Automotive Updates - 13th October 2014

• About 150 striking union members of Bosch Ltd's plant here were arrested today when they tried to stage a protest in front of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's residence against the government's decision to prohibit their strike. The members had gathered with an intention to stage a protest without permission, DCP Bangalore Central Sandeep Patil said. He said all of them have been released on bail now. Around 1,000 workers had gathered. (ETauto.com)

• High tech components manufacturerBharat Forge and global aerospace, defence and security major Safran have announced a long-term partnership under which Bharat Forge will supply critical high integrity forged and machined components, for commercial aircraft applications to Safran's global affiliates. (ETauto.com)

• Japan’s Kawasaki is aiming to sell more motorcycles in India than last year. Though the Indian market for superbikes and premium segment bikes is not that large as on date, Japanese two wheeler major, Kawasaki Motors, is optimistic about significant growth in India during the fiscal 2014-15. India’s superbike market is growing, Kawasaki too expects to grow with that. Keen to grab a large share of the premium segment pie in the country, Kawasaki Motor India is predicting a 30 to 40% increase in sales in the current fiscal. This was mentioned by Shigeto Nishikawa, Deputy Director of Kawasaki Motor India at the opening of a new company outlet in Chennai. .(rushlane.com)

• ZF CEO Dr. Stefan Sommer  and the chairman of the BAIC Group, Xu Heyi, in Friedrichshafen, Germany, during the initial contract signing for a JV for chassis system assembly.ZF Friedrichshafen AG and Beijing Automotive Industry Corporation (BAIC Group) have for the first time founded a joint venture for developing and assembling passenger car chassis systems. Dr Stefan Sommer, CEO of ZF, and Xu Heyi, chairman of the BAIC Group as well as its passenger car division BAIC Motor, signed the joint venture contract in Friedrichshafen on October 9.(Autocarpro.in)

• Hungary-basedcar navigation solutions provider NNG today said it is eyeing 70 per cent market pie from the after-market segment in the next four years.The company which offers its navigation software to car manufacturers directly had launched a new solution callediGO Primo Nextgen which can be seamlessly integrated with smartphones, in association with its local partner ANS.(ETauto.com)

• Mercedes-Benz India will launch its fourth AMG vehicle – the GLA 45 AMG, this month, on October 27. The GLA 45 AMG is based on the GLA-Class that made its official debut last month and is apparently sold out for the year. This is the second four-cylinder AMG vehicle to go on sale in India after the CLA45 AMG.(carwale.com)

• Nissan has announced a major expansion of its schools engagement activities in the UK, using electric vehicles, motorsports and its manufacturing excellence to excite thousands of young people about careers in industry. A range of workshops, competitions, practical activities and facility tours will see more than 15,000 students experience the innovation and excitement of 21st century automotive design, engineering and manufacturing over the next two years. (Autocarpro.in)

• Renault-Nissan Alliance reports a higher number of women in manager-level positions globally YoY. Renault leads in setting an auto industry benchmark for women at senior executive levels. Renault-Nissan Alliance continues making strides in its commitment to closing gender gap. Both companies report a higher percentage of women in manager-level positions globally in 2013 compared to 2012. At Renault, women accounted for 18.4% of manager-level positions globally in 2013, up from 17% in 2012. 19.3% of the company’s 2,000 global key positions were held by women, up from 17% in 2012.(rushlane.com)

• Toyota has given a minor nip-&-tuck treatment to the Etios duo; both the vehicles are reportedly launching in couple of days. After the launch, Japanese manufacturer will have updated Etios family, sedan-hatch-duo along with the Etios Cross. Adding to it, the recently launched Cross variant of the Etios has spruced up the low sales of the Etios hatch in the country.(cardekho.com)