Certain industrial hoses manufactured by the Contitech division do not comply with test standards.
(Photo: dpa)
Dusseldorf Continental’s problems with hose products are bigger than expected. After an internal investigation, the supplier found that in addition to car hoses for air conditioning systems, special hoses for industrial purposes were also being manipulated.
The hoses, which are used in mechanical engineering, the chemical trade and the beverage industry, do not comply with certain DIN and ISO standards for test processes, the company announced on Monday. Around 2000 different hose types were not consistently tested with the specified frequency.
“In our Contitech division, we were unable to meet the requirements in the production of hoses and lines. That does not correspond to our company-wide self-image,” says CEO Nikolai Setzer.
The corresponding hoses were manufactured at the Contitech site in Korbach. The hose production there contributes a mid double-digit million amount to group sales, the company reports. It is still unclear since when the affected hoses have not complied with the standards.
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As a precautionary measure, Continental says it has suspended the sale and delivery of the affected hoses from Korbach until full compliance with the testing processes is ensured.
Continental boss Setzer said that it is now a matter of regaining customer confidence. “We will take all necessary steps for this.”
Problems with air conditioning hoses
The Dax group has already drawn consequences after manipulating car hoses for air conditioning systems. Over a period of 15 years, hoses were delivered to car customers such as BMW, Mercedes and Volkswagen that did not meet the required cleanliness standards.
In order to conceal the quality defects, test results are said to have been manipulated on a large scale, as the “mirror” previously pointed out citing an internal investigation by the group. Managers involved had to leave the company as a result.
According to a spokesman, there is no connection between the hose manipulations and the departure of former Contitech board member Hans-Jürgen Duensing, who headed the industrial division from May 2015 to May 2021.
The company had emphasized that the affected air conditioning hoses never posed a risk to vehicle occupants, road safety or the environment. A Conti spokesman said it was not necessary to recall the affected vehicles.
The public prosecutor’s office in Hanover has been informed of the case. A spokeswoman for the authority said on request that the case was not part of the ongoing investigation against Continental.
The public prosecutor’s office had extended their long-running investigations into the diesel scandal last fall to ex-CEO Elmar Degenhart, the recalled CFO Wolfgang Schäfer and a former board member of the former Powertrain division. According to the investigating authority, the number of suspects in these proceedings has meanwhile increased to 61.
More: Continental allegedly manipulated quality tests on a large scale.