Autoliv Inc. is a leading global automotive safery company, which develops and manu factures airbags, seat helts, safety electronics, steering wheels, seat components, child seats for all major automotive manuf acturers in the world.
The company has over 60 subsidiaries and joint ventures with 20,000 employees in 27 veh icle-producing countries.
In addition, the company has eight technical centers around the world, including 19 test tracks - more than any other automotive safety supplier.
Autoliv's shares are Iisted on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: ALV), its Swedish Depository Receipts on the Stockholm
Stock Exchange (SSE:ALIV) and its stock options on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE:ALV}.
4 5
6 8 10 12
14
16
Summary
Two Leaders Merge
Letter lo Shareholders and Employees TheMarket
Autoliv's Safety Systems Airbags
Latest News, Airbags p.l3
•.
~ ~ t
SeotfSe~s
l..atMr News. Mot Hdts p.l 5
Rmoorch and Dewlopment
Lu~.u Ni!tiJ~
R&D p.I7
18 Auloliv in the World 22 Shareholder Information 24 Board of Directors 25 Management
Co ntents
PRO FORMA FINANCIAL INFORMATION {UNAUDITED) 26 Management's Discussion and Analysis 28 Consolidated Statement of lncome 28 Selected Cash Flow ltems 29 Consolidated Balance Sheet
30 Quarterly Pro Forma Financialinformation
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS OF AUTOLIV INC.
31 Management's Discussion and Analysis 34 Consolidated statement of lncome 35 Consolidated Balance Sheet
36 Consolidated Statement of Cash Flow 37 Notes lo Consolidated Financial statements 46 Report of Independent Auditors
47 Addresses
50 Selected Financial Data; Definitions
Su mma ry
o Company formed by a merger of Europe' s leading outemotive safety company and the leading U.S. airbag company.
• Acquisitions of the world-leading supplier of seot belt webbing and a Japanese airbag company.
• lntroduction of the world's first side-impoet airbag for head protection.
• Launch of Gentie Airbags and a Smart Airbag System.
• Order for Anti-Whiplash System.
• Start of development of a Safety Radar System.
• Construction of a U.S. steering wheel plant, a Brozilian airbag and seat belt plant and a Russian seat belt plant.
• S ubstantiol expansion of productian capocity for airbag cushions and ignitors, and of the Spanish and Swedish manufacturing facilities.
• lncreas ed holdings in the campanies in Argentina, Romania and South Africa, ond stort of a bran ch office in South Korea.
1996 1997
1996 1997
1996 1997
Net Sales {US $ million)•
3,204 3,257
*(Data in this report on pages 4-30 for periods prior to May 1, 1997, when the company sfarted its operations, are included
on oPro Forma basis)
[ 4] AUTOLIV INC 1997
Autoliv AB
Europe's Leading Automotive Safety Company
1956
Two-point static seat belt
Three-point static seat belt
Retractor belt
Height adjuster for shoulder belt
Pyrotechnic belt pretensioner Web damp far seat belt
Airbag system
Side-impact airbag for chest protection
Seat belt with load limiter Steeri ng wheel
1997
T
Two Leaders Me rg e
Morton ASP
The Leading Airbag Manufacturer in the U.S. andAsia
1968
Airbag inflator development
Lightweight aluminum inflator
1988
Driver airbog module
Passenger airbag module
Stored-gas inflator
Non-azide inflator Side-impact airbag
.. ~"' Autoliv lnc.
Side-impact airbag for head protection Cumulalive supply of l 00 million airbog u nits
[51 AUTOLIV INC 1997
Letter to the S ha r e ho l ders and Employees
"We/1-Positioned for Worldwide Growth"
On May 1, we started Autoliv Inc., thereby creating a company twice the size of each of the two original campanies Autoliv AB and Morton ASP. The new company has sales neck-to-neck with the for- mer market leader in our industry.
We have now started to coordinate purchases and increase in- ternat supply of key components. We have laid down a common air- bag inflator program and we have formed common organizations in countries where both campanies were active. Luckily, that was the case in only four countries, which has facilitated the amalga- mation process. Being on a growth trend has also made this process easter.
In total, we estimate that these and similar measures could lead to annual cost savings on the magnitude of $100 million. In addi- tion, we expect top Iine synergies from cross-selling, etc. to be at
!east as important, although these effects will takelonger to materi- alize. These positive effects will be important factors in offsetting the current pricing pressure.
The new company has been very well received, both by enstom- ers and employees. In Eastern Europe, Korea and South America, for instance, where both old Autoliv and Morton Automotive Safety Products had limited presence, we are now rapidly receiving new contracts.
STRATEGY AND OBJECTIVES
In tandem with the merger and the restructuring, we have continued to advance Autoliv's position in Iine with the company's strategy, which is to:
• Expand globally
• Expand productwise
• lncrease vertical integration
• Continue to improve quality and reduce east
With this strategy, Autoliv has been able to grow its sales faster than the average market growth, thereby giving its shareholders a better long-term return on their investments in Autoliv than in most Iisted companies.
GLOBAL EXPANSION
In 1997, we agreed to acquire the assets of an airbag company in J apan. Thiswill allow us to ramp up local productian much faster and improve our support to the Japanese auto manufacturers than if we had started a greenfield operation.
We have also started to build a plant in lndiana, USA, following the contracts we have won for integrated steering wheels with air bags.
With this new concept we have in lessthan two years' time received orders corresponding to 10% of the annual steering wheel demand in North America from the U.S. ear manufacturers.
We have also started to build a plant in Brazil in r esponse to con- tracts we have received from most of the auto manufacturers there.
In Russia we completed a seat helt plant in 1997 and commenced shipments to the local ear manufacturers. Recently we also got the first airbag contract there.
Furthermore, we have strengthened Autoliv's position in emerg- ing markets by increasing Autoliv's holdings in the partially- owned campanies in South Africa and Romania and by making the Argentine joint venture a wholly-owned subsidiary.
Last hut not least, we have won a new customer: Fiat in ltaly, to whom we willstart delivering seat helts with pretensioners later this year.
PRODUCT EXPANSION
Also in 1997, we established a completely new market: Head pro- tection in side collisions.
The first product is the ITS (Inflatable Tubu lar Structure), which we have developed tagether with BMW and the Amer ican com- pany Simula.
This year we will add two alternative products to the Iine: the Inflatable Curtain, for which interest currently is rapid! y building, and the Head&Thorax Bag.
For frontal protection our Gentle Bag concept has been very well received, and shipments will start later this year of all of our four Gentie Bag technologies (Radial Deployment System, High- Efficiency Bag, Dual-Stage In flator and Adaptive Inflator).
At the same time, Smart Airbags- the next airbag generation - are being developed. These will use advanced sensor technologies to de- teet e.g. rear-facing child seats and when the front seat is unoccupied.
The system will also "see" how an occupant is positioned and de- termine the severity of the crash. The bag deployment can then be optimized according to the situation.
We have also entered inta a cooperative venture with the military high-tech company Celsius for the development of an Adaptive Cruise Control system, which is based on Celsius' radar technology . In 1998, we will alsostart productian of a smaller, lighter and more cost-efficient Iine of airbag inflators based on a new, environmentally friendly propellant.
