The international automotive supplier Continental has set up a new production plant for the three automotive divisions — chassis & safety, powertrain and interior — in the Jiading Industrial Zone, Shanghai. The new plant follows the opening of the Continental Automotive Jiading Tech Center and Continental Asia Headquarters in Shanghai in 2009. In operation since September 2010, the new plant produces a wide variety of products, including electronic brake systems and hydraulic electronic control units for the Chassis & Safety Division, body electronic modules and instrumentation components for the Interior Division and thick film substrates for the Powertrain Division.
The setup of this facility, operated by Continental Automotive Systems (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, is aimed at further strengthening the company's automotive components and systems production capacity in addition to its existing plants in China in order to serve increasing demand from local and global customers, which further solidifies the firm’s commitment to and resolution in the Chinese market, expanding its strong footprint in China and Asia.
Continental is collaborating with its partner, the Jiading Industrial Zone (JDIZ), to invest up to RMB160 million in this new plant, which is situated on a land of 74,000 square meters. The project is part of Continental's investments to grow significantly in China. The total floor space of the new plant for the first phase amounts to around 20,000 square meters. Currently, more than 800 employees are working at the new plant, and the number is expected to reach 1,500 by 2015. In terms of production capacity, by 2015, the plant’s numbers will ramp up to 7.5 million for hydraulic and electronic control units, 3 million units of printed circuit boards for clusters, 5 million units of door control modules and gateways, and 2 million units of thick film substrates. The products are destined for all vehicle segments and supplied to OEMs in China, Japan, Korea and Europe.
The Chassis & Safety Division of Continental offers best in class modular and scalable safety technologies and solutions for all vehicles to ensure safety of everyone and further improve traffic safety standards in China. Electronic Brake Systems (EBS) from Continental feature outstanding capacity for integration of functions and system components. Together with Advanced Driver Assistance and Passive Safety Systems they lie at the heart of ContiGuard, Continental’s strategy for integrated driving safety. EBS by Continental include Anti-lock Brake Systems (ABS) and Electronic Stability Control (ESC), with countless additional functions and means of safety enhancement. The company's reply to China's growing safety awareness is the production of the latest MK-100 Anti-lock brake system as of 2011 as well as the planned introduction of the MK-100 Electronic Stability Control family for 2014.
The Interior Division of Continental concentrates particularly on information management to make vehicles smarter and more comfortable. Its business unit Body & Security focuses on the development and production of body electronics, access control, tire information systems, light controllers, seat systems and battery and energy management solutions—all of which ensure the availability of security and comfort features within the vehicle. For instance, door control units (DCUs) — which have already been produced in the newJiading plant — are the basis for the electronics that operate exterior mirrors and power window lifters with anti-pinch protection.
The Powertrain Division of Continental integrates innovative and efficient system solutions for vehicle powertrains with the aim of optimizing performance and driving comfort while lowering fuel consumption and emissions. Continental is not only specialized in advanced electronically controlled injection systems for gasoline and diesel engines as well as EAGR and ignition modules, but also develops and produces electronics for controlling the latest automatic transmissions.