Kendrion has opened a new factory in Suzhou that becomes its largest production site worldwide as the company aims to boost its revenue from China to €100 million by 2025. The plant will produce the full line of Kendrion products, many of which have important magnetic functionality such as permanent magnet brakes, holding magnets and inductive heating systems.
“Today is a proud day for Kendrion,“ said Joep van Beurden, CEO, at the opening ceremony on May 24. “We started construction of the plant in November 2021 and are pleased to celebrate its completion today. Featuring four floors of production space, a state-of -the art automated warehouse and offices, totaling 28,000 m², and a committed workforce of 300 employees, it will allow us to make full use of the many business opportunities we see here in China.”
“On 1 June 2023 we will start transferring production of our two current manufacturing locations in Suzhou and Shanghai to the new facility with the intention to be fully operational by the end of Q3 2023. We also expect to start production of six new Automotive E projects during 2023.”
It is fully equipped to manufacture products from all of the company’s business groups — Industrial Brakes, Industrial Actuators & Controls and Automotive E. The factory is expected to meet growth demands until at least 2027, longer if a second phase expansion takes place.
“The Chinese market offers us substantial potential,” said Telly Kuo, president of Kendrion Asia, as he outlined the company’s objectives and opportunity with the new facility. “Since its founding in 2005, Kendrion China has grown exponentially. Kendrion China’s share of group revenue has increased from less than 4% in 2015 to 10% in 2022 with revenue of around EUR 50 million. Our confidence in our ability to continue this growth is reflected in our ambitious target for 2025: to double this revenue to EUR 100 million.”
“In Industrial, we expect to double our current turnover,” he said. “For the next five years, we particularly see room for growth in wind power, elevator and escalator, robotics, forklift, electrical motor, crane, hoist and AGV applications. To better meet the needs of local Chinese customers, the factory will focus on expanding its R&D capabilities in industrial brakes and industrial actuators and controls.
“In automotive, the global market for electrical vehicles is forecast to grow at an astonishing 67.09% CAGR by 2030, with Asia Pacific as the largest market. With our new Automotive ‘E’ organization, we can dedicate more resources to game-changing automotive technologies including sound design, sensor cleaning and active damping.”
“We also see great opportunities for cross-selling. We’re already working with an international brake system manufacturer to use an industrial product — the permanent magnet brake — in commercial vehicles destined for the Chinese market.”
“If the growth we anticipate is realized, we will move on to Phase II in 2025, which will make another 12,500 square meters ready by 2026,” Kuo noted. The increased production and turnover of the new factory is expected to support business growth up to 2030, and additional expansion space is available nearby.
