TrelleborgVibracoustic opens plant in Thailand

Rayong, Thailand – TrelleborgVibracoustic inaugurated a new plant in Rayong, Thailand to supply automotive engine and body parts for local customers such as Ford, GM, Nissan, and Volvo.

The facility is located in the Hemaraj Eastern Seaboard Industrial Estate close to Ford, GM, Suzuki and other OEMs, the vibration-control company said in a 4 Nov press release.

Starting with 30 employees, the plant expects to increase its workforce to around 200 by 2018 to produce chassis mounts, engine mounts, and dampers for local customers and export.

The site is the company's 39th in the world and aims to improve direct links to locally producing manufacturers, and therefore achieve further growth in that region.

“With our new production site in Rayong, TrelleborgVibracoustic is strengthening its global footprint in one of the world’s most important automobile growth markets” said Jim Law, member of the management board of TrelleborgVibracoustic.

Also speaking at the opening ceremony, Mattias Sckuhr, regional president for China and Asia/Pacific at TrelleborgVibracoustic said many OEMs welcomed TBVC’s presence in Thailand.

“By setting up operations in Thailand, we strive to expand our customer base with focus on Japanese OEMs,” he added.

Due to import tariffs, vehicle manufacturers in Thailand want to purchase more locally manufactured parts, said the announcement.

“With a local supplier network, our customers can reduce their storage capacity and cut costs in terms of logistics,” said Sckuhr.