Sursa foto: Continental
German auto parts maker Continental has plans for a restructuring that will combine its connectivity, mobility and high-performance computing businesses from early next year.
Its tire business and ContiTech division, focused on rubber technologies, will become independent group sectors, while its Automotive Technologies subsidiary will be split into five business areas, including a new focus on smart mobility and user experience.
The restructuring is a further step by Continental to reorganize its business after it divested its Vitesco powertrain unit in mid-September.
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“The mobility of the future is sustainable, automated and connected,” said CEO Nicola Setzer. “We are thus taking advantage of the potential presented by our uniquely strong position in technology in all these areas.”
As part of the restructuring, board members Helmut Matschi and Frank Jourdan will step down, almost three years before the end of their contracts. That will reduce Continental’s board to five members as of January 1.
German automotive components supplier Continental will close its induction systems plant in Nădab (Arad) and transfer operations to its rubber heating/cooling hose plant in Carei (Satu Mare). The relocation, which is being prompted by declining demand for certain products in the market, will take place gradually until the middle of next year and will affect more than 300 employees.
In the spring, the German giant announced that it wants to invest €150 million in Romania this year, similar to the amount invested in 2020. The move is argued that volumes for air induction systems and cooling and heating systems have been steadily declining due to the automotive industry’s shift to electric vehicles, and the company now wants to strengthen its position in the automotive hose manufacturing sector.
The Carei plant will become the main area of rubber and assembly operations. At the same time, ContiTech’s Timisoara facility will play an important role in air conditioning hose manufacturing and assembly operations. More than 300 employees of the Nădab plant will, however, be affected by this transfer of activities. Affected employees will be offered the option of relocating from Nădab to Carei, while a small number will be relocated to Timișoara. The company will offer a compensation package for the curtailment of the activities of those employees who do not wish to relocate.
All Continental divisions are represented in Romania. Continental has seven production sites and four engineering centers in Timisoara, Sibiu, Carei, Nădab, Brasov and Iasi. According to the company, Continental Romania employs more than 20,000 people in the local market, a third of whom are engineers and computer scientists in the R&D centers.
Edited for English