While multinationals make inroads into China's auto parts and accessories industry, domestic producers are moving at full speed to break onto the international stage.

Dekra, a leading European certification body, and Sinomotive Group Ltd, an auto parts trader, recently announced a strategic quality initiative to help Chinese firms increase exports.

The Dekra quality seal, considered a sign of international-standard quality, has for the first time been awarded to Chinese companies. The three firms from Zhejiang Province make warning triangles, first-aid kits and alloy rims, and the quality seal gives them the green light to enter the European Union market.

To qualify for the seal, each product is certified before production begins, a process that can take between two weeks and six months, according to Guenther Strobel, managing director of Dekra (Shanghai) Co Ltd.

"Our European customers and wholesalers demand low prices and high quality. This is easier said than done. The Dekra seal on a Sinomotive product is proof that this is a five-star product with low-budget price," said Knut Schuttemeyer, chairman of the board of management of Sinomotive AG in Berlin, Germany.

Testing and certification are performed by the Dekra certification office in Shanghai, working jointly with the Automotive College of Tongji University, as well as the Dekra Automobile Test Center in Klettwitz near Dresden, Germany.

"Over the long term, only strong, world-class products will excel on the world markets. One cannot survive on price alone," Ma Jun, director of the Automotive College of Tongji University, said.

(China Daily May 4, 2007)