Nexteer Automotive Group Ltd. Business Report FY ended Dec. 2017

Financial Overview

(in million USD)
FY ended Dec. 31, 2017 FY ended Dec. 31, 2016 Rate of
change (%)
Factors
Net Sales 3,878.0 3,842.2 0.9 1)
Net Profit 355.9 301.9 17.9 2)


Factors
1) Net Sales
-The Company’s net sales for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017 was USD 3,878.0 million, an increase of 0.9% over the previous year. The North America segment held strong, despite a decline in industry volume as it was able to capitalise on the continued increase in North America full-size truck production with a favorable product mix. The Asia Pacific segment experienced a decrease, which was attributable to fluctuations in the exchange rates coupled with decreased customer demand schedules as the company's major customers produced at levels below the industry average. The Europe and South America experienced an increase, which was attributable to improved customer production volumes as well as foreign currency translation impact.


2) Net Profit
-In the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017, the Company’s net profit increased by 17.9% to USD 355.9 million. The increase in profit was primarily driven by increased market growth, improved product line mix and the effective of cost improvement initiatives.

Joint Ventures

-Dongfeng Motor Parts And Components Group Co., Ltd. and Nexteer Automotive China officially established their joint business, Dongfeng Nexteer Steering Systems (Wuhan) Co., Ltd., on October 23, 2017. The new company is going to supply steering technologies to Dongfeng group companies for their passenger cars and form strategic alliance agreements. At the same time, it provides driving assistant and autonomous driving technologies to the Dongfeng group companies. First of all, the company will supply single pinion assist electric power steerings (SPEPS). Then it starts supplying column-assist electric power steerings (CEPS), rack-assisted electric power steerings (REPS) and dual pinion assist electric power steerings (DPEPS). It also plans to supply programs for advanced steering technologies for sophisticated driving assistant and autonomous driving systems. Dongfeng and Nexteer plan to launch the first mass production of the EPSs by the end of 2019. According to their business plans, they aim to achieve 20% shares in the Dongfeng car markets and sales of Chinese yuan (CNY) 1.2 to 1.4 billion by 2023. (From a press release on October 31, 2017)

-On April 10, Nexteer Automotive announced that it has signed an agreement to form a joint venture with Dongfeng Motor Parts and Components Group Co., Ltd. (Dongfeng Components).
The joint venture, equally owned by both parties, will design and manufacture electric power steering (EPS) systems for Dongfeng Motor Group Company Limited (Dongfeng Group) and its affiliated companies.
Pending regulatory approval, the joint venture will become a strategic in-house producer of passenger vehicle EPS within the Dongfeng Group.
The joint venture facility will be located near to Dongfeng Group headquarters in Wuhan, China.
Nexteer’s business in the Asia-Pacific region currently accounts for 24% of the company’s total revenue, nearly doubling in the past three years.
In 2016, Nexteer launched 21 new major customer programs in the region and has since been expanding its manufacturing capabilities.
Nexteer currently provides EPS for several Dongfeng affiliated vehicles, including the Peugeot 2008 crossover.(From a press release on April 10, 2017)

-Nexteer Automotive and Continental announced that it has reached agreement to form a joint venture focused on the advancement of motion control systems and actuator components for automated driving. Both companies will hold an equal 50-50 percent ownership position in the joint venture. The joint venture will focus on research and development activities including rapid evaluation, design and prototyping. This joint venture will combine Nexteer’s advanced steering and driver assistance (ADAS) technologies with Continental’s portfolio of Automated Driving and advanced braking technologies to accelerate advancements in vehicle motion control systems. It is expected that this project will be operational in the first quarter of 2017. (From a press release on January 11, 2017)

Business Partnership

-The company has signed a long-term cooperation agreement with WABCO. WABCO and Nexteer will collaborate to develop and supply active steering systems for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles using Nexteer MagnaSteer actuation technology, a breakthrough product in advanced steering assistance. Recently WABCO has also signed an agreement to acquire Sheppard. WABCO and Nexteer will integrate MagnaSteer's proven technology with Sheppard's suite of power steering gears, which has set the industry standard for heavy-duty commercial vehicles. Nexteer's MagnaSteer is precision engineered for flexibility as a modular design that fully integrates within Sheppard's gear product line. It also scales efficiently for manufacturers of medium- and heavy-duty trucks and buses. (From a press release on August 29, 2017)

Contracts

-In 2017, the Company launched 32 major customer programs and introduced new or enhanced product applications in steering and driveline.

