NextGen Auto International Summit China Successfully Concluded Its 2013 edition

ASIA TODAY News & Events, January 9, 2014

NextGen Auto International Summit China has accomplished another successful year with the close of its 2013 edition. Held from 9 – 10 December at the Kerry Hotel in Shanghai’s Pudong district, the event brought together some of the world’s foremost experts on the auto industry, to share and acquire information on the future of the China market.

The event’s co-organisers, Messe Frankfurt (Shanghai) Co Ltd, International Cooperation Centre of National Development and Reform Commission and China National Automotive Industry International Corporation, hosted over 45 professionals representing government bodies, industry associations as well as prominent commercial enterprises. During its two-day run, a total of 378 delegates (a 5 percent increase from 2012) attended the summit, from specialties spanning across the automotive supply chain.

Mr Richard Li, General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (Shanghai) Co Ltd commented: “2012 may have been the year we launched NextGen Auto, but I believe the 2013 edition confirmed our vision for this event. With the assistance of our co-organisers, we gathered some phenomenal authority figures in the domestic and overseas auto market this year, who held discussions on topics currently most in-demand among professionals. NextGen Auto has proven itself to be an important component to Chinese auto professionals acquiring the latest industry technology, while also communicating their solution needs to the international community. I am humbled by the success of the 2013 summit, and look forward to organising another engaging edition in the future.”

Speakers and delegates alike praise the future of China’s Auto industry

The key to NextGen Auto’s significance is the event’s ability to highlight emerging technologies in automobile development, address policy initiatives from government bodies and present case studies from leading commercial firms. For the 2013 edition, both speakers and delegates were unanimous in their praise for the show in achieving all of the aforementioned goals.

The summit focused primarily on issues related to new generation vehicles, energy efficiency and e-mobility; areas that industry professionals have agreed will be the main driving forces for the future development of China’s auto industry. In addition to speakers from such reputable firms as Fiat Chrysler Group, Qualcomm Europe and Bosch Software Innovations, the summit welcomed senior leaders from China’s National Energy Bureau, Ministry of Commerce and the China Automotive Technology and Research Center.

Mr Steven Lu, CEO of Team China Racing Co Ltd, spoke at the summit about China’s first Formula-E racing vehicle and its associated technology. He shared: “The adoption of electrical vehicles has grown incredibly in the China market. Formula-E technology is very closely related to the development of automotive parts and the overall auto industry. Our goal with NextGen Auto was to help professionals better understand the technology within our vehicle, and promote the quality of “Made in China” technology. This was an exceptional event for our firm.”

Mr Bill Russo, Vice President or Corporate Development at Harman International, held a series of sessions related to technological innovation and its importance to market development. He shared: “I believe the central theme for NextGen Auto in 2013 was how technology provides a roadmap and shapes the future of the automotive industry. In addition to providing great insight from industry experts, the summit was an excellent networking opportunity for those involved in future technology development. Individuals from the supply and regulatory side, as well as both state- and privately-owned enterprises were all in attendance this year. It is amazing to see how the fair has become an important bridge in bringing together foreign technology suppliers and domestic industry players. I believe the future is certainly bright both for NextGen Auto and China’s automotive industry.”

Returning speaker, Mr Christian Heep, CEO and Head of Marketing at the German Federal Association for E-Mobility (BEM), enthused about the summit showcasing China’s ambitions in e-mobility and new energy vehicle adoption. He said: “My goal was to share my company’s point of view on e-mobility in Germany and greater Europe, so that the audience could see how to adopt the technology in China. I think there are a lot of business opportunities my firm and others from Europe can explore with the China market. The event was very well-organised, and covered a wide range of important topics. Delegates to the event were very professional and interested in the development of e-mobility and sustainability.”

Fellow speaker, Mr ChengYin Yuan, Deputy President of BJEV Research and Development Institute, Beijing Electric Vehicle Co Ltd added: “The event’s topics were very forward-thinking. For example, the sessions on the technologies of “Formula-E racing” and “Wireless charging” gave us some creative ideas and offered a different angle on their uses. NextGen Auto stands out from similar automotive forums because the topics discussed were informative not only for delegates but also fellow speakers like me. I believe China’s electric vehicle industry will experience great growth in 2014.”

