The $35 million (239 million yuan) BorgWarner China Technical Center is based in the city's Minhang district and now has a completed area of 16,000 square meters. A second phase of construction is expected to start in 2011 and will add a further 11,000 square meters.

"Our largest world class technical center is here," said Tim Manganello, chairman and CEO of BorgWarner Inc., at the opening ceremony for the new center on March 22. By 2012 the center will employ 400 staff, he added.

As the market for automatic transmissions continues to grow here, BorgWarner will use the technical center to develop products suited specifically for customers in the region.

BorgWarner's sales in Asia have continued to rise despite the global recession. "Our sales in the U.S. were relatively flat in 2009 but we had tremendous growth in Europe of dual clutch transmissions, and turbochargers in Korea and China," said Manganello.

In 2009 BorgWarner had annual global sales of $4.5 billion (30.7 billion yuan).

A decade ago the U.S. accounted for over 66 percent of BorgWarner's total sales but by last year the proportion had fallen to 27 percent against higher turnover in Europe and Asia.

In 2009 Asia accounted for 23 percent of the company's global sales and its share is expected to rise to 30 percent by 2014. Europe accounted for 50 percent of BorgWarner's global sales in 2009 and its share is expected to remain roughly constant.

In China BorgWarner expects sales of its products to increase at an annual rate of 45 percent until 2014. The company also expects Chinese vehicle production to increase at 17 percent per year over the same period.

"Our plan is to build in China to support China," says Manganello.

In China BorgWarner has a host of manufacturing facilities.

Established in the northern coastal city of Dalian in 2009, BorgWarner United Transmission Systems is a joint venture between BorgWarner and twelve Chinese customers including FAW, SAIC, Chery, Geely and Dongfeng. It now operates a transmissions systems plant. A new dual clutch transmission production base is expected to begin module production in 2012 or 2013.

In the coastal city of Ningbo the company has a wholly owned plant: BorgWarner Automotive Components Co. The facility concentrates on turbo and emission systems, transmission systems and the MorseTech System – an automotive chain system for torque transfer.

BorgWarner also has a thermo systems joint venture facility in Ningbo with China's Shenlong Group.

In Beijing, BorgWarner has a joint venture with Beijing Auto for the production of torque management systems including transfer cases. BorgWarner owns an 80 percent share of the joint venture.

In Shanghai, BorgWarner has a 50-50 joint venture with Japanese supplier firm NSK supplying mainly Japanese automakers in China.