Press Release
Continental Banks on the Megatrends Safety,
Sustainability and Information for Commercial Vehicles
As Well
 Under the motto "Continental is more", the corporation is showcasing significantly
expanded product range of five of its six divisions at the 62nd IAA Commercial Vehicles
 Supplier makes sales exceeding €2.5 billion with the commercial vehicle industry in
2007
Hanover, September 23, 2008. At the 62nd International Motor Show Commercial Vehicles in
Hanover, Continental AG is showcasing its product range for the commercial vehicle industry, which has been expanded significantly by the acquisition of Siemens VDO. Five of six of
the corporation's divisions will be presenting state-of-the art technologies for driver assistance systems, sensors, information technology and tires. "Just like our customers, we are
banking on the megatrends of the industry, thus making a major contribution to greater efficiency, enhanced comfort and safety, as well as improved eco-friendliness in the commercial
vehicles of the future," said Continental Executive Board member Dr. Hans-Joachim Nikolin
on Tuesday in Hanover.
Continental AG's commercial vehicle business totals more than €2.5 billion. The international
automotive supplier and technology corporation has some 18,000 employees at work worldwide on products and systems for the commercial vehicle industry. To meet the specific
needs of this business field, the company has created a Commercial Vehicles & Aftermarket
(CV & AM) business unit. "We want to expand our position in this business sector as well,
and we see positive development trends in Eastern Europe and potential for growth in particular in Asia and South America," said Dr. Nikolin. At the same time, he pointed out that the
markets had slowed down considerably this year, especially in Europe and North America.
"That clearly has an impact on the Commercial Vehicle Tires division, since it affects original
equipment as well as the replacement business. That's why we have already reacted by adjusting our production of commercial vehicle tires."
…/2
-2As a supplier, Continental is optimally positioned in the commercial vehicle industry. Dr.
Nikolin cited the air spring systems for commercial vehicles and buses as an example. "In
this field we are the European market leader, and number two worldwide. Furthermore, we
are also the market leader for satellite-assisted toll onboard units and have supplied nearly
60% of the OBUs for the German Toll Collect consortium. More than a third of all truckers
and bus drivers look at an instrument cluster from Continental. We supply vehicle control
systems to numerous carmakers and are the market leader in this sector as well. Since we
invented the "Autorex Uhr" in 1923 in Villingen-Schwenningen, we have sold more than 15
million tachographs."
In addition to the slump in the economy, the high raw material prices as well as the more
stringent emission regulations in particular present new challenges for the industry. "As for
other vehicles, Continental has a wide selection of products for commercial vehicles as well,
ranging from rolling resistance-optimized tires and innovative injection systems to engine
electronics and driver assistance systems. These products reduce fuel consumption, thus
cutting costs and going easy on the environment," said Dr. Nikolin.
With sales exceeding €1.4 billion in 2007, the Commercial Vehicle Tires division holds the
biggest share of Continental's commercial vehicle business. The main goals in this sector
include lower rolling resistance, reductions in CO2 emissions and enhanced traffic safety.
Since 2002 Continental has lowered the rolling resistance of truck tire lines by 8%. This
means that, once a commercial vehicle has covered a distance of approximately 150,000
kilometers, it will have reduced CO2 emissions by an average of 4 tons or 3%, saving 1,600
liters of diesel. At the IAA Commercial Vehicles, two trailer tire models will be presented that
save fuel while offering better mileage performance.
At IAA Commercial Vehicles 2008, the Commercial Vehicle Tires and Interior divisions are
also presenting newly developed tire pressure monitoring systems designed specifically with
commercial vehicles in mind. The Intelligent Tire System, with sensors integrated into the
tire, continuously oversees the respective pressure and temperature of the tire and is thus
able to catch a gradual loss of inflation pressure before it’s too late. The system reduces tire
wear and fuel consumption while widening a vehicle’s margin of safety.