For delegate Mr David Hsu, Senior Manager in Business Analysis at BMW China, NextGen provided a positive outlook on the future of China’s car industry. He commented: “It was my first time attending the summit. The topics discussed were very clear and targeted. In general, I am very optimistic about the future development of new energy vehicles. Consumers will gradually adopt the technology, but at this point I believe the acceptance of new energy vehicles is still quite conservative in China. Through the government’s support and acceptance of new energy vehicles, I believe China will quickly catch up to the same level of overseas markets.”

Mr Alexej Garcia Rodriguez, Consultant for Global Practice Group Automotive in Germany, enjoyed the 2013 summit not only for its invaluable industry insight, but for also providing direct access to prominent industry players. He shared: “I was interested in the topic on electric mobility, and I found the seminars on passenger vehicles and electric vehicles very useful. The last session which discussed the emergence of the technology in tier 3 and 4 cities in China was particularly informative. NextGen Auto was a good summit overall. The topics were well presented, and the event also offered a good networking opportunity with its associated speakers.”

With foreign vehicles and parts currently accounting for only a minor portion of China’s auto market, delegates like Mr Tony Zhou, Deputy Director of the Investment Promotion Bureau at Jiangsu Province’s Zhangjiagang Economic and Technological Development Zone, came to the 2013 summit to discover opportunities for building their domestic business with innovative overseas suppliers. Mr Zhou expressed: “Attending NextGen Auto 2013 was an exceptional experience for me. China’s auto industry is currently at the mature stage of development, and its future is looking better every day. My goal at the summit was to get in touch with overseas auto part suppliers, and introduce them to the China market. According to a speech by representatives from McKinsey, overseas car manufacturers currently hold 22 percent of market share in China, while foreign part suppliers account for 6 percent. This translates to a lot of room for growth, and my company is looking forward to taking advantage.”

NextGen Auto International Summit China 2013 was held in conjunction with Automechanika Shanghai, Asia’s largest event for auto parts, accessories, equipment and services. For more information on the fee-based conference, please e-mail nextgenauto@hongkong.messefrankfurt.com; or visit 　www.nextgenautosummit-china.com

Media contact
Rachelle Kong
Tel +852 2230 9226
Fax +852 2519 6800
rachelle.kong@hongkong.messefrankfurt.com
　www.messefrankfurt.com.hk

SOURCE Messe Frankfurt

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Bill Russo joins Harman as Northeast Asia & China Operations VP

China Automotive Review, January 6, 2014

by Ava You

BEIJING – Bill Russo, former president and CEO of Synergistics Ltd. in Hong Kong and vice president of Chrysler Northeast Asia, joined Harman International Industries, the premium global audio and infotainment group, as the company’s vice president of corporate development for Harman’s North East Asia & China operations, responsible for new business development, regional growth initiatives, strategy deployment and related communications, according to a company news release.

Russo reports to David Jin, chairman and president of Harman North East Asia & China. He also reports to Sandra Rowland, vice president of corporate development and investor relations for Harman International. Russo will be based at Harman’s North East Asia headquarters in Shanghai, China.

Russo had served as president and CEO of Synergistics Ltd., an Asia-based business development advisory firm, since March 2009. He served as vice president of Chrysler Group’s North East Asia business, where he directed operations for the regional markets from July 2004 to September 2008. He was director of product & business strategy at DaimlerChrysler from January 2000 to July 2004, senior manager of post-merger integration of DaimlerChrysler from May 1998 to December 1999, and senior manager of process management & continuous improvement at Chrysler Corp. from July 1993 to May 1998. Earlier in his career, he worked in the global services and technology divisions for IBM Corp. from July 1982 to June 1993.

Click here to read this article at China Automotive Review

Executive Moving to Shanghai Finds No Escape From China’s Smog

Bloomberg News, December 17, 2013

Source: ChinaFotoPress/Getty Images

People wearing masks walk along The Bund in Shanghai on Dec. 8, 2013.

Bill Russo moved more than 700 miles from Beijing to Shanghai on Dec. 1 and thought he’d left the smog behind him. Five days later, he was wheezing again.

“What was shocking was how bad it’s been,” said Russo, a vice president at car stereo maker Harman International Industries Inc. “Shanghai over the years had a reputation of being better,” said the executive, who had some of the fine-particle masks he left behind in Beijing sent to him.

