ZF Friedrichshafen has appointed Rudi von Meister, 56, to the newly-created role of president of Asia-Pacific with headquarters in Shanghai.
US-born von Meister has spent almost 30 years in the region working for General Motors, Delphi Automotive Systems and Fiat Group China. He also spent some time as a consultant with AT Kearney and joins ZF from his role as president of Navistar with responsibility for the truck maker’s business and sales in China.
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“Rudi von Meister’s knowledge of the automotive industry and the Asia-Pacific region goes back nearly 30 years,” ZF CEO Stefan Sommer said in a statement. “With his experience he provides valuable support for us as we further strengthen and expand our activities in the Far East.”
Von Meister will be reporting to Jürgen Holeksa, responsible for Asia-Pacific on the ZF board.
Last year, ZF had sales of EUR3bn (US$4.2bn) in the region of which EUR2bn were in China. In November, ZF commissioned a new axle assembly plant in Kulim, Malaysia. In total ZF has about 7,500 employees in Asia-Pacific.
