Scania on Thursday said (17 September) the global truck sales downturn had stabilised and it was preparing for an upturn while continuing to reduce costs.
CEO Leif Östling said: “We believe that the downturn has levelled off, even if the activity level remains low among our customers.
“We are working hard to reduce our costs in response to weak demand, but at the same time we are preparing for the next upturn phase.”
The company also unveiled an additional model, the R-series which, together with streamlining of production and the service network, would “provide a great opportunity for strong and profitable growth when the market eventually turns around,” Östling added.
“The strong focus on costs and cash flow will lay the groundwork for a more efficient organisation. Among other things, the experiences from our four-day week [in Europe] will contribute to more efficient working methods in the future.” The continuous improvement basis of the Scania Production System (SPS) would be used to “increase productivity at the offices as well as within the sales and services network”.
CFO Jan Ytterberg said group production was increasing compared with the second quarter.
But “the third quarter is seasonally weak due to holiday periods in many markets,” he warned.
Scania said it would work more closely with bus and coach body builders to boost quality and increase aftersales business by means such as service contracts.
