Bosh to invest €1.2 bn in Asia Pacific as IoT market booms

German automotive technology giant Robert Bosch plans to invest €1.2 billion in Asia Pacific, which is emerging as the world's leading market for internet of things (IoT), Bosh said ahead of a conference of German business.

With investments and supportive government schemes for localisation of production, Bosch sees a wealth of opportunities for businesses with connected technologies in the Asia Pacific region, especially in India, China and the Asean member countries.

The Asia Pacific region is forecast to be world's leading IoT market by 2020.

Since localisation policy also applies to connectivity, Bosch is opting for local engineering and intensified partnerships in the region. Bosch expects its employee strength in the Asia Pacific region to reach 120,000 by the end of 2016.

''Asia Pacific is a region in transition: growth rates are reaching a sustainable level, in emerging markets such as China, India, and Asean member countries, the middle class is growing, and with it the demand for quality products and smart technologies....

''The Bosch Group can see a number of ways of actively helping to shape this change: ''Especially when it comes to connectivity, we can see huge potential in Asia Pacific. Thanks to its broad footprint, Bosch is ideally positioned to offer cross-domain solutions from a single source,'' said Peter Tyroller, member of the Bosch board of management responsible for the region.

He was addressing the media ahead of the 14th German Industry Asia Pacific Conference (APK) in Hong Kong from 3 to 5 November 2016.

In 2015, Bosch generated sales of 19.2 billion euros in the region, and thus roughly 27 per cent of its global sales.

Asia Pacific therefore remains a significant driver of growth for the supplier of technology and services. This is also reflected in its activities in the region: ''For the present year, we plan investments in our Asian locations totaling some €1.2 billion.'' Bosch is pursuing a policy of localisation in the region, having already invested some €2.5 billion – or roughly one-quarter of all Bosch Group investments in that period (10 billion euros) – in the previous three years.

The company, which has had a presence in Asia Pacific for more than 100 years, now operates more than 60 locations in 18 countries in the region.

Market for IoT
''The market for the internet of things (IoT) is also growing rapidly in Asia Pacific,'' says Peter Tyroller. ''We forecast that the region as a whole will have the world's greatest IoT market potential by 2020, at 37 per cent.''

According to a study, the market for the Industrial IoT in Asia Pacific alone should grow five-fold between 2015 and 2020 .It is expected that urbanisation and industrialization will accelerate Asian countries' development, and connected technologies can play a part in this.

Government initiatives are also having a great impact on the connectivity business market. With its ''Made in China 2025'' initiative, the Chinese government is above all supporting the widespread use of connected solutions in industry. The ''Make in India'' programme aims to modernize manufacturing in India. As a leading supplier of Industry 4.0, Bosch offers solutions in the areas of powertrain technology and automation as well as sensor technology and software.

Bosh said, as a leading user, the company already successfully operates pilot projects in Asia as well, at manufacturing sites in China, India, South Korea, and Malaysia.

Apart from connected industry, Asian countries are above all investing in smart-city projects. Bosch offers mobility concepts as well as solutions that can connect power grids, lighting systems, traffic infrastructure, and buildings, helping to improve cities' economic and energy efficiency. Pilot projects in this area are already running in India and Singapore.