Alexandru Blemovici, Schaeffler Romania: “We have a very strong software team through which we create projects that keep us competitive”

“From the perspective of competition with Europe, I believe we are in a fairly good position in Romania. We have the best results in terms of production and KPIs, but we must see how we manage to remain competitive globally.

You can gain competitiveness by being sufficiently active in all trends related to productivity growth, whether we talk about AI or automation in manufacturing.

We have several projects through which we aim to increase this competitiveness for our factories in Romania and, even from the perspective of solutions, one of the companies in our group provides digital solutions for production improvement. There are several software and automation solutions that support us in this competition,” said Alexandru Blemovici, Head of Schaeffler Romania & Southeast Europe, during the Automotive Forum 2025 organized by Automotive Today and The Diplomat-Bucharest.

Key statements:

• “However, I think it is also important to look at how you manage to increase productivity—whether we refer to KPIs, resource usage, or equipment utilization. Modern technologies, digitalization, and AI can play an important role in boosting competitiveness.”

• “We have a very strong team in Romania, with over 2,000 engineers developing electromobility projects, and a very strong software team through which we create projects that help us remain competitive. In terms of manufacturing technology, we are at an extremely high level, including in Romania—through technology, quality, and our ability to understand the systems of our customers, to whom we supply components.”

• “We are definitely competitive, but what concerns me is becoming a benchmark, a reference point within our group. Unfortunately, we are not yet a benchmark, but we are technologically prepared to reach that level.”