Volkswagen’s Baunatal component plant will significantly increase production of gearboxes, and create additional jobs, according to dpa-AFX news.
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This comes at a time when Volkswagen is considering reducing its component manufacturing operations as a means to cutting costs.
Annual gearbox production at the plant, located near Kassel, is planned to increase from 2.5m units to 3m in 2005.
14,500 people are employed at the plant, of which 6,000 assemble gearboxes or work in the foundry producing gearbox castings.
Capacity will be increased for Volkswagen’s direct shift gearbox (DSG), the world’s first dual-clutch automated manual gearbox in a production car, but demand for some components will be met by external Japanese suppliers, according to the local newspaper — Hessish/Niedersächsischen Allgemeine.
Works leader Hans-Helmut Becker said that labour costs per gearbox will be reduced by around 20% by the expansion, thereby significantly increasing the competitiveness of the plant.
