Daimler AG experts visit Kamaz

The Daimler AG delegation, Kamaz auto maker’s strategic partner, has completed its visit to Naberezhnye Chelny. The guests, led by the Daimler AG Department of Production chief Christoph Siegel, focused on the development of Kamaz’s production system, said the company’s press service.

Since Kamaz and Daimler have become strategic partners, the two firms have initiated some joint projects. For the projects to be successful, the potential joint ventures need to have production processes based on a single standard. Borrowing Daimler’s best practices and implementing them at Kamaz, adapting to the present-day Russian realities, was the focus of the Kamaz production system development.

To organise a production run compliant with the European standards, the Kamaz management and staff need to take training courses at Daimler plants. The German delegation will evaluate the degree of implementing the production system, defining areas in which the management and personnel need training.

While touring the plant, the guests remarked on tremendous changes the company had been through over the year, after the D&D procedure, conducted last autumn to assess the real cost of Kamaz assets prior to Daimler buying its stake.

According to Kamaz’s auto plant director Ildus Bayanov, the foreign guests were interested in applying and developing the economical manufacturing techniques. "The Daimler AG representatives were satisfied with what they saw," noted Bayanov. "They did not expect us to make such a long way in such a short time." Based on a scale designed by Daimler AG, there are four levels of production system. The firm that has applied the scale since 1995 is between levels two and three. Kamaz, they say, is on level one. This is given the fact that the company introduced the production system in 2006 and has actively developed it since 2008.

Besides the auto plant, the German delegation toured the premises of JSC Kamaz Frame Forming Plant, JSC Kamaz Diesel, logistics centre Master and JSC Kamaz Corporate University. All the entities were praised by the foreign specialists.

The Daimler’s visit to Kamaz benefited the both parties. The resulting report contains some valuable recommendations on improving the main assembly lines and enhancing workplace safety. In some aspects, the German counterparts said, they could learn from the Tatar auto giant. Besides, they admitted, Kamaz’s lag from the global truck manufacturing leaders in terms of applying the production system was becoming formal. Kamaz is rapidly catching up with its Western counterparts. 

Upon an analysis of the data obtained within the audit, successful negotiations on further cooperation between JSC Kamaz and Daimler AG within the joint project Production System took place in terms of training, implementing the key performance indicator system and standardising management process at the workshop level took place.