Gentex Corporation Business Report up until FY ended Dec. 2012
Business Highlights
Financial Overview |
(in million USD) |
| FY ended Dec. 31, 2012 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2011 | Rate of change (%) |
Factors | |
| Sales | 1,099.6 | 1,023.8 | 7.4 |
1) |
| Operating income | 234.5 | 231.4 | 1.3 | - |
Factors
1)
-Company net sales in 2012 increased by 7.4% (75.8 million dollars) compared to the prior year. Auto-dimming mirror shipments increased by 11%, primarily reflecting increased light vehicle production in North America as well as increased penetration of auto-dimming mirrors.
-North American auto-dimming mirror unit shipments in 2012 increased by 22% compared to 2011, primarily as a result of increased auto-dimming mirror unit shipments to certain Japanese transplant automakres and to the traditional Big Three automakers.
-Overseas mirror unit shipments increased by 5% during 2012 compared to 2011, primarily due to increased auto-dimming mirror unit shipments to certain European and Japanese automakers.
Contracts
| Maker / Brand | Model | Products |
| Ford/Lincoln | "MKS" | Auto-dimming mirrors with automatic High-Beam Assist |
| Ford/Lincoln | "MKT" | Auto-dimming mirrors with automatic High-Beam Assist |
| Mazda | "CX-5" | Rearview-mirror-integrated display |
| Ford | "Explorer" 2013 | Auto-dimming mirrors with automatic High-Beam Assist |
| Ford | "Taurus" 2013 | Auto-dimming mirrors with automatic High-Beam Assist |
| BMW | "3 Series" 2012 | Auto-dimming mirrors with automatic High-Beam Assist |
| Land Rover | "Range Rover Evoque" | Auto-dimming mirrors with automatic High-Beam Assist |
| Opel/Vauxhall | "Astra GTC" 2012 (Europe) | Auto-dimming mirrors with automatic High-Beam Assist |
| Opel/Vauxhall | "Zafira Tourer" 2012 (Europe) | Auto-dimming mirrors with automatic High-Beam Assist |
| Opel/Vauxhall | "Ampera" 2012 | Auto-dimming mirrors |
| Audi | "A7" 2011 (Europe) | Auto-dimming mirrors with automatic High-Beam Assist |
| Audi | "A7" | Auto-dimming mirrors |
| Audi | "A7" | Exterior mirrors |
| Nissan | "NV" 2011 (North America) | Rear Camera Display (RCD) Mirror |
| Nissan | "Leaf" 2011 (SV trim levels) | Auto-dimming mirrors |
| Nissan | "Leaf" 2011 (SL trim levels) | Auto-dimming mirror with HomeLink |
| Nissan | "X-Trail" 2011 (Europe) | Rear Camera Display (RCD) Mirror |
| Dodge | "Durango" 2011 (North America) | Auto-dimming mirrors with microphones |
| Dodge | "Charger" 2011 (North America) | Auto-dimming mirrors with microphones and automatic High-Beam Assist |
| Lexus | "CT200h Hybrid" (North America and Europe) | Rear Camera Display (RCD) Mirror |
Awards
-In 2012, the Company announced that it has received the Volkswagen Group Award. (From a press release on August 8, 2012)-In 2011, the Company announced that it has received a supplier award from Chrysler Group. In addition to interior and exterior auto-dimming mirrors, Chrysler vehicles offer advanced features including Gentex's SmartBeam High Beam Assist and Rear Camera Display Mirrors. (From a press release on July 15, 2011)
R&D
R&D Expenditure |
(%) |
| FY ended Dec. 31, 2012 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2011 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2010 | |
| Total | 85.0 | 81.6 | 64.1 |
| % of sales | 7.7 | 8.0 | 7.8 |
Patents
-As of 2012, the Company owned 21 U.S. trademarks and 404 U.S. patents, of which 371 related to electrochromic technology, automotive rearview mirrors, microphones, displays, cameras and/or sensor technology.
-As of 2012, the Company also owned 61 foreign trademarks and 316 foreign patents, 302 of which related to electrochromic technology, automotive rearview mirrors, microphones, displays cameras and/or sensor technology.
-As of 2012, the Company also had in process 123 U.S. patent applications, 129 foreign patent applications and 11 trademark applications.
R&D Structure
-In 2010, Gentex Japan, Inc. announced that it will open in the Kitakyushu Science and Research Park on April 1 "Kyushu Office," a new center for research and development and quality control of the auto-dimming mirror systems installed on automobiles. Gentex Japan develops and manufactures automotive active safety devices leveraging its expertise on electronics technologies like on-board cameras and sensors. It aims to conduct strategic development activities of products and human resources in collaboration with automobile manufacturers and their affiliates clustering in the northern Kyushu area. (From an article in the Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun on April. 1, 2010)-In May 2007, the Company opened two new offices in Europe to support the sales and engineering needs of its Europe-based automotive customers. In Germany, the Company added its third German office in Stuttgart. The first one opened in 1994 in Erlenback, followed by Munich in 2003. The new office will house sales and engineering personnel serving multiple customers, particularly Mercedes, where the Company supplies auto-dimming mirrors with multiple electronic features. The Company also opened an office in Gothenburg, Sweden. This new location places sales and engineering resources close to Volvo and expands the presence that the Company has had in Sweden since 2005.
