Schaeffler builds auto-parts factory

Schaeffler builds auto-parts factory

Andreas Schick (second right), Schaeffler's chief executive for Asia-Pacific, helps to lay the foundation stone for the group's new factory at Chon Buri's Hemaraj Industrial Estate last Friday.
Andreas Schick (second right), Schaeffler's chief executive for Asia-Pacific, helps to lay the foundation stone for the group's new factory at Chon Buri's Hemaraj Industrial Estate last Friday.

German auto-parts maker Schaeffler Group is spending 800 million baht to build its first wholly owned production facility in Thailand, with operation expected to start in next year's first quarter.

The Bavaria-based company laid the foundation stone for the plant's construction last Friday at Chon Buri's Hemaraj Industrial Estate, which is only 10-100 kilometres from car factories and 25 km from Laem Chabang port.

Andreas Schick, chief executive for Asia-Pacific, said the factory, covering 55,000 square metres, would produce five types of auto parts.

They are clutch release systems, clutch pressure plates and discs, mechanical belts and hydraulic belt tensioners, clutch release bearings and synchronizer rings.

In the first phase, annual production will total 500,000 to 1 million pieces of each product type.

In 2012, its affiliated unit Schaeffler Manufacturing (Thailand) won Board of Investment privileges for a first investment of 277 million baht to produce clutch sets and parts at Rayong's Amata City Industrial Estate.

That production is now handled by another German auto-parts maker, Continental Automotive (Thailand), in which the group holds a stake. Once the wholly owned Schaeffler plant starts up, the group will move all production in Rayong to the new Chon Buri factory.

Mr Schick said this first facility would initially focus on the automotive industry in Thailand and throughout Asean.

Schaeffler also owns a factory in Vietnam that produces motorcycle parts.

"The group is very keen on Thailand, with its strong automotive industry and which is likely to become a major Asean production hub in the long term," Mr Schick said.

"In Thailand, our customers now include Honda, Mitsubishi and General Motors. Toyota is expected to be a future customer."

Schaeffler expects Asean revenue growth of 20% this year from €100-120 million (3.69 to 4.43 billion baht) last year.

Mr Schick forecasts Asean's overall automotive output will increase to 6.16 million vehicles by 2022 from 4 million last year.

Thailand is expected to be the regional major production base with 3.84 million vehicles, followed by Indonesia with 1.76 million.

Founded in 1946, Schaeffler Group posted worldwide revenue of €11.2 billion in 2013.

Some 73% of revenue comes from the automotive industry and the rest from industrial parts.

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