Bosch plans smart plant for Mexico

Apr. 20, 2018 – Global technology provider Bosch is investing 100 million euros (C$155.5 million) in a new smart factory for electronic components in Celaya, Mexico.

The company anticipates creating more than 1,200 additional jobs at the new 21,000-square-meter location in the coming years.

“Bosch is committed to Mexico. The country is and will remain an important market and a hub for our global manufacturing and development network,” said Stefan Hartung, member of the Bosch board of management.

According to the company, the new plant will employ a manufacturing execution system (MES) to collect data and share production information in real time, aiding in preventive maintenance and higher product quality, it says. The system also digitally connects the plant to the Bosch Group’s global manufacturing network.

“By mid-2019, manufacturing at nearly all Bosch plants in Mexico will be equipped with our intelligent control system,” said René Schlegel, president of the Bosch Group in Mexico.

Bosch explains the Latin American emerging market has become highly industrialized in recent years, driven mainly by the automotive industry. “In 2017 alone, nearly 3.8 million vehicles were manufactured in Mexico. In order to increase efficiency and competitiveness as a leading global manufacturing location, Mexico is increasingly focusing on the use of Industry 4.0,” it says.

In total, Bosch currently operates 10 manufacturing locations around the country and has already introduced the use of smart technologies, for example at its Mobility Solutions sites in Toluca and Juárez. Overall the Bosch Group employs around 16,000 associates and is active with all four of its business divisions in Mexico.