European truck manufacturers contribute to developing sustainable transport in China

European and Chinese executives and technical experts meet October 12th in Beijing at the Sino-Europe Commercial Vehicle Technology and Regulation Forum, the first-ever high-level forum of its kind. The conference is co-organised by the China National Technical Committee for Automotive Standardization (NTCAS) and the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) and will be followed up by several meetings on working level in the coming year.

“The European commercial vehicle manufacturers have set the international standards for truck safety, and the environmental performance of their vehicles often surpasses the strictest limit values”, says ACEA Secretary-General Ivan Hodac. “Developing a partnership with the Chinese is a matter of mutual interest and we very much appreciate the opportunity to intensify both dialogue with legislators and cooperation at a business level.”

China currently reflects comprehensively on how to improve the safety standards, the environmental performance and the efficiency of its logistics sector, a key component of the fast-growing Chinese economy. Topics to be addressed at the forum include design and manufacturing issues for commercial vehicles, the eyed reinforcement of safety inspections and type-approval procedures, and the use of information technology to improve logistics and the use of transport capacity.

The participants in the forum will compose a roadmap of NTCAS standardisation work ahead for commercial vehicles in China, comprising new standards to be formulated and existing standards to be upgraded. The European participants will share their experience with the European regulatory framework and explain the importance of harmonised UN/ECE standards. A technical workshop on braking standards for commercial vehicles will be convened in parallel.