Excellence rewarded Daimler

EXCELLENCE REWARDED

In every aspect of Daimler AG’s operations, excellence comes as standard. The company’s unrivalled design and manufacturing capabilities are complemented by the dedication of its key suppliers. The vital contribution made by Daimler’s leading suppliers has helped the company to achieve on-going record-breaking results, with more than half a million vehicles sold in the first four months of this year alone. Philip Yorke takes a closer look at Daimler’s remarkable performance and the suppliers behind the scenes who have excelled in their field.

While other major automotive manufacturers struggle to maintain their market share, Daimler has been posting double digit growth for the last ten months with sales increasing in all regions of the world. Today the company is seeing particularly strong growth in Europe, USA and China. The global demand for its top-of-the-range ‘dream cars’ such as the latest S-63 AMG Coupe, is also seeing unprecedented growth.

“We are posting double-digit percentage growth in sales for the tenth consecutive month, due in part to the great success of the new C-Class” said Ola Kallenius, Member of the Divisional Board Mercedes-Benz Cars and responsible for marketing and sales. “Our

strong growth in April shows that we continue to be on the right course and are winning new customers for our brand worldwide”.

In addition, the company’s flagship range, the S-Class, sold over 8,200 units in April this year which represents a 100 per cent increase on the same month last year. In fact, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class has been the best-selling luxury car in the world for many years.

However, it is not only Daimler’s car division which is seeing strong growth. Daimler Trucks also saw its unit sales increase by 7 per cent in the first three months of this year alone, with seven new trucks being launched in the first quarter. This is guaranteed to strengthen yet further the strong position of Daimler’s truck division. Mercedes-Benz Vans were also top performers in the first three months of this year, with overall sales 16 per cent higher than they were this time last year. Sales momentum is also expected to continue with its new Citan panel van as well as the new Vito model.

The Daimler Bus division also grew significantly in the first quarter of this year with an increase in sales of over 11 per cent, thus helping to endorse its leadership position for buses in the 8 tons and over sector.

Outstanding suppliers make their mark

Earlier this year in Stuttgart, Germany, Daimler AG recognised its best suppliers for their individual contributions on the occasion of its annual supplier conference. As in previous years Daimler AG honoured twelve outstanding companies who all received awards in various categories. In addition, a special award was presented for exceptional performance in

the area of innovation. Some 450 guests from the supply industry attended the sixth presentation event at the Mercedes-Benz Centre in Stuttgart on February 27th 2014.

Working closely with its direct suppliers, Daimler employs its unique supplier cooperation model, the ‘Daimler Supplier Network’. This is based on the core principles of performance and partnership. Daimler measures performance in terms of quality, cost, delivery reliability and innovative strength. In his opening speech, Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the board of management of Daimler AG and head of Mercedes-Benz cars, stressed the importance of the Daimler Supplier Awards. “We celebrate a winning team – the world’s best supplier network and we thank our suppliers for their loyalty and dedication”

Among this year’s winners of the 2013 Daimler Supplier Awards were Isringhausen Gmbh & Co. KG, in the area of truck seats and international expansion activities, LTH Castings, honoured as ‘Best new supplier’ for its powertrain aluminium castings, and Durr AG, for its outstanding achievements in plant engineering and machine construction. The special award for innovation went to Continental AG for its innovative touchpad for the new Mercedes-Benz C-Class models. Prof. Dr Thomas Weber commented

on this award: “The touchpad of the new C-Class is as easy to operate as a smartphone. It also allows hand-written commands to be entered in many languages and provides clear, tactile feedback - a milestone towards truly intuitive use!”

A full list of winners can be found on the Daimler AG’s website: www.daimler.com

Shooting stars

Taking centre stage at the New York International Auto Show this year was the latest threepointed-star dream car: the new MercedesBenz S63 AMG Coupe. This luxurious sports car combines supreme power and performance with ground-breaking efficiency. AMG remains in the fast lane throughout the world in the performance car class and has exceeded last year’s sales by more than 50 per cent.

Tobias Moers, Chairman of the Board of Management of Mercedes-AMG GmbH said, “The new S63 AMG Coupe is another exciting AMG dream car in the luxury segment. Now the S-Class Coupe also comes with the option of performance-orientated AMG 4Matic all-wheel drive, as we rigorously pursue our all-wheel-drive initiative. Mercedes-AMG is putting the pedal to the floor again in 2014”

The new V-Class from Mercedes-Benz is also causing a stir in the growing MPV market. As the youngest and largest member of the passenger car family from Stuttgart, it sets new benchmarks in its segment with its design and host of innovations. The new V-Class combines room for up to eight people with exceptional functionality, comfort, efficiency and safety profiles. Zetsche added, “Functionality is a must for an MPV. Comfort

and style are the icing on the cake. The new V-Class combines both in a way that no other vehicle in this segment can offer”

Daimler Trucks plant celebrates its 50th anniversary

Daimler’s state-of-the-art truck manufacturing plant in Tramagal, Portugal, celebrated 50 years of truck production this year. The company was originally founded as a joint venture between the family-owned Portuguese firm: Duarte Ferreira and the former French truck manufacturer Berliet. After Mitsubishi Fuso became the owners in 1980 and it subsequently became Mitsubishi Motors Portugal, it finally became part of Daimler AG in 2004. Today the Tramagal facility is incorporated into Daimler Truck’s global production network to enable the plant to meet the international quality standards for the Fuso Canter truck and to exploit the advantages of collaboration.

Daimler AG’s Tramagal plant is located 150 km northeast of Lisbon and covers over 39,000 square metres. At this modern facility more than 300 employees manufacture Fuso Canter trucks for around thirty European countries. Sales of Fuso trucks in Europe last year rose to over 4,500 units.

In order to prepare the plant for the future, Daimler Trucks has invested more than €27 million in its modernisation and production operations as well as in the further development of its best-selling Fuso Canter truck. Over €5.5 million of the funds allocated to the plant will be spent on the development of the new battery-electric Fuso Canter E-Cell. The Portuguese government is also supporting the development with an investment of three million euros. n