HARMAN Starts Operation of Suzhou Global Product Development Center in China

HARMAN International Industries, Inc. has recently commenced operations of its Suzhou Global Product Development Center (PDC) in China. This new facility, located in the Suzhou Industrial Park, is the company’s biggest complete R&D hub for car audio products around the world, and the third global car audio product development center following Germany and the USA.

The PDC will work side-by-side with HARMAN’s existing production facility on the same site for smooth integration of development and production, making the company the only supplier in China’s automotive branded audio industry to have full value chain capabilities, including R&D, sourcing, production, technical support, and distribution and retailing.

Dinesh C. Paliwal, HARMAN Chairman, President & Chief Executive Officer, said that the company’s new development center in Suzhou is a physical proof to their commitment to customer focus and innovation—two of their key corporate values. He pointed out that China is the largest automaker and market in the world, and HARMAN Suzhou PDC’s launch not only moves them closer to the Chinese market and customers, but reinforces their global development networks. “It also represents a strategic step to drive our continuous high-speed growth in China through innovation and quality excellence – and reflects the government’s priorities for ‘Smart Manufacturing in China.’”

According to David Jin, HARMAN innovation is based on recognizing customer needs and seeking the best possible solutions. He added that with their development center and production facility in Suzhou and backed by HARMAN’s global innovation resources, they could stay closer to the China market, get feedback quickly and directly, shorten the cycle of product development and meet customer expectations and more flexibly reach out to the global market. “Breakthrough innovations and close collaboration with manufacturing will allow us to continuously deliver outstanding solutions.”

The Suzhou PDC covers 12,000 square meters and can accommodate 350 scientists, supporting teams and engineers, and features state-of-the-art R&D facilities. It has world-class product development laboratories, testing laboratories and pilot production lines. The facility will also be responsible for offering product testing services to HARMAN facilities, globally supporting tests for EMC, acoustic environment, acoustic inspection, consistency, and stability.