Record levels of pollution this month busted perceptions of Shanghai as a place to escape the smog that’s shrouded Beijing and other parts of China. Worsening air quality in the country’s commercial hub prompted warnings to keep children indoors, spurred companies from Unilever to Uniqlo owner Fast Retailing Co. to give workers face masks, and may hinder Shanghai’s push to be a global financial center by 2020.

“I felt like I had dust in my mouth and throat all the time,” said Thomas Walser, a manager at a relocation company who moved to Shanghai from Austria in 2009.

After Shanghai ordered vehicles off the road and factories to cut production, Baosteel Group Corp. said it will limit processing of sinter, the iron ore nodules used to make steel. The company that controls China’s largest listed steelmaker also suspended outdoor operations of its chemical facilities.

Source: ChinaFotoPress via Getty Images

People wander at the Bund as heavy smog engulfs Shanghai on Nov. 7, 2013.

‘Land Blind’

To help address chronic flight delays, China ordered commercial pilots to learn to “land blind” in smoggy conditions. Starting next year, pilots flying to Beijing from the nation’s 10 busiest airports must be qualified to land when visibility falls below 400 meters (1,300 feet), the official China Daily said on Dec. 12, citing unidentified people at the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

Spring Airlines Co., China’s biggest carrier outside government control, said it’s training pilots to land in smog. Shanghai’s pollution earlier this month affected operations, the carrier said, declining to be more specific. Pilots in China need to be qualified to be able to land when visibility falls to 800 meters with runway visual range of 550 meters, said Spring Airlines Senior Vice President Shen Wei.

Shanghai’s air pollution index surged to a record 482 on Dec. 6, the worst since monitoring began last year. The air quality index monitored by the U.S. consulate surged past 500 to the “beyond index” level. For at least seven of the first 10 days of the month, the air was considered too toxic to allow children and the elderly outdoors.

Photographer: Peter Parks/AFP/Getty Images

An aircraft is barely visible through thick smog on the tarmac of Hongqiao airport 

Satellite Image

Levels of PM2.5 -- particles smaller than 2.5 microns in diameter that pose the biggest health risk -- were 602.2 micrograms per cubic meter, or about 24 times the World Health Organization’s recommended limit. A satellite image dated Dec. 7 on the NASA Earth Observatory website showed haze stretching from Beijing to Shanghai.

By Dec. 10, Shanghai’s government said air quality improved to “lightly polluted.” The pollution warning was removed yesterday Dec16 with PM2.5 levels dropping below the World Health Organization’s recommended 25 micrograms per cubic meter deemed to be safe for 24-hour exposure.

Unilever, the world’s second-largest consumer-goods maker, has distributed face N95 rated masks, which filter at least 95 percent of particles, to employees in Shanghai. On Dec. 6 it told most staff to work from home the following Monday, and a manager’s meeting scheduled for Dec. 10 was canceled.

Hotel Filters

Fast Retailing, operator of Uniqlo clothing shops, handed out masks to employees in Shanghai, the company said in a statement.

Because of the smog, InterContinental Hotels Group Plc’s 30 hotels in Shanghai will be cleaning their air conditioning systems more frequently, similar to what they do in Beijing, it said in a statement. In some hotels, staff will rotate air purifiers through the rooms.

In Beijing, air quality was worse than government standards on more than 60 percent of days in the first half, the Ministry of Environmental Protection said in July. Shanghai’s was below government standards on less than 35 percent of the days and had no days rated as “heavily polluted,” it said. The PM2.5 annual standard for cities is 35 micrograms, the report said.

The capital in January suffered its worst bout of air pollution with PM2.5 readings averaging 194 micrograms per cubic meter per day, with an intraday peak of 886 on Jan. 12.

Social Unrest

Exposure to PM2.5 contributed to 8,572 premature deaths in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Xi’an in 2012, and led to economic losses of $1.08 billion, according to estimates by Greenpeace and Peking University’s School of Public Health. China has 16 of the 20 most-polluted cities globally, according to World Bank estimates.

Pollution has become the top cause of social unrest in China, Chen Jiping, a former leading member of the Communist Party’s Committee of Political and Legislative Affairs, said in March.

