Quo vadis Mercedes?
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Although he has been with the Group since 1993, the appointment of Ola Källenius as CEO is something of a novelty. None of his colleagues in Germany studied 'finance and accounting' like he did; all the others are
mechanical engineers. But even his predecessor Dieter Zetsche emphasised in his last speech as CEO how much Mercedes needed to cut costs.
And so a picture is forming that Daimler might be sleeping through the future because they don't dare to invest. Add to that the hype at VW with the problems there with the introduction of electromobility. Then Källenius also
emphasises at an inopportune time that they want to invest more in the luxury class because the profit margins are greater there.
We want to cut our doubts short at this point, they will prove to be unfounded. Our first doubts came from the many reports of prototypes that have been spotted at charging stations everywhere. Of course, refuelling is faster
and doesn't have to be practised at the pre-production stage.
Anyone who still doubts the advent of pure electromobility is missing out on the enormous changes whose course has already been set, even at Mercedes. Yes, just take one last look at the promotional video above, which is
worth watching to the end. And at the test benches below, if only because of their complex sensor technology.
We can't imagine where the production line shown in the last video will be located in the future. Why? Because Mercedes has just announced that it will leave the production of four-cylinder engines to Geely, fruit of the
cooperation that began with the Smart. Goodbye Renault, something has happened to the relationship there.
They continue to communicate that they want to distribute the pure e-mobility marked with the letters 'EQ' among the individual German locations, with Sindelfingen remaining the S-Class. Of course. In contrast to the
previous location in Kamenz, battery cell production is also to be established.
And one observes oneself suddenly not being completely satisfied with this manufacturer. Why? One simply cannot imagine that core competences are so easily given away. Of course, cars that have been manufactured in
Germany up to now also contain an incredible number of parts from foreign countries like China. You can already see it in the current problems with the supply chains.
But now it is official. After the engine and the rest of the drive train, the whole car will probably soon come from China. Where does that leave 'Made in Germany'? And anyway, what will AMG do then? Mercedes promises that
they will also find exciting tasks in e-mobility for the future. So no more V8s or I4s from Affalterbach?
No longer build the four-cylinder with what is probably the highest litre output in series production. All the special test benches for nothing. Or, even worse, exported? Where is the support for companies like engine
supplies to Aston Martin, for example? And if they don't build combustion engines any more, they don't really need the transmission know-how.
Mercedes is said to be in charge of development, but how much more can be expected or desired when almost all (non-) liquid funds are already flowing into e-mobility. And China in particular, with its environmental
problems, has much more affinity for it, even if the state support bonuses have just been dropped there.
And if the new emission regulations such as Euro 7 require additional development work on combustion engines, this could also mean the even earlier death of this production line. However, if you look at the level of
automation of cell production in the video above, it looks bad for the number of workers needed. Another disadvantage in what is already a painful about-face.
As manufacturing shifts to e-cars, every manufacturer is trying to increase the level of automation. Together with significantly fewer parts, this leaves significantly less work. Together with the smaller share of parts that used
to come from suppliers, there is a surplus of labour. And in addition, the market dictates that e-cars, especially after the abolition of premiums in our country, must be manufactured even more effectively than previously
combustion cars.
The many references to the need for climate protection are absolutely necessary, but translating them
into reasonably and socially acceptable measures is a much greater challenge. |
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