GM
DL (Driveline): Chevrole Equinox, GMC Terrain
REPS (Rack assist electric power steering), DL: Chevrolet Traverse, Buick Enclave
FCA
Column, DL: Jeep Wrangler Unlimited
Ford
Column, REPS: Ford Expedition, Lincoln Navigator


FCA
CEPS (Column assist electric power steering): Fiat Argo, Cronos
GM
SPEPS (Single pinion-assist electric power steering): Opel Crossland
PSA
SPEPS: Citroen C3 Aircross


Chongqing Bisu Automobile
CEPS: Huansu H5
BMW
SPEPS: 1-Series, 2-Series, X1
Changan
CEPS: Changan CS55, Easo PHEV (C207)
Dongfeng Liuzhou Motor (DFLM)
CEPS: Jingyi S50 EV, Jingyi SX3, Jingyi SX7
GM
DL: BUick Velite, Chevrolet Equinox
RNM
DL: Renault Lodgy
Tata Motors
DL: Ace Iris, Majic, Zip, Osprey
SGMW
CEPS: Confero S, Cortez, Wuling C-SUV

Awards

-The Company announced that it was named a GM Innovation Award winner during General Motors’s 26th annual Supplier of the Year awards ceremony held in Orlando, Florida. Nexteer Automotive was named one of four 2017 Innovation Award winners for high availability electric power steering system (EPS) – a steering innovation that enables advanced safety for varying levels of autonomous driving. (From a press release on April 30, 2018)


-Following is a sampling of the awards earned in 2017:

  • 2017 Supplier Quality Excellence Award from GM to Saginaw and Suzhou Plants
  • 2017 Excellent Supplier Award from DFLM to Nexteer Liuzhou
  • World Excellence Award from Ford Asia-Pacific to Nexteer Suzhou
  • 2017 Built in Quality Award from GM to Nexteer Mexico
  • Achievement for Quality Performance from Toyota to Nexteer Mexico

R&D Expenditure

(in million USD)
FY ended Dec. 31, 2017 FY ended Dec. 31, 2016 FY ended Dec. 31, 2015
Overall 249.3 232.8 205.9
Expenditure as % of revenue 6.4% 6.1% 6.1%

R&D Facilities

-As of December 2017, the Company has 1 Global Technical Center, 2 Tehnical Centers, and 14 Customer Service Centers worldwide.

-On November 16, 2017, The company held a groundbreaking ceremony for its Asia Pacific Technical Center at the Suzhou Industrial Park. The technical center in Suzhou will consolidate management, technology, investment, and operation expertise in the region in one place and takes over the roles of the company's headquarters in the Asia and Pacific region. The new facility will be built on a site of 30,000 square meters. The office building occupies 14,000 square meters and the research and development center, 12,000 square meters. The company is also building eight private roads, a 4,500-square-meter vehicle test center as well as a proving ground for driving tests on several road conditions. They are expected to allow the company to reinforce the capacity to make, research, develop and test its products in China. The construction is scheduled to end at the end of 2019. When completed, it’s expected to create new 1,000 jobs. (From a press release on November 17, 2017)

-The Company announced that the company expands its strategic software investment and global software team by announcing intention to open a Software Center in India. The Software Center will be the latest addition to the Company’s global software team that operates under one digital roof with locations in Saginaw, US; Tychy, Poland; and Suzhou, China. The role of software in vehicles - and especially in safety-critical steering - is evolving quickly. Nexteer’s software plays a safety-critical role - including cyber security - in its products such as Steer-by-Wire (SbW) and Electric Power Steering Systems (EPS) that are key gateway technologies for advanced safety functions and automated driving. (From a press release on April 9, 2018)

