Germany's FUCHS Group, one of the world's largest independent lubricant manufacturers, is betting on China as a strategic home market and an innovation hub. Under its FUCHS100 strategy, which extends to the group's centenary in 2031, localization, diversified business focus areas and net-zero plants are set to become key engines for group growth in China.
In an interview with China Daily, Mario Gehrlein, member of the group management committee and China executive vice-president at FUCHS Group, said China is on track to become the group's No 1 result contributor in 2026. The company has posted near double-digit annual growth in China over the past years.
Under the FUCHS100 framework, more than 60 percent of growth is expected to stem from six focus areas: automotive aftermarket, customer brands, high-performance greases, rotary motion, new mobility and specialty application solutions. It means robotics, wind power and other emerging sectors are among the company's growth drivers in China.
While some overseas regions concentrate on selected focus areas, FUCHS China sees tangible potential across all six, building a diversified growth engine rather than relying on a single segment.
FUCHS first explored the Chinese market in 1985 and opened its first production plant in Yingkou, Liaoning province, in 1988. It was among the earliest international lubricant investors in China. Its China headquarters, now based in Nanxiang town, Shanghai, together with one of the group's three global technology hubs — certified as a Shanghai municipal-level research center — runs two major production sites in Yingkou and Suzhou in Jiangsu province.
The facilities supply lubricants and greases for domestic market demand, with products also exported across the Asia-Pacific region to support group affiliates.
According to Gehrlein, the biggest milestone in its four decades of operation in China was not a physical facility or investment. It was the group's decision to define China as a strategic home market, granting the local team entrepreneurial freedom and high autonomy for market-driven decisions.
"China has evolved from importing German technology to 'China for China', and now to 'China for Global', developing innovations in China to serve global subsidiaries and Chinese OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) expanding overseas," Gehrlein said.
Localization has been a cornerstone of operations. More than 85 percent of FUCHS China's finished lubricants are produced domestically, with the share set to rise to 90 percent by the end of 2026. Over 65 percent of raw materials are sourced from domestic suppliers, and more than 80 percent across the Asia-Pacific region.
More than 60 percent of Chinese employees work in technical or sales roles, supported by highly automated production lines and end-to-end digital workflows.
A new-generation China management team took office this year, guided by the fundamentals of "Flexibility, One Team, China speed, Ultra-efficiency and Spirit of Innovation".
All FUCHS manufacturing plants across China are built to meet net-zero carbon emission standards. The new specialty lubricant plant in Suzhou, commissioned in the summer, stands as a flagship initiative of FUCHS100. Equipped with rooftop solar panels and geothermal heat pumps to offset its operational carbon output, the facility manufactures coating lubricants for advanced machinery manufacturers. Its flexible packaging lines address long-standing bottlenecks for small-batch niche products, serving both multinationals and domestic high-end manufacturing clients, according to Qu Jianqiang, CEO of FUCHS China.
"The plant directly supports the specialty application solutions element of FUCHS100 and embodies our sustainability vision," Qu said.
FUCHS Group targets net-zero Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions by 2040 and full value-chain Scope 3 net zero by 2050. FUCHS China is working closely with key domestic suppliers to drive supply-chain decarbonization.
By leveraging net-zero production capacity and low-carbon product portfolios, the company helps customers cut their carbon footprint, turning emission reductions into tangible commercial advantages amid mounting decarbonization targets across Chinese industries, Qu said.
As demand for traditional internal combustion engine lubricants shrinks amid a global electric vehicle transition, FUCHS China pursues a dual-track automotive business. It maintains conventional combustion-engine lubricants and invests early in NEV-specific functional fluid solutions.
R&D innovations developed in China have been adopted by group R&D centers in Europe to support global new energy expansion. The company has built deep strategic partnerships with almost all major Chinese NEV OEMs.
While FUCHS holds a modest share of China's total lubricant market, its penetration varies sharply by segment — reaching as high as 80 percent in certain niche areas. Revenue from traditional engine oil has declined significantly, yet this drop is offset by high-value NEV functional fluid solutions and non-automotive industrial lubricants.
These cover wind power, semiconductors, medical equipment, food processing and mining applications. Local Chinese enterprises now make up the majority of the customer base, outpacing multinational companies.
People and corporate culture form a core element of the FUCHS100 strategy. Global employee surveys show that 90 percent of FUCHS staff take pride in working for the organization. Within the global group's guided frameworks and regulations, the China team has the autonomy to design talent retention schemes suited for that market.
"Competitive compensation matters, but we prioritize building a safe, innovative environment where employees can grow and exercise entrepreneurial spirit," Gehrlein said.
FUCHS China promotes its "One Team" culture, holding regular employee, supplier, distributor and customer engagement events to align stakeholders amid China's changing market landscape.
Over the next few years, FUCHS Group will continue to invest in China, prioritizing expanded R&D capacity, recruiting technical talent and upgrading production facilities aligned with FUCHS100 growth targets.
Drawing on its production backbone, FUCHS China can dynamically adjust output to accommodate both high-volume commodity goods and low-volume, high-complexity specialty products.
Qu identified three major growth drivers for FUCHS China over the next decade: the new mobility ecosystem, specialty lubricants from China's high-end advanced manufacturing sector, and the massive domestic automotive aftermarket.
"China will serve not merely as a vital local growth engine, but increasingly as a global innovation hub for FUCHS Group," Qu said. "We will continue executing the FUCHS100 strategy, deeply rooted in local insights, and grow hand-in-hand with China's manufacturing upgrade."
