Frankfurt am Main (ots) -
– High-Volume Production Launched for Vehicle Electric Motors
– Shaping Automotive Megatrends for Profitable Growth
The Continental Corporation views branch development trends discernible at the 64th IAA in Frankfurt as affirmation of its favorable outlook for long-term profitable growth. “In the future, individual mobility will be characterized by increasing variety and ever greater complexity. In the long run, only those adept at mastering this complexity and capable of translating this mastery into a steady stream of market innovations in step with megatrends in the automotive industry stand a chance of being successful on the world market,” said the Continental CEO, Dr. Elmar Degenhart, at the international automotive supplier’s IAA press conference in Frankfurt on Tuesday.
“Continental’s innovative prowess enables it to play an active role in shaping the megatrends in the branch. The company can thus enjoy sustained profitability and grow at a faster-than-average pace in emerging markets. Our innovations guarantee efficiency and high quality while at the same time safeguarding our future as leading international automotive supplier. “Our showing at this year’s IAA demonstrates that we are optimally equipped to take on the challenges of the future. That is because we have at our disposal a broad product portfolio, high systems competence and innovative prowess, excellent quality management and, most importantly, 160,000 top employees worldwide,” he added.
At the same time, Degenhart affirmed the company’s outlook for the current fiscal year: We are sticking to our forecast that sales will climb at least ten percent to EUR 29.5 billion this year, with an adjusted return on sales of ten percent. It remains to be seen whether the financial markets’ unsettled state affects the real economy. For 2012 we anticipate a slowdown but not a serious recession. Thanks to its product portfolio, Continental would experience growth in the mid-single-digit percentage range even in a stagnant market.”
Continental invests foresightedly in technologies and future markets and, in so doing, creates new job opportunities as well. This year we shall hire 10,000 employees. Since the crisis in 2009 in fact, we have generated over 25,000 jobs. In 2011 the company is spending EUR 1.6 billion on research and development – 10 percent more than in 2010 (EUR 1.45 billion). The supplier is boosting investments nearly 36 percent to as much as EUR 1.8 billion. A large portion of this flows into the emerging markets, especially the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China), where the company intends to realize overproportional growth.
Continental is in the vanguard of e-mobility: Continental is the world’s first automotive supplier to build a highly efficient synchronous machine for all-electric vehicles that contains no rare earth materials. High-volume production is getting underway just in time for IAA. This drive will equip Renault’s electric vehicle fleet. For this product alone, we have invested EUR 12 million in our plant in Gifhorn in the north German state of Lower Saxony. Annual production capacity is initially pegged at 60,000 electric motors. Volume will, however, rise to 75,000 motors a year as of 2012.
Megatrend Safety – Vision “Zero Accidents”
Driving safety focuses on protecting human life in today’s congested and predominantly individual motor traffic. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 1.2 million people died on the world?s roads last year. This means that there were roughly 3300 traffic fatalities every day. And it is estimated that at least another 50 million people suffered injury in such accidents. 50 million people – that is more or less the population of South Korea. To address this problem, Continental is developing products and solutions geared to preventing traffic accidents and their fatal consequences entirely. “Day in, day out, we are hard at work to prevent more accidents from occurring or to reduce the severity of those that do happen,” said Degenhart. Fundamentally new modules are added to active safety systems – in other words, systems that work to prevent accidents from happening. With the stereo camera, for example, Continental is taking a new tack in monitoring vehicle surroundings. The device makes it possible to hinder – or at least mitigate the consequences of – frequently occurring accidents involving pedestrians or intersecting vehicles. The stereo camera has two “eyes”, so it can clearly recognize obstacles and measure how far off and how big they are. This opens the door to a new generation of anticipatory emergency brake assist systems. The company is an innovation and market leader in the domain of driver assist systems. Through 2015 it will supply automakers around the world with a total of approximately 2.2 million emergency brake systems. In terms of road safety, Continental occupies a special notch among suppliers. This is because – alongside competence in other safety-relevant components – it possesses tire expertise and thus masters the vehicle’s direct contact to the road.
Megatrend Environment – Vision “Clean Power”
Fossil fuel reserves are shrinking, meaning that we have to adopt a sustainable approach in dealing with resources. At the same time, increasingly stringent emissions limits create a demand for new drive systems and new technologies. These must satisfy performance and comfort requirements and aim for emissions-free driving. “We have optimized our injection systems for diesel and gasoline engines to better prevent emissions and arrive at more fuel-efficient combustion. Our system solutions comprised of turbocharged engines and direct-injection systems yield fuel savings of between 12 and 35 percent over standard gasoline engines,” said Degenhart. “As for diesel engines, combining high-end injection systems with downsizing and thermal management itself has the potential to reduce consumption ten percent. Our nitrogen oxide aftertreatment systems can boost the savings a further four percent. All told, savings of up to 25 percent are possible for diesel engines as well,” the CEO added.
