Peter Tyroller takes over responsibility for Bosch in Asia Pacific, to oversee activities in blossoming India market

Bangalore, July 1, 2013: The supervisory board of the Bosch Group has appointed Peter Tyroller to take over the responsibility for Asia Pacific effective from July 1, 2013. Based in Shanghai, he will be responsible for India and all other countries in the Asia Pacific region. The announcement was first made on June 6. The same day Bosch had announced that Dr A Hieronimus was to step down from the position of non-executive director and chairman of the Board of Bosch Ltd with effect from July 1, 2013, after an association of nearly 10 years with the company. Taking over from Dr Hieronimus is V K Viswanathan who has been appointed as the new chairman of the board with effect from July 1, 2013.

“Asia Pacific will continue to be the main driver of growth for Bosch and I am honored to take over the responsibility for this important region,” commented Peter Tyroller on his new assignment. He has been a member of the Bosch board of management since 2006. Up to now, he has been responsible for marketing and sales, original equipment sales, and the Automotive Aftermarket division. With his new role, Peter Tyroller assumes the responsibility for India from Bernd Bohr, who is to retire for personal reasons after 30 years with Bosch and 10 years as the head of the Automotive Technology business sector. “Globally, the automotive technology business sector is doing well in an extremely competitive environment and has made an above-average contribution to total return on global sales at Bosch,” Bernd Bohr said on the recent development of Bosch’s automotive sector. “In India, our deep local roots have helped us establish lasting partnerships with our Indian customers and we remain confident in the country’s market and economy,” he added.

Asia Pacific driving growth for Bosch

“In 2012, Asia Pacific contributed 24 percent to the global sales of the Bosch Group and we have made it our target to increase this figure to 30 percent over the mid-term,” said Tyroller. “Over the next few years, Asia Pacific will see the Bosch Group’s highest capital expenditure and biggest workforce increases. India will continue to play an important role for the further development of the region,” he added. In 2013, the company will invest around 680 million euros (Rs 5,265 crore) in the region.

Strong focus on R&D
Thanks to the growing strength of local marketing and R&D presence, Bosch says it has gained a sound understanding of what its customers in Asia Pacific's diverse markets want. There are now 13,800 engineers based in the region – 2,200 more than a year ago and five times as many as just five years ago. And by the end of the decade, this number will have doubled. “We are particularly concentrating on products that are tailored to their respective markets. Especially in emerging markets, the local mid-priced segment is growing the fastest,” said Tyroller. Convinced of strong growth perspectives of the Indian market in the mid- and long-term, Bosch is to continue its investments into new technology and capacity expansion for the future.

Staying close to its principle of ‘local for local’ Bosch India has been focusing on developing technologies to suit the requirements of the Indian market. Apart from technology focusing on fuel economy and emission reduction, technology pertaining to safety is gaining increasing prominence in the country with features like Anti-lock Brake Systems (ABS) to be expanded from 4-wheelers to 2-wheelers as well. Reinforcing its commitment to the Indian market and looking for further growth especially with products designed for the local market, the Bosch Group had previously announced an investment of Rs 2,180 crore. Earlier this year Bosch Rexroth and Bosch Electrical Drives India inaugurated their new facilities with a total investment of Rs 221 crore and Rs 37 crore respectively. Another expansion project is the relocation of the existing Bangalore manufacturing facility to Bidadi, which will be conducted in two phases. Bosch is also investing Rs 140 crore in the setting up of an independent ‘Robert Bosch IISc Centre for Research in Cyber Physical Systems’ at IISc, Bangalore to create a long- term research and working environment for future engineers and scientists in India.