A worker checks the production of lithium-ion automotive batteries in the Johnson Controls Saft Advanced Power Solutions' factory in Nersac, southwestern France. [Photo/Agencies]

Firm eyes growth potential in Chinese market as it boosts its production capacity
Johnson Controls Inc, the United States-based manufacturer of energy storage, building equipment and control systems, will open its second global headquarters with a capacity for 1,200 employees in Shanghai next April, a senior executive said on Monday.

Trent Nevill, vice-president of Johnson Controls and the new president for the company in the Asia-Pacific region, said as China continues to be one of its major growth markets, the new global headquarters in Shanghai will create a centralized and sustainable workplace to continue the company's business growth in both China and the Asia-Pacific region.

Supported by more than 150,000 employees in more than 150 countries and regions, the company employs more than 7,500 people in China.

"The Chinese government is seeking new ways to promote energy efficiency and minimize carbon emissions to design healthier environments in its cities. With incentives put in place and high demand from the market, we are now experiencing fast growth in our energy efficiency solutions," said Nevill.

The company experienced a double-digit growth in its battery business in China in its 2015 fiscal year, thanks to surging demand for replacement and original equipment manufacturing.

Eager to enhance its earning ability, Johnson Controls formed a joint venture earlier this month with Binzhou Bohai Piston Co, an auto parts subsidiary of Beijing Automotive Industry Group Co, to build its fourth Chinese automotive battery manufacturing plant to serve both automakers and aftermarket customers. The facility is located in Binzhou in Shandong province.

Construction work for this plant is expected to start next year, with production starting in 2019. Once it is up and running, the plant will be able to produce 7.5 million batteries per year.

"We have already shifted from being an expat-driven organization to more local people than what we have had in China," said Nevill. "We have Chinese staff running most of our businesses in China. We also wish to see if we can start exporting that talent and help them become a part of the larger company."

Johnson Controls also invested $200 million to build a plant in Shenyang, capital of Liaoning province, last August, to produce batteries for start-stop vehicles. This type of vehicle battery, which can help automakers meet increasingly strict fuel economy and emissions regulations, will be a primary focus for the new facility.

The Shenyang plant is scheduled to launch in late 2018, and produce 6 million batteries annually, with the majority being the start-stop kind.

The Milwaukee-headquartered company also operates battery plants in Chongqing, as well as in Changxing, Zhejiang province, and an energy storage research and development center in Shanghai.

Sun Fuquan, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Science and Technology for Development in Beijing, said China is already the global leader in applying energy-efficient and clean-energy products as well as making big-ticket investments in this sector.