[6] AUTOLIV INC 1997
VERTICAL INTEGRATION
We are currently rapidly expanding our in-house productian of initiatars (i.e. ignitors) and textile cushions for airbags. In the U.K., for instance, we have built a new weaving plant which will increase our cushion manufacturing capacity there by 80%, and in France we are currently expanding annual airbag initiatar capacity from five million units to more than 20 million.
We have also acquired our most important supplier of seat belt webbing, the British group Marling Industries with plants in Europe, North America, Australia and Asia Pacific, i.e. in all our main m arkets.
These kinds of actions willlower costs, as weil as improve qual- ity by increasing interna! control of material flows.
TOP·LINE GROWTH
In 1997, Autoliv reported record sales of $3.3 billion- an increase of 2 % from the previous year - despite continued price dedine and a 6% negative effect of the stonger U.S. dollar. Since 70% of our business is outside the U.S., a stronger dollar has a significant neg- ative impact on Autoliv's reported sales and earnings.
Growth was also hampered by the already high airbag pene- tration rate in the U.S. In other markets, however, sales were driven by higher penetration rates for frontal airbags, continued success for our seat belt pretensioners, higher vehicle productian and by side airbag deliveries which started during the year. Autoliv currently delivers such airbags (which were introduced mid-1994) to 18 cus-
PROSPECTS
tomers, split between more than 60 ear models.
U nit sales of side airbags tripied versu s the pr eviou s y ear.
Our seat h elt p retensioners continued their suc- cess. Unit sales were up 20% to almost 18 million units which means that more th an every seeond new ear in Europe now has this safety feature from Autoliv in the fron t seats.
INCOME AND CASH GENERATION
We managed to grow reported earnings per share by 6% or samewhat faster than reportedsales (and adjusted for curr ency effects the growth was at !east twice as fast). This improvement was driven by the success of our new products, the introdu ctions of more cost-efficient components and designs, and the futther enhanced vertical integration.
These actions have mad e it p ossib le to offset the price decline a nd to report earnings per share of $1.81 for 199 7 campared to $1.69 for 1996.
Cash generation improved even faster than earnings or from $0.13 per share d uring 1996 to
$1. 76 (i.e. $180 million in total after capita! ex- penditures and acquisitions of $26 1 million). This has allowed u s to reduce Autoliv's already modest net-debt-to -equity ratio from 43% to 38%.
lt is therefore fair
tosay that with these strat- egic actions t aken du ring 1997 and given the financial outcome for the year, New Autoliv go t off t o a goo d start.
Laoking at the year ahead, the toughest challenge will be the cur- rent strong price d ed ine in th e U.S. for air bags. In the rest of t he world - and that is w here Autoliv has mo st of its sales - prices h ave already fallen to a lower leve!, a nd here the decline has started to moderate. In addition, frontal airbags will gr ad ually b e upgraded to Gentie Bags and Smart Ba gs w ith better prices.
At the same time, unit sales will contirrue t o grow as penetra- tion rates for fro nt al airbags k eep rising outside the U.S. and manufacturers start installing side air bags in more ear models. So, even if there currently are some short-term challenges fo r the airbag industry, there are certainly long-term growth ap portunities as weil.
In addition, this year w e will introduce whiplash protection de- vices, head protection systems for side collisions and severa l other new products which should generate su bstantial sales in some years' time.
Autoliv is therefore w ell-positioned for long-term world-wide growth.
GunnarBark
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
(7] AUTOLIV INC 1997
Th e Morket
® OPELS
TO VOTA
Chrysler
JA~
With its sueeessful growth strategy, Autoliv has managed to become a globalleader in the expanding, $10.5 billion ear occupant re- strainrs marker. In 1997, the expansion that began in the early 1990's conrinued with a growth rate of approximately 5%. Airbag modules aceounted for approximately 50%, seat helts for 35% and dectronies for 15% of the total market.
For the rest of the decade, growth will be driven by increased vehicle production, higher seat helt penetration rates in emerging rnaekets and the introduction of new advanced products, such as side-irnpact protection systerns. Growth rates in Europe, Japan and the rest of the world will be higher than in the United States.
Although the global steering wheel rnaeket is expected to rernain at approximately one billion U.S. dollars, steering wheels with spe- cial features, such as integrated air bags, is an area of strong growth.
THE SEAT BELT MARKET
The world marker for seat helts keeps growing, despite the fact that sea t helts were introduced 40 years ago. This is rnainly because seat belt systems are becoming increasingly sophisticated with such features as pretensioners, aurornatic height adjusters and load limiters. A growing number of cars are also being equipped with three complete retractor helts in the rear seat.
The price decline in this segment of the market is offset by the increase in global auto production. As a result, the world marker for seat belts displays a growth trend of a couple of percent annu- all y, with some ernerging rnaekets growing 5 to lO times as fast.
THE AIRBAG MARKET
The world rnaeket for airbags has been an area of spectaeular growth during the 1990's. In 1997 alone, installations of frontal airbags in- creased from 54 million in 1996 to 62 million. The number of side-
<Ej)
HYUnDRI
Il CITROEN
impact airbags iostalled jumped from 2 million to almost 6 million.
By the year 2000, the number of frontal airbags sold could amount to 80 million units and side-irnpact airbags to more than 30 million, including special head airbags for side-impaet.
Much of the eurrent rapid unit growth is offset by strong pres- sure on prices. This situation is Iikely to change, however, w hen cur- rent airbag systems are upgraded to Gentle and later to Smart and Ad4ptive air bags. The range of special side-impact airbags for head protection, which Autoliv started to introduce in 1997, could also, in a couple of years, contribute to a conrinued growth trend.
In the U.S., airbags became manciatory in 1997 in all passenger cars, both on the driver and the front seat passenger sides. From September 1998, the law will also cover all other light vehicles.
Beyond that, the installations of frontal airbags will fluctuate with the ear productian cycle. The penetration rate for side-irnpact air"
bags is, however, still close to zero among the U.S. ear companies.
The installation rates in Europe are also on a stroilg growth trend. Currently, three new cars out of four have a driver airbag, and more than every seeond ear has dual airbags, campared to a penetration rate of close to zero in 1990. Installations of side-impact air bags, which began in 1994, after only three years amount to 4.5 million, but nevertheless "only" 15% of all new ears sold in 1997 in Europe had this safety device.
In Japan, where the development startedlater than in Europe, more than 60% of the new ears produced in 1997 were equipped with a driver airbag, and every third new ear had dual airbags.
Penetration rates for side-impaet airbags are currently increasing almost as fast as in Europe, but the penetration level is still only about 5%.
Airbag installations are also growing fast in Australia and South Korea.
[ 8) AUTOLIV INC 1997
MRSUBISHJ
MOlORS Il
Gsua
Mercedes-Benz
~· KIAMOTORS @>
~ (Il] (]Il) •
SUBARU HONDA Aud1
AUTOLIV'S MARKETS
The North American markets account for about 30% and the European markets for about 55% of Autoliv's sales. The most im- portant markets are the United States, German y, France, Great Britain, Japan and Spain. Sweden accounts for about 4% of revenues.
