Sunroof supplier grows with Chery, SGM

SHANGHAI -- Demand for sunroofs is growing in China.

John Mack, CEO of Inalfa Roof Systems China (Shanghai), says the company expects its sales to skyrocket to close to 50 million euros (541 million yuan) in 2010. It has orders from Shanghai General Motors, Chery Automobile Co. and Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. In 2007 the company posted sales of around 5 million euros (54 million yuan).

Start of production of sunroofs for SAIC will begin later this year. A new project with Shanghai GM will begin production in 2010.  Inalfa has four current and three new projects with Chery.

"Chery is one of our biggest customers followed by Shanghai GM," says Mack. The company also has three existing projects with Zhejiang Geely Automobile Group and two with Shanghai GM.

New programs in 2009 include Beijing Benz-DaimlerChrysler Automotive Co. and Zhejiang Gonow Auto Co. Inalfa will also begin exporting to Nissan Motor Co. in India from next year. Exports currently account for 5 percent of total production. Inalfa currently supplies Mitsubishi Motors Corp. in Japan from China.

The sunroofs are produced at Yantai Inalfa Roof Systems in Yantai, Shandong province. The plant currently makes 300,000 sunroofs per year. "We have space to make another 600,000," says Mack.

The future of sunroofs in China is changing as consumer tastes in China sway toward high tech luxury. In five years the trend will be to have panorama sunroofs, says Mack.

With panorama sunroofs, the entire roof is made of glass, and the roof can have more than one opening.

However, panorama roofs are high cost and high tech. Inalfa expects to add 5 engineers to its staff of 8 at its R&D center in Shanghai. Inalfa employs 120 people in China.

Competition is heating up. ArvinMeritor Inc. this year opened a sunroof plant in Shanghai with capacity to make 600,000 sunroofs annually. German roof maker Webasto AG has a strong presence in the region with five roof system plants.

Inalfa Roof Systems Inc. ranks 145 in the 2008 edition of Automotive News' Top 150 Suppliers.