LIVONIA, Mich. -- TRW Automotive has announced plans to expand its electrically powered steering systems manufacturing in Poland, in support of growing demand from a range of vehicle manufacturers. Approximately 9,000 square meters of additional manufacturing space will be established in Bielsko Biala close to the company’s existing site in Czechowice-Dziedzice. Production will start in the first quarter of 2012.

Initially, 250 new jobs will be created, the company said. TRW is Poland's largest tier one automotive supplier employer, with four other plants in Czestochowa, Gliwice and Pruszkow and more than 6,000 employees.

Michael Degen, vice president operations for TRW's European Steering Operations, said the company has experienced growing demand for its column and belt drive electrically powered steering (EPS) systems.

“We are expanding production to meet current and future demands for this product. By 2015, we estimate that up to 80 percent of new vehicles will be equipped with pure electric steering,” Degen said. "EPS technology is meeting vehicle manufacturers' and consumers' desire for fuel efficiency and reduced emissions. TRW's electric steering can deliver fuel economy improvements of up to 4 percent compared to standard hydraulic powered steering systems."

TRW says it has been continuously improving and expanding the application of electrically powered steering – by making it more affordable for emerging markets with a lower-cost column drive variant and working on future generations of belt drives for larger vehicles.

"We have an excellent workforce in Czechowice and this expansion represents our confidence in operations there," Degen said. "We have proven that we are able to cost-effectively produce world class products here."