ZF Moves North American Headquarters to Detroit Area

NORTHVILLE, Mich., Jan. 21, 2005 -- ZF -- a leading worldwide automotive supplier of driveline and chassis technology -- announced January 11 that, effective immediately, its North American Technical Center in Northville, Mich., near Detroit, will serve as its North American Headquarters.

The facility will be known as the ZF Group North American Operations Headquarters and Technical Center.

Since 1997, the headquarters had been located in Florence, Ky., just south of Cincinnati, Ohio.

ZF recently expanded the Northville facility to 248,000 square-feet in an effort to house all ZF divisions within Detroit at a single location. The company has been in the Detroit area since 1987, and opened the Technical Center during 2001.

"Detroit remains the heart of the automotive industry -- especially within North America," said Julio Caspari, President, ZF Group North American Operations. "While we had a great relationship with the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky area, many of our customers and suppliers are located in the area and we feel it is essential to have a larger presence here."

ZF continues to have a presence in the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky region, with four manufacturing plants. In addition, ZF moved its information technology department -- around 30 people -- to the Textile Building in Downtown Cincinnati.

"We will continue to have a workforce of around 800 on the Cincinnati area as part of our long-term plans," Caspari added.

Currently, ZF employs more than 500 in Southeast Michigan, with facilities in Northville and Lapeer. The ZF Sachs division recently moved from Troy to Northville.

ZF Friedrichshafen AG is a leading worldwide supplier of driveline and chassis technology. Headquartered in Friedrichshafen, Germany, ZF is among the 15 largest automotive suppliers in the world. The company has a total workforce of 53,500 at 119 locations in 25 countries, and combined revenues for the group totaled more than $10 billion in 2003.

ZF operates a large manufacturing network in North America, combined with global research and development capabilities, to provide advanced technology to the region. The ZF Group North American Operations Headquarters and Technical Center is located in Northville, Mich., USA.