Continental invests in transformation and people
THE technology company and automotive supplier on Wednesday held a ground-breaking ceremony to mark the transformation of its Penang plant – Continental Automotive Components Malaysia Sdn Bhd. With an investment of approximately €7 million (RM31.5 million), the plant will transform into an advanced state-of-the-art smart factory. The warehouse space and facility will also be enhanced, and the Research & Development office will be extended to accommodate more engineers.
New technologies are changing the world and global competition in manufacturing is rapidly increasing. Driving towards Industry 4.0, Continental’s future smart factory will be more flexible, connected and robotised, for better yield, and faster insights-to-actions for higher quality and agility. Efficient material handling, supply and logistics that seamlessly integrate emerging paradigms and technologies.
Senior vice-president and head of 30 central electronic plants worldwide at Continental, Dr Hans-Jurgen Braun, said: “I am very excited about the transformation of our new manufacturing facility at Penang Plant. The new facility will further enhance quality and agility supporting the market requirements which not only strengthens the base for our business growth in Malaysia. It also demonstrates our strong confidence and commitment to our local customers and business partners. This is aligned with our vision and mission for Operational Excellence in our Global Manufacturing Network.”
Continental's Penang plant aims to transform towards industrial digitalisation for continued efficiency that will empower its business to meet and exceed the challenges of the modern market and to always provide their customers with greater value. “We are striving for continuous operational excellence, the future smart factory will have one continuous shop floor that ensures more efficient people access and process flow, with reduced production space to strengthen cost efficiency. The optimised production layout will enhance the manufacturing capacity and leave more space for the plant to receive more new businesses. The transformation will provide for long-term viability, with more innovations and digital solutions for tomorrow”, said Continental Automotive Malaysia managing director, Luciano Oliveira. He added, “With the expansion, more jobs will be created. The R&D office will see to an increase of another 150 engineers by 2020.”
The company, which “highly believes that its people and communities are the drivers for success”, is also starting a new training programme – the “C.Drive Programme” which is an investment in human resources and technology. It is expected to bridge the gap between academia and automotive industry expectations for fresh graduates and is a good opportunity for the local engineers to be developed and gain knowledge.
“The future is in software development and with the C.Drive Programme, we aim to build highly competent engineers in the automotive domain,” said the company’s director and head of research and development, Bogdan Simonia. The programme will also create a sustainable hiring avenue that always offers a pool of engineers in the making,” he added.
The C.Drive Programme is designed to engage fresh engineers and equip them with all necessary skills for Automotive Software Development. It includes interactive class room sessions, a self-study period as well as time bound team assignments. During these activities, they will have the opportunity to work with experts in the actual working environment and experience real projects, which will further develop their expertise.
The programme offers both technical and soft skills, thus emphasising not only on engineering topics but also on personal interaction skills that are crucial for having successful careers. The six-month programme will be available on a yearly basis.