ZF Commercial Vehicles further increased its local R&D and manufacturing investment and expanded its R&D center and production site in China
Significantly improve advanced engineering and testing capabilities to help the commercial vehicle industry move toward next-generation mobility
ZF Commercial Vehicle Chassis Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. officially launched the operation of the new plant, continuously optimizing production capacity and efficiently meeting customer needs
The second phase of the expansion of ZF Group's Commercial Vehicle Solutions Division in Jinan's R&D center and manufacturing base was successfully completed and officially launched. Based on its long-term global strategy, ZF Commercial Vehicle Solutions has significantly expanded its capacity in the field of advanced engineering and testing, which will significantly enhance its R&D capabilities and meet the customized needs of local and global customers for advanced technologies in a more timely and effective manner.
ZF has always maintained a strong commitment to the Chinese market and is constantly investing in innovation. The newly established Commercial Vehicle Solutions Division (hereinafter referred to as the Commercial Vehicle Division) is leading the transition to electric mobility, digital services and sustainable businesses with the mission of "Innovating for Safer and Sustainable Commercial Transportation". The expansion and capacity enhancement and R&D capabilities not only provide strong evidence for the mapping of this vision and mission, but also play a key role in promoting the development of next-generation mobility solutions in China and around the world.
Exterior of ZF's R&D center in Jinan
The new R&D center includes a modern laboratory with an area of approximately 3,000 square meters and more than 1,000 square meters of R&D staff offices. As a local product innovation center, its footprint covers design, simulation, testing, system development, materials engineering, and applications in almost all product categories of the Commercial Vehicle Division, including braking components for anti-lock braking systems (ABS) and electronic braking systems (EBS), powertrain systems (e.g. integrated automatic mechanical transmission IAMT for autonomous driving), wheel-side products, air management systems (e.g. e.g. e-Comp 2.0 systems for electric vehicles), Solenoid valves and electromechanical components – these support ZF Commercial Vehicles' roadmap for achieving its product development. The expansion of the new R&D center and the manufacturing region will be synergistic, which will help optimize supply chain and cost efficiency, and its positioning as the main R&D center of the Commercial Vehicle Division in Asia Pacific will also be improved.
ZF Jinan R&D Center – Laboratory
ZF Jinan R&D Center – multi-functional meeting rooms
"This significant investment will help ZF develop clean, safe, automated, comfortable and economical next-generation mobility solutions that will further strengthen its position as a leader in technological innovation," said Wilheim Rem, Director and Head of commercial vehicle solutions at ZF Group. With extensive expertise and industry knowledge, we develop advanced technologies that are cost-effective and cost-effective. ”
"At the same time, the Jinan R&D center can play a synergistic role with the Chinese R&D team in Shanghai, Jiaxing and Guangzhou to continuously improve local engineering applications, functional development and product innovation capabilities." Sujie Yu, President of ZF Commercial Vehicle Solutions Asia Pacific, said: "The new environment helps to inspire R&D personnel, exert first-class creativity, respond in a timely and effective manner to changing industry trends, growing needs of customers and markets, and achieve long-term development and strategic goals. ”
At present, China is leading the world in autonomous driving and electrification, and the improvement of local R&D capabilities is a key element for ZF to further implement the "In China, for China" strategy. At the same time, it will act as a driving force to accelerate its "In China, For the World" strategy, foreseeing and accelerating the development of necessary technologies to empower global customers and the entire commercial vehicle industry to move towards higher quality development.
In terms of the strategic layout of the production base, at the end of January 2022, ZF Commercial Vehicle Chassis Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. officially entered the Xinzhuang Industrial Zone in Minhang, Shanghai, and successfully started the operation of the new plant. After the completion of the relocation, the new plant has two companies, ZF Automotive Parts System and ZF Commercial Vehicle Chassis Technology, which produce vibration damping systems, chassis system modules and members, covering the two brands of Sachs and Renford, and the joint construction of the two factories will help further improve the product line of commercial vehicle cab suspension systems and air suspension systems, providing systematic and intelligent one-stop solutions.
Up to now, the new ZF Commercial Vehicle Solutions division has 11 production sites in China, reflecting the firm determination to deepen the Asia-Pacific region, especially the Chinese commercial vehicle market.