Works Meeting In Wolfsburg: Praise For Team's Achievements And Look Ahead To Electric Strategy

November 30, 2018 by Volkswagen

•Kilian: Wolfsburg's course for the future is set

•Osterloh: Wolfsburg is enabling the transformation

•Realignment of the Volkswagen brand is speeding up

Wolfsburg – At today's works meeting held at the Wolfsburg plant, Board Member for Human Resources Gunnar Kilian and Works Council Chairman Bernd Osterloh commended the achievements of plant employees as well as the entire Volkswagen workforce. They commented that 2018 had been a very challenging year for the plant and the brand in general. Nevertheless, the team showed great dedication. At the same time, the brand was accelerating its transformation towards e-mobility.

Praising the achievements, Kilian said: 'The entire Volkswagen team produced a top performance. My sincere thanks go to everyone for that. The first nine months were a marathon with special shifts, ramp-ups, records. Never before has the Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand delivered 4.6 million vehicles from January to September. You demonstrated the power of Volkswagen.' Kilian also underscored that the targets set out in the Pact for the Future were again met in 2018. 'Let's continue to work on productivity and efficiency in 2019 to boost the economic strength of our Volkswagen brand.'

Works Council Chairman Bernd Osterloh emphasized: 'In 2018, the colleagues in Wolfsburg and at the other plants showed dedication and competence in mastering a difficult year. Their first-class work is a prerequisite for laying the foundations for the future-oriented realignment of the German plants under Planning Round 67. With the swift conversion to e-mobility in Germany we are enabling Volkswagen to comply with the current already extremely demanding climate policy targets.'

Kilian said that the model offensive would improve capacity utilization at the plants. Wolfsburg was already building a further attractive model with the SEAT Tarraco. At the same time, the Volkswagen brand was stepping on the gas as regards its transformation to e-mobility. 'We are swiftly setting up electric plants in Germany because we want to significantly boost the share of electric vehicles.' He added that the decision to make Zwickau, Emden and Hanover Electric Vehicle plants was also an important decision for Wolfsburg: 'You can be sure that concentrating Golf production at our Group's headquarters has set the course for the future. We are making strong investments in the ramp-up. And at the same time, we are developing the technologies for the electric future of our volume brands right here in Wolfsburg.'

Works Council Chairman Bernd Osterloh said: 'Every Golf, Tiguan, Touran, Golf Sportsvan and SEAT Tarraco built by our colleagues here testifies to the outstanding quality made in Wolfsburg. And every car the team builds makes an important economic contribution to actually bringing about the transformation of the Volkswagen brand. Because the money the company needs for the transformation has to be earned first. The work of our colleagues here makes Volkswagen fit for the future.'

Manfred Weber, Leader of the European People's Party in the European Parliament, was a guest of the Works Council at the works meeting. Speaking in Wolfsburg, he said: 'In global competition, the future of Germany as an industrial location can only be secured in the EU single market. Together we can enforce our standards, master the challenges of digitalisation and make sure that the cars of the 21st century are primarily built here.' He went on to say that the automotive industry is one of Europe's key industries and merited special protection. Cases like Kuka must not be allowed to occur again. Weber emphasised: 'Anyone wishing to abolish the internal market runs the risk of losing millions of jobs in Europe, many of them in Germany. The right-wing and left-wing demagogues who demand customs barriers are betraying industrial workers throughout Europe.'

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Turning his attention to diesel, Weber said: 'There is almost a touch of hysteria about the way we discuss diesel in Germany. Diesel technology is a key industry. It is also one answer for climate protection. Rural regions in Germany and Europe will continue to rely on internal combustion engines for a long time to come. So please, let us stop talking down one of Europe's key technologies!'

About the Volkswagen brand: 'We make the future real'

The Volkswagen Passenger Cars brand is present in more than 150 markets throughout the world and produces vehicles at over 50 locations in 14 countries. In 2017, Volkswagen delivered 6.23 million vehicles including bestselling models such as the Golf, Tiguan, Jetta or Passat. Currently, 198,000 people work for Volkswagen across the globe. The brand also has 7,700 dealerships with 74,000 employees.Volkswagen is forging ahead consistently with the further development of automobile production. E-mobility, smart mobility and the digital transformation of the brand are the key strategic topics for the future.