This momentous production milestone was reached by Mercedes-Benz in just 19 short years.
Mercedes-Benz Malaysia has recently and rather proudly announced that its Pekan plant in Pahang has rolled out its 100,000th passenger car. An achievement is made all the more impressive when considering that this production site became operational only 19 years ago in 2004.
If according to Mercedes-Benz, this momentous milestone underlines its ‘remarkable achievement underlines Mercedes-Benz Malaysia’s commitment and dedication to manufacturing excellence and innovation in the luxury automotive industry’. Amanda Zhang, President & CEO of Mercedes-Benz Cars Malaysia has also shared for the German marque to be ‘the first and only luxury automotive manufacturer to master the local production process in Malaysia’, which does kind of signify that perhaps the three pointed star doesn’t consider the equally CKD BMWs and Porsches in Kulim, as well as the Volvos made in Shah Alam, to not be from a ‘luxury automotive manufacturer’?
That slight gaffe aside, it is reassuring to hear that Mercedes-Benz Malaysia looks to be here for the long run. The German automaker has pledged its commitments during this production milestone to continue contributing to the local economy, and has highlighted that it has made continuous investment efforts of over RM500 million to date in its Pekan plant.
It is similarly intriguing to hear that while being predominantly still a petro-state, the Malaysian arm of Mercedes-Benz has reiterated its aim in shifting its CKD efforts in line with its German head towards a fully-electric lineup. The German automaker has recently began the local assembly of its first EV in the form of the EQS500 4MATIC, with likely more to come in the near future.
Finally, aside from green-ifying their lineup with EVs, Mercedes-Benz Malaysia has also announced its intentions to increase the sustainability of its local production process too. The German automaker, together with its contract manufacturing partner, HICOM Automotive are working towards a Green Production Target for the assembly plant to ensure that the best practices are adopted in the reduction of energy, water and waste; while increasing the percentage of renewable energy in its production. This includes the aspiration to increase its renewable energy source from 30% (current) to 85% by the end of the decade.
Andreas Lettner, Vice President of Production at Mercedes-Benz Cars Malaysia, stated, “In alignment with our sustainability vision, we are committed to reducing our carbon footprint by minimizing water and energy consumption while efficiently managing waste. Collaborating with our contract manufacturing partner, HICOM Automotive, we’ve undertaken numerous upgrades at our plant. These enhancements encompass investments in machinery, capacity expansion and the implementation of various sustainability measures. These measures include energy conservation, reduced raw material consumption through innovative packaging, rainwater utilization and the integration of green energy through photovoltaic panels.”