Technical Alliance
-The Company has technical alliance with Johnson Controls Inc. in order to jointly develop mirrors with value-added features and displays.Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
-In 2011, the Company provided an update on the capabilities of the Company's Rear Camera Display (RCD) Mirrors, which exceed certain requirements of the December 7, 2010, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The NPRM requires that global automakers install backup cameras and related video displays in all new vehicles in the U.S. by September 2014. The NPRM also provides certain requirements for those backup cameras and displays, including that the display must turn "on" in two seconds or less from the time that the vehicle is put in the reverse gear, and that the luminance/brightness of the display must be at least 500 cd/m2. The Company's RCD Mirrors respond in two seconds or less, and typically have a daytime luminance in the range of 1,200 to 1,500 cd/m2. The Company's RCD Mirrors are currently offered on 62 vehicle models at nine different automakers. The Company shipped 1.25 million RCD Mirrors in calendar 2010. (From a press release on June 1, 2011)Product Development
Automatic-dimming rearview mirror with telematic system-In 2011, the Company teamed with Hyundai Motor to develop a new automatic-dimming rearview mirror that acts as the interface for Hyundai's new Blue Link telematic system. The mirror's bezel houses three buttons that, when pressed, allow the driver to use voice commands to operate a wide range of navigation, vehicle assistance, entertainment and emergency services -- hands free. The Blue Link auto-dimming mirror is standard equipment on the "Sonata Limited". The mirror is also available with a compass display and Johnson Controls Inc.'s HomeLink Wireless Control System. (From a press release on August 18, 2011)
Rearview Camera System
-Rearview Camera System provides the driver with a clear, wide-angle, bumper-to-bumper view of the area behind the vehicle. It gives truckers who tow the visibility they need to back up to their trailer and line up precisely to hook up the hitch. The system is mounted in the tailgate handle bezel and activated when the vehicle is shifted into reverse. The video image of what's behind the vehicle is displayed in the left corner of the self-dimming rearview mirror, a natural place for the driver to look while in reverse. The screen includes handy colored guide lines as well as an industry-first centerline so the driver has a better perspective of the vehicle's periphery and center point when parking. Guides display the intended path, changing with the vehicle's steering movements. A portion of the bumper and/or hitch also is included in the image, giving the driver a clear viewpoint of the vehicle's back boundary. The screen only appears in the rearview mirror when the vehicle is shifted in reverse.
Lighting module with "Orca" LED technology
-The technology provides white, high-intensity map lamps, and blue-green and amber console lighting from the same LED module. The tiny chips, or dies - each no larger than a grain of pepper - are so close together that, when illuminated, their colors blend to emit white light. In addition, the blue-green and amber chips can also be illuminated independently. Since the lighting module is below the driver's line-of-sight, it won't cause glare or hamper driver vision. The auto-dimming mirror's light sensors can automatically activate the lighting module during nighttime driving, or it can be manually activated.
LED Turn Signals
-Driver- and passenger-side exterior auto-dimming mirrors are integrated with auxiliary turn signals are also part of the system. The turn signals' arrow-shaped array of LEDs are aimed at the vehicle's blind spots and serve to warn other drivers of impending turns and lane changes.
Investment Activities
Capital Expenditure |
(in million USD) |
| FY ended Dec. 31, 2012 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2011 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2010 | |
| Overall | 117.5 | 120.2 | 46.9 |
| Automotive Products | 113.6 | 115.4 | 43.0 |
Outlook for Fiscal Year ending Dec. 31, 2013
-The Company currently anticipates that 2013 capital expenditures will be approximately 50-60 million dollars, a majority of which will be production equipment purchases..
Fiscal Year ended Dec. 31, 2012
-120,000 square-foot expansion project connecting two of its manufacturing facilities in Zeeland, Michigan, which is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2013 with a total estimated cost of approximately 23 million dollars.
Fiscal Year ended Dec. 31, 2011
-60,000 square-foot chemistry lab expansion at the Company's Zeeland, Michigan campus, which is expected to be completed in early 2012 with a total estimated cost of approximately 9 million dollars.
-32,000 square-foot expansion project to the Company's exterior mirror manufacturing facility in Zeeland, Michigan, which is expected to be completed in early 2012 with a total estimated cost of approximately 4 million dollars.
-125,000 square-foot expansion to its electronic assembly manufacturing facility in Holland, Michigan, which is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2012 with a total estimated cost of approximately 17 million dollars.
-120,000 square-foot expansion project connecting two of its manufacturing facilities in Zeeland, Michigan, which is expected to be completed in the second half of 2012 with a total estimated cost of approximately 25 million dollars.
-After above expansion projects are completed, the Company estimates that it will have building capacity to manufacture approximately 21-23 million interior mirror units annually from approximately 16-18 million units annually year-on-year, as well as approximately 10 million exterior mirror units annually from 6 million units annually year-on-year.
Fiscal Year ended Dec. 31, 2007
-In January 2007, the Company announced plans to expand its automotive exterior mirror manufacturing facility in Zeeland, Michigan, with the construction of a 60,000 square-foot building addition. The Company completed the building addition to its automotive exterior mirror manufacturing facility in January 2008 at a cost of approximately 6 million USD.
-In 2007, new offices were added to support the Company's sales and engineering needs of its European customers; one in Stuttgart, Germany and the other one in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Fiscal Year ended Dec. 31, 2006
-In 2006, the Company established a sales and engineering office and light final assembly facility in Shanghai, China.