Foton Daimler Joint
Venture in Full Swing: First Jointly Produced Truck Rolls Off Assembly
Line
Beijing – Crucial step
for the Daimler trucks division: The first jointly produced truck by the
Beijing-Huairou-based joint venture between Daimler AG and Chinese truck
maker Foton rolled of the assembly line today. Henceforth, all Auman-brand
trucks will be produced by the joint venture Beijing Foton Daimler
Automotive Co., Ltd. (BFDA).
“The joint production
of our first Auman truck under BFDA is the result of thorough planning
and groundwork that was done by Daimler and Foton in an intensive and
co-operative way,” stated Ulrich Walker, Chairman and CEO of Daimler
Northeast Asia Ltd. “Today’s ‘Job #1’ is an essential contribution to
the realisation of our strategy for the Chinese market, where Daimler is
the only foreign auto company to cover all segments including passenger
cars, vans, and trucks as well as spare parts and financial services.”
Wang Jinyu, President and CEO of Foton
Motor, said about the latest landmark in the progress of BFDA. “We are
very pleased to be entering this new phase in our cooperation. The joint
venture products will have more competitive advantages through the
combination of Foton’s market know-how and Daimler’s technical
expertise.”
Wu Yuejun, President of BFDA, valued the
smooth transition to Auman production under BFDA as a clear testimony to
the high level of cooperation between colleagues on both sides of the
joint venture. “BFDA enables us to build on the synergies between Foton
and Daimler in marketing and technology, which combined with new
production facilities will greatly strengthen the position of the Auman
brand in the Chinese truck market," said Wu Yuejun.
Along with the construction of a second
Auman truck production site, the joint venture will also take care of
establishing the production of the OM 457 engine at the BFDA
headquarters . The OM 457 engine, which has been successfully used in
Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicles in Europe and Latin America, will be
introduced in compliance with the coming Chinese emissions standard
China IV (comparable to Euro IV).
“It is our goal to use the best of both
worlds. Through our technical expertise, for example, we will be able to
offer our customers an additional option and to cater to their
individual needs even better,” added Mr. Stefan Albrecht, Executive Vice
President of BFDA.
About BFDA
Daimler contributes 50% to BFDA’s
registered capital and additionally provides its engineering experience,
especially in the area of diesel engines and exhaust gas systems. This
know-how ensures that Chinese emission standards, ranging up to Euro V,
can be met. The Beijing-Huairou-based joint venture will continue to
forge ahead with capacity development. A second Auman production plant
is already ramping up. Last year, nearly 110,000 medium and heavy-duty
Auman trucks were sold in China. The second Auman plant will give BFDA a
total production capacity of 160,000 trucks. Since the founding of the
Auman brand in 2002, Foton has produced around 550,000 medium and
heavy-duty trucks at its production site in Beijing-Huairou.
