Herrenknecht puts third Chinese assembly site into operation.

Herrenknecht AG expands its presence on the Chinese market with the foundation of Herrenknecht (Chengdu) Tunnelling Equipment Co., Ltd. and puts into operation the new assembly site in Chengdu.

Schwanau, April 12, 2007. In Chengdu (Sichuan Province) Herrenknecht will assemble tunnel boring machines for the Business Unit Traffic Tunnelling (diameters > 4,20m) for the Chinese and Asian market. Dr. Martin Herrenknecht, Chairman of the Board of Management, presented at the opening ceremony the first EPB Shield (S-366, diameter 6,25 m) assembled in Chengdu. This TBM will build part of the new metro system in Chengdu together with six more EPB Shields and one Mixshield. At present, the assembly site comprises a total of 6,000sqm of built-up area. The 3,900sqm assembly hall is equipped with up to date facilities for steel work and the assembly of TBMs. Production-related administration offices occupy the remaining 2,100sqm. Herrenknecht Chengdu employs a staff of 35 at the moment and plans to assemble six tunnel boring machines in 2007.

The assembly and production site in Chengdu, central China, is Herrenknecht?s third site in the People?s Republic following the two factories in Guangzhou and nearby Nansha (Guandong Province). The investment into the site amounts to 4 million USD. Putting the site at Chengdu into operation, Herrenknecht expands its international production network one step further. The company?s heart is the headquarters in Schwanau (Southern Germany) where the machines? main components, i.e., hydraulics, steering and process technology, as well as cutterheads for the Chinese market are produced. Herrenknecht?s expaned production network serves the internationally demanded availability of tunnelling technology. Services can be provided close to the projects.