The automobile air conditioning pipeline is one of the components used in the air conditioning system. It is the pipeline that connects the various parts of the automobile air conditioning installed in various parts of the automobile to form a complete set of automobile air conditioning system. The automobile air conditioning pipeline generally consists of aluminum pipe, pressure and temperature sensor, filling valve, connector (pressing plate, nut, etc.), rubber pipe, aluminum sleeve, O-ring, plastic cap, etc.

According to the pressure, the automobile air conditioning pipeline can be divided into high pressure pipe and low pressure pipe. The pipeline from the compressor to the expansion valve is high pressure pipe; The pipeline from the expansion valve to the compressor is a low-pressure pipe. According to the refrigerant state, it can be divided into gaseous tube and liquid tube. The refrigerant in the gaseous tube pipeline is gaseous, and the refrigerant in the liquid tube pipeline is liquid.

The upstream of the automotive air conditioning pipeline industry is the automotive aluminum processing industry, the automotive rubber hose industry and the sensor industry. The downstream customers are mainly domestic and foreign vehicle manufacturers and their parts supporting suppliers, with high customer concentration.

According to the statistics of the China Automobile Association, in 2021, China's automobile production and sales were 26.082 million and 26.275 million, up 3.4% and 3.8% year on year, ending the downward trend for three consecutive years since 2018.

At present, there are a large number of manufacturing enterprises in the industry, with low market concentration and fierce competition. The industry competition pattern is characterized by the following two aspects:

Competition among small and medium-sized private enterprises in the low-end market

At present, there are a large number of private enterprises in the automotive air conditioning pipeline industry. Most of these enterprises are small in scale, with simple production equipment, low production technology, non-standard management and lack of quality assurance. Therefore, these enterprises mainly participate in the market competition of low-end products, and their main market is the after-sales market.

② Competition between large private enterprises and joint ventures in the middle and high-end markets

At present, the main enterprises participating in the mid-to-high-end market competition include: Shanghai Auto Air Conditioner Parts Co., Ltd., Changzhou Tenglong Auto Parts Co., Ltd., Changzhou Shengshida Auto Air Conditioner Co., Ltd., ContiTech Fluid Technology (Changchun) Co., Ltd., Shengduo Shengshida Auto Fluid Connector (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Bondi Auto System (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Tianjin Dianzhuang Air Conditioner Pipe Co., Ltd., etc. The above enterprises have been operating in the industry for a long time, with large production scale, high technology and management level, stable customer base and market share, and have formed a certain market position. At present, most of these enterprises are involved in the competitive pattern of global procurement of parts and components, and mainly serve well-known domestic and foreign vehicle manufacturers and international auto parts suppliers with high requirements for product quality and technology.

In terms of the degree of marketization, some enterprises in the automotive air conditioning pipeline industry have decades of cooperation or equity relations between their shareholders and the vehicle manufacturers. There are certain characteristics of internal support, regional protection and market fragmentation in the industry, and the market-oriented competition is not sufficient. However, for the sake of reducing production costs and ensuring product quality, vehicle manufacturers gradually open their procurement to other external automotive air-conditioning pipeline enterprises with product quality and price advantages. Moreover, China's auto parts industry has begun to integrate into the international cycle and enter the global procurement system. From the perspective of the overall industry development trend, the degree of marketization of the auto air-conditioning pipeline industry will be further improved in the future.