By Nangamso Mabindla
3 August 2004

BUFFALO City municipality is overjoyed at the news that the new generation Mercedes Benz C-Class will be manufactured at DaimlerChrysler's East London plant in West Bank.

Buffalo City communications manager Darby Gounden, who said the news, which was received last week from DaimlerChrysler South Africa's (DCSA) parent company in Germany last week, couldn't have come at a better time for the city.

"We've won prestigious awards and for the West Bank plant to be named manufacturer of the next generation C-Class has actually proved that DaimlerChrysler AG is happy with how our people work. We're happy for DCSA and we also think of the employment opportunities for our people," she said.

According to Gounden, the municipality was ready to strengthen the bond it has with the German automobile manufacturer. "We will readily avail our resources should DCSA wish to use them. We really have a strong bond with them and we think it will only be beneficial to the city if we work with them."

DCSA's management board member for manufacturing Dr Hansgeorg Niefer, echoed these sentiments: "I'm delighted by the announcement, it is a vote of confidence in our ability to produce world class cars. It is also confirmation that our plant has a firm place in the worldwide passenger-car production network of the Mercedes Benz brand."

Indications are that the production of the new model, expected to start in early 2007, will extend the capacities and increase the flexibility of the East London plant. However Hansgeorg declined to speculate on planned volumes at this early stage.

He also paid tribute to the commitment and dedication of the East London plant's workers and management.

"Since we started, the production of the Mercedes-Benz C-Class at the end of 2000, we've consistently met and exceeded DCAG's stringent quality and delivery targets," he said. "We also played an important role in the success of the C-Class both in local and global markets."

Niefer was confident that the East London plant, which employs about 4000 people, would be in a position to make a valuable contribution to DaimlerChrysler's future production requirements.

"We hope our people will not disappoint DCAG; we can only encourage them to work hard so that the plant maintains is world class standard, it can only benefit the city's economy," agreed Gounden.

The DaimlerChrysler East London plant currently produces around 55 000 vehicles a year, of which more than 40 000 are right-hand drive Mercedes-Benz C-Class sedans. Some 75 percent of the C-Class production is exported to several foreign markets with the UK, Japan, Australia and other Pacific Rim countries receiving the bulk.