Autoliv relocates operations to Romania

Swedish automotive safety equipment maker Autoliv will relocate part of its productive operations in Germany to Romania by the end of 2005, Ionel Fierbinteanu, Autoliv’s Romanian subsidiary customer relationship manager said. The move is in line with Autoliv Group’s strategy to relocate part of its operations to Eastern European countries, known for their cheap yet skilled workforce. The first to be transferred will be the seat belt manufacturing divisions, as they require most of the manual labour. Subsequently, Poland and Romania were chosen to host the German operations, while Estonia will get the Swedish operations and Poland and Spain will get those in UK. The seat belt production business in France will be relocated to Turkey and Tunisia, while that in the US will move to Mexico. “Autoliv Romania currently holds a production facility in Brasov, which takes up 2,500 sqm and employs 232 people. It is expected to rapidly grow in the next two years to 6,500 sqm,” Fierbinteanu said ZF