With its industrial development programme "Made in China 2025", China wants to promote the automation and digitalization of production. According to Bosch Rexroth, the market therefore offers enormous potential for solutions for connected industry. The German company produces locally in manufacturing facilities for the Chinese market. By expanding its production capacities in Xi'an, the supplier of drive and control technologies aims to further realize its vision of the factory of the future: Equipped with what it describes as the latest Industry 4.0 technologies, the plant will serve local needs even better in future. "This will make Xi'an the center of Bosch Rexroth's factory automation in Asia," said Rolf Najork, Member of the Board of Management of Robert Bosch GmbH and Chairman of the Board of Management of Bosch Rexroth AG, at the groundbreaking ceremony. "Last year, Bosch Rexroth celebrated its 40th anniversary in China. The expansion of Xi'an is a sign of our commitment to the market."

In Xi'an, the company will bundle its expertise from the product areas of automation, assembly technology and linear technology under one roof in the future and expand its range of integrated factory automation solutions for customers in Asia. The aim is to achieve an efficient interplay of technologies, methods and applications in production.

The plan is for the plant in Xi'an to be gradually expanded and digitally upgraded with new manufacturing processes. Production is scheduled to start in the first quarter of 2020. The aim is to achieve cost-effective production that stands for high flexibility with short throughput and delivery times. "With networked manufacturing technologies, we are taking production and logistics in Xi'an to a new level," explained Najork. In a further step, the next generation of mobile communications, 5G, is to be introduced in production on site. According to Bosch Rexroth, the current highest possible transmission rate in the mobile network will increase tenfold to more than ten gigabits per second. This enables communication in real time and increases the reliability with which production data is sent and received.

Collaborative robots support employees

In Xi'an, it is not least the employees who benefit from networked solutions: The technologies used in the plant, such as collaborative robots and intelligent workstations, support them in their daily work processes. These technical helpers take over strenuous or dangerous tasks and guide employees through particularly varied and complicated production steps. Employees also have access to additional digital services. For example, they can use the 'iStaff' employee app to receive meal recommendations, call up the shuttle bus departure times or create their own individual training plan in the in-house fitness center.

Bosch Rexroth in China

Bosch Rexroth has been present in China since 1978 and is continuously expanding its local value creation. In addition to Xi'an, the company operates two other production sites in China, in Beijing and Wujin. At the end of 2017, Bosch Rexroth also opened the first innovation center in China in Chengdu, which focuses on the application possibilities of Industry 4.0. Here, associates and customers learn how to put innovative approaches into practice. In 2017, Bosch Rexroth generated sales of over 1.4 billion euros in the Asia Pacific/Africa region. This corresponds to an increase in sales of 20.7% compared to the previous year, with China as the strongest market. The company also achieved high growth rates in China in 2018. In total, the company employs around 2800 people in the country.