9.4.2019 Friedrichshafen. With the establishment of more plants and the Expansion of development capacities, ZF is stepping up its involvement in China, the fastest growing automotive market in the world.
Since 1994, the group maintains there own production sites – currently there are 32. This presence builds on ZF now, to be able to in the coming years, the complete product portfolio, tailored to the local needs and fully in China ready-to-develop. Already today, ZF offers its customers in China with high-tech solutions for E-mobility and Autonomous Driving. In addition to international automotive companies, Chinese manufacturers, as well as new mobility providers are one of these customers is decreasing.
“Our strategy for the auto market of China is called ‘Local for Local’,” said ZF Board of management member Dr. Holger Klein, responsible for the Asia-Pacific Region, with its core market of China. “Almost all of our customers want to expand their business in China in the coming years. We will support you by offering our entire portfolio of Expertise, from development services to local, Just-in-Sequence delivery”, says Klein, and announces: “Our degree of localization we want to increase in the coming years to 100 percent. We will be in the future with our innovations and high-tech products, and a stronger presence.“ For this, ZF is investing heavily in the Expansion of its production capacities and in-place development in China.
More production capacity, more high-tech and E-mobility
A first evidence of the start of series production of the 8-speed automatic transmission, the 8HP, ZF transmission plant in Shanghai, where since 2004, automatic transmissions with five, and later six-speed stages to be produced. The group will provide now customers with its flagship product for the passenger Car Standard drives. A variant for the Plug-in-Hybrid drives with the 8HP also be realised. And pure electric drives will built produce ZF in the foreseeable future in China; the corresponding production is currently being.
In order to serve the demand of Car electric power steering system in China through local production, the company is constructing at the site a new steering plant – the largest of the 32 plants of ZF in China Zhangjiagang. The commercial vehicle market wants to use ZF, so more locally from China: A Joint Venture with the commercial vehicle manufacturer Foton in just a few weeks, among other things, the production of automatic and hybrid-performance commercial vehicle transmission TraXon. A joint production plant will be built to the South of Shanghai.
The importance of China as growth in the top automotive market in the world is so due to the presence of the ZF group. Since 2018, the ZF Board of management member Dr. Holger Klein is head, responsible for the market region Asia-Pacific, the business in the increasingly important Region in China-the headquarters of the group in Shanghai. The continued strong growth leads to Expansion of development capacity in China: ZF is set to place 1,000 additional engineers. Today, the two development centres in the Metropolitan area of Shanghai are firmly in the global research and development network of the group involved, so that the innovation of the group find their way even faster to the Chinese market.
With its range along the four strategic fields of competence, E-mobility, Autonomous Driving, Built-in security, and Vehicle Motion Control, ZF continues to be for Chinese as well as international automotive manufacturer with a presence in China is an attractive technology partner. Similarly, ZF gets importance for the so-called “New Automotive Customers”, such as mobility service providers, which will rely for its logistics and transportation services to Autonomous driving functions.
ZF is since 1994, with our own factories in China, and has currently 32 locations. The number of employees of least around 15,000 is expected to grow in the coming months. 2018 ZF in China generated a turnover of more than EUR 6 billion – the majority of them with powertrain and chassis technology, as well as with Active and Passive safety technology for Cars and commercial vehicles, as well as driveline technology for construction and agricultural machinery.
ZF is presenting its current product portfolio at the Auto Shanghai in hall 5.2 from Tuesday, 16. April, to Thursday, 25. April.
Maintaining a presence in Shanghai: member of the management Board Dr. Holger Klein, the Asia-Pacific.
(Photo: ZF)
