Author: PLa

Sept. 12^th, 2024, Krosno, Poland

• 80 Years of History
• New challenges for the plant going forward
• Supplying suspension products to major OEMs globally

On September 12th, current and former employees, BWI Group management and invited guests took part in the celebration of the 80th anniversary of the shock absorber factory in Krosno. The plant is today not only one of the largest production facility in the BWI Group, but is also, with impressive statistics and decades of experience, a proven and reliable partner supplying globally the automotive industry with innovative suspension solutions.

„Our strength comes from values we stay aligned with. Innovation, quality and customer care are the pillars on which we have built our reputation”. says Dariusz Kucza, Plant Director.

80 Years of History
The beginning of the plant is back to 1944. After years of wartime turmoil, workers returned to the destroyed rubber factory to restore production and revive the spirit of the industry, so much needed in Poland at that time. Initially, the activity was focused on the repair of agricultural equipment. By the end of the 1950s, the Polish government decided to narrow down the production to the manufacturing of spring elements for motorcycles and telescopic shock absorbers. In 1958, the first shock absorber was produced in the Krosno factory, and in 1969 the site was officially named POLMO. In 1997, the American Company Delphi Automotive Systems took over the facility. Under this new name, Krosno plant acquired new customers and modernized its production processes. The development and strengthening of the plant continued with a redoubled intensity when BWI Group became the new owner of the site in 2009.

New challenges
80 years of existence makes the Krosno factory not only the witness of the history, but also shows the transformation that Poland went thru the last eight decades. During the post-war time, there was a giant demand for reviving the industry, while facing a lack of resource and tools required for an efficient operation. Then came the time of privatization of the industry by the end of the 20th century, when foreign capital and modern technologies entered Polish industry. Today in the hands of BWI Group, the manufacturing facility entered into a new chapter with operation based on Manufacturing 4.0 solutions, the highest quality standards and the newly adopted Sustainability policy. In this regard, the plant began its transformation last year towards 50 percent reduction electricity carbon emissions, as well as a 15 percent reduction in production waste by the end of 2024.

Today’s Products and Customers
The factory is currently supplying to major OEMs automotive suspension components, including various shock absorbers and struts, controlled dampers such as MagneRide® dampers, Semi-Active Roll Control systems, Magneto-Rheological engine mounts, but also Electronic Control Units and sensors, which enhances the BWI Group’s ability to develop electronic and electrical architectures. Krosno is delivering to 46 customers in 97 locations worldwide. Among these customers are BMW, Stellantis, Ford, GM, Audi, Volvo, VW, Ferrari and Lamborghini.

The plant in Krosno is one of the largest employers in the Sub-Carpathian region, and its long history makes it also one of the most recognizable and significant industry company of the Polish economy. With more than 300 million units produced since its debut, the plant has not only gone thru the history of industrial development in Poland, but also contributed to it.

“None of our successes would have been possible without the people who made and make this plant. Let me express my great gratitude to all – employees, both those who have been with us for years and those who have joined us recently. It is their hard work, commitment and loyalty that are the foundation of our success.” adds Plant Director expressing his gratitude towards the Staff.

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About BWI Group
BWI Group’s is one of the market leader with high quality brake and suspension products and have been recognized by more than 50 global automakers. Thanks to the progress on technological breakthroughs, business development, and production, The company’s total order value rocketed by nearly 300% year-on-year in 2023. The company’s solid development has benefited from the integration of its global resources from three continents, Asia, Europe and North America, to empower global smart mobility. With a heritage reaching back over 100 years, BWI Group is now operating a total of 9 production bases, 7 research and development centers, and 1 software center worldwide.

• Wire controlled products, including brake-by-wire and active suspension, will contribute 95% to BWI Group’s global sales by 2035
• The EMB A prototype will be completed in 2024, mass production will begin in 2026
• Entered partnership with two Chinese OEMs for EMB application
• BWI eyes a large share of the billion-dollar global EMB market

BWI Group announced on July 10th its “All-by-Wire 2035” global strategy: provide global customers with more smart mobility solutions, leveraging its expertise in brake-by-wire, active suspension, and intelligent systems and architectures. The group expected 95% of the chassis products delivered in 2035 will be fully controlled by wire.

As one of the latest milestones, BWI Group secured two OEM partnership on Electro-Mechanical Braking (EMB) system, and planned to be massively produced EMB for the customers in 2026.

George Chang, CEO of BWI Group, said, “BWI Group is dedicated to advancing the electrification and intelligent connectivity of the automotive industry globally, through continuous investment and promotion in the two core areas of highly automated driving and extremely comfortable smart cockpits.“

He outlined that BWI Group’s brake-by-wire products, providing robust safety redundancy, will support L4 and higher levels of automated driving technology; full active suspension products will help build multi-functional and highly comfortable smart cockpits for multi-scenario. Meanwhile, automotive systems and architectures will fulfill the demands of the intelligent transportation era by building integrated hardware-software systems and centralized electronic-electric architectures.

