenge is that the information arriving at the factory is incomplete, inconsistent, or trapped in drawings rather than structured data.
Nolan Johnson: Welcome, everyone. I’m very intrigued by what you’re doing. How and why was the Innovation Advisory Team formed?
George Jacob: The WHMA board felt that wire harness contract manufacturing needs to lead in innovation and technology. This initiative by the WHMA board is meant to lead; we shouldn't be behind.
Arik Vrobel: As a collective, members of WHMA share the same problems: Wire harnesses are generally an afterthought by the OEMs. They are typically the last part designed and, because they’re required to integrate the system, are often among the first major components or assemblies to be delivered. There's a very short gap between design and manufacturing. Because of that, there's a lot of pressure on wire harness designers to move into production quickly. Shortcuts are taken, and the designs are not validated at the design and engineering phases as they should be.
That puts pressure on wire harness manufacturers to not only manufacture but also validate and, if necessary, improve the design for better manufacturability. The manufacturing contracts are typically build-to-print; manufacturers don't get paid for this work, and they're underappreciated for their contribution to this very important domain. Ironically, contract manufacturers often have the deepest practical understanding of how these systems are actually built. Yet that knowledge rarely feeds back into the design process. One opportunity for the industry is to capture that manufacturing expertise digitally, so that better designs reach production from the start.
To continue reading this article, which originallly appeared in the April 2026 edition of SMT007 Magazine, click here.
