DENSO Named 2015 Automotive News PACE Award Finalist

Contact: Bridgette LaRose
DENSO International America, Inc.
(248) 372-8266
bridgette_larose@denso-diam.com

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. – DENSO’s newly standardized Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning (HVAC) unit has been selected as a finalist for the 2015 Automotive News Premier Automotive Suppliers’ Contribution to Excellence (PACE) Award. DENSO’s world-first HVAC unit can be used in a wide variety of vehicle lines and models resulting in a cost-saving for car makers.

“The challenge was big, but our latest HVAC system is one of our smallest ever,” said Jason Hendry, director of Climate Control at DENSO International America, Inc. “Our products are designed with ease of assembly – they contain fewer parts and have features that are easier to grasp, move, orient and insert.”

Traditionally, HVAC units are designed and tailored to each vehicle model; however, this new unit is unique in that it eliminates the need for multiple designs. Small changes in the case width of the HVAC module allow car makers to use it throughout various models and segments. The newly standardized unit reduces CO2 emissions through improved vehicle efficiency from the overall reduction in size, mass and electrical power consumption.

In 2014, DENSO began mass production of the HVAC unit began in Japan and production in North America is planned to begin in 2015 – other global regions will follow from 2016 to 2018.

DENSO received the Automotive News PACE Award in 2004 for the Very High-Pressure Solenoid Fuel Injection System. PACE Award winners will be announced on April 20, 2015 at the Max M. Fisher Music Center in Detroit.

About DENSO Corporation:
DENSO Corporation, headquartered in Kariya, Aichi prefecture, Japan, is a leading global automotive supplier of advanced technology, systems and components in the areas of thermal, powertrain control, electronics and information and safety. Its customers include all the world’s major carmakers. Worldwide, the company has more than 200 subsidiaries and affiliates in 38 countries and regions and employs nearly 140,000 people. Consolidated global sales for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2014, totaled US$39.8 billion. Last fiscal year, DENSO spent 9.0 percent of its global consolidated sales on research and development. DENSO common stock is traded on the Tokyo and Nagoya stock exchanges. For more information, go to www.globaldenso.com, or visit our media website at www.densomediacenter.com.

About DENSO in North America:
Currently, in North America, DENSO employs more than 17,000 people at 33 consolidated companies and affiliates. Of these, 28 are manufacturing facilities located in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. In the U.S. alone, DENSO employs more than 14,000 people in California, Alabama, Michigan, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, Iowa, Ohio, Arkansas, and Pennsylvania. DENSO’s North American consolidated sales totaling US$7.9 billion for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2014.