Functional integration projects in the automotive industry are highly complex development projects, determined by multi-level dependencies, iterative processing, limited resources, last-minute changes, and a multi-project working environment. Given this complexity, there is a risk that problems may arise in timing and quality. This paper presents a novel generic project scheduling technique for functional integration projects based on the design structure matrix methodology. This is intended to improve the planning of delivery dates and required resources and capacities, to ensure tighter synchronization between project teams, to help prioritize tasks in parallel projects, and to help anticipate changes to the project stages when development changes or delays need to be accommodated