Grammer AG Plans Automotive Competence Center

AMBERG, Germany, Feb. 24, 2004 -- Grammer AG will establish a $47- million automotive competence center in its plant at Amberg-Immenstaten. The facility will open in late spring and allow Grammer to accelerate prototype development while continuing to provide superior quality and support for its customers worldwide.

The new 40,000-square-foot facility will include four Grammer automotive division groups previously housed at separate locations.

After completion of work for current projects later this year, the business division (Volkswagen, Audi, Seat and Skoda), product development, manufacturing planning and logistics, purchasing and quality departments will be combined in the new center. Testing, process development, engineering technology, prototype design and pilot areas also will be based there.

"Grammer continually looks for ways to minimize cost and facilitate interactivity between its product teams while maintaining the high quality our customers expect," said Eugen J. Geyer, senior vice president for Grammer AG- Automotive. "Innovation and time to market are the critical survival factors in today's competitive automotive marketplace and the new center will help us take advantage of both."

The automotive competence center will provide closer cooperation between design staff members involved in pre-series activity and relevant customer teams, ensuring fast, flexible and effective communication in response to specific manufacturer requirements. Engineering changes, test results and flexible prototype design can be quickly integrated into series production.

An advanced, highly flexible layout will allow the company to easily adapt the new facility to changes in team composition without costly reconstruction. Thirty modules are already in place.

Grammer AG is a world leader in the development and manufacture of innovative components and systems for automobile interiors. Wherever people use vehicles, Grammer, based in Amberg, Germany, sets the standards for security, comfort and ergonomics. Automotive is the company's largest division and supplies headrests, armrests, center consoles and integrated child booster seats to vehicle manufacturers and their tier 1 systems suppliers. The company's second division, Seating Systems, provides driver seats for heavy trucks and off-road vehicles (tractors, construction machinery, fork-lifts) as well as passenger seats for trains and buses. Grammer Seating Systems is active both as a first-time supplier and as a retrofitter.

As a global player, the Grammer Group operates with a strong customer focus that includes location of development and production facilities close to clients and relies on an international network of partners. In fiscal 2002, Grammer Group sales were $839.7 million, with net income for the year of $25.2 million. With over 7,000 employees, Grammer and its 22 consolidated companies operate in 13 different countries worldwide.