ContiTech is stepping up its innovation drive in India with a major investment in its Surface Solutions facility in Pune, strengthening local research and development, accelerating product development and bringing advanced material innovation closer to automotive customers.
The expansion includes the planned establishment of India's first dedicated Surface Solutions Color Lab, enhanced prototype development facilities and the addition of four new positions to the local R&D team. Together, these initiatives will strengthen ContiTech's ability to develop, evaluate and validate customer-specific automotive interior solutions while delivering faster response times and closer technical collaboration.
“India is a key growth market for our business and an important pillar of our long-term development strategy. As automotive manufacturers increasingly seek localized development support, faster response times and closer technical collaboration, these enhanced local capabilities will help us better support our customers' evolving needs,” said Alexander Scholz, Head of Business India, Surface Solutions at ContiTech.
“This investment reinforces our ‘In India, for India’ approach and reflects our confidence in the continued growth potential of the Indian automotive industry.”
At the heart of the investment is the planned Color Lab, which will bring dedicated color development and material evaluation capabilities to India for the first time within ContiTech's Surface Solutions business.
Equipped with advanced development and evaluation capabilities, the facility will focus on color development, color matching, appearance evaluation and customer-specific material development for automotive interior applications. While primarily supporting customer projects in India, it will also contribute to selected development activities across APAC and EMEA.
The Color Lab, combined with new prototype development facilities, is expected to shorten development cycles and accelerate the evaluation and validation of customized interior solutions.
The investment comes as automotive interiors increasingly emerge as a key differentiator for vehicle manufacturers. Rising demand for premium aesthetics, comfort, personalization and advanced synthetic materials is creating fresh opportunities for innovation across the industry.
As a global market leader in automotive interior materials, ContiTech brings design expertise, premium-quality materials, durability and technical capabilities to vehicle manufacturers. The enhanced Pune facilities are expected to further strengthen this proposition in the Indian market.
“Automotive interiors have become a key differentiator for vehicle brands. Customers increasingly expect premium, comfortable and individualized interior experiences, while OEMs seek innovative and sustainable material solutions. This investment will strengthen our ability to develop and validate color concepts locally, enabling closer collaboration with customers and supporting the next generation of interior design and material solutions for the Indian market,” said Burak Üzel, Head of Design, Surface Solutions.
Beyond infrastructure, ContiTech is also investing in people. The company plans to add four positions to its local R&D organization, expanding technical expertise and strengthening support for customer development programmes across the region.
The leadership structure is also being reinforced. Alok Pandey has recently been appointed Head of Plant Management Pune and will lead the site's continued development, with a focus on expanding innovation capabilities, operational excellence and customer-focused operations.
“The expertise and dedication of our local teams are key to our success. With the planned expansion of our R&D organization, enhanced technical capabilities and strong local leadership, Pune will continue to grow as an important contributor to our global innovation network. I am confident that the team's expertise and commitment will support our future growth and create additional value for customers,” said Jan-Philipp Behrndt, Head of Operations Automotive Plants, Surface Solutions.
With investments in specialized infrastructure, prototype development, R&D talent and local leadership, ContiTech is positioning its Pune facility as a stronger innovation and customer-development hub.
The move underscores the growing importance of localized engineering and product development as automotive manufacturers seek faster innovation cycles, tailored material solutions and closer collaboration with suppliers.
For ContiTech, the expanded Pune capabilities represent more than an increase in development capacity. They signal a deeper commitment to India's automotive industry and a stronger role for the country in its global innovation network.
