Linglong to build 5th Chinese manufacturing base in Changchun

Chinese tyre manufacturer Linglong has held a project launch ceremony for its fifth Chinese manufacturing base in Changchun, Jilin Province. Dignitaries from Changchun, Jilin, China FAW Group Corporation, China Rubber Industry Association, and Linglong partners attended the event. The event marks the latest step in the manufacturer’s “5+3” global production strategy, which is designed to “achieve sustained, stable and healthy development,” Linglong states. It currently has four Chinese manufacturing bases in Zhaoyuan, Dezhou, Liuzhou, Jingmen, a well as one in Thailand and a further international plant under construction in Serbia. Furthermore, Linglong said it would upgrade its strategy to “6+6”; six plants in China and six internationally.

Linglong’s Jilin plant will be built in the Changchung automotive economic zone with a total investment of 4.89 billion yuan ($700 million) and an annual capacity of 12 million passenger car tyres, 2 million truck and bus tyres, and 200,000 commercial retreads at completion. Linglong projects the plant will generate sales revenue of 4.44 billion yuan ($634 million) annually in full operation. The manufacturer said the project would be “an important engine to optimise its industrial structure layout and promote the development with high quality.” All of this will be used to improve Linglong’s market share, it added.

Linglong adds that its Jilin plant will be “built into a digital, intelligent, and global industrial internet platform through the combination of cloud technology, big data, artificial intelligence, block chain, 5G and other advanced technology, which can promote production efficiency, optimise product structure, improve quality brand and create more value.

Given its location, it seems obvious that the Jilin plant is targeting original equipment business. Changchun is the cradle of China’s automobile industry, the home of automaker FAW Group, with whom Linglong has a near 30 year history of cooperation. The new plant will seek in-depth cooperation with FAW Group and other automakers in R&D, resource sharing, and developing talent.

Linglong adds that it hope the beginning of the new project will boost confidence in the development of Chinese tyre enterprises, despite the severe pressure on the market since the beginning of 2020, the outbreak of COVID-19, and the subsequent global economic downturn.