DaimlerChrysler has announced today that as the first step in a plan which involves the expansion of the Mercedes-Benz Technology Center in Sindelfingen, Germany, the Board of Management for the Mercedes Car Group has authorized the construction of two large test rigs:  one for climate tunnels, and the other a driving simulator. Costing approximately EUR 100 million, these rigs are part of a construction plan for the "Mittelpfad South" area directly adjacent to the MTC and the Sindelfingen plant, and will take roughly five years to complete.

According to Dr. Thomas Weber, member of the DaimlerChrysler Board of Management responsible for Corporate Research & Mercedes Car Group Development:  "The expansion of the Mercedes-Benz Technology Center signals DaimlerChrysler’s clear commitment to safeguarding the long-term success of Germany as a global leader in research and the automotive industry.  In addition, this planned investment and the proximity of the facilities, we are intensifying the close integration between research, development, planning and production in Sindelfingen and enhance our competitiveness along this value chain."

To learn more about Daimler's decision to expand their research and development activities in Sindelfingen, keep reading for the full press release outlining the project.


OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE


DaimlerChrysler Plans to Expand Research and Development Activities in Sindelfingen

• Large test rigs — climate tunnels and driving simulator — to be built in “Mittelpfad South” development area
  
  
• Around €100 million to be invested over the next five years
  
  
• Close integration of research and development, with strong commitment to Germany as a high-tech business location

Stuttgart/Sindelfingen , Dec 08, 2006
As a first step in the expansion of the Mercedes-Benz Technology Center (MTC) in Sindelfingen, Germany, the Board of Management of DaimlerChrysler's Mercedes Car Group (MCG) has authorized the construction of two large test rigs. These test rigs - climate tunnels and a driving simulator - are part of the construction plan for the “Mittelpfad South” area directly adjacent to the MTC and the Sindelfingen plant. DaimlerChrysler will invest approximately €100 million in the project over the next five years.

“The expansion of the Mercedes-Benz Technology Center signals DaimlerChrysler’s clear commitment to safeguarding the long-term success of Germany as a global leader in research and the automotive industry,” says Dr. Thomas Weber, member of the DaimlerChrysler Board of Management responsible for Corporate Research & Mercedes Car Group Development.

“In addition, this planned investment and the proximity of the facilities, we are intensifying the close integration between research, development, planning and production in Sindelfingen and enhance our competitiveness along this value chain.”

Pending the binding administrative approval of the “Mittelpfad South” development plan, the building work on the large test rigs will begin in the spring of 2007. The preparatory measures for providing the new construction site with an energy supply will be started this year. The expansion, which will be carried out in several phases, will be completed in the next decade.

The planned new climate tunnels will lead to faster, more precise and more extensive measurement results. In the future, it will be possible to test vehicles on these test rigs regardless of the weather conditions. In addition, fewer test drives on public roads will be needed.

Through the second large test rig, the driving simulator, the company is planning to integrate vehicle-related research into the development process even more intensely and efficiently. Among the key factors behind the decision to build a new, ultramodern driving simulator were customers’ increasing demands regarding movement dynamics and the need to reproduce complex inner-city scenarios in a lifelike fashion.

At the Mercedes Technology Center, which was opened in 2000, developers, designers and engineers work on the product and technology portfolio of the Mercedes-Benz, smart and Maybach brands as well as for DaimlerChrysler.

After the expansion of the Mercedes-Benz Technology Center on the Mittelpfad South site is completed and the centralization of previously scattered vehicle-related research functions has been carried out, positions for highly qualified employees will be clustered at the Sindelfingen facility in the coming years.

Copyright © 2006, DaimlerChrysler AG