Brose UK drives forward with Queen’s Award success

Doubling international sales since 2015 has helped a Coventry-based automotive supplier secure a prestigious Queen’s Award for International Trade.

Brose UK, which manufactures window regulators and seat structures for Jaguar Land Rover, Nissan and Toyota, is one of a select number of manufacturing firms in the UK to secure the prestigious accolade that recognises outstanding business achievement across the country.

Located at two factories in the West Midlands, the company has seen export sales grow significantly after pursuing a strategy focused on providing technology-based solutions, dedicated customer-facing teams and delivering on-time and to the highest possible quality.

It has been an approach that has worked, with international orders secured for OEM plants in China, France, Spain and Brazil and more than 300 jobs created in the last three years alone.

Juergen Zahl, Managing Director of Brose UK, explained: “This is a fantastic achievement for everyone connected with the business, from the near 1,000 staff at Coventry to the many colleagues in our international plants that have contributed to our expansion. We have had a really strong five years, bouncing back from the global recession to achieve £289m in sales in the last financial year. There has also been approximately £70m invested into the latest technology to incorporate remote laser welding and a state-of-the-art paint plant.

“This level of spending – combined with a deep-rooted culture of continuous improvement – has created manufacturing plants in Coventry that can compete against international competitors to win business on new models and platforms.

“The Queen’s Award for International Trade is a global stamp of approval that is recognised all over the world, which makes us extremely proud to receive it.”
Brose UK was the first international plant to be launched outside of the Group’s headquarters of Germany in 1988.

The current factories in the UK produce over 2 million seat structures and more than 4.6 million window regulators every year, supplying 17 different car models across 20 global plants.

Expansion has been based on its ability to ramp up volumes, achieve on-time deliveries, reduce shipping costs by eliminating waste and packaging, shortening lead times and having locally trained people on the ground.

Thomas Spangler, Chief Technology Officer of Brose Group, added: “I have watched Coventry grow significantly over the last five years, becoming not only a critical supplier to the UK automotive sector but also to a number of international plants.

“The Queen’s Award is testament to the hard work of all the staff that make up the Brose family here and, importantly, it marks another step in our continuous improvement journey.”

Brose: Did you know?

Brose is the world’s fifth-largest family-owned automotive supplier. The company develops and produces mechatronic systems for vehicle doors and seats as well as electric motors, drives and electronics, among others for steering, brakes, transmissions and engine cooling. More than 25,000 employees at 60 locations in 23 countries generate turnover of 6.1 billion euros. Every second new vehicle worldwide is equipped with at least one Brose product.