Magna International plans to open a new seating manufacturing facility in Taizhou, China, to supply Geely's Volvo Car Group, according to a company press release on 9 March. The company has already started construction of the facility and is scheduled for completion by mid-2016. The facility is expected to create 90 new jobs. The facility, spread across 5,200 square metres, will produce complete seating systems for a small crossover utility vehicle, the first automobile to be produced from Volvo's CMA (Compact Modular Architecture) platform. "We are excited to bring our latest seating technologies to the China market and build a world-class just-in-time plant to serve our customer," said Jim Chen, vice president and managing director of Magna Seating in Asia.
In a separate announcement, Magna announced that it will supply Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) with the supplier’s new EYERIS Generation 3.0 camera system. Magna’s system will be installed on the 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee SUV and all-new 2017 Chrysler Pacifica minivan. The EYERIS system, Magna says, builds on technology from previous platforms on market now, improving the field of view as well as camera resolution. The system will fuse with the radar, with the system performing functions related to the vehicles’ lane keeping, automatic high beam, automatic emergency braking and adaptive cruise control features. "Collaborating with FCA US on higher demand vehicles like the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Chrysler Pacifica demonstrates our leadership position in the automotive vision system technology market," said Swamy Kotagiri, Magna Chief Technology Officer and President Magna Electronics, said in a company statment. "We are excited to launch EYERIS 3.0 with FCA US and look forward to continuing to expand our innovative technology to meet the needs of today's growing driver assistance market."
Significance: The new facility in Taizhou will be Magna’s fifth manufacturing facility for seating and the company 33rd facility in China. Magna is eyeing growth in China with a number of investments and joint-ventures in the region. The company opened a new seating engineering centre in the Xuhui District of Shanghai, China, in January this year. Magna expects the new facility to support its growth plans in the Chinese automotive market. "This new facility helps us support a new customer and expands our footprint in China, both of which are key to growing our global seating business," said Mike Bisson, president of Magna Seating. The company expects to have 38 plants and joint-venture facilities operating in China by 2018, compared with 15 in 2010. Besides, Magna is expected to benefit from Getrag’s acquisition, which was completed at the end of 2015. Getrag has a wide presence in China, which will give Magna an edge in offering its portfolio in the Asian market, besides North America.
Improved camera systems, and blending the camera and radar sensors helps improve efficacy of the systems. FCA is adding the new system to the existing generation of Grand Cherokee, while the Chrysler product is all new. Other companies offer similar systems, though the Magna system has potential to give FCA a bit of an edge, as it promises to improve field of vision and camera resolution.
