With the commissioning of its third plant in Mexico on Aug. 30, Autoneum, a Swiss supplier in acoustic and thermal management for vehicles, has significantly expanded its local presence and in doing so responded to the rising demand for its lightweight noise and heat protection components in cars. From early 2017, carpet systems, inner dashes and floor insulators will be produced at the plant in San Luis Potosí (San Luis Potosí federal state), around 400 kilometers northwest of Mexico City. The inner dashes and floor insulators convince not only with their acoustic performance and low weight but also thanks to their high share of recycled materials with environmental friendliness. From the plant measuring 27,000 square meters, Autoneum will supply U.S.-American and German OEMs producing locally for the North American market.

It already became clear during the construction work in San Luis Potosí that the continued increase in demand for lightweight noise and heat protection components on the part of existing and new customers producing in the immediate vicinity of the Autoneum plant was necessitating an expansion of capacity. Simultaneously with the opening of the first plant in San Luis Potosí, the foundation stone was therefore also laid for the second Autoneum plant in San Luis Potosí. Underbody systems, carpets and heatshields for German, U.S.-American and Japanese OEMs will be produced on an additional 19,000 square meters from 2018. Autoneum will create 430 new jobs at the two plants in San Luis Potosí by 2020.

Martin Hirzel, CEO of Autoneum, underlined at the opening ceremony in San Luis Potosí: “This further need to expand our production capacities in Mexico reflects the continued growth in demand among vehicle manufacturers for multifunctional noise and heat protection components with which we support our global customers in Mexico in the development and production of quieter, lighter and more fuel-efficient vehicle models.”

In order to manage the expansion in Mexico as best as possible, Autoneum is additionally opening a sales and engineering office in Mexico City. The local bundling of order acquisition, the development of component adaptions and purchasing for production in Mexico will enable a profitable expansion of customer and supplier relationships to be secured in this growth market.

Autoneum is already represented in Mexico in addition to the plant in San Luis Potosí with a manufacturing location in Hermosillo (Sonora federal state) and via its subsidiary UGN with a plant in Silao (Guanajuato federal state). As well as the locational benefits that Mexico offers due to its NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) membership, the country’s automobile market also convinces on a global comparison thanks to its growth momentum: In 2015, 3.4 million light vehicles were produced, with an increase to around five million vehicles expected for 2020.