Adient (NYSE: ADNT) is a global leader in automotive seating. With 70,000+ employees in 29 countries, Adient operates more than 200 manufacturing and assembly plants worldwide. We produce and deliver automotive seating for all major OEMs. From complete seating systems to individual components, our expertise spans every step of the automotive seat-making process. Our integrated, in-house skills allow us to take our products from research and design to engineering and manufacturing, and into millions of vehicles every year.

For nearly 40 years, our commitment to operational excellence has driven us to consistently deliver exceptional products. As an independent public company, Adient has the ability to reinvest in our core business, quickly capitalize on emerging trends, sharpen our focus on innovation, and maintain our industry-leading position.

Thailand has been a leader in ASEAN's automotive manufacturing and exports, a position expected to endure with established manufacturing facilities, a robust supply chain, favorable business conditions, and faster transition to electrification. Since entering the Thailand market in the last century, Adient has continued to invest in Thailand and emerged as the market leader in automotive seating.

Leveraging Thailand’s advantages as an automotive hub helps position Adient to tap into the growing demand for automotive seating solutions both as a consumption market and an export hub. In addition, establishing a strong presence in Thailand allows for closer proximity and enhanced collaboration with Japanese OEMs, international and premium OEMs like Ford and Daimler, Korean OEMs as well as emerging China EV makers, aligning with Adient's target customer base. Furthermore, the strategic intent to expand the company's footprint in the Asia-Pacific region, while balancing the portfolio across different Asian countries, aligns with the region's dynamic automotive landscape. 

The goal is to establish a well-rounded presence and enhance market competitiveness but also create a resilient and adaptive business model poised for sustained success in the broader APAC region and globally.

Adient has worked with electric vehicle makers as the trusted seat expert since 2015 and has been actively assessing and capturing growth opportunities arising from a shifting market structure. 

Notably, Adient has established close collaborations with leading EV OEMs -- including NIO, Xpeng, Neta, Geely, Chang’an, GAC, etc. in China, as well as Tesla in the US and Europe -- since the early stages of these start-ups or their EV product development. This strategic engagement has accelerated our innovation efforts and facilitated the development of our market-leading seating products. Additionally, we’re actively fostering partnerships with local EV manufacturers in Thailand, aligning with the region’s growing EV market and contributing advanced seating solutions to the development of the local auto industry.

Adient remains committed to consistently investing in our teams and capabilities to support EV programs and activities on a global scale, aligning with evolving market demand and meeting the expectations of our EV customers. This proactive approach ensures that we are well-positioned to seize the numerous opportunities within the EV market.

All four pillars present distinct challenges but also opportunities for Adient. 

Sustainable Product Design challenges Engineering to consider trade-offs between carbon footprint, cost and strength, all while considering OEM customer preferences. Manufacturing presents challenges to Operations primarily due to the limited availability of renewable power sources at the moment; Adient's supply chain and purchasing processes are constrained by the nascent development of industry-standard platforms for tracking and improving carbon footprint and impact.

Adient has initiated onshoring processes when financially viable and critical mass allows, such as vertical integration in mechanisms in Thailand. However, local availability of green steel or alternatives remains a challenge, often requiring long-distance transportation from Europe or China, given the specific grades needed for Adient's applications. Finally, we challenge ourselves to sustain employee engagement and make sure teams are aware, aligned and actively engaged in sustainability projects.

Effectively addressing these challenges necessitates that the organization prioritizes a "sustainability" mindset, where actions align with supported principles. Adient has empowered teams to make the right decisions and has rewarded successful execution, while also adopting a "global" approach, allowing local teams to drive initiatives for results, rather than solely relying on top-down management.

We value and endeavor to create a collaborative and inclusive culture where our people, partners, suppliers and customers feel empowered to make changes for the good of all.

Our OEM customers widely acknowledge that Adient’s commitment to sustainability aligns with their sustainability objectives. They appreciate Adient’s ongoing initiatives to substitute chemical materials with sustainable alternatives, which can improve both the health and environmental aspects of their products. There’s no doubt that the effectiveness of Adient’s current sustainability practices is evident in our customers’ products. 

Some customers have expressed a high level of interest in collaborative efforts to design and produce more comfortable seating products, inspired by our current sustainable applications. They’re interested in how Adient can integrate sustainability and cost-effectiveness into their future models through innovative seating solutions.

In the meantime, we are also proactively implementing sustainable projects and contributing to our customers’ sustainability goals in operations, and our initiatives involve efficient energy management, such as the installation of solar rooftops, optimization of plant lighting systems, waste reduction efforts, monitoring of fuel consumption, and the utilization of renewable energy sources, etc.

Thailand has long been at the forefront of auto manufacturing and exports within the ASEAN region. This market has recently witnessed an anticipated shift in market dynamics with the transformation to more EVs in response to the government’s push to adopt EVs and local production, creating additional market potential and opportunities. We believe this evolution will continue to position Thailand as a pivotal player in the ASEAN automotive landscape, catalyzing the regional shift towards EV adoption.

Simultaneously, the automotive industry in the ASEAN region is vital, and Thailand's automotive industry outlook hinges on its ability to adapt to shifting market dynamics, technological advancements, and regulatory changes while capitalizing on its strengths to maintain a robust presence in the regional market. Overall, we see immense potential across the ASEAN region and Thailand, among others, stands to benefit from the growing ecosystem.

As a leading supplier focused on automotive seating with global reach and integrated in-house capabilities, Adient aims to further drive operational and financial improvements through intense focus on launch management / execution / quality, strengthening our leading position through partnering with customers and suppliers to develop seats for the future and creating a sustainable future by adopting positive ESG-related practices. Moreover, we will also embrace and leverage a shift in industry dynamics to drive business forward in the future.