Certification firm helps Chinese companies go global
TÜV SÜD, a leading thirdparty certification institution, is relocating its Beijing office on April 28 to meet demand for software and hardware upgrades.
The office relocation will “help TÜV SÜD better react to the promotion and transition of the Chinese manufacturing industry, and boost the integration and development of both manufacturing and export industries to improve the competitiveness of Chinese export products”, said Dirk von Wahl, CEO and President of TÜV SÜD Greater China.
The Beijing office is a solid foundation for the group’s northern regional business in China and will focus on integrating resources for clients, providing local insights with global expertise and supporting each section across the value chain to connect with the group’s one-stop service, he said.
“In recent years, TÜV SÜD has conducted business in the wind power, electricity, energy and industrial equipment industries in North China,” von Wahl said.
TÜV SÜD’s Beijing office was founded in 1997 and upgraded as a Beijing branch in 2004.
To meet the demand of the increasing number of clients and localization services, TÜV SÜD Greater China North Region was established in 2006 with Beijing as its center. Offices in Harbin, Changchun, Shenyang, Dalian, Tianjin, Ji’nan, Qingdao and Xi’an played a supporting role. Since 2014, the region has covered Northeast China, Northwest China, North China and Shandong Province.
Before von Wahl took up his role in 2009, he was a senior executive at leading companies sustainability measures.
In 2015, the “new normal”, a phrase introduced by President Xi Jinping to describe slower but more sustainable economic growth, became a hot topic as China’s economy slowed after more than 30 years of rapid development. The maturing market increasingly plays a leading and decisive role in allocating resources. Meanwhile, the industry is in transition.
“In the future, third-party testing and certification organizations like TÜV SÜD could better complement and cooperate with the government’s market supervision and regulatory departments, using the power of reform to jointly promote the industry’s sound development,” von Wahl said.
In addition, a “separation of government and enterprise” also provides a fairer and more open platform for third-party testing and certification institutions, he added.
“We believe that there is huge potential in the testing and certification industry, and we will experience an expansion in our operations in Chinese market,” von Wahl said.
As an international company, a localization strategy is an important aspect of the group’s overall business strategy.
“Our philosophy is our DNA—‘Choose certainty. Add value.’ With this, we provide one-stop ser vices, add economic value for our clients and increase social capital for society,” von Wahl said.
In China, TÜV SÜD has about 3,000 employees and technical experts in different fields to provide service for its clients and to strengthen mutual cooperation.
This also develops a network of laboratories nationwide. “We upgraded our Shenzhen testing center last year, following the establishment of our testing centers in Shanghai and Xiamen,” von Wahl said.