- Mercedes-Benz opens Asia-Pacific procurement hub in Seoul to boost supply chain.
- New hub covers procurement, supplier management across Asia-Pacific markets.
- Korea’s strong auto industry draws strategic supplier collaboration focus.
Mercedes-Benz has also established a new strategic procurement hub in the city of Seoul in a move that is aimed at improving its supply chains within the Asia-Pacific market.
The new Asia-Pacific procurement, supplier management organization was launched on January 14 at Mercedes-Benz Korea headquarters located in the city of Seoul. High-ranking managers were present during the launch ceremony.
The new entity will function within the framework of the procurement and supplier management of the Mercedes-Benz Group AG. This will act as the regional headquarters of the purchasing, supplier management, as well as the overall business development function.
This will apply to the major markets of the Asia-Pacific region including the markets of Korea and Japan. It will also include the major Southeast Asian markets.
“Korea has a leading car industry and supplier base in the automotive sector and therefore the location is optimal for the hub,” states Jörg Burzer, the CTO of Mercedes-Benz. “It is the intention of the organisation to further strengthen cooperation with current partners as well as build new partnerships in areas of advanced technologies and improve the integration of the global organisation and the regional organisation,” he added.
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The Seoul hub will be organized into three major departments – business development, procurement, and supplier management – and Steffen Mauersberger will head it as Vice President of Asia-Pacific procurement and supplier management.
This decision also throws some insight into the overall strategy of Mercedes-Benz, which is focused on strengthening the resilience of its supply-chain network, optimizing supplier relationships, and improving efficiency in the Asian markets.
This latest center is part of the overall plan of Mercedes-Benz in the region as they aim for increased product launches and collaboration with leading suppliers in the tech and parts sectors. Mercedes-Benz has actually been working extensively with industry players in the region to help ensure the development of the next-generation cars in such fields as electrification and automotive technologies.