Particularly in the field of brake-by-wire, EMB is a key product for BWI Group and represents a key innovation. BWI Group will complete prototype A development in 2024, establish an automated production line in 2025, and begin mass production for customers in 2026.

Throughout the continuous upgrading of brake-by-wire technology, BWI Group’s ultimate EMB technology has accumulated over 20 years of experience. Thanks to predecessor’s concept validation in 2000, the group’s technology has now evolved into its third generation. To meet market demands, BWI Group entered partnership with ThyssenKrupp Steering, joining forces to leverage each other’s strengths and accelerate the research, development, and production of EMB.

Jiang Yongwei, BWI Group China President, said, “Our Chinese EMB R&D team is improving the performance and durability of the EMB technology to ensure a higher level, and will achieve breakthroughs in the next generation hardware and software this winter.”

BWI Group’s R&D centers located in the United States, Poland, Italy, and China, are in collaboration with the Shanghai Software Center, and jointly advance EMB research and development. BWI EMB underwent winter cold-weather testing in two consecutive winters in 2023 and 2024.

Leading automakers in North America, Europe and Asia have witnessed the testing and gave very positive comments and feedback about the cutting-edge technology and reliability.

BWI Group will carry comprehensive performance tests, including durability tests, adaptability tests in varied adhesion conditions, and stability tests in diverse environmental conditions, to ensure EMB’s outstanding performance in various scenarios. Subsequently, the product will strictly follow BWI Group’s rigorous process for design validation and production validation, to ensure every stage from concept to production meet the world-class quality standards.

Doug Carson, CTO of BWI Group said: “A large amount of investment was made in our EMB research and development, testing, and production to better realize the eco-friendly, zero-drag, and full-redundancy characteristics. Our dual-motor design boasts the solid R&D which started very early and stands out with its capability to significantly accelerate braking response.”

BWI Group’s EMB not only features sleek design, agile response, hardware redundancy, scalable solutions, but also utilizes a fully redundant hardware solution in all-dry format for four wheels. The BWI EMB system will soon support L4 highly automated driving and above.

Powerful, safe, and stable – BWI’s EMB system integrates functions such as ABS, ESC, TCS, ACC, and advanced diagnostic capabilities to ensure safety and reliability. The dual-motor EMB system can significantly accelerate its response speed, while the four-wheel independent control maximizes braking stability.

Truly wire-controlled with a simple structure – BWI’s EMB system adopts a minimal architecture, eliminating servo mechanisms or ESC modules, to be truly wire-controlled. The system removed brake pipes, unified the left and right steering structures, reduced space requirements and enhanced the possibilities for lightweight and minimum designs.

Plug-and-play with optimized costs – BWI’s EMB system utilizes a simplified plug-in-assembly without the need to process brake fluid. It makes a vehicle much easier to assemble in a much shorter time. The system uses fewer components to bring a more cost-effective solution for L3 to L5 highly automated driving vehicles.

Environmentally friendly – BWI’s EMB system achieved zero drag by releasing the calipers instantly after braking, which effectively reduces energy consumption and emissions of carbon dioxide and particulates. The electrical signal transmission replacing brake fluid further minimizes the potential impact on the environment.

Promising EMB market prospect

Doug Carson said: “BWI’s unique EMB system has two motors, ball ramp technology, integrated electric park brake, wear adjustment features, and even scalable family approach, offers a very powerful solution to our customers.”

Customers in the U.S. and the Europe showed very strong interests in BWI’s EMB system, and eager to discuss about the cooperation. A car maker who had postponed the EMB application, but restarted the project to discuss with BWI Group. The group also received lots of positive feed backs, such as BWI’s incredibly packaged EMB is the only one fitting into its mechanical structure without any change, according to Doug Carson.

Rapidly developing Chinese automakers are actively embracing BWI Group’s world leading EMB technology. Kaiyi Auto and BWI Group announced the strategic partnership to jointly develop EMB products and technological applications. New-type smart electric vehicle maker, U Power Tech, will integrate BWI Group’s EMB system in super chassis products to expand technological capabilities and fit a wider range of vehicle.

BWI’s powerful and comprehensive EMB solution brings limitless possibilities to automobile production and manufacturing. The coming 5 years will be a critical period for EMB technology development, according to the analysis by Xiong Shusheng, Professor at Zhejiang University Vehicle Research Institute, Visiting Professor at Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Xiong Shusheng predicted EMB market penetration rate may reach 5% in 5 years. In the next decade, it will experience explosive growth, contributing an estimated billion-dollar worth 20% share to the global brake-by-wire market valuing tens of billions dollar.

He points out that BWI Group has taken the lead in the fully dry EMB technology sector, combining the technological advantages of joint research and development between the Europe and the US with the cost advantages of China manufacturing, positioning it to capture a larger share of the EMB market in the future.

Facing the promising market prospects, BWI Group is full of confidence and anticipation for EMB’s future development, and looks forward to working with all parties and embracing the great future. BWI Group advocates for suppliers to work together and jointly promote the development and innovation of EMB technology, aiming to create an open and prosperous EMB technology ecosystem.