On September 6, 2013, Honeywell (NYSE: HON) issued its outlook for turbocharger sales in China, expecting the market to double from 5 million units this year to 10 million units in 2018. To keep pace with this accelerating growth, Honeywell is actively introducing its latest diesel and gasoline engine technologies and will promote the spread of turbocharging by launching an average of 25 new engine applications in China each year.
Honeywell estimates that turbocharger penetration in the Chinese market is currently about 22%. Compared with a naturally aspirated engine of the same output, turbocharging can improve fuel efficiency by up to 20% for gasoline engines and up to 40% for diesel engines, while cutting exhaust emissions by up to 30%.
"We can clearly see that the market's attention to engine efficiency and emission reduction is growing rapidly. Turbocharging achieves the dual goals of lower emissions and better fuel economy without sacrificing engine performance or driving pleasure, and it is becoming a key technology increasingly favored by Chinese automakers and drivers," said David Paja, Vice President and General Manager for China and India at Honeywell Transportation Systems. "Honeywell is uniquely placed to seize this opportunity, because we have an unmatched technology portfolio, rapid application development, and 20 years of local market experience and R&D and manufacturing capability in China."
In the diesel vehicle segment, Chinese manufacturers are working to reduce exhaust emissions. To support them, Honeywell has brought its industry-leading VNT (variable-geometry turbocharging) technology to China. Compared with wastegated turbocharging, a VNT turbocharger can raise engine torque by up to 30% and improve fuel economy by up to 5%. VNT is therefore particularly suitable for SUVs and light commercial vehicles, for which engine performance and fuel economy are key purchase drivers.
"Since Honeywell invented VNT technology 20 years ago, more than 50 million vehicles worldwide have been fitted with VNT. We are very excited and proud to be able to help Chinese diesel vehicle manufacturers use this revolutionary technology to accelerate their development," said Mr. Paja, who is confident about the prospects for VNT in China and expects its market share there to quadruple over the next five years.