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-3The Interior division is showing innovations for the sophisticated information management
in commercial vehicles while providing solutions for intelligent mobility. The division contributes approximately €900 million to the corporation's consolidated sales. The CV/AM business
unit, which offers a wide product range for commercial vehicles and special vehicles, is also
a part of the division. Its products include tachographs, control systems for drive and onboard
electronics, components for the man-machine interface such as instrumentation, panels and
cockpits, as well as onboard toll units or telematics units for public transit. One of the Interior
division's highlights at the IAA Commercial Vehicles is the digital tachograph: The next generation of the VDO DTCO digital tachograph features, among other things, an option for remote transmission of data that makes the downloading and archiving of tachograph data
more efficient for the driver and fleet manager.
The Chassis & Safety division enhances traffic safety for trucks with its driver assistance
systems. The division is launching an innovative assistance system that monitors the blind
spot on the right-hand side of the vehicle and warns of imminent collisions. This system increases traffic safety for heavy trucks and has been in production starting this year. Continental is thus prepared for the legal regulations which have already been announced for
2013. The land departure warning system and a latest-generation radar sensor with emergency brake assistance round off the product range. These systems will contribute significantly to greatly reducing the number of dangerous rear-end collisions involving trucks in the
future.
The Powertrain division is launching new systems and components for more efficient powertrains and reduced fuel consumption that satisfy the more stringent exhaust emissions
standards EPA 10 (USA), Japan 09 or Euro VI. At the IAA Commercial Vehicles, the division
is showcasing engine control units as well as injection and exhaust gas purification systems.
Continental’s piezo common rail diesel injection improves fuel efficiency by up to 15% in the
case of small van engines with displacement of 6.7-liters or less. Sensor systems make it
possible to keep an exact record of all engine states. In this way combustion processes can
be optimized and nitrogen oxide and fine particle emissions further reduced. Last but not
least, by offering hybrid modules that can be scaled up from cars to commercial vehicles,
Continental is focusing in on the kind of enhanced power electronics and batteries that will
enable commercial vehicles to operate with zero emissions in cities and urban areas in the
future.
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-4The ContiTech division gears its product portfolio towards enhanced comfort, more environmental protection and greater efficiency. At the 62nd IAA Commercial Vehicles, ContiTech
is showing materials for furnishing the driver's cabin, air spring systems for more driving
comfort, as well as drive belts and hoses that enable cleaner engines. The new translucent
concertina walls from ContiTech Elastomer Coatings are based upon a new high-tech rubber
technology that provides more light and visibility in the bus's interior for greater comfort. In
Paris, 200 city buses have already been equipped with the new technology. Instead of the
standard injection molded interior usually found in this sector, the Benecke-Kaliko business
unit uses foil materials, supplying key commercial vehicle manufacturers in Europe. In
Europe, the SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) technology is becoming increasingly popular in commercial vehicles and buses. The process helps in reducing nitrogen oxide emissions for diesel engines and contributes towards more sustainable mobility. ContiTech Fluid
Technology developed heatable hose line modules for the SCR technology. At the IAA, ContiTech Air Spring Systems, together with the axle manufacturer BPW, will also be showing an
electronic air suspension system that enables more precise vehicle level adjustment.
The Continental Corporation is one of the top automotive suppliers worldwide. As a supplier of
brake systems, systems and components for the powertrain and chassis, instrumentation, infotainment solutions, vehicle electronics, tires and technical elastomers, the corporation contributes
towards enhanced driving safety and protection of the global climate. Continental is also a competent partner in networked automobile communication. Today, the corporation employs approximately 150,000 people at nearly 200 locations in 36 countries.
Dr. Heimo Prokop
Senior Vice President
Corporate Communications
Continental AG
Vahrenwalder Strasse 9
30165 Hanover, Germany
Ph.: 0511 938-1485
Fax: 0511 938-1055
E-mail: prkonzern@conti.de
Hannes Boekhoff
Vice President
Media Relations
Continental AG
Vahrenwalder Strasse 9
30165 Hanover, Germany
Ph.: 0511 938-1278
Fax: 0511 938-1055
E-mail: prkonzern@conti.de
Online media databases: www.mediacenter.continental-corporation.com