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tefan Buchner succeeds Dr. Michael Dostal as Head of Truck Powertrain Operations and Manufacturing Engineering
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Product Development Truck Powertrain to be headed by Elmar Böckenhoff for Daimler Trucks worldwide and by Dr. Wilfried Achenbach for Daimler Trucks North America
Stuttgart — Daimler Trucks is putting new people into key positions. Effective October 31, 2010, Dr. Michael Dostal, who is Head of Truck Powertrain Operations and responsible for Manufacturing Engineering worldwide, will retire after 27 years at Daimler. Dostal, who has a doctorate in mechanical engineering, began his career at Daimler at the passenger-car transmission production plant in Untertürkheim in 1983. In 1999, after serving in several management positions in transmission production, Dostal became a member of the central Planning Committee for Commercial Vehicle Product and Production Planning, with responsibility for the Technical Engineering section. He directed the Wörth truck assembly plant from 2000 to 2006, playing a key role in making the location the largest, most innovative, and most modern truck production facility in Europe. As a member of the management board of Mercedes-Benz Trucks, Dostal was also responsible for production and production organization at the business unit. As a member of the Truck Group Board of Management, he has been the Head of Truck Powertrain Operations since August 1, 2006. In this capacity, he has played a key role in the development of the New Engine Generation of diesels for commercial vehicles, in addition to setting standards with the commonality strategy for drive trains and processes.
Dostal was a key contributor to the development and establishment of Daimler Trucks’ new holistic management system Truck Operating System (TOS), which is based on the lean management principle known from Japan. Dostal also led the effort to establish global supplier management.
Andreas Renschler, the member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG with responsibility for Daimler Trucks, had high praise for Dr. Dostal’s service. “Michael Dostal integrated our powertrain facilities worldwide into a global production network and thus significantly contributed to the implementation of our commonality strategy. The things that make Michael Dostal particularly stand out are his tremendous planning and product expertise and his excellent working relationships with employees. As a result of these characteristics, he played a pivotal role during the introduction of TOS and the integration of the global manufacturing engineering functions,” said Renschler.
Daimler Trucks management to be streamlined
Dostal’s successor will be Stefan Buchner, who is currently Head of Trucks and Buses Procurement. Buchner will take up his new position on November 1, 2010. He will continue to manage Trucks and Buses Procurement and will integrate his current responsibilities into his new position. This will make the cooperation between procurement and production even stronger and thus boost effectiveness. Andreas Renschler: “Stefan Buchner is already a member of our most important decision-making bodies, so he is well acquainted with all of the key issues concerning trucks and powertrains. Under his leadership, the Procurement unit was realigned and has become a powerful global organization. In addition, Stefan Buchner has extensive networks throughout the commercial vehicle industry worldwide. He therefore has what it takes to successfully manage our global production network and to further intensify the international focus of Daimler Trucks.”
There will also be a management change at Product Development Truck Powertrain effective on October 1, 2010. Elmar Böckenhoff, currently Head of Product Development Trucks at DTNA, will be responsible in this area for Daimler Trucks as a whole. His successor at DTNA will be Dr. Wilfried Achenbach. Bernhard Heil, the previous Head of Product Development Truck Powertrain, moved to Group Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars Development (RD) on September 1, 2010, and is now in charge of Program Management Powertrain/Development Car Engines and Powertrains.
