Bangkok--18 May--TAI
Thailand’s share of global pick-ups production is expected to increase from a 31% global share in 2009 to 35% by 2015. Continental's technology which is focused on the four automotive industry megatrends Safety, Environment, Information and Affordable Cars adds value to pick-up trucks future.
Bangkok/Thailand. International automotive supplier Continental Automotive (Thailand) Co., Ltd. in partnership with Thailand Automotive Institute (TAI) recently organized a seminar on ‘Pick-Up Trucks: Keeping the Product Champion through Cutting-Edge Technology’. The event brought together over 150 representatives from Thailand’s automotive industry, leading OEMs and automotive parts companies, government officials, and academia. The seminar provided a detailed overview of the global and Thailand pick-up truck market and emerging technical trends that can positively impact the sector.
Presenting at the seminar were distinguished experts from Germany, Japan, the US and Thailand including Mr. Thomas Chambers, Managing Director, Continental Automotive (Thailand) Co., Ltd., Mr. Hajime Yamamoto, Director Thailand, CSM Worldwide (Thailand), Mr. Rainer Doerrheide, Vice President and General Manager of Continental's automotive Powertrain manufacturing plant in Amata City, Rayong, Mr. Yoshihito Ito, Director, Central R&D Member of BOM - Continental Automotive Corporation (Japan) Ltd., Mr. Werner Koestler, Senior Vice President — Division Interior B&S Asia, and Mr. Torsten Scherf, Vice President, Business Unit Commercial Vehicles & Aftermarket Asia Pacific, Continental Automotive (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. The event was presided by Mr. Vallop Tiasiri, President of TAI.
Thailand’s share of global pick-up truck production is expected to increase from a 31% global share in 2009 to 35% by 2015.
Mr. Hajime Yamamoto, Director CSM Worldwide (Thailand) said, the pick-up truck is a crucial and integral part of the Thai automotive industry and has been Thailand product champion for over three decades, supplying both domestic and export markets. Despite reduced global demand for mid-size and small pick-ups in 2009 due to economic crisis, he remains confident that the global sector will see a full recovery by 2013.
Thailand has retained its global leadership position in the mid-size pick-up market. Thailand’s production is expected to recover and grow steadily from 2010-2015, exceeding the 2008 peak in 2013, driven primarily by exports to emerging markets in Asia and the Middle East as well as resource rich countries in the Southern hemisphere including Australia, Brazil and South Africa, increasing Thailand’s share of global pickup production from a 31% global share in 2009 to 35% by 2015.
“In order to retain its leadership position in the sector, Thailand must act decisively to take advantage of its current position as a global production hub and take a step further in technology and design development. This will be achieved by more value added in the industry and developing of related industry such as localization of parts design and development of unique energy resource” added Yamamoto.
Studies show that consumers rate vehicle safety as their highest priority.
Specific megatrends continue to shape and guide the automotive industry. These megatrends, identified as safety, environment, information and affordability, are guided by evolving consumer expectations and needs. Thomas Chambers, Managing Director Continental Automotive (Thailand) Co., Ltd said that studies have shown that consumers consistently rate vehicle safety needs as their highest priority, with a desire for sophisticated information management and intelligent mobility as other most frequently mentioned vehicle features followed by environmental considerations, including air pollution and fuel efficiency. For a secure future, producers of pick-up trucks must ensure that they remain in-line with such trends moving into the future.
As the world's second largest supplier and a leading innovator of the automotive industry, Continental Automotive has fully grasped the importance of the megatrends in the automotive industry, and in particular for the pick-up sector in Thailand. With its extensive product portfolio, Continental’s cutting-edge technology for environmentally-friendly driving, all-around safety and efficient information management will greatly benefit the pick-up sector in Thailand.
Pick-up trucks of the future need to significantly reduce fuel consumption
With a rapidly expanding global transportation sector, consumption of fuel is forecast to increase by 55% until 2030, at the same time that supplies of fuel begin to peak and then decline, meaning that pick-up trucks of the future will be expected to significantly reduce fuel consumption. Future vehicles will also be expected to meet increasingly stringent global emissions legislation, covering levels of NOx, CO and HC, with the ultimate aim of producing zero emission vehicles. This cannot be achieved immediately but through incremental steps, from improving the efficiency of conventional powertrains in the short and mid term, to backing up combustion engines with electric motors until the ultimate long term goal of emission free electric vehicles can be achieved.
Continental is focused on setting the industry standard with efficient powertrain and other technologies that will allow future pick-up trucks to reduce emissions and increase fuel efficiency. Mr. Rainer Doerrheide, Vice President and General Manager of Continental's Powertrain manufacturing plant in Amata City, Rayong, revealed that “Continental’s highly reliable and robust diesel Piezo technology is recognized for its unmatched fuel economy and C02 reduction, for setting new emission standards and for its high specific performance. Such attributes contribute to a cost-competitive overall engine system and more cost efficient system solutions, making the technology particularly suitable for pick-ups.” Such technology is complimented by Continental’s diesel common rail high pressure 3-piston pumps, which successfully minimize injector and pump leakage for reduced fuel consumption and C02 emissions. Both of these advanced technologies are produced locally in Thailand at Contin
ental’s state-of-the-art Powertrain manufacturing plant in Rayong province and are fully compatible with all regulatory demands including Euro VI standards.
