Dana Inc. has announced the opening of a new facility in Yancheng, China, that will help the company expand its production of highly specialized hub drives, planetary drives, helical and bevel helical gearboxes and hydrostatic solutions for off-highway customers in the region.

The nearly 16,000 m2 (172,000 sq. ft.) manufacturing and assembly plant is Dana’s 24th in China and is able to produce approximately 160,000 units per year for customers in the construction, agriculture and industrial markets. Dana said the capabilities of the new plant improve its synergies for customers by enabling them to purchase an entire package of drive and motion systems produced locally by a single Tier 1 supplier.

“We continue to see strong interest in our products from our off-highway customers in China,” said Aziz Aghili, president of Dana Off-Highway Drive and Motion Systems. “Our newest capabilities in the prosperous and growing Yancheng region allow us to closely integrate with our customers’ supply chains and help strengthen Dana’s position as a premier, trusted supplier in the region.”

Since establishing operations in China in 1991, Dana has steadily bolstered its capabilities to support vehicle manufacturers in the region through numerous investments in engineering and manufacturing resources.

In 2019, Dana added the local production of e-axles, e-hub drives, electric motors, inverters and planetary gearboxes for e-drives that fortified the company’s product line for electrification and hybridization across the passenger car, commercial vehicle, and off-highway markets in the region.

Dana serves numerous off-highway manufacturers in China, including AGCO, CRCHI, CRCC, CREG, Dingli, Epiroc, JLG, John Deere, Sany, Terex, XCMG and Zoomlion.

The company operates two other facilities in Yancheng, including a plant that opened in 2018 to manufacture thermal management products for conventional and new energy vehicles. Dana currently has approximately 6200 employees in China through its wholly owned and joint-venture operations.