Wacker, the Munich-based chemical company, has been named Bosch's "Preferred Supplier" in the "elastomers and thermosetting plastics" materials group. Stuttgart-based Bosch, a leading global supplier of technology and services, awarded the status recently.

In Bosch's annual assessment, Wacker scored top marks in the categories of quality, logistics, innovation and strategic collaboration. As a preferred supplier, Wacker can now play an even stronger part in the development of new products and technologies.

Once a year, Bosch assigns its Preferred Supplier status to the best of its 4,000 suppliers in its subassemblies and materials groups. "Wacker's outstanding achievements in the fields of quality, delivery reliability, innovation and strategic collaboration made it an obvious choice for this award," said Dr. Norbert Neumann, Bosch's Senior Vice President of Purchasing and Logistics for Automotive Business Subassemblies and Materials. "What particularly impressed us was Wacker's extremely constructive and forward-looking approach."

Wacker and Bosch have been collaborating closely in automotive electronics and household appliances for over 30 years. The chemical company currently supplies over 100 different silicone products to Bosch, including adhesives, sealants, silicone rubber grades, and specialty silicone gels for potting electronic components.

"Our preferred supplier status is not only proof of our solid cooperation with Bosch. It also shows that silicones are highly innovative materials. They are extremely versatile and robust, which is why they are indispensable in so many high-tech products such as LEDs and automotive electronics," Peter Summo, Vice President of Wacker's Engineering Silicones Business Unit, said.

He added that the award is an incentive for Wacker to further its partnership with Bosch. "As a Preferred Supplier, we can now support joint development projects even more intensively than in the past."
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