Hitachi Cable Establishes Automotive Component Manufacturing Facility in the Czech Republic

TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Hitachi Cable, Ltd. (TOKYO:5812) hereby announces that its consolidated subsidiary Hitachi Cable Europe Ltd. (headquarters: Berkshire, U.K., Chairman & CEO: Tomoyoshi Nakano, hereinafter "HCE") has constructed a new automotive component manufacturing facility in the Czech Republic as outlined below. HCE will prepare for manufacturing operations and hire personnel to start commercial production at the facility in February 2013.

1. Background and purpose of establishing the new manufacturing facility

In recent years, automotive manufacturers have been introducing strategic car models for the global market at an accelerated pace, and moves for production at optimal locations from a global perspective have gained momentum. At the same time, Japanese auto manufacturers have shifted their focus to exports and have become more aggressive in reinforcing their overseas production facilities. Hitachi Cable is strengthening its global supply networks for automotive components to meet growing demand in this market in various regions in the world. Europe, which constitutes a crucial market comparable in size to Japan, North America, China and Southeast Asia, is expected to achieve sustainable growth into the future.

In Europe, we have thus far been engaged in the assembly of brake hoses at HCE's manufacturing facility in Wales. However, with new markets opening for us in Eastern Europe and Russia and the potential for new products it became apparent that we needed to expand our operations to support expanding markets and compete effectively to support our automotive components supply networks globally.

Against this backdrop, the company established a new automotive component manufacturing facility in the Czech Republic to expand manufacturing capacity and increase sales in the European market. HCE has successfully reduced initial investment and administrative costs by constructing the new facility within the premises of Hitachi Automotive Systems Czech, s.r.o., a Group company of Hitachi Automotive Systems, Ltd. Production is scheduled to begin in February 2013. In an attempt to step up the overseas automotive components business further, HCE aims at doubling its brake hose manufacturing capacity by the fiscal year ending March 31, 2016, three years after the start of operations.

2. Outline of the Czech plant of Hitachi Cable Europe Ltd.

(1)	Name: Hitachi Cable Europe Limited, Czech Branch
(2)	Location: Triangle Zone, Usti Region, Czech Republic
(3)	Established: February 27, 2012
(4)	Number of employees: 36 (projected number as of March 31, 2013)
(5)	Floor area of the facility: 3,000 m^2

3. Outline of Hitachi Cable Europe Ltd.

(1)	Location: Berkshire, United Kingdom
(2)	Title and name of representative director: Chairman & CEO, Tomoyoshi Nakano
(3)	Principal business line: Manufacture and sales of automotive components, sales of wires, cables, and copper products, etc.
(4)	Capital: 170 thousand British pounds