The financial good times are continuing for Daimler Trucks worldwide, with 2007 sales figures confirming the company's strong position globally. Mark
The financial good times are continuing for Daimler Trucks worldwide, with 2007 sales figures confirming the company’s strong position globally.
Mark Lampert, the Senior Vice President Sales for Daimler Trucks North America, visited Australia this week to brief Australian transport journalists on the company’s position, and to discuss future plans for the Australian market.
Lampert says the company wants to continue its growth in Australia, to take advantage of the recent reshuffle of the North American market.
He says the major customer service and satisfaction units are now located in Fort Mill, South Carolina, closer to the bulk of Daimler’s main clients, away from their previous base on the west coast at Portland, Oregon.
Also improving Daimler’s future prospects is its new Saltillo production plant in Mexico, which will begin manufacturing Freightliner trucks later this year, with Sterling production set to start in 2009.
Lampert says export sales for the group increased by 450 percent in the past five years, with Australian figures alone growing by 125 percent in the same time.
He also revealed the Mercedes Benz safety range, including adaptive cruise control and lane departure technology, will begin appearing in other ‘family’ brands, although the actual debut date is still to be confirmed.
For Australia, the full suite of safety products, which also includes the Telligent transmission and Voith retarder, offered with the Mercedes Benz Actros prime mover, has been reduced in price to $14,500, in a bid to make it more attractive for small fleet owners, as well as major operators.
Worldwide, the Actros is a strong seller, with orders for the V8-powered prime mover reaching 100,000 units in 2007, representing half of the total orders for Mercedes commercial products worldwide.
A new version of the Actros is due to be unveiled in Australia mid-March, with trucks available in dealerships when stocks arrive.