meeting the Automotive Challenge Daimler

meeting tHe Automotive cHAllenge

Daimler, one the biggest producers of premium cars and the world’s biggest manufacturer of commercial vehicles, continues to strengthen its global position. With the invaluable support of its supplier network, the company is ready to meet the challenges of future automotive market developments. Romana Moares reports.

Daimler AG, one of the world’s most successful automotive companies, continues to focus on innovative and green technologies as well as on safe and superior vehicles that both captivate and inspire. The company’s efforts are also focused on the intelligent connectivity of its vehicles, autonomous driving and new mobility concepts.

The business development is supported by increased investment - in the first quarter of 2019, €1.7 billion was invested worldwide in new products and technologies, capacity expansion and modernization, primarily at the production and assembly plants (Q1 2018: €1.3 billion). The plants in Germany accounted for €1.2 billion of the investment in property, plant and equipment (Q1 2018: €1.1 billion). Research and development spending increased to €2.4 billion (Q1 2018: €2.3 billion).

Daimler’s progress is supported by a global supplier network that is selected and maintained on the basis of the following criteria - quality, partnership, innovation, economy, delivery reliability and sustainability. These key criteria are awarded each year in the Daimler Supplier Award to honour above-average performance as well as partnership with ten suppliers over the past fiscal year.

Vision. Venture. Value

In February 2019, the eleventh Daimler Supplier Award event was held in Stuttgart, with 450 strategic partners and key suppliers from 30 nations coming to the prize-giving ceremony, this year bearing the motto VISION. VENTURE. VALUE. The motto is a blueprint for successful business and future collaboration between Daimler and its business partners.

Andreas Burkhart, Head of International Procurement Services, emphasised the importance of suppliers: “With the Daimler Supplier Award, we honor suppliers with outstanding achievements in the

past year. Furthermore, the event serves as an excellent platform for mutual exchange, fostering our supplier network and strengthening our partnership.”

The evening saw ten winners within three categories (Quality, Partnership and Innovation) and one special award: for Mercedes-Benz Cars Procurement & Supplier Quality, three companies received the trophy - IAC, an interior specialist from the USA, supplying door panels (Quality); Corning, an innovator in materials science (Partnerships) and owner-operated Mubea from Germany supplies Mercedes-AMG with coil springs and stabilisers (Innovation).

For International Procurement Services the winners were: Siemens AG, awarded as an outstanding partner with a broad variety of highest-quality solutions in production worldwide (Quality); thyssenkrupp System Engineering, a long term partner, setting benchmark with the assembly line for the new battery for Daimler’s first electric vehicle EQC (Partnership) and APPSfactory GmbH, awarded as a

true enabler in the field of connectivity apps, providing services in the new A-Class (Innovation).

For Daimler Trucks & Buses, the winner in the Quality category was Hitchiner Manufacturing Co., Inc. awarded for delivering highly complex castings for turbochargers; Fritz Winter Eisengießerei won the Partnership award and MEKRA Lang the Innovation award. The winner of the Special Award 2019 was RAPA Rausch & Pausch that developed a unique electrohydraulic control unit which can be experienced in the new Mercedes-Benz GLE technology E-ACTIVE BODY CONTROL.

Dr. Marcus Schoenenberg, Head of Global Procurement Daimler Trucks & Buses, noted: “Whether digital Mercedes-Benz Actros outside mirrors, crankshaft housings for our commercial vehicle engines or turbocharger castings: Our Daimler Supplier Award winners have shown that it is worth the effort. The trusting cooperation over the years has created a real value contribution – for our suppliers, for Daimler and our customers.”

Project Future

With a view to further support business growth, Daimler has recently defined its Project Future, aimed at creating a divisional structure. This should help strengthen the future viability of the individual businesses in its various markets, and to better position the business to meet the challenges of the future - greater vehicle connectivity, advances in automated and autonomous driving, the development of digital mobility and transport services, and electric mobility.

Three legally independent entities are to be created under the umbrella of Daimler AG. Mercedes-Benz AG will consolidate cars and vans, while the truck, bus and coach divisions will be combined in Daimler Truck AG. The already legally autonomous Daimler Financial Services AG will be renamed to Daimler Mobility AG.

“After more than 130 years, Daimler is more successful today than ever before. But further far-reaching changes will be necessary to remain successful in a mobility sector that is also being transformed. With a new structure for the Group, we intend to put the company in the best possible position to meet these challenges, “ said Dr. Manfred Bischoff, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Daimler AG. It goes without saying that this development will be possible only with committed employees and partners - Daimlers suppliers will thus play an indispensable role in this development. n

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