Automotive supplier Magna announces a joint venture with GAC Component Co., a subsidiary of Chinese automaker GAC, to manufacture composite liftgates for an unidentified global manufacturer of a CUV starting late this year.
The JV initially will employ 116 workers at a new 55,900-sq.-ft. (5,193-sq.-m) facility located in Changsha, China.
“We’re seeing tremendous demand for advanced material innovations as manufacturers pursue all opportunities to take weight out of vehicles to meet emissions requirements,” Magna Exteriors President Grahame Burrow says in a news release.
“I am very pleased we have formed this JV with GACC as it provides great opportunities for future growth in liftgates and other lightweight exterior products going forward.”
Lightweight, fully recyclable, composite liftgates are particularly beneficial as demand for CUVs and SUVs remains high globally. These liftgate modules can achieve up to 25% weight savings over steel versions and are delivered as complete assemblies to the customer, Magna says.
The addition of the liftgate JV raises to 50 the number of Magna facilities in China, where the Canada-based supplier has more than 22,700 employees.
Magna says it produced the industry’s first all-thermoplastic, fully recyclable liftgate module in North America on the ʼ14 Nissan Rogue. Earlier this year, the company launched one of the largest-volume thermoplastic liftgates on the ʼ18 Jeep Cherokee sold in the U.S.
