Automotive SPICE


Automotive SPICE is a maturity model adapted for the automotive industry. It assesses the maturity of development processes for electronic and software-based systems. It is based on an initiative of the Special Interest Group Automotive and the Quality Management Center in the German Association of the Automotive Industry.
The abbreviation SPICE stands for Software Process Improvement and Capability Determination. Automotive SPICE combines a process reference model and a process assessment model in one standard.
It conforms to the regulations of the ISO/IEC 33xxx family, e.g., ISO/IEC 33001, ISO/IEC 33002, ISO/IEC 33004, and ISO/IEC 33020.

Trademark

The name Automotive SPICE is protected by trademark law and is the property of the VDA.

Capability levels

There are six capability levels, referred to as Levels. Level 0 is the lowest capability level; Level 5 is the highest capability level. The capability levels are named and characterized for each process as follows:
  • Level 0 = "incomplete"; incomplete.
  • Level 1 = "performed"; the process purpose is fulfilled by executing the base practices and generating the output work products.
  • Level 2 = "managed"; the process performance is planned and monitored at the project level; the work products are managed and checked according to a project-specific standard.
  • Level 3 = "Established"; process performance follows an organization-wide defined standard process.
  • Level 4 = "Predictable"; process execution is controlled by metrics
  • Level 5 = "Innovating"; metrics obtained from process execution are used to optimize processes.

    Automotive SPICE assessments

Automotive SPICE Assessment aim at objectively evaluating the development processes using the Process Assessment Model for a defined organization. Each Automotive SPICE process part is assessed separately and assigned its maturity level. For example, the following process groups are considered: System Development, Software Development, Project Management, Support Processes, etc. which are mentioned in the current standard.
In the planning for an assessment, the client of the assessment and the leader of the assessment define the processes of the process dimension that are relevant to the context of the organization, the maturity level to be assessed and the process instances.
According to Automotive SPICE, the requirements from the ISO/IEC 33020:2015 standard apply to the performance of compliant Automotive SPICE assessments, e.g., about the competence of the lead assessor, the creation of input documents, the activities to be performed, the creation of output documents, and the comprehensive documentation of the entire assessment process.

Training and qualification

The participants of Automotive SPICE assessments, especially those responsible for performing an assessment, must have the necessary knowledge of Automotive SPICE. This is done by training, successful certification, and proof of the regularly performed activity as an assessor. Training providers and qualification bodies exist for this purpose, as listed below.
The following qualification bodies are known:
  • iNTACS, and
In this context, iNTACS e.V. is the cooperation partner of the VDA, which has developed a scheme of the same name for the training of assessors. The scheme fulfills the qualification requirements of the Manufacturer Initiative Software and those from ISO/IEC 15504-2. There are cooperation agreements between iNTACS e.V. and VDA to jointly ensure the training and certification of Automotive SPICE assessors at a high-quality standard and further develop the scheme.
As of 2025, there are approximately 7600 registered assessors.
The latest version of Automotive SPICE was released in November 2023 as Automotive SPICE 4.0.

History

Automotive SPICE was developed in 2001 by AUTOSIG, which includes the German car manufacturers Audi, BMW, Daimler, Porsche, and Volkswagen, as well as international car manufacturers and interest groups such as Fiat, Ford, Jaguar, Land Rover, Volvo, the SPICE User Group, and the Procurement Forum.
Starting around 2007, the German automotive manufacturers Audi, BMW, Daimler, Porsche, and Volkswagen agreed on a common scope of the minimum processes to be considered in an assessment as part of the Manufacturer Initiative Software .
As of January 1, 2007, only Automotive SPICE assessments were accepted by the members of HIS in the context of joint project work with suppliers.
The current valid edition is Automotive SPICE 4.0, published by VDA and QMC in December 2023. The following translations are available: English, Japanese, Korean, and Chinese. This latest version replaces the Automotive SPICE 3.1.
The model is continuously being developed or improved by the working groups above. Two extensions are shown below.

Extensions

Cybersecurity

Starting around 2021, information security will be specified and tested as part of Automotive SPICE. Cybersecurity is not part of version 3.1. See also the SAE J3061 standard on the topic.

Mechanical engineering

SPICE for Mechanical Engineering is an extension of Automotive SPICE according to the plug-in concept defined there. The purpose of ME-SPICE is to evaluate the performance of the development processes for mechanical systems or the mechanical parts of mechatronic systems.

Literature

Articles