In North America, Autoliv accounts for approximately one third of the airbag product m arket and el o se to 1 O% of the sea t bel t mar- ket. Autoliv did not sel! seat helts in the United States until 1993, but already Autoliv accounts for one third of Chrysler's seat helts, and shipments to Ford and General Motors have started recently.
In addition, Autoliv has received steering wheel contracts, equival- ent to 10% of the demand of the U.S. ear manufacturers in North America. Shipments willstart in 1998, when Autoliv's steering wheel plant in Fort Wayne, Indiana, will be completed.
In Europe, Autoliv's market share is close to 45% for airbags, 50% for sea t helts and 10% for steering wheels.
In Japan, Autoliv has a strong position in the airbag inflator market, with a market share of over 50%.
In many emerging markets, such as Argentina, Hungary, India, M alaysia, South Africa and Turkey, Autoliv has achieved market positions of 50% or more by early establishment of joint ventures or subsidiaries.
CUSTOMERS
Au
toliv sells to all major auto manufacturers in the world with par- ticulary high sales levels
tothose manufacturers who have a reputa- tion for concerted efforts in auto safety.
The largest customers are Audi, BMW, ChrysleJ; Citroen, Ford, General Motors, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Peugeot, Renault, Rover, Toyota, Volkswagen and Volvo.
PEUGEOT
No customer accounts formore than 15% of Autoliv's sales. The contracts are typically divided among a ear maker's different ear models with each contract usually running as Iong as that ear mode!
is being produced.
In the development of a new ear mode!, a process t hat takes several years, Autoliv in many cases functions as a development part- ner. This means that Autoliv gives advice on new safety-enhancing products and assumes responsibility for adaptation and evaluation of these systems.
THE INDUSTRY
Within less than a year and a half, the number of major suppliers of occupant restraint systems has been reduced from nine to six.
Autoliv and the American company TRW are the market lead- ers, followed by the American company Breed which last year acquired the seat belt and airbag operations of AlliedSignal. Other important campa nies in the auto safety industry are the Japanese company Takata, the American auto supplier Delphi and the German steering wheel company Petri.
Autoliv's competitive strategy is to be a specialist company of- fering a complete range of automotive safety system products, with in-house expertise of all key components and manufacturing close to the major customers. Autoliv has more technical centers and crash test facilities for automotive safety than any other company in the industry. This gives Autoliv the possibility not only to offer just-in- time supply of safety products, but also to provide enstomers with excellent engineering services and testing capabilities "just-in-time".
[9] AUTOLIV INC 1997
Auto liv 's Safety Syste m s
0
ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
&
SAFETY RADARWill make a ear maintain a eonstant distance from the ear in front of it by af- fecting throttle and brakes. Under devel- opment in cooperation with the Swedish military high-tech company CelsiusTech.
<D
ELECTRONIC CONTROL UNIT
Micro processor with an electronic sensor which determines if and exactly when the seat belt pretensioners and the airbags should be set off.
<D
KNEE AIRBAG
First introduced in the world marker in 1995 by Autoliv. Proteets knees (and hips) and reduces the risk for submarining. Also leads to reduced chest load. Unlike conven- tional knee bolsters and paddings, knee air- bags don't take away any leg room.
0
KNEE BOX
An energy-absorbing meta! structure which reduces the risk for submarining.
0
DRIVER AIRBAG
Reduces driver fatalities in frontal erashes by 25% and the risk of facial injuries by 75% for belted drivers. Autoliv not only develops and assembles various airbag sys- tems, hut also produces all key compon- ents.
@
STEERING WHEEL
Driver airbags are increasingly being inte- grated into the steering wheel. Autoliv is a leader in this development through its sub- sidiary Isodelta in France, one of Europe's leading steering wheel producers. Steering wheel productian will soon start in the United States, Latin America and Asia.
0
PASSENGER AIRBAG
Reduces fatalities in frontal erashes by approximately 20%. Autoliv has a corn- plete offering of various systems (fulJ-size bags, face bags, gentie bags, smart bags, etc.) and a comprehensive offering of airbag inflators, cushions and other key components.
®
INFLATABLE CURTAlN
Cushions the heads of the driver and all passengers seatednext to the doors in side- irnpact collisions and roll-over accidents.
Manufactured using Autoliv's patented one-piece woven technology.
0
BELT-IN-SEAT
Allows the shoulder helt to better wrap around th e occupant's body , thereby increas- ing the efficiency of the helt system. Also contributes to keeping the clearance bet- ween the head and the roof in roll-overs.
@)
ANTI·WHIPLASH SEAT
To be introduced in 1998. Will reduce neck injuries in rear-end collisions.
[ 10 J AUTOLIV INC 1997
®
SEAT FRAMES
&
SLIDING RAILSProduced by Autoliv since 1996. Autoliv has developed a unique, stronger eecliner for Belt-In-Seat Systems and develops neck ("whiplash" ) protection systems which in- volve the meta! frame of a seat.
@)
INTEGRATED CHILD SEAT
Makes it possible for children
touse the car's eegular seat helts (which is better than a separate helt system). Since the sea t is in- tegrated into the backrest of the rear seat, it does not take away any space when not used.
®
SAFETY REAR SEAT STRUCTURE
A backrest in the form of a strong, spe- cially designed aluminum structure which prevems luggage from penetrating into the passenger campartment in a frontal crash.
@)
SEAT BELT BEAM
Facilitates installation of a complete 3-point retractor belt in the mid-rear seat, espe- cially in hatch-backs and station wagons.
Also provides passengers with irnproved side-impact protection.
®
TRUNK BELTS
Safety belts which proteet fragile goods and
prevent luggage in cars with folding rear
seats from penetrating into the passenger
compartment.
@
SEAT BELT SYSTEMS
Produced by Autohv smce 19.S6. Autohv today
ha~the most comprehenswe offenng With m-bouse productiOn of all key com- ponent!> and all new seat helt feature!. (see page 14) s u ch as:
®
PRETEN S IONERS
®
LOA D LIMIT E RS
@)
AUTOMATIC HEIGHT ADJUSTERS
€)
THORAX BAGS
Introduced m the worldmarket-by Autohv -m 1994. Is as eff1c1ent m stdr 1mpacts as a frontal a1rbag 1s m frontal crashes.
®
Sl DE·IMPACT SATELLITE
El~'tromc
scnsmg
~ystemwhlch determmes 1f and wh.en the dtfferent stde-1mpacr pro- rection sysrems
~houldbe tnggered.
l
Il ] 41JTOUY !NC i C y/®
ITS (INFLATABLE TUBUlAR STRUCTURE)
The w orld's f mt hea d :ur bag for s!de-1mpact p rotectton. Introduced m 1997 wgether
\~Jth
BMW and the Amencan company
S1mula.
. ,
A i r ba gs
The first airbag was patenred in the early 1950's, but it was not until towards the end of the 1980's that sales began to gain mo- mentum, and only then as a result of a law in the United States re- quiring passive restraint systems in the front seats, i.e. airbags or seat helts that are fastened automatically. The la w was later expanded, requiring dual airbags in all new passenger cars sold after September l, 1997, and from the following modelyear in alllight vehicles.
