“We are also adapting our development processes to the new speed of our industry.”
(Photo: ZF Friedrichshafen AG)
Friedrichshafen The second largest German automotive supplier ZF expects that by 2025 more pure electric cars and hybrids will be registered on the world market than pure combustion engines – two years earlier than previously expected. “We are also adapting our development processes to the new speed of our industry,” said CEO Holger Klein at a technology presentation in Friedrichshafen. So far, the foundation group has brought in electrical orders for 30 billion euros.
In order to become faster, the group is also repositioning itself structurally. In the coming year, the development and production of steering, braking and damping systems will be combined in the new “Chassis Solution” unit with a turnover of 14 billion euros. Klein, who took over the management of ZF at the beginning of the year, wants to shorten the decision-making processes in the group.
One of the hopes for ZF’s business is the all-electric steer-by-wire steering system, for which ZF has received customer orders from all major world markets. The Chinese car manufacturer Nio was the first customer. The “Chassis Solution” division, which is managed by ZF board member Martin Fischer, is hoping for major orders in the coming months.
And the business with the electrified drive should also grow. The chassis software Cubix and the 800-volt architecture of the first generation will be used by customers worldwide in their vehicles in the coming months, promises ZF board member Stephan von Schuckmann. He is responsible for electrified drives and business in Asia at the supplier. In particular, business with Chinese automakers is becoming increasingly important for the supplier, he says.
ZF’s foray into thermal technology shows how hard the battle is being fought in the automotive industry when switching to electromobility. For the first time, ZF presented a self-developed thermal management system for electric vehicles. ZF is thus attacking its competitor Mahle in its core business. The new system is intended to increase the range of electric cars by up to a third in winter.
Less weight, more power
Bosch and Schaeffler are also currently expanding their thermotechnology business. According to experts, no major automotive supplier can afford not to cover this part of the value chain when it comes to electric drives. “With this innovative solution, ZF is underscoring its system expertise in electromobility,” emphasizes Klein.
According to the automotive supplier, the weight of the drive was reduced by 30 percent to 74 kilos.
(Photo: ZF Friedrichshafen AG)
ZF wants to supply all the necessary components for the electric drive: from the optimized drive train to the engine and reduction gears that are intended to make the electric car more efficient.
In order to demonstrate the performance of the systems, the supplier installed all of its new systems in a Porsche Taycan. This has made it possible to reduce the weight of the drive by 30 percent to 74 kilos, according to ZF.
And the new systems should also help with acceleration. Thanks to the new thermal management, a torque density of 70 Newton meters per kilo is possible with the revised Taycan – a top value for passenger cars on the road. “Just a few months ago it was just a vision, now our drive can already be experienced in a sports car,” says Klein.
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With around 165,000 employees worldwide and sales last year of 43.8 billion euros, ZF is the second largest German automotive supplier after Bosch and is represented with 168 production sites in 32 countries. The company currently has two major risks: the debt is still high at around ten billion euros due to the acquisitions of TRW and Wabco, which is a burden on refinancing, especially after the turnaround in interest rates.
And as with all major automotive suppliers, there is a risk of staff cuts because fewer employees are needed to produce the electric drive train. The employee side had recently spoken of up to 9,000 jobs that were on the brink. So far, management has not given a specific number.
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