Ahead of the Curve: Q1 President’s Update

By Collin Shaw, President, MEMA. Original Equipment Suppliers

Dear Members,

The pace of change facing suppliers isn’t slowing down and in many ways, it’s accelerating. Between trade uncertainty, rising competitive pressure from China and evolving powertrain strategies across global markets, suppliers are being asked to make long-term decisions in an environment that often lacks long-term clarity. MEMA is leaning into that challenge by driving advocacy, providing timely intelligence, creating access to critical conversations and investing in the people who will lead the industry forward.

Advocacy

MEMA continues to lead aggressively to preserve USMCA ahead of the July trilateral review. We have an integrated media campaign aimed at reinforcing that a strong, integrated North American supply chain is essential to U.S. competitiveness, investment certainty and long-term manufacturing strength. Through targeted media engagement and sharing member stories, we are staying focused on protecting supplier interests and ensuring that China-related provisions, rules-of-origin enforcement and content requirements strengthen the region’s production footprint.

Research and Insights

To help members stay ahead of fast-moving dynamics, we’re delivering timely intelligence through programs like our May 13 Q2 Supplier Briefing session. This briefing will provide practical updates on the policy, legal and commercial developments shaping supplier risk and opportunity in 2026 and beyond, and I encourage you to participate and share it with your teams. Learn more and register here: Q2 Supplier Industry Briefing

Access

Last month, MEMA participated in the G7 supplier association discussion, where the clearest takeaway was that the industry’s top need is certainty, especially as volatility is increasingly driven by policy and trade dynamics, not just demand. The conversation underscored that China represents a fundamentally different competitive challenge, with state-backed excess capacity and critical minerals leverage accelerating margin pressure globally. Leaders also highlighted diverging regional powertrain strategies, emerging constraints in electronics inputs and expectations that cost pass-through will intensify in 2026–2027, making scenario-based planning and supply chain resilience more important than ever.

Town hall season commenced on February 5, with Nissan. Townhalls provide members with direct access to senior OEM leadership and insight into near- and long-term priorities shaping the automotive industry, giving suppliers an opportunity to ask questions, share perspectives and better align with customer expectations in a rapidly evolving environment. Learn more and register for upcoming townhalls here: Upcoming OE Events

Community

On March 4, 2026, MEMA Original Equipment Suppliers convened the first Automotive Executive Council (AEC) meeting of the year, formerly the CEO Council, bringing together senior industry leaders to address the most pressing strategic issues facing the supplier community. The AEC featured guest speakers Liz Door, chief supply officer and Rowina Fornica, head of supply chain excellence, Ford Motor Company. To elevate the value of peer engagement and discussion, the AEC meeting is now co-located with the Finance Executive Council (FEC), formerly the Finance Leader Council, creating a more holistic forum for executive-level dialogue.