Mercedes-Benz SA production plant takes Silver in Europe-Africa

Employees at the award-winning Mercedes Benz South Africa Production Plant in East London.

Image: www.quickpic.co.za

The MBSA plant has received a silver commendation in the Europe-Africa manufacturing region from this organisation, whose IQS quality rating is upheld by many in the international automotive industry as a benchmark for quality and reliability.

As the only African plant on the list of awardees, this is the sixth consecutive award for Daimler AG's South African plant. The company's J.D. Power award collection now boasts two gold awards (2009 and 2011) and three silver awards (2012, 2013 and 2014) in the Europe-Africa region, as well as the ultimate accolade - a platinum award in 2010, as the highest ranking plant in the world supplying the American market.

MBSA CEO and vice president of manufacturing, Arno van der Merwe, attributes the consistency of the manufacturing plant's performance to a focus on efficiency improvement and stringent quality systems within the production process. "While technology and process excellence is of vital importance, equally essential is the mind-set and passion of our employees," van der Merwe says. "We prioritise problem-solving at all levels within the plant, by harnessing the unique skills of our employees. This award is a tribute to their tenacity and expertise."

The East London plant produced the W204 C-Class for both the local and US markets, and registered only 27 problems per 100 vehicles (27PP100) surveyed by J.D. Power in 2014. The gold award recipient in the Europe-Africa category performed only one point better, at 26PP100 vehicles. "This clearly shows the necessity to run a tight ship at our plant in terms of reliability, efficiency and quality," van der Merwe adds.