While the worsening pollution alone won’t stop companies from moving people to China, it has “a big impact” on executives with children, said Steve Mullinjer, regional leader for Asia and the Middle East at executive-search firm Heidrick & Struggles International Inc. The dirtier air “is restricting the type of people they can get or transfer or hire,” he said by phone from Shanghai.

The “living environment” is the top human-resources challenge facing European companies trying to retain talent in China, said Ioana Kraft, Shanghai-based general manager for the European Union Chamber of Commerce.

Pollution Apps

“I can’t recall it being so bad in the 10 years I’ve lived here,” said Kraft, who is originally from Germany. “Everyone was concerned: checking the pollution apps and buying masks. Then the masks were out of stock, the purifiers were out of stock.”

Sales of air purifiers on Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s Tmall site surged to as much as six times the daily average in the first week of this month.

3M Co., which donated face masks to kindergartens in Beijing as well as to traffic policemen in Shanghai, plans to increase production in China after stock sold out on Dec. 6 and 9, said Royce Hua, the company’s corporate communications chief in the country. That might take about three months to achieve, he said, declining to be provide more details.

Honeywell Purifiers

Honeywell International Inc., whose products range from aviation controls and auto turbochargers to solvents and medical devices, said respirator masks were sold out on its Tmall online store from Dec. 6 to 9.

Sales of building air filtration solutions and air purifiers made by the Morris Township, New Jersey-based company have grown more than 50 percent annually over the past several years, said Lydia Lu, a vice-president for communications. Honeywell has given masks to its staff and a local union is arranging for local employees’ to purchase air purifiers at a discount.

“The opportunity of being here is great because of the opportunity to be a part China’s economic development and contributing to that,” said Harman’s Russo. “The risk you put yourself in is that there are compromises you’ll have to make in terms of quality of life and the risk you’re taking to your health.”

“You can’t live in China, or Beijing in particular, for long before you realize that it’s having an impact on your health.”

To contact Bloomberg News staff for this story: Natasha Khan in Hong Kong at nkhan51@bloomberg.net; Alexandra Ho in Shanghai at aho113@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Frank Longid at flongid@bloomberg.net

Click here to read this story at bloomberg.com

Bill Russo Named Vice President, Corporate Development for HARMAN’s North East Asia & China Operations

Press Release

03 December 2013 – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

STAMFORD, Connecticut – HARMAN International Industries, Incorporated (NYSE:HAR), the premium global audio and infotainment group, today announced that Bill Russo has joined the company as Vice President of Corporate Development for Harman’s North East Asia & China operations, with primary reporting to David Jin, Chairman & President of Harman North East Asia & China.  Mr. Russo also reports to Sandra Rowland, Vice President, Corporate Development and Investor Relations for Harman International.  He has responsibility for new business development, regional growth initiatives, strategy deployment and related communications.

“Bill comes to Harman with more than 25 years of automotive industry experience, including 10 years in China.  His deep knowledge of the automotive sector and extensive networks will help accelerate Harman’s plans to grow our share of the automotive markets, including infotainment, branded audio and integration services,” said Jin.   “We are confident Bill will help strengthen our relationships in the region and make significant contributions to our business.” 

Mr. Russo most recently was President and CEO of Synergistics Limited, an Asia-based business development advisory firm.  From 2004 to 2008, he served as Vice President of Chrysler Group’s North East Asia business, where he directed operations for the regional markets.  While at Chrysler, he served in roles of increasing responsibility, including oversight of Product and Business Strategy.  Earlier in his career, he worked in the global services and technology divisions for IBM Corporation. 

Mr. Russo has published numerous articles and is a frequently quoted expert in the major financial media on developments occurring in the global automotive industry.  He regularly speaks at major automotive industry conferences and events.

Mr. Russo holds a Master of Science degree in Manufacturing Systems Engineering from Lehigh University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from Columbia University.

Mr. Russo will be based at Harman’s North East Asia headquarters in Shanghai, China. 

About HARMAN

HARMAN (www.HARMAN.com) designs, manufactures, and markets a wide range of infotainment and audio solutions for the automotive, consumer, and professional markets. It is a recognized world leader across its customer segments with premium brands including AKG®, Harman Kardon®, Infinity®, JBL®, Lexicon®, and Mark Levinson® and leading-edge connectivity, safety and audio technologies. The company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of about 14,000 people across the Americas, Europe, and Asia and reported sales of $4.3 billion for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2013.