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TRW Officially Opens Joint Venture Seat Belt Facilities In China and India; New Business Awarded

14 August 1997

TRW Officially Opens Joint Venture Seat Belt Facilities In China and India; New Business Awarded

    SHANGHAI, China, Aug. 14 -- TRW Inc. today officially opened
its new joint venture seat belt plant here with Shanghai Clutch Factory (SCF)
to serve the growing Chinese automotive market.  The joint venture company,
Shanghai TRW Automotive Safety Systems Co., Ltd., was announced on January 16,
1997.  SCF is a member of the Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. Group, one of
China's largest companies.
    James S. Remick, executive vice president and general manager of TRW
Occupant Restraint Systems, noted at the opening that two of the primary
automotive customers for the new plant, Shanghai Volkswagen and Shanghai
General Motors, "have awarded contracts to the new joint venture."  Other
companies involved in producing vehicles or automotive components in China
include Ford, Chrysler, Audi, Peugeot and Citroen.
    The new plant, located in Shanghai, will produce high-quality seat belt
retractors, buckle assemblies and height adjusters.  TRW and SCF have been
working together since 1993 when SCF licensed TRW's seat belt retractor
technology.  Based on anticipated market growth, the joint venture expects to
more than triple production of seat belts to more than 1.5 million by the year
2000.
    "We want to provide our customers with the products they want, where and
when they need them," Remick said.  "Automotive sales in China have the
potential to become the highest of any country in the world."
    Another of the largest automotive growth markets is India, where TRW on
Aug. 7 officially opened its new joint venture seat belt plant in Chennai with
Rane (Madras) Ltd.  The TRW Rane Occupant Restraints Ltd. joint venture was
announced last year.
    Robert M. Varga, vice president and general manager of TRW's global Seat
Belt Systems business, said the joint venture has selected "a number of new
local component suppliers.  Most importantly," Varga said, "our customers in
this region are awarding us new sales contracts."
    Fiat and Tata are the first automotive customers to be supplied by the new
joint venture facility.  Varga said the plant will serve several local vehicle
manufacturers, as well as global customers expanding into India.
    The new 23,000 square foot plant near Madras will produce high-quality
seat belt retractors and buckle assemblies.  TRW and Rane have a separate
joint venture agreement for producing steering gears and linkages in India.
Also, earlier this year, the two companies announced that they will jointly
manufacture engine valves in India.
    Cleveland-based TRW provides advanced technology products and
services for the automotive and space and defense markets.  Company sales for
1996 were about $10 billion, of which $6.5 billion were in automotive.  TRW is
the world's largest provider of occupant restraint systems, as well as seat
belt systems.  The company produced more than 55 million seat belts in 1996.

SOURCE  TRW Inc.