Western Digital, an expert in the data storage field, has announced a significant achievement in the automotive industry, having obtained the ASPICE CL3 certification. ASPICE, standing for Automotive Software Process Improvement and Capability Determination, is a benchmark guideline for assessing the automotive embedded software development processes. This certification is central in the automotive industry, guaranteeing that software and development abilities of suppliers and manufacturers integrate best practices throughout the automotive software development cycle.
Today’s automotive landscape is transforming from being mostly hardware-based products to becoming software-defined devices on wheels. Modern premium vehicles can have up to 150 million lines of software code spread amongst hundreds of ECUs, sensors, cameras, Lidar and more. Such a modern perspective on vehicles has made it a necessity for automotive OEMs to ensure the quality and reliability of these software-intensive systems.
The ISO/IEC 15504 standard ASPICE certification is an industry-standard guideline that verifies automotive suppliers' and manufacturers' software and development capabilities, guaranteeing they meet OEM requirements and adopt best practices throughout the automotive software development cycle.
Western Digital has achieved the ASPICE CL3 (level 3) certification for its iNAND AT EU552 UFS 3.1 embedded flash drives, making it one of the first data storage manufacturers to do so. Level 3 of ASPICE moves beyond the Managed CL2 tier to Established at CL3, showing a level of maturity where processes are well-defined, standardised and actively managed. To receive ASPICE CL3 certification, the development of the iNAND AT EU552 UFS 3.1 had to integrate ASPICE from the very beginning.
This certification complements Western Digital’s established foundation of innovation and commitment to delivering top quality and reliable products for the automotive industry. Western Digital, with its decades of experience in flash storage, possesses a full range of automotive-grade NAND storage products that cater to the evolving and dynamic needs of automotive customers who are fabricating smarter, feature-loaded cars.
The company's full portfolio of automotive-grade iNAND products offer 100% device capacity pre-loading before Surface Mount Technology (SMT), reducing complexity and manufacturing costs for customers. The consistency in Western Digital's adherence to the functional safety standard for ISO 26262, compliance with the AEC Q100/104, and IATF 16949 certification through the International Automotive Task Force, ensures the company's commitment to reach the most stringent requirements of the automotive industry.
Speaking about the achievement, Eric Spanneut, Vice President, Client and Enterprise SSDs, Flash Business Unit at Western Digital said, "This CL3 accomplishment underlines our dedication to meeting and exceeding the stringent requirements of the automotive industry. Our strong market presence and expanding portfolio are testaments to our innovative approach and commitment to delivering solutions that help redefine the future of automobiles. As a dependable partner, we’re committed to satisfying the highest level of quality, safety, and efficiency standards for automotive customers globally."