Johnson Controls Strengthens Market Presence in Eastern Europe

TRENCIN, Slovakia and BURSCHEID, Germany, September 21 --

- New Technical Center to be opened in Slovakia

On 1 October of this year, Johnson Controls, one of the world's leading suppliers of automotive interior systems, electronics and batteries, will be opening a new Technical Center in Trencin, Slovakia. The company is now extending its product development network to include the growth markets of Eastern Europe.

In doing so, Johnson Controls is responding to the growing presence of its customers in Eastern Europe. As of October 2004, the new Technical Center, housed in a former machine factory and covering 4,500 square meters, will offer adequate space for offices, CAD workstations, and prototyping and testing equipment for approximately 60 employees. Over the next few years, capacity is set to be gradually expanded to respond to the continued growth in the automotive market.

Realignment of the product development network

While overall coordination will remain the responsibility of the Burscheid and Grefrath locations in Germany, as well as local customer offices, Trencin will concentrate on projects such as CAD execution, technical drawing and the creation of test samples. "Due to a lack of capacity in the past we have had to outsource many of these activities, which we will soon be able to once again carry out cost-effectively in-house", explained Dieter Vandreike, Project Manager.

Expansion into Eastern European growth markets

Since the early 1990's Johnson Controls has continually extended its market presence in Eastern Europe and today has 15 plants in countries including Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Poland and Rumania. "With the new Technical Center, we are strengthening our competitiveness and embarking on a new chapter in our cooperation with automakers and our suppliers in Eastern Europe", said Dieter Vandreike.

    
    Further information is available from:

    Johnson Controls GmbH
    Automotive Group
    Claudia Steinhoff
    Industriestrasse 20-30
    51399 Burscheid
    Germany
    Tel.: +49 2174 65-3243
    Fax: +49 2174 65-3944
    E-Mail: claudia.steinhoff@jci.com

Johnson Controls, Inc. is a global market leader in automotive systems and facility management and control. In the automotive market, it is a major supplier of integrated seating and interior systems, and batteries. For non-residential facilities, Johnson Controls provides control systems and services including comfort, energy and security management.

Johnson Controls (New York Stock Exchange: JCI), founded in 1885, has its headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. The company's sales for 2003 totaled US$22.6 billion, the Automotive Group worldwide generating US$17 billion of this figure and Europe accounting for US$5.9 billion. The European headquarters is in Burscheid, Germany. The company's product portfolio also includes instrument panels/cockpits, door systems, overhead systems, interior electronics, electrical energy management and engine electronics.

Further information is available from: Johnson Controls GmbH, Automotive Group, Claudia Steinhoff, Industriestrasse 20-30, 51399 Burscheid, Germany, Tel.: +49-2174-65-3243, Fax: +49-2174-65-3944, E-Mail: claudia.steinhoff@jci.com