German sunroof supplier opens 2 new plants in China
German automotive sunroof manufacturer Webasto AG has opened two new plants in China bringing total capacity here to 2 million sunroof sets annually.
On June 17 Webasto opened a sunroof plant in Changchun. The plant covers an area of 26,000 square meters and employs 290.
On June 18 Webasto opened a new plant in Shanghai. The plant covers 17,000 square meters and employs 500 staff. Webasto declined to provide any investment numbers.
The new sunroof plants replace older Webasto plants in both locations and are specially focused on automatic assembly lines for panoramic sunroofs.
As demand for panoramic sunroofs gains momentum among local domestic automakers manufacturers, Webasto has increased capacity.
Local automakers such as Great Wall Motors Co., SAIC Motor Co., FAW Car Co. and Chery Automobile Co. are Webasto's customers.
Webasto declined to provide details of volume ordered in China. Webasto also counts most major global automakers with joint ventures in China as its customers.
Besides the plants in Changchun and Shanghai, Webasto has plants in Wuhan, Chongqing and Guangzhou. The company claims to provide 60 percent of the sunroofs used in the automotive industry in China.
Its competitors include Inalfa Roof Systems and ArvinMeritor. These two companies each have a plant in China with annual capacity of around 600,000 sets.