PROTECTIVE EFFECT
According to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), airbags have saved more than 2, 700 lives since 1987 (a third of which were sa ved during the last year) and prevented hun- dreds of chousands of personal injuries. NHTSA also forecasts that 3,000 lives will be sa ved annually, when alllight vehicles on the U.S.
roads are equipped with dual frontal airbags.
Frontal airbags are estimated to reduce the number of deathsin head-on collisions by about 25% among drivers using seat helts, and by more than 30% among unbelted drivers. The number of deaths for belted front seat passengers is reduced by about 15%, and by rnore than 20% among unbelted front sea t occupants.
With a earobination of seat belt and airbag, the number of se- rious chest injuries in frontal collisions can be reduced by 65% and serious head injuries by up to 75%, according to NHTSA.
Since almost 2 million airbags have been deployed in actual ear erashes in the U.S. alone, these evaluatlons of the protective effect of airbags are now mostly based on actual crash data rather than on data from tests.
PRODUCTS
Autoliv pioneered airbag technology as early as 1968, and has since grown into being the world-leading producer of airbags, with about 20 million airbags sold in 1997 (including 3 million side-irnpact air- bags).
For frontal protection, Autoliv has developed both full-size air- bags (in accordance with the original federal la w in the United States which required airbags to be oprimized for unbelted occupants), and face bags or "Eurobags" for countries where wearing a seat belt is cornpulsory. In 1997, Autoliv introduced "De-powered" airbags, following a change in the U.S. regulations. In addition, Autoliv has developed a series of new airbag technologies which are in the pro- cess of being la unehed (see next page).
In 1994, Autoliv was the first company in the world
tointro- duce a side-impact airbag system, rnainly for proteetlon of an occu- pant's torso. In 1997, Autoliv achieved yet another break-through
in automotive safety when the world's first airbag for head protec- tion in side collisions was introduced. This ITS (Inflatable Tubular Structure) has been developed in close cooperation with BMW and the American company Simula. Two alternative products will be launched: The Inflatable Curtain (J C), which is being developed in cooperation with Mercedes and Volvo, and the Head& Thorax Bag, which is being developed in cooperation with other ear rnanufact- urers, including Ford and Renault.
MANUFACTURING RESOURCES
Autoliv currently develops and produces complete airbag systems in ten countries. In addition, Autoliv has specialized campanies in four countries for developing and manufacturing of all key com- ponents of the systems. In 1997, these campanies produced rnore than 50% of the Group's key cornponents for the airbag systerns.
Autoliv Inflators is the world-leading producer of airbag infla- tors1 with the widest product offering in its industry. It also has ex- tensive sales to airbag module assemblers other than the Autoliv cornpanies. Autoliv's inflator group produces its own sodiurn azide propellant for the most frequently used inflators, and cooperates for other propellants with Thiokol, a leading aerospace and rocket fuel producer in the United States, and with SNPE, a leading pyrotechnic group in Europe.
Major productian plants are located in the United States, France and Sweden. In France, Autoliv lnflators also has a rapidly expand- ing productian of initiatars (i.e. ignitors for airbag inflators).
Autoliv Textiles produces textile cushions, using both the traditional cut-and-sew method and Autoliv's patented one-piece woven technology, whereby the cushion can be ready-made on the Ioom. Productian is located in England, Utah, Sweden and the Netherlands.
Autoliv Electronics produces the dectronie contro l unit which evaluates a crash and determines if and when the airbagshall be de- played. Autoliv Electronics has one joint venture with the leading French electronics company SAGEM and one joint venture in Sweden with the leading Finnish dectronies group, Nokia.
Autoliv's 77% owned subsidiary Isodelta is a leading European steering wheel rnanufacturer, which produces both traditional steer- ing wheels and steering wheels for integration with driver airbags.
Isodelta (and other Autoliv companies) also produces airbag covers.
Productian is located in France. A new plant is under construction in Fort Wayne, Indiana, for the North American market, where Autoliv has managed to win substantial contracts for integrated steering wheels.
[ 12] AUTOLIV INC 1997
The Umbrella RDS Bag Traditional airbag
The Umbrella RDS Bag is a type of gentie airbag which deploys ra- dially before it approaches the occupant. Although the Umbrella RDS Bag is as efficient as a traditional airbag, it is less aggressive than a traditional airbag. The first order was received wirhin three months after the new product was launched.
The High-Efficiency Bag uses less gas and offers a better controlied ride down ("soft landing" of the occupant against the bag) than existing air bags, because the vent hales on the underside of the bag are kept closed (unlike traditional airbags) during inflation. When the bag then carehes the occupant and the pressure in the cushion rises, one or more vent hales (depending on the crash severity, occupant's weight, etc.) is opened. Developed tagether with Renault, who will use the system ( rogerher with sea t belt load limiters) in all cars.
Late st Ne ws
Autoliv's lnAatable Curtain has been developed in cooperarian with Mercedes and Volvo. Stored in the head-liner, its cells will be inflat- ed in less than 25 thousands of a second. lt proteets in both side- impace collisions and roll-over accidents (not least by preventing ejection). Injuries to the head account for a bo ut halft of all serious and fatal injuries in side collis ions, while roll-overs are common in sport utility and other higher vehicles.
Autoliv's Adaptive lnflators consist of two separate charges of solid or other pyrotechnic material. Only one charge will be ignited in, for instance, low speed crashes, while both charges will be needed in severe circumstances. By varying the delay of the seeond ignition, the gas flow can be controlied very efficiently. These inflators will therefore be used in Autoliv's Adaptive Airbags. Commercial ship- ments willstart in 1998.
Gas Output
"- 40ms
113] AUTOLIV INC l 997
Seot Belts
Two-point static seat helts were introduced in the 1950's, while three-point sea t helts came inta use towards the end of the 1950's.
In the beginning of the 1970's they were followed by three-point re- tractor helts.
During the 1970's and 1980's, laws were passed in most European countries, Australia, New Zealand and Japan making sea t helt use manciatory in front seats. Many countries have expanded the requirement to include rear seats, too.
In the United States, the installation of seat helts is mandated, hut wearing them is not required in all sta tes.
Also in emerging markers, such as India, seat helt legislatian has recently been passed.
PROTECTIVE EFFECT
According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the number of deaths is reduced by 45% if conventional three-point seat helts are used. In the United States alone, seat helts currently save more than 10,000 lives per year and prevent over 200,000 se- rious personal injuries. In addition, another 4,000 lives and six bil- lion dollars could be sa ved annually if the helt usage rate in the U.S.
came up to the goals set by the authorities.
The modern helt systems manufactured by Autoliv have been developed to hold the occupant in the seat in case of a collision. The purpose of the sea t helt is also to distribute the force of the collision to the strongest body parts, i. e. the rib cage and the hip banes.
In high-speed collisions, however, rib and abdominal injuries ma y be suffered as a result of the very strong forces involved, espe- cially if the seat helt is not correctly positioned. These risks are min- imized with the most recent innovations from Autoliv, e.g. helt pre- tensioners and load limiters, which also play an important role in Autoliv's airbag!seat helt optimized systems.
