Porsche expands engineering and assembly capacity

Image caption: Detlev von Platen, Member of the Executive Board for Sales and Marketing at Porsche

Porsche is meeting needs in Asia by expanding its global engineering and assembly capacity. From next year on, its capacities will grow even further to include a new permanent research and development satellite in China, allowing a sustained focus on what is Porsche’s biggest single market.

The company is also strengthening its presence in the emerging markets of Southeast Asia. Beyond projects, such as the implementation of the region’s first cross-border high-performance charging network in cooperation with Shell, Porsche will set up small-scale local assembly in Malaysia to join the company’s network of production sites. The vehicles will specifically match local requirements and will be available for Malaysia only.

“We’re driven by curiosity, by perpetually learning and fine tuning our cars,” said Oliver Blume, Chairman of the Executive Board at Porsche. “Having a permanent home for this work in China will bring obvious benefits, particularly when it comes to reflecting and predicting our customer’s needs in China, a nation that has truly welcomed Porsche and has taken our cars to heart to the extent that it has been our biggest sales market for six consecutive years. The Chinese automotive market is very dynamic and customer preferences are highly specific.”

The R&D satellite location in Shanghai is aimed at increasing understanding of Chinese customers and their requirements, and to improve local product development. It complements Porsche Digital China, which was set up as an independent company early this year, and Porsche Engineering China with its presence in the market for more than 20 years.

Porsche’s network of permanent research, development and testing locations is based on several continents – all directly linked to the company’s engineering home in Weissach (Germany). This work affects not just dynamics and vehicle quality, but also comfort and convenience features and the technology fitted to current and future Porsche sports cars. Porsche Digital, a subsidiary of Porsche established in 2016, concentrates on researching and developing new customer-focused digital services and is headquartered in Germany with key offices in the U.S., Spain, China, Israel and Croatia.

Southeast Asia is a very dynamic market environment with significant growth and innovation potential. Porsche is expanding its footprint in the ten-member ASEAN region (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) by setting up local assembly, together with its long-standing partner Sime Darby Berhad. Based in Malaysia, the site will be responsible for the final assembly of specific models for the local market from 2022 onwards. The facility will operate alongside Porsche’s established European network of production sites.

“Malaysia and the entire ASEAN is a region of great potential and we look forward to the first locally assembled models reaching our Malaysian customers next year,” added Detlev von Platen, Member of the Executive Board for Sales and Marketing at Porsche. “As Porsche is moving into a new era of mobility, Malaysia and the ASEAN region are gaining an increasing importance. This step now is part of a long-standing initiative to keep pace with rapidly evolving customer and market demands.”