Schaeffler organized the foundation stone laying ceremony for a Greenfield manufacturing facility at Chon Buri, Thailand. The new facility, located at the Hemaraj Chon Buri Industrial Estate II, will significantly expand the production footprint of Schaeffler in Asia Pacific and especially in South East Asia with the introduction of new product lines. This is one important milestone of the strategic expansion of local manufacturing as well as research and development footprint in the region.
Developing advanced technologies
"Expanding our manufacturing footprint in Southeast Asia reflects our commitment to this region and allows us to better serve customers with our advanced products and solutions. The automotive industry in Thailand and Southeast Asia is poised for continuous growth," said Mr. Andreas Schick, Chief Executive Officer at Schaeffler Asia Pacific. The new manufacturing facility will be built at a 55,000 sq. m. site in Chon Buri province on the eastern coast of Thailand. Construction of the plant is commencing as scheduled and start of production at the plant is planned in the first quarter of 2016. The product lines that will be launched in phase 1 include clutch discs and clutch pressure plates, mechanical and hydraulic belt tensioners, synchronizer rings, clutch release bearings and clutch release systems.
Increasing competitiveness of customers in the ASEAN Economic Community
"Thailand is one of the key automotive manufacturing hubs globally with the highest concentration of manufacturing and research facilities of automotive OEMs. The country has witnessed robust industrial growth over the past few years. In addition, the government of Thailand gives strong emphasis to the development of automotive and ancillary industries. Thailand has very good skilled workers and competitive labor costs," said Mr. Masafumi Yoshida, President Automotive at Schaeffler Southeast Asia.