SEAT BELT PRODUCTS
During 1997, Autoliv's wholly owned campanies delivered approx- imately 40 million helt systems, of which almost 18 million were equipped with helt pretensioners. Seat helts manufactured by Autoliv's joint venture campanies and licensees are additional.
The seat helt systems and components are based on Autoliv's own research and development, and all components can be manu- factured in-house.
In fact, however, Autoliv's key camparrent campanies account for approximately 25% of the deliveries to Autoliv's assembly com- panies. As part of Autoliv's vertical integration strategy, this share will be raised
toapproximately 30% in 1998.
Seat helt systems with retractors were introduced in 1967 by Antaliv and have subsequently been upgraded several times. Today all Autoliv retractors have two sensors which work independently of each other on the locking mechanism. T he retractor springs ar e ty p- ically produced by Autoliv's company Tensatar in the U.K.
Autoliv's huckle is a unique, patented lock which is completely
"G-force insensitive", i. e. it will not open even if pulled in any dir- ection by great acceleration forces. This has contributed to giving Autoliv an especially strong market p osition for buckle-mounted pretensioners.
Autoliv's pretensioners prevent an occupant from being hurled forward in a crash before the seat belt starts to restrain him and pre- vents the seat helt from catching him with a sudden jerk that could break his ribs. This is an incr easing problem since the driving pop- ulation is getting older and a sixty year old person can only t ake halfas much load on his rib cage as a twenty year old person.
Pretensioners can tighten the helt up to 15 cm (6 inches) either by a steel spring, activated by a mechanical sensor, or by a small py- rotechnic charge, activated by an electronic sensor, usually the same sensor as in the car's airbag system.
Autoliv's h elt grahher is a web damp, which prevents the so- called film-sp ool effect. This occur s when the helt is yanked out when the loops of rolled-up webbing are tensianed upon impact.
Autoliv's load limiter allows the bel t to be pulled out slightly if the load on the rib cage becomes excessive. The airbag is used inst ead to absorb the excessive energy, and the concentrated loading from the shoulder helt is redistributed to a more uniform load, given by the airbag. This is important for the growing elderly part of the driv- ing population (see pretensioners above).
Introduced by Autoliv in 1995, Autoliv sold 0.6 million load limiters in 1996, 3 million in 1997, and is expected to sell three tirnes as many in 1998.
Autoliv's seat helt wehhings are customized to make the "catch"
of the helt soft and to minimize the rebound effect. A major portion of Autoliv's webbings is manufactur ed by Van Oerle Albertarr BV, a world-leader in this field and a suhsidary of M arling Industries which Antaliv acquired in 1997.
Autoliv's h eight adjusters assure correct helt
ge~metry,which enhances both the effectiveness of the helt and the ease and comfort of use. Autoliv has developed both mechanical and antarnatic height adjusters.
[ 141 AUTOLIV INC 1997
Latest News
The Swinging Backrest Seat is an Anti-Whiplash Seat (AWS) which will be in comrnercial productian in 1998. With this sea t, the distance between an occupant's head and his head rest is reduced in a rear-end collision. The backrest will then yield i.e. be tilted t o abs orb energy and reduce the forward rebound of the occupant.
Rear-end collisions are rarely fatal, but they give rise to fully orre quarter of all personal injuries - often with permanent impairment- and to sick-leave and irrability to work. In addition to the human suffering, they account in many industrial countries for more than 50 percent of all insurance claims for personalinjury sustained by ear occupants. Interest from ear manufacturers in various anti-whiplash systems is therefore significant.
Ma~ing
lndustries, the world-leading manufacturer of seat helt web- bing, was acquired by Autoliv in 1997. Marling has webbing fac- tories in the Netherlands, Canada, Australia and joint ventures in China and Malaysia. The acquisition strengthens Autoliv's vertical integration.
R-27 is a new- and Autoliv's ninth- generation of sea t helt retrac- tors. Despite the fact that it is smaller and 20 percent lighter than the previous generation, it has a higher webbing capacity. It also has 30 percent fewer parts. R-27 is a modular system to which various features, e.g. load limiters and comfort enhancers, can be added.
Weight Development Retractors
l~ J -4 s o 7 11 !fc27 Generation
[ 15 l AUTOLIV INC 1997
Rese arch and Develop me nt
Each year approx.imately a quarter of a million ear occupants perish in ear collisions around the world. The number of severely injured persons is about ten times as !arge.
Accidents not only cause a great deal of human suffering, hut also large expenses for care and rehabilitation, and lost income.
Consequently, there are huge sums to be saved by introducing bet- ter ear occupant restraint systems. Some calculations estimate these potential savings to exceed $150 billion annually. There isthus a compelling need for measures to improve safety - and hence for fur- ther research and development.
ALMOST TWO THOUSAND EMPLOYEES
During 1997 Autoliv invested $148 million, corresponding to 4.5%
of sales, in research and developments. Autoliv with joint ventures has close to 2,000 employees engaged in these areas.
Autoliv's research and development is based on the Company's own tests and trials, as weil as on ear occupant collision data.
Reports from independent researchers at universities and technical institutes are another important source of information. The Group's research is also conducred in consultation with the Autoliv Technical Advisory Board, which consists of internationally recognized sci- entists in traffic safety and biomechanical research, as well as with the safety design engineers of major ear manufacturers.
MANY CRASH TRACKS
The Group's joint research is concentrated at Autoliv Research in Sweden, while the corporate development activities are divided among Autoliv's major technical centers in France, Germany, Great Britain, Sweden and the United States. In addition, Autoliv has tech- nical centers in Australia, Japan and Spain, and in 1997 Autoliv's jo in t venture in India opened a sled test facility.
With 19 crash tracks, including eight tracks for full-seale tests, at nine locations globally, Autoliv has more crash test resources than any other auto safety company. Proximity for the most important customers to the test centers is an important means to ensure that Autoliv will be the customers' preferred development partner in auto safety. The test facilities and specialists are to a considerable extent utilized by the ear manufacturers and other externa! customers.
Some of Autoliv's crash labs perform more than 100 full-seale tests with cornplete cars and over 1000 sled tests annually.
Mathematical crash simulations in cornputers are performed in tan- dem with the crash tests.
TOTAL SAFETY SYSTEM
Autoliv's research and development is based on the company's Total Safety System philosophy , i.e. the a im shall be to give the best pos- sible protection to
anyautornobile occupant in
anytype of collision without inducing an y significant injury to an occupant in
anyposi- tion.
This means that components and sub-systems have to be de- signed to interact with each other as one systern.
Seat helt pretensioners and frontal airbags, for instance, are tuned to each other via the same dectronie control system to give the best possible protective effect. This is also the way ear safety products are being increasingly demanded by customers: as macro- components.
lt is important to fine-tune the current systems so that they provide protection for all kinds of occupants; infants as well as the growing population of elderly people; short women as weil as big, heavy males, - all of whom can be in many different positions in theit seats, with or without a sea t helt, etc.
In reallife, erashes are almost never just head-on into a rock or a eoneretc wall at just one specilie speed as in most tests required by the authorities. Consequently, futu. re safety systems should be able to do more than just determine if an accident is a frontal crash, a side-impact or rear-end collision, or a roll-over. An ideal system should also be able to identify the object that a ear hits in a crash;
if it is a small passenger ear or a big truck and the speed of those vehicles and the ear itself.
