China's Auto Suspension Parts Makers Accelerate Development to Meet Domestic, International Demand

By CARMAN LO

The demand for better steering stability, driving comfort, and vehicular safety is driving the development of improved suspension systems at an accelerating pace in the direction of intelligent, safe, and environmentally-friendly products, according to industry experts.

There are three basis types of suspension system: passive, semi-active, and active. The passive suspension system features a traditional mechanical structure and fixed dampening index, and according to theory can achieve good dampening performance only under certain specific road conditions. However, the advantages of passive systems--simple mechanism, higher reliability, and relatively low cost--make them the most popular for automotive applications. Most automotive suspension parts makers in China today produce items for passive or semi-active systems.

The semi-active system generally refers to a system that is matched with dampening-index-adjustable shock absorbers, which can be controlled by mechanical or electronic mechanisms. The mechanically controlled system is currently the market mainstream thanks to its simpler structural designs, lower cost, and lower noise.

The active-type suspension system features the use of many sensors, actuators, and control circuits, enabling it to achieve more functions through control by sophisticated vehicle computers; however, the reliability of such a system is relatively low due to the adoption of numerous electronic parts and devices. Some Chinese companies have begun researching active-type systems, and they are trying to work out high-performance, low-power-consumption, and more reliable products for the future.

Shock Absorbers

Shock absorbers are major components of suspension systems, and the production of key shock-absorber parts in industrially advanced nations has been standardized. The shock-absorber sector started out much later in China than in major automobile-producing nations, and it generally lacks high-level technology and know-how in the field. The great majority of China-assembled luxury cars use imported shock absorbers, and the Chinese automotive industry urgently needs for its own manufacturers to develop homegrown shock absorbers to fill the huge domestic demand. As a result, the domestic development and production of high-quality shock absorbers is among the top priorities of China's automotive industry development plan. China has increased its production of automotive shock-absorber products through the introduction of advanced design and manufacturing techniques from foreign companies, but it still lags far behind the industrially advanced nations.

Springs are another vital component in auto suspension systems, and China has achieved a 100% local-content ratio in steel plates for such springs. More than 160 companies there are now producing such springs, half of them with annual production volumes of more than 8,000 tons. Since their production capacity is too small to assure a solid foothold in the market, smaller companies with low levels of technology have to rely on price-cutting to compete and often disappear.

Zhejiang DLZ

Several Chinese companies specializing in automotive suspension parts have achieved initial success. Among these is Zhejiang DLZ Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd., one of the largest producers of suspension parts in China.

Founded in 1991, Zhejiang DLZ is a globally prestigious supplier of suspension parts mainly for aftermarket purposes, and its own "DLZ" brand has been officially registered in more than 100 countries.

The company's product portfolio covers a wide spectrum of suspension parts, including ball joints, tie rod ends, rack ends, stabilizer links, idler arms, pitman arms, control arms, drag links, and bushings, with over 7,000 different specifications and sizes available for use in a variety of Chinese, Japanese, American, European, and Korean cars.

The company has successfully tapped export markets in some 20 nations in America, Europe, Asia, and Africa with its own-brand products, and has built partnerships with large suppliers around the world for the joint development of suspension system technology.

A large volume of production is among the company's competitive advantages. With more than 500 workers, including some 30 experienced R&D engineers and 40 QC staffers, Zhejiang DZL is able to turn out 650,000 sets of suspension parts monthly and adds 50 new models to its product catalog every month.

The company has won several awards in China for its achievements in quality, business management, and branding, and is now widely recognized as a globally competitive supplier.

Honssion

Ever since its inception in 1993, Honssion Auto Chassis System (Zhejiang) Co. has specialized in making chassis and steering system parts and has developed into a globally competitive manufacturer.

The company uses the latest computer technologies, including CAD (computer aided design), CAM (computer aided manufacturing), and UG (Unigraphics), to develop and produce a variety of chassis system and steering system parts with unbeatable quality, including ball joints, tie rod ends, rack ends, tie rod assemblies, control arms, stabilizer links, idler arms, pitman arms, and arm shafts.

The company's products, available in over 2,000 different specifications and sizes, are usable on nearly all European, Japanese, and American cars.

Honssion is noted for a strong production capability driven partly by its consummate know-how and partly by a full line of CNC lathes, milling machines, grinding machines, drill presses, hydraulic pressure machines, and shot blasting machines in its 20,000-square-meter factory. Current production capacity amounts to 25,000 units of parts per day.

Furthermore, the company consistently follows international quality standards and employs precision quality inspection instruments, such as an omnipotence pull tester, digital measuring projector, hardness tester, and spring pull tester, to provide its customers with guaranteed quality. These efforts have strengthened the manufacturer's globally competitive advantage, and have helped it win ISO 9001, and ISO 9002, and TS16949 certification.