Conti expands engineering services - opens three new locations

In particular, the new branch in Burgess Hill in England has a major strategic significance for Continental’s subsidiary. The site’s focus is on the development and adaptation of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). ADAS technologies are playing an increasingly important role in modern vehicles. From 2022, all new cars in the European Union must be equipped with various assistance systems. These include emergency braking and lane departure warning systems as well as warning systems that detect driver fatigue. The new EU regulations are intended to help better protect vehicle occupants, pedestrians and cyclists and increase trust in automated driving functions. At the new Continental Engineering Services site in Burgess Hill near London, around 100 engineers are developing solutions for advanced driver assistance systems. The branch in Burgess Hill was part of the ADAS Business Unit of the Continental Group until the end of 2020. “The development teams in Burgess Hill strengthen our expertise in key disciplines,” says Dr. Christoph Falk-Gierlinger, General Manager of CES, in a press release. “The development of assistance systems and their integration into an increasingly digital vehicle architectures are rapidly becoming increasingly important. We offer intelligent solutions that meet the requirements of specific vehicle architecture and international legal requirements.” The expertise of the Burgess Hill site includes software and image recognition as well as the development and adaptation of technologies for parking and turning maneuvers. The new branch strengthens the company’s market position in Great Britain, where CES already has a site in Lichfield. In addition, CES will in the future be using free production capacity at the Welsh production site in Ebbw Vale for the production of components, for example for electric drives and the Ac2ated Sound speaker-free sound system. CES is also pursuing a clear expansion strategy in Germany. The development service provider has now opened a new branch in Sindelfingen to provide even better support to key customers at the Continental automotive site in Baden-Wuerttemberg. “We have moved closer to our customers in the greater Stuttgart area,” says Lars Holger Seibert, Director of Sales & Marketing in the press release. “As a systems development partner, we can now support our customers even more efficiently in the development and implementation of customized solutions for the mobility of the future. Our focus is on disciplines such as electric mobility, vehicle acoustics, traffic safety, information and connectivity.” The engineers at the new branch in Sindelfingen specialise among other things in the integration of brake and advanced driver assistance systems as well as interior electronics systems and in the development of smart connectivity solutions and efficient technologies for electric drives. In addition, Continental Engineering Services is investing in a nearby acoustics center in Marktgroeningen in order to be able to implement complex projects in overall vehicle acoustics and thermal management even closer to the customer. Continental is also represented at the new site in Sindelfingen. Components that have already been tested in large-scale production, such as sensors, actuators or control units as well as system development work, can be individually adapted and further developed to fit CES customers’ needs. The company was able to win Uwe Hillburger as its new site manager, who, after holding positions at Porsche and development service providers such as MBtech and AVL, among others, enjoys an excellent reputation in the industry as an accomplished expert in crucial future topics. To drive forward its growth course in southern Europe as well, Continental Engineering Services has also opened a new subsidiary in Italy. The Turin branch serves in particular Italian manufacturers of limited production series, niche, two-wheeled, and special vehicles. It will be managed by Nicole Haring-Aue, Head of CES Italy. Here, too, customers benefit from exclusive access to Continental’s tried-and-tested large-scale production technologies.