FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich., March 24, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Cohda Wireless, a global leader in connected vehicle technology, has increased its European presence by recruiting automotive industry veteran Bernd Luebben to lead its new office in Germany.
As Vice President of Business Development, Bernd joins the Cohda Wireless management team with responsibility for business development globally.
Bernd brings more than 20 years of automotive and semiconductor industry experience to Cohda Wireless, after working with Continental, Motorola TCG, and Volcano (now known as Mentor Graphics). At Texas Instruments, he led the company's European Automotive Sales & Application team.
Demonstrating the importance of the European market, Cohda Wireless CEO Paul Gray is currently based in Germany for three months, collaborating with tier one partners to detail final specifications for connected car technology, which is expected in production vehicles from 2016.
Cohda Wireless' expansion into Europe follows last year's opening of its U.S. office in the Michigan city of Farmington Hills, close to key OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) and tier one customers. It also capitalizes on momentum from last month's announcement by the U.S. Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that it will start taking steps to enable vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication technology for light vehicles.
V2V technology promises to improve vehicle safety by allowing cars to "talk" to each other and ultimately avoid many crashes by exchanging basic safety data, such as speed and position, 10 times per second. Cohda Wireless is a pioneer in V2X technology, which incorporates both vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication. More than half of all vehicles involved in V2X trials globally contain Cohda equipment, including 1,500 of the 2,800 vehicles involved in the important Safety Pilot Model Deployment at Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Cohda Wireless CEO Paul Gray said Bernd's appointment provided increased visibility of Cohda's ground-breaking technology in the European market. "Cohda Wireless stands on the threshold of widespread adoption of V2X technology by the automotive sector," he said.
"Bernd brings deep skills in strategic planning and business development, primarily in the area of Telematics where he has managed key relationships with international OEMs and customers."
Bernd Luebben said Cohda Wireless offered a technology that would help re-shape the car industry globally. "Like seat belts and Anti-lock Braking Systems, car-to-car communications is a great leap forward in vehicle safety," he said.
"Being located in Cohda's new Munich office allows me to focus on the European market, working alongside companies including our investor NXP Semiconductors and European OEMs. Cohda is a very exciting company to work for during a fascinating transition period for the global car industry."
Download a hi-res photo of Bernd Luebben from http://www.impress.com.au/images/stories/cohda_wireless/Bernd_Luebben.jpg.
About Cohda Wireless
Cohda Wireless is an equipment vendor in the Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) market. The company manufactures hardware products with acknowledged best-in-world performance and has developed complete software solutions (from network layer to applications layer) for this market. Cisco and NXP Semiconductors are strategic investors in Cohda Wireless. Cohda's hardware and software products are being used in car-to-car field trials worldwide today. Our customers include a large number of carmakers, tier one suppliers, automotive chip makers, road authorities, as well as new market entrants. Cohda's products are already in use in the USA, Europe, Australia, Japan, and Korea. For more information, visit www.cohdawireless.com.
