Volkswagen’s German plants need to develop further, says production chief

Volkswagen’s German plants need to improve efficiency to match overseas operations, production chief Andreas Tostmann stated, targeting 2 billion euros ($2.2 billion) in savings by 2023.

German automakers such as Volkswagen’s Audi have announced thousands of job cuts in recent times to address an expected 5% decline in worldwide auto sales this year, with decreases likely to spill into 2020.

“The pace of improvement is better abroad. In Germany, despite all the successes we’ve achieved, we have to do better,” Tostmann informed trade journal Automobilwoche.

Tostmann aims to implement the savings in the manufacturing of VW branded cars through a number of measures on top of automation, including a leaner logistics operation.

“The result is that we require 15% less space, 60% fewer logistics vehicles and are able to move 20% more product,” stated Tostmann.

VW’s luxury Audi division stated that it would slash up to 9,500 jobs, equivalent to 10.6% of total staff, by 2025 in a move to free up billions of euros to fund the transition toward production of electric vehicles.

Rival Daimler, along with auto providers such as Continental, Robert Bosch, and Osram, has also recently declared staff and expenses cuts.