“We’re moving quickly in these dynamic markets to establish new manufacturing facilities and enhance our engineering capabilities to continue supporting the needs of our customers,” said Josep Fornos, Tenneco Senior Vice President, Europe, South America and India. “Our strong presence in these markets is driving incremental business with customers looking for suppliers who can serve global vehicle platforms in multiple regions.”

 

Tenneco is currently in production on 14 global vehicle platforms. The shift towards global platforms benefits both the vehicle manufacturer as well as the supplier, with increased leverage in material sourcing, reduced investments in tooling and savings associated with global engineering development.

 

Tenneco has made capital investments to support future growth in China, including five newly-added or expanded existing facilities within the last year. Plans are also in place to relocate and expand two additional plants by the end of 2011.

 

Tenneco’s investments in emerging markets have also extended to India and Thailand. In India, the company opened a new manufacturing facility in Chennai, marking its seventh manufacturing operation there. Tenneco also expanded its presence in Thailand with the opening of a new ride control plant in Bangkok to support Nissan’s small car global platform.

Underpinning this growth is Tenneco’s advanced technology and engineering expertise, most evident in the company’s emission control business, where increasingly stringent emissions standards worldwide continue to generate new business opportunities.

 

“Tenneco is extremely well-positioned in the emission control market, guided by a roadmap aligning our technology development and commercialization with the mobile emissions regulatory timeline. As a result, we are bringing to market the right solutions at the right times to meet our customers’ needs,” said Tim Jackson, Tenneco Chief Technology Officer.

 

Tenneco’s suite of emission control technologies includes XNOx™ Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR), which uses a chemical reaction to convert toxic NOx from engine emissions into harmless nitrogen and H2O; Electrical Valve, a fully variable backpressure control valve, which enables vehicles using low-pressure exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) systems to minimize NOx emissions; Fabricated manifolds including shell manifolds, tubular manifolds and double-wall air gap insulated manifolds, which are lighter than traditional cast manifolds; and Diesel Fuel Vaporizer, an external-dosing solution that provides efficient diesel particulate filter (DPF) regeneration. The company has also developed advanced manufacturing capabilities, including new processes for lightweight designs to help improve fuel economy.

 

“We also see growth in our ride control business with our wide range of technologies including our innovative electronic suspension systems that balance the compromise between performance, comfort, ride and handling,” Jackson said.

 

Demand for Tenneco’s Continuously Controlled Electronic Suspension system (CES) continues to increase, with the system now available on 36 vehicle models by the end of 2011. 

 

The company has combined the CES system with another of its advanced ride control technologies— Kinetic® —to develop Tenneco’s Kinetic® H2/CES Semi-Active Suspension System. Vehicle Dynamics International magazine named Tenneco 2011 Supplier of the Year for the Kinetic H2/CES system. The company also recently introduced Actively Controlled CAR (ACOCAR™), a fully-active suspension system which targets the next generation of conventional, hybrid or electric luxury vehicles, offering the ultimate in ride comfort and handling.

 

About Tenneco

Tenneco is a $5.9 billion global manufacturing company with headquarters in Lake Forest, Illinois and approximately 22,000 employees worldwide. Tenneco has 14 globally-integrated engineering centers on five continents. The company is one of the world’s largest designers, manufacturers and marketers of emission control and ride control products and systems for the automotive and commercial vehicle original equipment market and the aftermarket. Tenneco markets its products principally under the Monroe®, Walker®, Gillet™ and Clevite® Elastomer brand names.

 

This press release contains forward-looking statements. Words such as “anticipate,” “expects,” "will", "continue" and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on the current expectations of the company (including its subsidiaries). Because these forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, the company's plans, actions and actual results could differ materially. Among the factors that could cause these plans, actions and results to differ materially from current expectations are: (i) changes in automotive manufacturers' production rates and their actual and forecasted requirements for the company's products, including the company's resultant inability to realize the sales represented by its awarded book of business; (ii) changes in consumer demand and prices, including decreases in demand for automobiles which include the company's products, and the potential negative impact on the company's revenues and margins from such products; (iii) the general political, economic and competitive conditions in markets where the company and its subsidiaries operate; (iv) workforce factors such as strikes or labor interruptions; (v) material substitutions and increases in the costs of raw materials; (vi) the company's ability to develop and profitably commercialize new products and technologies, and the acceptance of such new products and technologies by the company's customers; and (vii) the timing and occurrence (or non-occurrence) of transactions and events which may be subject to circumstances beyond the control of the company and its subsidiaries. The company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this press release.

 

CES is a registered trademark of Öhlins Racing AB CORPORATION SWEDEN. All other trademarks, service marks and logos used herein are the trademarks, service marks, or logos of their respective owners.

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