Daimler Truck Korea held a press conference on the 14th at Hotel Naru in Mapo-gu, Seoul, commemorating its 20th anniversary in the domestic market. During the event, the company reflected on its key achievements over the past two decades and shared its vision and strategy for the ‘Truckers 2.0 Era’ that will lead the future of truck transportation.
With the theme ’20 Years that Have Moved Korea,’ this event featured Antonio Landa Jo, the CEO, making his first official appearance since his appointment. He spoke about the achievements of the past 20 years and expressed his aspirations for a new beginning as Daimler Truck Korea prepares for the transition to the future of mobility. Andreas von Valkfeldt, the representative for the Overseas Business Division of Daimler Truck AG, who was specially invited for this occasion, presented the global future strategy of Daimler Truck AG.
Antonio Landa Jo stated, “Thanks to the trust of our customers and the support of our partners, Daimler Truck Korea is celebrating a successful 20th anniversary. Moving forward, we will open a new era of Truckers 2.0, rewarding our customers with the best products and services, and creating opportunities for mutual growth through trust and cooperation with partners and dealers in the industry, establishing the Daimler Truck Eco-system.”
Founded in 2003, Daimler Truck Korea is the Korean subsidiary of Daimler Truck AG, the world’s largest commercial vehicle brand, and has pioneered the domestic premium commercial vehicle market by introducing top-class products from Mercedes-Benz.
As of May this year, the cumulative sales of Mercedes-Benz trucks in Korea exceeded 13,000 units.
The various segments of vehicles released in the past include over 1,500 models, including long-distance transport heavy trucks, ultra-heavy special cargo trucks, and medium trucks for urban deliveries, as well as construction dump trucks. Notably, the company launched the fifth generation of the world’s best-selling heavy-duty truck, the Actros, along with industry-first innovations such as the MirrorCam that replaces side mirrors, the Active Drive Assist (ADA) semi-autonomous system, and the Active Brake Assist 5 (ABA 5) pedestrian detection emergency braking system, enhancing the quality of products in the domestic commercial vehicle market.
In addition, Daimler Truck Korea is leading carbon neutrality efforts, expanding the application of eco-friendly remanufactured parts, referred to as genuine ReMAN parts, and running campaigns like ‘Save the Bee, Save the Green’ as part of its sustainable management activities.
Daimler Truck Korea has not only driven qualitative growth in the commercial vehicle market by launching premium products from Mercedes-Benz but has also contributed to the development of the Korean economy and the commercial vehicle sector in various ways.
First, by supplying Mercedes-Benz vehicle chassis to domestic special vehicle manufacturers, the company has exported over 1,600 completed special vehicles, collaborating with Korean special vehicle manufacturers for international exports. Furthermore, with Mercedes-Benz’s high-performance special truck, the Unimog, it has contributed to disaster response and rescue during snow removal and firefighting with its unparalleled performance.
Daimler Truck Korea has also been making long-term investments to improve the infrastructure of the commercial vehicle market. In 2015, it established a training center for commercial vehicle sales and maintenance personnel and opened the ‘Mercedes-Benz Truck Star Center,’ the largest concept truck delivery center in the country, in Asan, Chungnam, in 2019. In April of this year, they officially launched the Daimler Truck Parts Center and, in August, opened a dedicated service center for the Unimog, operating a total of 17 official service centers nationwide to further enhance service competitiveness.
On this day, Daimler Truck Korea announced its new future strategy and vision for the next 20 years, proclaiming its ambition to usher in the ‘Truckers 2.0 Era’ in preparation for the coming mobile future. Firstly, it aims to strengthen its identity as a commercial vehicle specialist by expanding its portfolio with the introduction of new models and brands, including electric trucks. Secondly, it plans to expand its joint market with partners, creating new market entry opportunities. Lastly, by investing in infrastructure and providing the industry’s highest level of service, it aims to enhance service capabilities for customer trust and satisfaction.
From June to August 2023, Daimler Truck Korea recorded the number one market share in the import tractor sector for three consecutive months and gained popularity in the tractor segment. In the second half of this year, they plan to launch the Arocs 4151 8X4 model, adding a large cargo lineup to their current 4×2 and 6×4 lineup, and they are fully prepared to enter the 15-ton dump truck market.
Alongside the Mercedes-Benz eActros large electric truck, they are advancing the early introduction of a medium electric truck based on the eCanter under a new family brand, aiming to lead the domestic medium and large electric truck market.
Daimler Truck Korea intends to solidify its collaboration with domestic special vehicle manufacturers to create new sales channels and expand market development. Rather than selling vehicles directly to customers, Daimler Truck Korea will supply chassis to cooperating special vehicle manufacturers to be equipped with special equipment, through which the vehicles will be sold, thus enhancing sales competitiveness within the market.
This past May, Daimler Truck Korea signed a business agreement with fire special vehicle company F1 Tech and executed a sales contract for the Mercedes-Benz Unimog multi-purpose high-performance chassis for wildfire suppression for 2023. In August, they also launched the ‘Arocs 2130L with a wheelbase of 6900mm’ model in collaboration with their 20-year partner, Seogwang Industries, and established a new sales channel through Seogwang Special Vehicles.
Daimler Truck Korea is continuously enhancing its service capabilities for customer success and satisfaction. The ‘Daimler Truck Parts Center,’ established in April in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province, is a special parts logistics center equipped with over 70 types of truck parts totaling 150,000 pieces, significantly increasing the inventory of truck-specific parts to improve the core parts availability rate to 99%.
This has laid the foundation for maximizing total transport efficiency (TTE) by minimizing customers’ downtime through smooth parts supply and flexible delivery.
On this day, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Daimler Truck Korea, Andreas von Valkfeldt, the representative for the Overseas Business Division of Daimler Truck AG, attended and announced the global strategy of Daimler Truck AG.
Representative Andreas stated, “The Korean market is a core market for Daimler Trucks, and we are striving to showcase new technologies for continuous growth. By 2025, we aim to successfully lead the transition to the future of transportation with zero-emission vehicles (ZEV) across global markets, including Korea.”
He introduced the eActros 300 and 400 models equipped with advanced e-axle technology and high-efficiency electric powertrains, emphasizing their efforts to early introduce the eActros to the Korean market, noting that electric vehicle infrastructure, government subsidies, and regulations are key points for the successful establishment of electric trucks.
Lee Sang-jin daedusj@autodiary.kr