The crash severity depends also on the type of crash. If it is an off-set, oblique or head-on crash.
Autoliv's research and development activiti es are therefore airned at proeecting real people in real crashes, and not just proeecting test dummies in crash tests mandated by the authorities.
At the same time, Autoliv aims at making its safety systems light- er (both to save gasoline in the vehicle and raw material in the systern), smaller and en viranmenrally more friendly.
Major efforts are also continuously expended on developing more cost-efficient technical solutions.
( 161 AUTOLIV INC 1997
A Smart Airbag System was launched in September 1997. This intelligent system can prevent deployment of the airbag when an occupant is too close to the airbag, if there is a rear-facing child seat in the passenger front sea t, or if the seat is unoccupied. Four ultra-sonie sensors allow a computer to create a three-dimensional picture of the front seat area. This picture is up-dated every 50 milli- seconds, half the time of a blink of the eye,
tomake it possible to detect dyrrarnie out-of-position i.e. when a front seat passenger is hurled forward in a panic braking immediately before a crash.
Development has started tagether with the Swedish military high- tech company CelsiusTech on a Safety Radar System, which uses Celsius' target seekingradar for missilesand aircraft. The first ap- plication will be an Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) which will be connected to the car's cruise control and brakes to assure that a pre- determined distance is kept to the vehicle ahead. In the next genera- tion, the radar will also be able to wam the driver and alert the car's airbags and pretensioners before a crash.
Latest News
Development of InAator Sizes
100%
1 2 3 4 5 6
lnflalor Generations
T wo new Iines of airbag inAators have been developed which will be introduced in 1998. The first inflator type is based on a new, environmentally friendly, smakdess propellant, which produces gases with much Iower temperaturethan traditional inflators, there- by eliminating the need for expensive coating of the nylon bag. The inflators are also small and light.
The other inflator Iine is a new type of hybrid inflator, where the bag is primarily inflated by campressed gas. This type is more cost-efficient, lighter and has better gas characteristics than its pre- decessors.
A crash lab was opened in India, and the new Automotive Safety Center in Sweden that was constructed during 1996, was brought inta operation.
[ 17 J AUTOLIV INC 1997
Autol iv 1n th e W o rld
ARGENTINA
Autoliv Argentina in Buenos Aires manu- factures seat helts for Argentina and Brazil.
AUSTRALIA
Autoliv Australia in Melbourne manufac- tures seat helts and air bags. Has a technical center for full-seale tests.
VOA Webco, Webco Australia and Moxham Industrial in Melbourne belong to the Marling group which was acquired in 1997.
Weaves seat helt webhing and manufac- tures height safety equipment.
BRAZIL
Autoliv do Brasil in Taubate outside Sao Paulo is currently building a seat helt and airbag plant.
CANADA
VOA Colfab and Collingwood Fabrics in Collingwood, Ontario, belong to the Marling group which was acquired in 1997. Weavers and dyers of seat helt we h- bing and industrial wehbing, respectivly.
CHINA
Nanjing Hongguang Autoliv, a joint ven- ture with Nanjing Hongguang Airborne Equipment Factory (NHAEF). Manu- factures seat helts in Nanjing.
Changchun Hongguang Autoliv, a joint venture with NHAEF and Changchun Aurornobile Gaskers Factory. Manufactures seat helts in Changchun in Manchuria.
Shanghai-VOA in Shanghai betongs to the Marling group which was acquired in 1997. Weaves and dyes seat belt we b bing.
COLOMBIA
M ecanismos Automotices is a licensee in Bogota which manufattures seat helts.
FRANCE
Autoliv France, headquartered in Paris, de- velops, manufactures seat helts and airbags, and is responsible for the Group's develop- ment of pyrotechnic seat belt pretensioners.
The facilities, which include a crash labo- ratory for full-seale tests are located in Gournay, north-west of Paris.
Autoliv Automation in Gournay develops and manufactures productian equipment for the Group's manufacturing entities.
Autoliv Camposants in Caudebec manu- factures meta! components for seat helts and airbags.
EAK in Valentigney, a joint venture with ECIA. Manufactures seat helts and airbags.
Isodelta in Poitiers, a leading European manufacturer of steering wheels, also pro- duces airbag covers.
Livbag, a company jointly owned with SNPE, a leading pyrotechnic manufacturer in Europe. Develops south of Paris and ma- nufactures outside Brest, airbag inflators and micro gas generators for seat bett pre- tensioners.
NCS in Survilliers, north of Paris, develops and manufactures iniriators for airbag in- flators and micro gas generators.
Sagem-Autoliv in Rouen , a joint venture with SAGEM, the leading dectronies com- pany in France. Develops and manufactures airbag electronics.
GERMANY
Autoliv GmbH, headquartered in Elmshorn outside Hamburg, develops and manu- factures seat helts, pretensioners and side- impace head protection systems. In Dachau outside Munich, Autoliv develops and manufactures front airbags, side-impact airbags and seat helts with pretensioners.
[ 20 l AUTOliV INC 1997
Airbags are also assembled in Braun- schweig. Crash laboratories are located in Elmshorn, Dachau and Markgröningen (with tracks for full-seale tests at the first two locations).
Autoliv Stakupress in Norderstedt, also outside Hamburg, manufactures meta! and plastic components for seat helts.
Autoliv Sicherheitstechnik in Dö bel n outside Dresden manufactures seat helts and height adjusters.
GREAT BRITAIN
Autoliv Ltd in Havant manufactures seat helts and airbags and has its own technical center with a full-seale crash track.
Precision Components in Chichester, manu- factures meta! and plastic components for the Group's seat helt products.
Tensator in Milton Keynes develops and manufactures springs for belt rettactors and height adjusters.
Airbags International in Congleton (near Manchester) develops, weaves and sews ny- lon airbags. During 1997, the company ex- panded into a new plant which will in- crease productian capacity by 80%.
Marling Industries with headquarters in London was acquired in 1997.
Marling Leek in Leek weaves industrial we b bing.
Rykneld Tean in Derby betongs to the Marting group which Autoliv acquired in 1997. Weaves industrial narrow fabrics.
HU N GARY
Autoliv Kft in Sopron manufactores seat
helts for the auto industry in Hungary and
is a contract manufacturer of seat helts for
Autoliv in Germany.
IN DIA
Autoliv-IFB in Bangatore and with a dis- tribution center outside New Delhi is a joint venture with IFB Industries Ltd. Manufac- tures seat helts. Completed a crash test laboratory in 1997.
INDONESIA
Autoliv Indonesia in Jakarta is a joint ven- ture with automotive component manu- facturer Birnarrtara Cakra Nusa. Began to manufacture seat helts in 1996.
ITALY
Autoliv Italia in Turin is a sales company which was established in 1997.
Cosma outside Turin, makes injection- molded components, primarily for the Group's seat helts.
JAPAN
Autoliv japan Ltd in Yokohama coordinates Autoliv's global contacts with the Japanese auto industry and is currently expanding its airbag productian capacity by acquiring the facilities of a local airbag company in Tsukuba, north of Tokyo. Technical cen- ter is located in Hiroshima, and enstomer service offices in Nagoya and Hiroshima.
