• FIA World Prize 2007 goes to Bosch
• Award for contribution to worldwide road safety
• ESP® counteracts vehicle skidding

Monaco, December 7, 2007 – Highest accolade for the Bosch Group: The FIA (Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile) is to award the company the internationally acclaimed "FIA World Prize for Road Safety, the Environment and Mobility." With the award, the FIA is expressing its recognition of the great contribution the automotive supplier has made to worldwide road safety by developing and consistently marketing the ESP^® safety system. FIA President Max Mosley presented the trophy to the CEO of Robert Bosch GmbH, Franz Fehrenbach, at the FIA gala in Monaco. "Bosch has played a pivotal role in the development and promotion of the most effective car safety system since the invention of the safety belt", Mosley explained. In his acceptance speech, Fehrenbach replied: "This prize is a distinction for all our associates: for the engineers who developed the system, for the associates in our plants who have been producing this system to the highest quality standards for many years now, and not least for the marketing experts who have never tired of communicating the benefits of this system." The FIA World Prize is presented every year to a person or an organization that has made an outstanding contribution in the areas of road safety, the environment, or mobility.

International accident studies demonstrate that at least 40 percent of all fatal traffic accidents are caused by skidding. Around 80 percent of all skidding accidents could be prevented with ESP^®. This year, a socio-economic study by the University of Cologne showed that 4,000 traffic deaths and 100,000 injuries could be prevented in Europe alone if ESP^® were installed in all vehicles. The U.S. road traffic agency NHTSA estimates that 10,000 traffic deaths on American roads could be prevented with ESP^®. Bosch developed the active safety system and was the first company to put it on the market in 1995. "ESP^® is a prime example of how innovative safety systems can improve road safety," said Fehrenbach.

In 2006, 26 percent of all new vehicles produced worldwide were equipped with ESP^®. In the first half of 2007, the share of all newly registered cars in Europe was 47 percent. In the U.S., legislation was passed in 2007 making ESP^® mandatory standard equipment for all passenger cars from model year 2012. And the EU Commission has also announced its intention to mandate installation of the anti-skid system from 2011.

The NCAP (New Car Assessment Program) organizations around the world also recommend the use of ESP^®. For example, since 2005 the European NCAP has recommended that car buyers only buy vehicles with ESP^®. The NCAP association of Australasia (ANCAP) has gone one step further, and announced that only vehicles with ESP^® will be given five stars from 2008 on.

About the Bosch Group

The Bosch Group is a leading global manufacturer of automotive and industrial technology, consumer goods, and building technology. In fiscal 2006, some 260,000 associates generated sales of 43.7 billion euros. Set up in Stuttgart in 1886 by Robert Bosch (1861-1942) as “Workshop for Precision Mechanics and Electrical Engineering,” the Bosch Group today comprises a manufacturing, sales, and after-sales service network of some 300 subsidiaries and more than 13,000 Bosch service centers in over 140 countries.

The special ownership structure of the Bosch Group guarantees its financial independence and entrepreneurial freedom. It makes it possible for the company to undertake significant up-front investments in the safeguarding of its future, as well as to do justice to its social responsibility in a manner reflective of the spirit and will of its founder. A total of 92 % of the share capital of Robert Bosch GmbH is held by the charitable foundation Robert Bosch Stiftung. The entrepreneurial ownership functions are carried out by Robert Bosch Industrietreuhand KG.

About Bosch in China

Bosch founded its first trading office in China as early as 1909. In 1926, the first car service workshop opened in Shanghai. Today, all of the Bosch business sectors are present in China: Automotive and Industrial Technology, Consumer Goods and Building Technology. The company operates via a holding company in Shanghai, 14 subsidiaries, seven joint ventures, and six trading companies. 200 6 consolidated sales in China reached 1 .3 billion euros. Up to 2005, Bosch had invested around 620 million euros in China and between 2006 and 2008 it will invest a further 620 million euros. Bosch employees are committed to bringing to the Chinese customers the latest technology as well as the most reliable services to help improve their quality of life.

About Bosch Chassis Systems Control China

As one of the key divisions of Bosch’s automotive technology business, Bosch Chassis Systems Control China started its engineering and sales in China in 2002. This development was followed by the establishment of its new ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) production line in Suzhou and the localized production of ABS in 2003 as well as the localized production of ABS8.0 and ESP®8.0 in Suzhou in 2005. In April 2005 Bosch established its Suzhou Engineering Center to enhance its development and production capabilities in China, speed up its response to market requirements and thus better serve Chinese customers. The Engineering Center has a total area of 200,000 square meters and a total investment of US$ 60 million. In 2006, Bosch established its vehicle verification road (VVR). The VVR is mainly used for road testing and verification of vehicle braking systems. It covers a total area of 36,480 square meters and represents a total investment of Euro 1.8 million. The road is designed and built according to international professional standards. The establishment of VVR distinguishes Bosch as the only automotive supplier to own a professional braking systems verification road in China.

Additional information can be accessed at
http://www.bosch-esperience.com.cn.

For more information on Bosch China, please visit http://www.bosch.com.cn

For further details please contact:

Julia Shi Bosch Chassis Systems Control China Bosch Automotive Products (Suzhou) Co., Ltd. Tel: 0512-6767 6138 Email: julia.shi@cn.bosch.com

Helen He Bosch(China) Investment Ltd. Tel: 021-2898 1111 Email: helen.he@cn.bosch.com

News sourc: Bosch China
Publish date: Dec. 2007