Sep 29 2006
Alcoa announced today that it has signed an agreement with SMW Automotive Hong Kong to form an alliance to produce cast aluminum chassis and suspension components and modules for the automotive industry in China, South Korea, Japan and the Asia Pacific region.
Under the agreement, Alcoa plans to license its Vacuum Riserless and Pressure Riserless Casting (VRC/PRC) technology and sell related production assets.
SMW Hong Kong’s new wholly owned subsidiary, Alutech Automotive Parts, Ltd. of China, will establish an aluminum casting plant in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China to supply OEMs in Asia with cast structural parts using Alcoa's proprietary technology. The plant is slated to be operational in 2008. In addition, the agreement provides the framework for both companies to identify, develop and launch programs.
“This marks our official establishment of a commercial footprint in China and complements and adds to Alcoa’s current VRC/PRC aluminum casting capabilities in the U.S. and Europe,” said Misha Riveros Jacobson, President, Alcoa Auto and Truck Structures.