Press Release

Ground-breaking ceremony for new plant at Togliatti
Anvis Group enters the fast growing Eastern European market

September 17, 2008, Bad Soden-Salmünster – The Anvis Group, a subsidiary of ARQUES Industries AG, is following its expansion strategy with the ground-breaking ceremony for a new plant in Russia. Today, local politicians, customers, journalists, and Ulli Seibel, Vice President Operations of ARQUES Industries AG, attended the ground-breaking ceremony at Togliatti, 1,000 kilometers southeast of Moscow.

On the new ground with a surface of 53,000 square meters in total Anvis is going to produce anti vibration systems for the Russian vehicle market. The building area will be nearly 3,600 square meters with the option to expand up to 10,000 square meters. The invest will be around Euro 5 million and 80 jobs will be created, first of all to meet the customer demands and secondly to enlarge the business activities in the Russian market. The sales volume of the new plant is expected to grow continuously and will probably amount to Euro 25 million in 2012.

The construction of the new building, the set-up and initial operation of the technical equipment is scheduled for summer 2009. Anvis has already been awarded first contracts by Russian automotive manufacturers and the series production will probably start in August 2009. Strut mounts, bushings and engine mount systems will be produced at the Togliatti plant.

Apart from operations at Togliatti, the Anvis Group will establish a development center at the same time. Today a local team of Russian engineers is already cooperating with customers on site. Testing and laboratory equipment according to international standards will be available in the new plant.

With its population of approximately 140 million people Russia offers a potential demand. By implementing sophisticated exhaust standards, the renewal of the vehicle population will be accelerated additionally. Comfort requirements are growing and consequently providing excellent perspectives for anti vibration systems, not only for Russian manufacturers but also for Western European automotive manufacturers who are producing in Russia.

Olaf Hahn, CEO of the Anvis Group, emphasized the importance of the presence in the Russian market: „ We have taken the right decision. The entrance into the Russian market is a milestone for our long-term growth strategy. We will invest in emerging markets and benefit from those markets.”

The Anvis Group is a primary developer and manufacturer of innovative solutions for driving dynamics, comfort and road safety. The company’s services cover the entire anti-vibration system process chain from the concept to the production line stage. The Anvis Group product range includes chassis components, aggregate storage, exhaust system hangers as well as decoupling elements and mass dampers.
The Anvis Group with approximately 2,500 employees worldwide is represented in Europe, America, Asia and South Africa at 13 sites. Apart from the automobile industry (e.g. Volkswagen, Renault, Peugeot/Citroën, Daimler and Ford), the company’s customers include the railway industry and other industrial sectors where oscillation and noise reduction systems are used (e.g. billiard tables).
The Anvis Group, formerly named Woco Michelin AVS, was founded in 2000 as a joint venture of the Woco Group and Michelin. The joint venture has been taken over in 2007 by ARQUES Industries AG, based in Starnberg.

For further information about the Anvis Group and Arques Industries AG please visit http://www.anvisgroup.com and http://www.arques.de.