Schaeffler Announces Asia Expansion Plans

The Schaeffler Group – the German company best known to us for its dealings with Continental – has given news of its plans to carry out further expansion in Asia, an area in which it says localisation is opening up additional opportunities for growth. Investments totalling 300 million euros will be made in this region, including the construction of two factories in China to supplement the existing manufacturing facilities there which are operating at full capacity, and one factory in India. Construction of the new factories is to be completed by 2012. Research and development capacities in Japan and India will be expanded as part of the investment, and production capacity at the company’s eleven existing manufacturing locations (in China, India, Korea and Vietnam) will also be increased.

“Asia remains one of the regions in the world with the highest increases in growth and sales for us in the long term,” stressed Dr. Juergen M. Geissinger, president and CEO of the Schaeffler Group. “The growth rates across all industrial segments have been enormous during the last few years. By expanding our existing manufacturing locations and constructing three new factories, we are strengthening our profile and our presence in the Asian economic region. Customer proximity as well as developing and manufacturing our high-precision products for engines and transmissions in the automotive sector and system solutions for industrial applications are important factors for systematically utilising the opportunities for growth in this region.”

Wolfgang Dangel, president of the Schaeffler Group in the Asia Pacific region added: “The increasing demand for high-precision products that save energy and increase efficiency in vehicle construction and applications in the renewable energy sector focusing on wind power must also be mentioned as an example. The current program of investments will increase our participation in the economic and technical progress of Asia even further than ever before.”