KOREA
A utoliv Korea, a sales office in Seoul which coordinates Autoliv's global contacts with the Korean auto industry.
Mando, a licensee in Munmak. Manufac- tures airhags.
Samsong, a licensee in lnsan. Manufactures seat helts.
Sungwoo, a licensee in Munmak. Will start manufacturing of seat helts in 1998 and later airbags.
Hyundai Electronics, a licensee in Kyungki- do. Will manufacture airbags.
MALAYSIA
Autoliv Asia Paci(ic, a regional office which supports and coordinates local campanies in the Asia Pacific region.
Autobelt in Kuala Lumpur, a joint venture with Autoindustries. Manufactures seat helts.
Airbag Systems (Malaysia) in Kuala Lumpur is a joint venture with Autoindustries.
Manufactures airbags.
Furniweb- VOA in Kuala Lumpur belongs to the Marling group which Autoliv ac- quired in 1997. Weaves seat helt webbing.
MEXICO
Autoliv de Mexico in Toluca outside Mexico City rnanufactures seat helts, also for the Mexican and the U.S. rnarkets.
THE NETHERLANDS
Autoliv B V in Landgraaf rnanufactures sea t helts and integrated child seats.
Autoliv ASP BV in Amsterdam manufac- tures airbags, airbag inilators and cushions.
Van Oerle Alberton BV is the world-leading manufacturer of seat helt webbing.
CSV in Scherpenzeel, belongs to the Marling group which was acquired in 1997. Weaves industrial webhing.
NEW ZEALAND
Autoliv N.Z. in Auckland rnanufactures seat helts.
PAKISTAN
Plastech Autosafe, a licensee in Karachi which manufactures seat helts.
THE PHILIPPINES
Autoliv QB in Manila is a joint venture with the auto seat manufacturer Qualibrand and Autobelt in Malaysia . Began seat helt productian in 1997.
ROMANIA
Autoliv Romania, an 80% owned company with Metatoplast in Brasov. Manufactures seat helts for Dacia and Daewoo in Rornania and will work as a sub-contrac- tar for Autoliv Gerrnany.
RUSSIA
Autoliv Russia in Dubna, North of Moscow, started to manufacture sea t helts in 1997.
SOUTH AFRICA
Autoflug in Johannesburg, a joint venture with Autornotive Manufacturing luvestments Ltd. In 1997 Autoliv increased its holding from26% to 49%. Manufactures seat helts.
SPAIN
Autoliv-KLE outside Barcelona and Autoliv-BKI outside Valencia rnanufacture seat helts and airbags, also for other mar - kets. KLE has a crash !ab for full-seale tests.
121 ] AUTOLIV INC 1997
SWEDEN
Autoliv in Stockholrn, the Group's head- quarters .
Autoliv Research in Vårgärda is responsible for the Group's research in, for instance, protection for side-impact collisions, rear- end collisions and roll-overs. An advanced Auto Safety Center was opened in 1997.
Autoliv Sverige, Vårgårda, manufactures and develops airbags, seat helts and inte- grated child seats.
Autoflator
inVårgårcia develops and manu- factures hybrid inilators for the Group's air- bag systerns.
Autoliv Hammarverken in Växjö and Autoliv Mekan in Hässleholm manufacture cornponents for ear seats.
Autoliv N okia in Motala, a joint venture with Nokia Audio & Electronics. Develops and manufactures airbag electronics.
Svensk Airbag in Kungälv manufactures sewn nylon cushions for airbag systerns.
TAIWAN
Mei-An Autoliv in Taipei is a joint venture with Holmsgreen. M anufactures seat helts.
THAILAND
Autoliv Thailand in Bangkok is a joint ven- ture with the autornotive cornponent rnanu- facturer Thai R ung Union Car.
TURKEY
Autoliv Cankor in Istanbul. A joint venture with the Alaca farnily. Manufactures seat helts.
USA
Autoliv North America, with headquarters in Ogden, Utah, and sales off ice and tech- nical centers (with full-seale test track) in Detroit, Michigan. Manufactures airbags in Ogden and seat helts in Indianapolis, Indiana. A steering wheel plant is under construction in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Autoliv Inflators in Ogden, Utah, develops and rnanufactures airbag inilators (including propellants) and coordinates the Group's global activities in this field.
Autoliv North American Components in
Ogden, Utah, manufactures airbag cush-
ions and other key components.
S h are ho l d e r Informatio n
Autoliv, Inc. is incorporated in Delaware, USA. The company's com- mon stock is Iisted on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE sym- bol ALV) and its Swedish Depositary Receipts are Iisted on the Stockholm Stock Exchange (SSE symbol ALIV). Options in Autoliv's seeurities are also Iisted on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE symbol ALIV).
The dosing price on the first trading day on the NYSE, May 1, 1997, was $35.50, and on the SSE (May 2) was SEK274. The last quotes during 1997 were $32.75 and SEK259, respectively .
A total of 48 million Autoliv shares were traded on the NYSE in 1997 and a total of 116 million on the SSE. The trading on the SSE represented a total valne of SEK35 billion ($4.5 billion) which means that Autoliv's depositary receipts were the 6th most traded issue during 1997, accounting for 4% of the trading volume on the SSE.
SHARES AND NUMBER OF SHARES
The number of shares outstanding on December 31, 1997, was 102.2 million and could increase to 102.6 million if all outstanding stock options (including those granted in 1998) are exercized. For details of options granted through 1997, see Note 13 on page 42.
The options granted in February 1998 have an exercize price of
$31.07 with similar terms and conditions as previously granted options.
Autoliv has adopted a Shareholder Rights Plan designed to en- courage third parties interesred in acquiring the company to nego- date with the Board to preserve the best interests of all Autoliv stock- holders (see Note 11 on page 42).
STOCK PRICE AND TRAOING VOLUME ON NYSE
Prk:e potd A.u!oltv, lnc.
US.$ - S&P 500 S&P Avtomobiles Index
l Trod.d V~um111 per Weelt l n Thouscnd3 50,---,---.----,--~---,---,----,---,---,---,
3~ T---+--+--~..:__-+---t----1----1--''J--t---+-1 7000 6000
DIVIDEND
Dividends are paid on the first Thursday in the last month of each quarter (March, J une, September and December). Currently, the quarterly dividend amounts to 11 cents per share.
In lieu of receiving dividends by checks through the mail, hold- ers of Autoliv shares or depositary receipts mayhave dividends de- posited electronically into a checking or sa vings account on the pay- ment da tes. This service is offered at no cost. For more information, please call First Chicago Trust at +1(800)446-2617 for holders of common stock and VPC (Swedish seeurities Register Center ) at +46(8)402-9000 for holders of Swedish Depositary Receipts.
SHAREHOLDERS
Autoliv estimates that approxi mately 40% of the shares in the com- pany are held in the U.S. and 40% are heJd in Sweden, while most of the remairring 20% are heJd in the U.K. The number of share- holders is estimated toamount to app roximately 60,000.
The largest shareholders, known to the Company, are shown on the next page.
GENERAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS
Autoliv's next Annual Meeting of Shareholders will be hel d at 9.00 a.m. (local time) on Tuesday, April 21, 1998, at The Banquet Room, 57th floar, The First National Bank of Chicago, One First National Plaza, Chicago, Illinois. _
Shareholders are urged to return their proxies whether or not they plan to attend the Meeting.
STOCK PRICE AND TRAOING VOlUME ON SSE
High ond low price pold/monfh
l
Troded vclvm• ~·rmonth l n thouacnds SfK
3<>0 330 300
Compos.ilt ir.d&X
270
t---+
2AO
!--- - +---
180 1SO
incl. ofter-mork•t trad l ng Re1tated fot a 2: l split in 1996 -r--::---,-,
5000 120 1---d-t--,--- 30
25 MAY 1997
-+--~----~~--~--+---+--~--~---+~-44~
AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB
199S
3000 2000
1~
60
[22] AUTOLIV l K 1997
(4SIXFiftcba;
THE LARGEST SHAREHOLDERS*
Number
Percelltageof
ANALYSESDomlcile ofsha!'e$ share copital
The tollo1<-~ng banks and se.:urltles hrols.en h.ne pubhbhed reportsNordbanken Asset Management
SPP lovestment Manageme.u Handelsbanken runds Scudder Kemper
ln~esnnentliFourth AP Pensson fund
TIAA-CREF lovestment M.magement Skandt.& lnsuram:t'S
S-E Banken
Pund~Ba.rclay Global Jn\'estors Wanger Assets :\ianagmcnt 60.000 other
shan:holder~Total December 31. J 997
• Koown ro
the wmpan'
Share Price ond Dividends
May
l -Junc 30, 1997 July 1 - Sept. 30, 1997 Oct.
1-Dec. 31, 199i Jan. l - feb. 20, 1998
Investor Requests:
Autoliv Inc.
Box 70381
Swcden 4,934,000 4.8 Sweden 3,224,850 3.2 Sweden 2,755,000 2.7 USA 2,351,685 2.3 Sweden 1,867,050 1.&
USA '1,652,721 1.6 SVI-eden 1.599,076
1.6Sweden 1,404,614 1.4
USA 1,31!6,060 1.4
USA 1,208,000 1.2.
791807,968 78.1 102,191,024 100.0
New York (US$) High Lo w
$40 $34liR
4.51/~
3413,'1<.
4JV1~
3QSi8
$3311116 $28li8
Autoliv North America 1320 Pacific Drive,
on Autoh1 lnc
• ABG • Handel&banken
•
Aro~• J P Morgan
• Alfred Berg • Klemwurt Benson
• Btkubeo • M}• rbcrg & Wtklund
• c.uneg.te •
NatWe~t• Cbeuvrrux de Vmcu Norilie • Nonbska
• Den Danske .Bank •
Ohm<~n&• Den Norske .B.tnk • Olde
• Deutsche Morgan Grenfcll • Panb.lS
• En
~ktida Stcurmes • SwcdBanJ.:
• Furman Sclz • UBS Warhurg
• C'rt>ldman Sachs • Wtlltam Blatr
• H.Lundens
Stockholm (SEK) Declarec:l Dividend High
3B.5
.~46.5
330 282
Lo w 271 277 240 224
U~$
NA
$0.11 O. l J
$0.11
SEK NA 0.86 0.85 NA
Transfer Agent & Registror First Chicago Trust Company P. O. Box 250
SE-107 24, Stockholm, Sweden Tel +46 (8) 587 20 623
Aubum Hills, MI 48326-1569, USA;
Tel +l (248) 475-0409
Jersey City , New Jersey 07303-2500 +l (800) 446-2617 (U.S. only) Fax +46 (8) 24 44 79
E-mail: info@autoliv.se Mats Odman
Fax +1 (248) 475-9831 Barry Murphy
+1 (202) 324-0498
+l (201}222-4955 (H earing Impaired}
+l (201}222-4877} Fax
The transfer agent, First Chicago Trust Company, performs the following functions over the telephone when a shareholder identifies his or her account by providinga taxpayer identification number, registration of the seeurities and the address of record: information regarding stock transfer requirements; address changes; repfacement of dividend checks, duplicate 1099 forms and W-9 tax certification forms; transcripts of shareholder accounts; and information regarding the Direct Deposit of Dividends.
Other requests for information should be mailed to the address above for the Stock Transfer Agent and Registrar.
Financialinformation on Fiscal Year 1998
Quarterly Reports January-March April-J une July-September October-December Annual Report
April 22, 1998 July 23, 1998
October 22, 1998 January 28, 1999 March 1999
These reports, news releases, proxy statements and other general information on Autoliv are published in English and Swedish and can be obtained without charge upon request from Autoliv at the addresses given above. They are also available in English on the Internet at hHp:/
/www.huginon~ne.com/sweclen/a~v/.The filings with the Securities
&E.xcbange Comnzission (SEC) of Autoliv's annual10-K report and quarterly 10-Q reports can also be obtained on the Internet at hHp:/ /www.sec.gov.
[ 23) AUTOLIV INC 1997
Boa r d o f D i rec tor s
Gunnar Bark 1
Chairman
&
Chief Executive OfficerBarn 1939 Diredor since 1982 Elected until 2000 Chairman of Allgan AB and Spectra-Physics AB; Diredor of Esselie AB
M.Sc., Ph.D. h.c.
Shares: 25,000
s.
Jaystewart
l' 2• 3 Barn 1938 Diredor since 1986 Elected until 1999 Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Morton International, lnc.Director of Household International, lnc.
B.Sc. and MBA Shares: 68,747
Per-Olof Aronson 1 • 2• 3 Barn 1930
Director since 1994 Elected unti l l 998 Former President and Chief Executive Officer of Gränges AB, Vice Chairman of Gränges AB.
Groduale Engineer, Shares: 4,260
Roger W. Stone
1' 2 Barn 1935 Director since 1989 Elected until 1999 Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Stone Container Corporation.Diredor of McDonald's Cor- poration; Morton International, lnc; Option Care, lnc; Abitibi- Consolidated lnc and Venepal
SAC.A
B.Sc Shares: l ,794
WHI!!~!Im
k.uU
Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Barn 1936 Diredor since 1997 Elected until 1999 MBA
SAR's: 20,000
Per
W elin
1• 2• 3Barn 1936 Director since 1995 Elected until 2000 Executive Vice President and Di rector of L-E Lundberg- företagen AB.
Diredor of Allgan AB, MoDo AB and NCC AB.
Techn. Lic.; MBA Shares: 260
1241 AUTOLIV INC 1997
George
A.
Schaefer 1 • 3 Barn 1928Diredor since 1990 Elected until 1998 Former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Caterpillar lnc.
Di rector of Aon Corporation;
Caterpillar lnc.;
Helmerich & Payne, lnc. and Morton International, lnc.
B.
Sc.Shares: 2, 817
l. Nominalian Committee
2. Campensatian Committee 3. Audit Committee
Note:
"Director since" includes time as Director of Autoliv AB and Morton International, lnc.
E a ch Di rector i s alecled for a three-year term.
