Valeo Breaks Ground On Electronics Manufacturing Facility.

The Valeo Group said it began construction of a new 65,000-square-foot electronics manufacturing facility in Fort Worth, Texas. This highly automated electronics production site, to be completed next spring, will be Valeo's first electronics manufacturing facility in North America, the company

The facility's 170 employees will work jointly with Valeo engineering centers in Auburn Hills, Mich. and Creteil, France, to develop and assemble electronic systems. Located within the Alliance Advanced Technology Center in Fort Worth, the Valeo facility is slated to begin production in late summer 2000.

"This site provides us with an electronics manufacturing infrastructure well adapted to the continued growth of our business," explained Martin Haub, Vice-President, Valeo Electronics.

Valeo produces a Reverse Sensing System, available on 1999 Ford Windstars and Explorers and is a leader in obstacle-detection systems. In 1998, Valeo significantly increased its presence in the United States with its acquisition of ITT Electrical Systems.

Today, Valeo Electronics' product range includes flat-integrated circuits for hands-free keyless entry systems, electronic ballasts for HID lighting systems, electronic steering column switches, body controllers, compact opto-electronic rain sensors for auto-activated wiper systems and electronic modules for compact automatic clutches.

Ranked among the world's top 10 automotive suppliers, Valeo employs 50,400 persons in 20 countries. The Group has 112 production facilities, 29 Research and Development and 10 distribution centers. Valeo's estimated sales for 1999 will total $8.2 billion.