Product Development

Advanced steering technology
-The Company announced that it is exhibiting advanced steering technology at the 2018 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS), featuring systems that address both the semi- and fully-automated world. Its Steering on Demand System is activated with the press of a button or by grabbing the steering wheel to transition steering control between automated and manual driving in vehicles capable of SAE Level 3 and beyond automated driving. Nexteer's Quiet Wheel Steering enables the steering wheel to remain still during automated driving mode, even while the vehicle is in the process of turning. With Nexteer's Steer-by-Wire systems, electronics and actuators on the steering column and rack support both manual and automated driving. (From a press release on January 16, 2018)

-The Company announced the continued expansion of its automated driving portfolio with the introduction of two steering technologies that enable advanced safety and functions for SAE Levels 2 through 5 automated driving. Nexteer’s high availability Electric Power Steering (EPS) and advanced Steer-by-Wire (SbW) system are currently showcased at the IAA International Motor Show in Frankfurt, Germany. The company's high availability EPS is intelligently optimized through additional redundancies in torque and position sensors. Nexteer's SbW system opens new possibilities for advanced safety functions, such as collision avoidance and stability control. SbW supports Nexteer’s Steering on Demand System, enabling the transition between the driver and automated driving control through safe, intuitive steering transitions for vehicles capable of SAE Level 3, Level 4 and Level 5 automated driving. (From a press release on September 13, 2017)

-The company announced that it is strengthening its steering system offerings with market-leading cyber security technologies to protect against malicious intrusions and unverified steering commands. These cyber security technologies consist of specifically designed hardware modules on the semi-conductor level, as well as a multi-layered cryptographic software structure, that identifies and authorizes information and command flow between the steering system and other in-vehicle or external controllers. As vehicles adopt advanced electronics to enable automated driving, internet connectivity and V2X communication, they become more susceptible to remote hacking. (From a press release on April 19, 2017)

Patents

-As of December 31, 2017, the Company has 530 patents registered in the U.S. and 162 patents registered outside the country. Additionally, the Company has 566 patent applications pending.

Capital Expenditure

(in million USD)
FY ended Dec. 31, 2017 FY ended Dec. 31, 2016 FY ended Dec. 31, 2015
Overall 357.4 284.7 277.5

Investments outside U.S.


-The Company announced it broke ground on an Electric Power Steering (EPS) manufacturing plant in Liuzhou, China. Nexteer begins construction by the end of 2017 and expects the new plant to be completed by October 2018. Nexteer's plant will encompass 11,884 square meters and will house about 500 employees. With this new facility, Nexteer plans to expand the company’s manufacturing capabilities, as well as meet growing demands of perfect-quality EPS products in China and the Asia-Pacific markets. (From a press release on December 19, 2017)


-The Company announces a new production facility in Kenitra, Morocco. Initially, Nexteer will use the facility for manufacturing single pinion-assist electric power teering (SPEPS) systems and plans to extend manufacturing to driveline products in the future. The new 18,000 sq. meter facility will be the company’s first in Africa and is scheduled for a ground-breaking ceremony in late March 2018. Once the facility begins production in 2019, it will be counted as Nexteer’s 25th plant in its global manufacturing footprint. (From a press release on February 22, 2018)


-The Company said on July 26, 2017, that it opened a new manufacturing plant in Indonesia. The plant is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nexteer and the group’s 12th plant in the Asia and Pacific region. The Indonesian plant is located in the east of Bekasi, West Java, and has a floor space of nearly 3,000 square meters. It mainly manufactures brush column-assist electric power steering (CEPS) and began its operations in July. The plant will provide EPS products and services for the Indonesian subsidiary of SAIC-GM-Wuling Automobile (SGMW) Co., Ltd. (From a press release on July 26, 2017)