On Aug. 28, Bosch officially opened its first thermotechnology plant in Mexico in the city of Tepotzotlán, located approximately 50 kilometers north of Mexico City. Since June 2015, the international supplier of technology and services has been producing gas-fired instantaneous water heaters there for the Mexican and Latin American markets. It plans to employ some 100 associates at the site by 2016. Bosch expects to see rising demand on the Mexican market for energy-efficient hot water generation. “As a result of its increasing importance as a business location, Mexico is a key pillar in our growth strategy for the North American market,” said Werner Struth, Bosch board of management member, at the opening in Tepotzotlán. “Locating production here allows us to position ourselves closer to our customers and better tailor our products to the local market.”
In addition to production, the site will also house R&D and certification departments. The company is investing around €5 million ($5.56 million) into the 8,700-square-meter (93,646-square-feet) site.
Bosch reports it is on course for growth in Mexico. In 2014, the company increased its sales by nearly 6 percent. This trend has continued this year. “We once again saw good sales growth in Mexico during the first half of 2015. We expect to sustain this positive development through the end of the year,” Struth said.
In addition, over the past 10 years, Bosch has invested more than €400 million ($444.91 million) into expanding production and R&D in Mexico. During this period, the number of associates has more than doubled to more than 12,300. In 2014, Bosch opened its first center for software development and engineering services for the American market with a new development location in Guadalajara. The company also is investing further into automotive technology production in the cities of Toluca and Juárez, Mexico, creating up to 4,000 new jobs in the process. The company also plans to expand plants in San Luis Potosí and Mexico City, Mexico, in the years ahead.
This year, the Bosch regional company in Mexico is celebrating its 60th anniversary. During this time, a single sales office in Mexico City has grown to nine locations, eight of which are production sites including the newly opened thermotechnology plant. Bosch Mexico is an important part of the company’s localization strategy, which aims to supply automotive customers in North and South America directly from local plants. In addition to automotive technology, Bosch also manufactures power tools, thermotechnology and security systems in Mexico, and focuses on local product development. For instance, roughly 300 engineers in Mexico are currently working on new automotive technology solutions specifically for the North American market.
