Hungarian automotive industry: week 10

Manufacturers

We cannot go without mentioning Hungary's fifth, invisible producer that celebrated its 100th anniversary last Monday. Albeit without a local production site but boasting a large supplier industry in the country, the BMW group unveiled a futuristic concept last week, showcasing their vision of tomorrow's mobility.

BMW unveils futuristic concept

It was reported by Slovakian daily Sme last week that Mercedes is considering expansion in the region, with Slovakia as a possible candidate.

A Hungarian-designed bus is celebrated across the world. The Modulo has recently received an international award for innovation, and on this occasion it was the first electric bus to complete the journey from Paris to Budapest.

Award-winning Modulo first electric bus to travel from Paris to Budapest

Audi Hungaria held a Research Projects Day in Győr, where the company offered an insight into its research collaborations with higher educational institutes. Az Audi Hungaria and Germany-based Audi TT Owners Klub has given a €5,000 donation to the Gézengúz Foundation in Győr.

Suppliers

Last week we visited Eckerle's three Hungarian locations. See our gallery here.

Factory visit at Eckerle's three local sites

Bosch Hungary appointed a new technical executive last week. Paul Klinzing will be responsible for managing the Eger and Maklár production sites.

Bosch received another acknowledgement last week: CEO Javier Gonzáles Pareja was honoured with an Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary.

Bosch Hungary CEO Javier Gonzáles Pareja and economy minister Mihály Varga

Service providers

The Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency (HIPA) held the Automotive Conference 2016 event, inviting prominent players of the industry to discuss the challenges the sector is facing today.

Reading between the lines of the presentations it is becoming increasingly obvious that the shortage in skilled manpower is a growing concern.

The government has begun drafting the Industry 4.0 programme, an integral part of the Irinyi Plan, as a first step of the so-called "digital transition".

HIPA holds automotive conference

It was announced at the ground-breaking ceremony of Karzol-Trans Kft.'s new HUF 1.6 billion investment that the company will create 110 jobs and purchase 110 new lorries.

Education

When the industry meets education, they can shed light on false information such as that cylinder head casting is just as arduous today as it used to be before robotization.

Last week's Techtogether Junior Zalaegerszeg event gave primary and secondary school students an opportunity to learn about the automotive sector and get help in career orientation.

Karzol-Trans Kft. to invest HUF 1.6 billion

The German-Hungarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DUIHK) handed out four awards in the first week of March to acknowledge exceptional Hungarian companies and organizations. In three categories, the winners were companies from Győr, while the fourth award went to a Pécs-based operation.

Economy

The output of vehicle manufacturing has decreased: after months of dynamic growth, the sector's performance declined by 3.5 percent in January.

According to a first report published by the Hungarian Central Statisical Office (KSH), in January, the volume of industrial production the automotive manufacturing sector decreased by 0.2 percent year-on-year, but analysts say there is no cause for concern. We certainly hope they are right.

Following a long period of dynamic growth, Hungary's auto industry sees slight decline in January

According to a survey published by labour market analyst Manpower, 16 percent of employers are planning to hire additional staffers in Q2 2016. One means of decreasing skills shortage is increasing wages but we are yet to see a step made in this direction.