Enhancing safety features on pick-up trucks is vital to securing their future as a product champion
Mr. Yoshihito Ito, Director, Central R&D Member of BOM - Continental Automotive Corporation (Japan) emphasized that “enhancing safety features on pick-up trucks is vital to securing their future as a product champion with both governments and consumers demanding the best available technology to ensure the safest possible driving experience.”
Continental technologies for vehicle safety and dynamics are focused on developing and producing intelligent and integrated systems that will further enhance safety in pick-up trucks in the future. This is the full range of active and passive safety systems, with an ambition of achieving ‘Zero Accidents’. Continental supplies high-performing brake and advanced driver assistance systems together with a high level of competence in HMI, offering greatly enhanced protection to vehicle occupants and vulnerable traffic participants against traffic accident related injuries.
With ContiGuard?, a safety philosophy based on more than 100 years of experience in driving safety, Continental has created the next level of driving safety technology, proactively integrating all available know-how to serve one goal: a significant reduction of accidents and number of fatalities. Such technologies have been empirically proven to significantly reduce fatalities and with the European Union, the United States and Japan all setting legally binding targets to reduce yearly number of fatalities, Continental makes an ideal partner for producers of pick-up trucks in Thailand.
Revolutionizing traffic management with innovative road tolling
Continental’s innovative road tolling technology can also greatly assist in solving traffic congestion, manage traffic, finance road infrastructure and improve the efficiency of fleets. Continental's intelligent tolling On-Board Units support the guidance of traffic to lower density routes and ensure mobility in chronically congested urban areas. These On-Board Units build the groundwork for value added services that would greatly benefit future models of pick-up trucks.
Continental provides two tolling systems for multi lane free flow, namely the Dedicated Short Range Communication System (DSRC-System) a proven system based on current know-how and the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS-System), which will make use of future technologies that will require a low effort in infrastructure and easy implementation of new roads. This advanced system has the potential to revolutionize the way we travel by providing real time and highly accurate information on road usage, traffic conditions and other valuable statistics that will allow for more efficient and safer road networks.
Tomorrow’s car is always connected, user friendly, comfortable and intelligent.
The continued rise of connected consumer devices, such as smart-phones and mobile Internet devices (MIDs), will increase consumer expectations for ‘Always On’ data availability throughout their work and home, and when driving. The automotive industry must therefore develop seamless data and service-to-car integration solutions that leverage unique human-machine interface, connectivity and application portal innovations to provide a rich, flexible and unique user experience.
Enhancing the overall interaction between driver and vehicle as well as the vehicle and its surroundings promise to advance even deeper in the future, and so the in-car Human-Machine Interface will continue to gain in importance. Continental continues to maintain a user-centered design process so that HMI not only keeps drivers informed but also allows them to immediately experience the respectively relevant vehicle technology.
Continental’s eHorizon control units allow for intelligent assistance functions, improved energy management and shifting strategies for minimized fuel consumption by recognizing curves or inclines ahead, and accordingly, shifting the automatic transmission into a higher gear for optimal driving performance.
“Pick-up trucks have been a resounding success for Thailand’s automotive industry. Thai people use pick-up trucks for both commercial and recreational purposes. This type of vehicle has come a long way, mostly in their development to reduce fuel consumption, but it is time for pick-up trucks to add more value to secure their position as a product champion through technologies that will lead to enhanced safety and environmental features and smart information,“ concluded Thomas Chambers, Managing Director, Continental Automotive (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
With sales of approximately ?20 billion in 2009 Continental is among the leading automotive suppliers worldwide. As a supplier of brake systems, systems and components for powertrains and chassis, instrumentation, infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics, tires and technical elastomers, Continental contributes enhanced driving safety and global climate protection. Continental is also a competent partner in networked automobile communication. Continental currently employs approximately 134,500 in 46 countries.
The Automotive Group with its three divisions Chassis & Safety (sales of approximately ?4.4 billion in 2009, 27,000 employees), Powertrain (sales of approximately ?3.4 billion in 2009, 24,000 employees) and Interior (sales of approximately ?4.4 billion in 2009, 27,000 employees) achieved sales of approximately ?12 billion in 2009. The Automotive Group is present in more than 130 locations worldwide. As a partner of the automotive and commercial vehicle industry, it develops and produces innovative products and systems for a modern automotive future, in which cars provide individual mobility and driving pleasure consistent with driving safety, environmental responsibility and cost-efficiency.
The Chassis & Safety Division develops and produces electronic and hydraulic brake and chassis control systems, sensors, driver assistance systems, airbag electronics and sensorics, washer systems and electronic air suspension systems. Its core competence is the integration of active and passive driving safety into ContiGuard?. The Powertrain Division integrates innovative and efficient system solutions for vehicle powertrains. The comprehensive range of products includes gasoline and diesel injection systems, engine management, transmission control, including sensors and actuators, as well as fuel-supply systems and components and systems for hybrid and electric drives. Information management is at the very heart of the Interior Division, which provides a range of products that includes instrument clusters and multifunctional displays, control units, electronic car-entry systems, tire-monitoring systems, radios, multimedia and navigation systems, climate control systems
, telematics solutions and cockpit modules and systems.
สอบถามข้อมูลเพิ่มเติม โทร. 026518989 PR&A