Many innovations in the environmental area stem from Continental’s Powertrain division, currently the corporation’s fastest-growing division. Its innovative prowess was a factor in enabling the division to achieve a turnaround a year earlier than planned. A prime example of Power-train’s innovative prowess is the newly developed fuel quality sensor. It helps protect the engine and the environment: Determination of fuel quality also optimizes fuel injection, among other things. Cutting-edge tire technology and interior foils also contribute to conserving resources. The new ContiEcoContact 5 tire combines short braking distances on dry and wet roads with low rolling resistance. With it, cars stand to cut fuel consumption by up to three percent on the road.* And on another front, the newly developed TEPEO® foil for vehicle interiors saves up to two kilograms per vehicle over today’s most commonly used PVC foils.
Megatrend Information – Vision “Always On”
No longer an isolated shell, the car is today a complexly networked system inside and out. In lightning speed it grasps all the situations confronting the driver. In other words, what happens in and outside the car is less and less a matter of isolated coincidences and possible misjudgments but increasingly the result of intelligent networking. “The growing demands of drivers in terms of operability, functionality and safety and the growing trend to e-mobility are upping the importance of in-car information management in modern vehicles,” Degenhart pointed out.
To date Continental has already supplied over 22 million telematics systems. These link the vehicle with telecommunications networks. According to a study from ABI Research, the share of telematics units permanently installed in vehicles will rise from ten percent to 62 percent in the 2010 to 2016 timespan. Continental is likewise capable of supplying e-Call, the automatic emergency notification system, which the EU intends to make mandatory.
The best example for the increasingly strong link between the auto industry and telecommunications solutions is the possibility of integrating the car key into one’s cell phone as an encrypted data package. This cell-phone key is capable of not only providing access to the vehicle. It can likewise start the engine once one is inside the vehicle. The digital key also assists the driver in personalizing the vehicle. “Our Simplify your Drive concept has already demonstrated how cross-domain networking can make it easier to adapt a vehicle to its driver. This very concept can now be expanded, making it possible, for example, for the driver to employ it in a rental car in the future. The digital key can register all a driver?s preferences, so that even when using a given rental car for the first time, a motorist no longer has to adjust the infotainment system to the desired settings, for example,” explained Degenhart.
Megatrend Affordable Cars – Individual Mobility Possible All Over The World
Experts estimate that affordable cars will account for roughly 20 percent of production land grow proportionally with the market overall. “Affordable cars are not lower-quality vehicles equipped with the most rudimentary components. They are, instead, cars within the customers’ means. They are minimalist and tailored to the specific market. The functions in them are based on the latest technologies and geared specifically to the intended customers and regions,” noted Degenhart. For Continental, the term “affordable cars’ refers mainly to vehicles in the ultra-low-cost, budget and mini car segments. Locally developed, cost-effective and scalable products for affordable cars include, for instance, the SPEED airbag control unit, the EASY-U engine control unit, and the Basic Function Controller for various comfort features. First introduced at the IAA 2009, these three products have proved a market hit in the meantime. The convincing arguments in their favor are a scalable functional range, cost effectiveness and sturdy construction. Carmakers pay homage to this development achievement with a total of close to 70 production orders for the products cited.
Special Trend E-Mobility
“Continental boasts a wide-ranging product portfolio for safe, efficient and comfortable e mobility. In addition, we also have a worldwide network of roughly 1,600 specialists in battery system and electric powertrain technology, regenerative braking, rolling-resistance-optimized tires and interior applications. The company has numerous series orders to show for itself for the 2009-to-2013 timespan: Roughly 90 series projects with 17 manufacturers’ worldwide involving components for electric and hybrid vehicles. These include key components, such as, for example, electric motors, power electronics, battery technology, instrumentation, telematics, regenerative brake systems, sensor systems and components for safe charging. Close to 60 percent of these projects are for components and systems for e-vehicles. A large share of these are developed and produced in Europe; products for some orders are manufactured in Asia.
* Compared to the predecessor ContiEcoContact 3. The figures are based on an internal comparison which was realized in 2010.
With sales of EUR 26 billion in 2010, Continental is among the leading automotive suppliers worldwide. As a supplier of brake systems, systems and components for powertrains and chassis, instrumentation, infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics, tires and technical elastomers, Continental contributes to enhanced driving safety and global climate protection. Continental is also an expert partner in networked automobile communication. Continental currently has close to 160,000 employees in 45 countries.
Contact:
Dr. Felix Gress
Leiter Unternehmenskommunikation
Continental AG
Vahrenwalder Straße 9
30165 Hannover
Telefon: +49 511 938-1485,
Fax: +49 511 938-1055
E-Mail: prkonzern@conti.de
Hannes Boekhoff
Leiter Medien
Continental AG
Vahrenwalder Straße 9
30165 Hannover
Telefon: +49 511 938-1278,
Fax: +49 511 938-1016
E-Mail: corporate-media-relations@conti.de
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