BOSCH Rexroth AG, a leading supplier of drive and control technologies, said yesterday that mainland sales jumped 29.8 percent to nearly 305 million euros (US$488 million) last year.

The company also said it invested 34.6 million euros on the mainland last year, compared with 28.29 million euros for 2006.

Theo Ramhorst, managing director and chief executive officer of Bosch Rexroth China, told a media briefing that the company will expand production capacity in China to meet demand as well as look for acquisition targets.

According to Ramhorst, about half of the company's China sales are from its factories in Shanghai, Beijing and Changzhou, Jiangsu Province. The company aims to raise the ratio to 70 percent in two to three years, he said.

"We are convinced that we will achieve an even stronger growth rate in mobile applications, industrial automation and renewable energy sectors in 2008," said Ramhorst.

Bosch Rexroth, part of Germany's Bosch Group, provides products and solutions in power, control and actuator systems for applications in industrial automation, mobile equipment and commercial vehicles as well as renewable energy.

Fowai Lau, a managing director for sales of Bosch Rexroth China, said the company will step up efforts to cultivate local talents as the fast-growing market has created increasing demand for professionals.

The company plans to add more than 800 employees in China this year. It had 2,093 employees on the mainland at the end of last year.