DaimlerChrysler AG is developing a plan to reorganize its truck division to increase profit and save costs by sharing components among its European, United States, and Asian units and affiliates, according to news sources.
The plan will be presented to investors in the “not-too-distant future,” said Othmar Stein, a company spokesman.
Eckhard Cordes, who heads the company's commercial vehicles operations, has said he wants the company's brands — including US-based Freightliner and the Mercedes-Benz unit in Germany — to save on vehicle parts that can't be seen, such as drivetrains, axles, and chassis. The savings would also extend to Mitsubishi Fuso and Hyundai brands.
German newspaper Die Welt said the plan will be announced in July 2003, and that the number of businesses DaimlerChrysler operates at its truck division will be trimmed from six to four. The operations will be combined into one group, the report said. The reorganization would happen over a period of five to 10 years, according to the news sources.