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Siemens to Become Electronics Leader in Tennessee

15 October 1998

Siemens to Become Electronics Leader in Tennessee

    JOHNSON CITY, Tenn., Oct. 15 -- Siemens Automotive announced
the dedication of its new automotive electronics facility in Johnson City,
Tenn.  The 325,000 square-foot site, which originally only housed a division
of Siemens Energy & Automation, recently has been reconfigured to also include
an 11,000 square-foot division of Siemens Automotive.
    The addition of Siemens Automotive activity in an existing Energy and
Automation facility was due largely to the adaptability of advanced
manufacturing processes for electronics which allowed for an exchange of
resources and technologies that would include the manufacturing of automotive
electronics.  This resulted in a record start-up of less than 12 months from
conception and the rapid achievement of QS 9000 certification, an automotive
industry quality standard which suppliers strive to meet.
    Established to provide greater support to the rapidly growing North
American automotive electronics market, this electronics manufacturing
activity produces air bag control units with an anticipated 2.2 million unit
output rate by the year 2001 and also plans to expand to include the
manufacturing of vehicle navigation products.
    The Johnson City facility, which has created 60 new jobs this year, will
employ an additional 160 associates by 2001.
    Led by Hubert Engesser, director of Vehicle Electronics Systems, the new
facility already produces 16,000 control units per week for Ford Motor Co. and
will begin production for Saturn in 1999 and Chrysler in 2000.
    "Our goal is to become the air bag control unit center of expertise for
North America," Engesser said.  "The use of an existing Siemens facility,
strategically located between Detroit and the growing southeastern region of
the U.S., enables us to share resources and combine world-class engineering
and production skills to meet and exceed our customers' expectations.
    "In addition to air bags, Siemens plans to bring other electronic
expertise, such as navigation technology, to Johnson City," Engesser added.
    This new automotive electronics facility is part of Siemens' strategic
business plan for greater investment in the North American market.  In
addition to the $8 million Johnson City automotive expansion, within the past
year Siemens has invested in a new facility in Lima, Ohio; is in the process
of expanding its North American headquarters in Auburn Hills, Mich.; and, has
established a sales and engineering center in Dearborn, Mich. to better
support customer activities.
    Siemens Automotive is a tier-one supplier of automotive and
electrical-electronic systems and components with applications covering
powertrain systems, safety and chassis systems, body electronics, electric
motor drives, driver information systems and diesel systems.  Siemens
Automotive generated $3 billion in sales in 1997, 10 percent of which was
reinvested in research and development.  The parent organization, Siemens AG,
the world's second leading manufacturer of electronics capital goods,
generated sales of $64 billion in 1997 and presently employs 386,000 people
worldwide.