Due to heavy demand, Mercedes A Class production outsourced

[far2000]

But despite the new A Class being built at both Rastatt and the Mercedes plant in Kecskemet, Hungary, Mercedes don’t have enough capacity for the volume of order flooding in for the new A Class – over 40,000 since it went on sale just over a month ago.

So rather than create a big waiting list for the A Class – and frustrate customers in the process – Mercedes has decided to be pragmatic and are outsourcing a chunk of production to Valmet in Finland who will produce 100,000 A Class between 2013 and 2016.
Valmet Automotive are a well know specialist builder who are currently bolting together the Fisker Karma and have, in the past, built the Porsche Boxster and Porsche Cayman when Porsche had insufficient capacity to meet demand.
This sensible move by Mercedes means the rise and rise of the new A Class can continue, with at least five A Class based models on the horizon including the GLA SUV, the CLA and the CLA Shooting Brake.
The new Mercedes A Class is turning in to a proper success story already.


Read more: http://www.carsuk.net/mercedes-a-class-production-outsourced/#ixzz2D3giDp3X
Mercedes A Class production outsourced

July 24, 2012 By Cars UK
Mercedes is outsourcing some new A Class production as orders continue to flood in for Mercedes’ new compact car.
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Last week we had the news that Mercedes will be building new A Class compact SUV– the Mercedes GLA – at the Mercedes plant in Rastatt as production of the A Class kicked off.

But despite the new A Class being built at both Rastatt and the Mercedes plant in Kecskemet, Hungary, Mercedes don’t have enough capacity for the volume of order flooding in for the new A Class – over 40,000 since it went on sale just over a month ago.
So rather than create a big waiting list for the A Class – and frustrate customers in the process – Mercedes has decided to be pragmatic and are outsourcing a chunk of production to Valmet in Finland who will produce 100,000 A Class between 2013 and 2016.
Valmet Automotive are a well know specialist builder who are currently bolting together the Fisker Karma and have, in the past, built the Porsche Boxster and Porsche Cayman when Porsche had insufficient capacity to meet demand.
This sensible move by Mercedes means the rise and rise of the new A Class can continue, with at least five A Class based models on the horizon including the GLA SUV, the CLA and the CLA Shooting Brake.
The new Mercedes A Class is turning in to a proper success story already.


Read more: http://www.carsuk.net/mercedes-a-class-production-outsourced/#ixzz2D3gZNJ5Q​

 

[HighestOfHigh]

I guess they will really go crazy when the CLA comes out.

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

That'd be a nice problem for them to have.

MB Australia are talking about waiting lists between 6-9 months when the car debuts. Not since the economic boom years of 02-06 have waits for such a mainstream model been that long.

I just hope quality is not compromised.

 

[Wolfgang]

August 30, 2013
Valmet Automotive starts contract manufacturing of Mercedes-Benz A-Class

The manufacturing of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class has started at Valmet Automotive in Uusikaupunki, according to the production plan. The manufacturing agreement stipulates production of over 100,000 Mercedes-Benz A-Class vehicles in the years 2013 to 2016 by Valmet Automotive.

Preparations for the Mercedes-Benz A-Class production started in July last year, as Daimler AG and Valmet Automotive announced their cooperation. In the course of these preparations, Valmet Automotive has engineered and constructed a completely new, modern body shop dedicated to the A-Class production. The body shop has around 200 robots and the automation level exceeds 90 %. Changes have also been made to the multiproduct lines of the paint and assembly shops.

The production of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class employs all of Valmet Automotive's current manufacturing personnel. During 2013–2014 Valmet Automotive will hire around 300 new car builders. The personnel have been trained for the A-Class manufacturing for several months, and 100 Valmet Automotive people have studied the engineering and work methods at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Rastatt, Germany. Mercedes-Benz production experts have been working in Uusikaupunki to support the project at Valmet Automotive.

– The launch of manufacturing of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class is an important milestone in the history of Valmet Automotive. Daimler is the inventor of the automobile and one of the world's most successful automotive companies, and we are pleased to be part of the success story of the A-Class as their manufacturing partner, says Risto Hukkanen, SVP Manufacturing Services, Valmet Automotive.

– We have found the ideal partner for this project with Valmet Automotive. As a production specialist, Valmet Automotive reliably fulfills the high requirements in terms of processes and especially quality which globally apply to the production of Mercedes-Benz passenger cars, says Andreas Renschler, member of Daimler AG's Board of Management responsible for Manufacturing and Procurement Mercedes-Benz Cars & Mercedes-Benz Vans.

A presentation event of the A-Class production will be arranged during September.

http://www.valmet-automotive.com/

 

[fortuner]

Gret News The A class is a big hit.