In a previous article posted at the beginning of August, we were revealing the daring goals Daimler AG's CEO, Dr. Dieter Zetsche, has in mind for the next years. To put it straight, his main aim is to get Mercedes-Benz back to where it belongs on the premium brands' market: the top spot.


The 2011-2020 decade will bring many changes to the automotive industry, as forecasts predict the demand for passenger cars by the end of it will exceed the worldwide economical growth. Following the 125th birthday of the automobile, Dr. Z embarked on outlining an enterprising strategy that he sais will enable Mercedes-Benz to become the leader of the premium segment by or before 2020: "The first decade following the 125th birthday of the automobile will bring many changes to our industry. We are very well prepared -- and we look forward to working with you to make the next decade a 'Mercedes decade'. The planning outlook is not the next quarter, but rather the next decade. Experts all agree that by 2020, demand for cars will grow faster than the overall global economy."

Nevertheless, this aggressive marketing approach designed by Zetsche and his team also takes into consideration certain weakness that are expected to take place in several markets: "Even in the future, we must be prepared for short- to mid-term market weakness. There are indications that certain markets could weaken in the next few months, but we are prepared for this outcome."

In the letter addressed to Daimler employees, he further expressed the desire to build a strong brand and the need to always come up with fresh and attractive products to keep the pace with the progress of the society and adapt to clients' dynamic tastes: "At the same time we will grow at the upper end of the model spectrum with, for example, additional variants of the next S class, another attractive SUV, as well as with models such as the CLS Shooting Brake."

One of the first targets of the 'Mercedes decade' plan is reaching the 1.5 million unit sales level by 2014 and continuing up towards 1.6 million cars sold by 2015: "In sum, we want to reach the intermediate goal of 1.5 million unit sales for Mercedes-Benz passenger cars as early as 2014 -- one year earlier than previously planned. By 2015 we should hit 1.6 million".

Dr. Dieter Zetsche stresses upon the fact a long-term projection through 2020 might be dangerous and not very realistic: "We are deliberately not stating a number for 2020: A long-term prediction like that would be very hypothetical -- and it makes no sense to start a contest for the slogan 'Who'll get more?' All the same, we're reiterating our ambition to lead: Whatever the relevant sales number toward the end of the decade may be, we want to be in the top spot."

Copyright © 2011, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

Last week, German court started an investigation at Daimler AG on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter, with Dr. Dieter Zetsche, President of the Board of Management of the company, being the prime suspect. The accusation against him was formulated following a fatal accident that occured back in July, when a 27-year old Mercedes-Benz engineer was killed while travelling in a car driven at high speed, on a test track, by an intern. The prosecutors procedeed with the trial and, in the end, came to the fair conclusion that Zetsche and the company could not, in any way, be held responsible for the tragic death of the engineer. As a consequence, the Osnabrück court decided Daimler AG together with its leader are to be alleviated of any guiltiness in this case.

Follow after the jump to read the official statement of Daimler AG upon the court's decision!


Preliminary Investigations against Board of Management of Daimler AG discontinued

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

Osnabrück, Germany, Sep 19, 2011 - The District Attorney’s Office in Osnabrück has issued the following notice: “On Monday, September 19, 2011, the Office of the District Attorney of Osnabrück discontinued the preliminary investigations concerning alleged gross negligence resulting in death against Dr. Dieter Zetsche as representative of the Daimler Board of Management.“

“The investigation was initiated on the basis of allegations by the parents of a test driver who suffered a deadly accident on the test course in Papenburg on September 21,09.2010. On that day, an intern who was driving a test vehicle on the course at a high speed collided with a slow-driving passenger car, killing a 27-year old test engineer.

The district court of Papenburg sentenced the man who caused the accident to a monetary fine on probation for negligent manslaughter on July 12, 2011.

The parents of the deceased supposed that the accident was a violation of the supervisory duties of managing staff of Daimler AG.

The District Attorney’s Office of Osnabrück discontinued the proceedings because a breach of supervisory duty can not be found. Against the parents’ claim, the driver who caused the accident was extensively instructed and trained prior to the start of the test drive. In the opinion of the test supervisor, the driver had good command of the local conditions and was well able to cope with the test drive. The accident was attributable to a momentary failure since the driver apparently allowed his attention to be diverted by the operation of the cruise control at high speed.“

Source: Daimler AG

Copyright © 2011, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

With regard to reports about criminal charges and preliminary investigations of the Board of Management of Daimler AG, represented by Chairman of the Board of Management Dieter Zetsche, concerning alleged gross negligence resulting in death, the Company states as follows: In legal proceedings against the perpetrator of the accident before the Papenburg District Court on July 12, both the judge and the public prosecutor explicitly stated that the company Daimler, and consequently also the Chairman of the Board of Management, were in no way to blame. In fact, the court found that the driver was solely to blame because he did not look straight ahead at the road in front of him for a distance of several kilometers. The initiation of preliminary investigations of the Board of Management is a pure formality. We assume that these proceedings will be discontinued.

Daimler AG


Copyright © 2011, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.