Mercedes-Benz is accelerating the transformation of its production network by reinforcing Berlin-Marienfelde’s status as the centre of innovation for MO360 digital production technologies which are now enhanced with Artificial Intelligence (AI) humanoid robots and pioneering innovations such as the production of high-performance electric axial-flux motors Berlin-Marienfelde established itself as the global centre of competence for the digitalisation of production with the Mercedes Benz Digital Factory Campus (MBDFC) promoting the development of future software applications in a real production environment The central basis of the activities is the Mercedes-Benz Cars Operations 360 digital production ecosystem which contains all the important software applications and data of the global production network the development and testing of new processes and technologies has been combined with seamless and rapid global implementation of pioneering MO360 software applications for automotive production Mercedes-Benz has now enhanced its MO360 production system with AI features like the Digital Factory Chatbot Ecosystem and the MO360LLM Suite, and with humanoid robots from U.S.-based company Apptronik reinforcing Berlin-Marienfelde’s status as a centre for global innovation new production processes and features including those enabled through the Mercedes-Benz Operating System (MB.OS) are tested before they are sent to real-life production lines at other Mercedes-Benz assembly plants played an important role in preparing the Rastatt plant for its ramp-up of the new Mercedes-Benz CLA “Mercedes-Benz Berlin-Marienfelde remains at the cutting edge of automotive production and keeps Germany on the map as a global centre for innovation Artificial Intelligence and humanoid robots open up an exciting new frontier which make automotive production more sustainable efficient and more intelligent” states Jörg Burzer Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG Proving Ground For Highly Automated Robotics In Production Mercedes-Benz is committed to empowering its staff with state-of-the-art technology – and with Apollo Mercedes-Benz brings one of world’s most advanced commercial humanoid robots into its manufacturing facilities To underscore its commitment to deploying humanoid robots in automotive production Mercedes-Benz will make a low double-digit-million-euro investment into Apptronik which was founded in 2016 at the Human Centered Robotics Lab at the University of Texas at Austin Mercedes-Benz has been using industrial robotics technology since the 1970s to perform particularly monotonous and physically demanding tasks Mercedes-Benz is currently testing the integration of humanoid robots in production with an initial focus on repetitive tasks within intralogistics Apptronik’s Apollo can be used to transport components or modules to the production line for Mercedes-Benz’s highly skilled production staff to assemble and to carry out initial quality checks of components Apollo robots have been collecting data in a production environment to train for specific use cases within MO360 Mercedes-Benz employees with real-life production know-how have transferred their knowledge to Apollo using teleoperation processes and augmented reality Mercedes-Benz is now taking the next decisive development step at the Digital Factory Campus Berlin – enabling Apollo’s robots to perform autonomous operations a technological milestone on the way to a flexible intelligent assistance system for production the AI-powered humanoid robotics company Apptronik announced that it had entered a strategic partnership agreement with the Google DeepMind robotics team to bring together best-in-class artificial intelligence with cutting-edge hardware advancing humanoid robots that can be more helpful to people in dynamic environments Artificial Intelligence is changing the world and at the MBDFC Mercedes-Benz is proactively shaping and creating new smart technologies for use in the global production network artificial intelligence is being brought directly into production in a way which is intuitive The in-house Digital Factory Chatbot Ecosystem development allows employees to access production databases: Questions about machine maintenance or best-practice methods for manufacturing processes can simply be asked via chat and the AI immediately provides precise answers in several languages “AI takes over the tasks we usually enjoy less giving us time to focus on real innovation I’m convinced that it makes a significant contribution to business success when applied strategically and executed pragmatically let’s embrace it as key part of our solution moving forward” commented Katrin Lehmann Chief Information Officer of Mercedes-Benz Group AG and Mercedes-Benz AG Another example of the practical use of AI is the virtual multi-agent system AI-supported virtual assistants analyse complex data in real time and can help to quickly identify the causes of sudden quality deviations in production the engineers rely on AI agents from a virtual data-science team These AI agents quickly and reliably analyse available data identify patterns and anomalies and offer well-founded analyses and suggested solutions at the touch of a button for real efficiency gains in production HOME PAGE LINK Eileen Falkenberg-Hull leads the Autos team at Newsweek She has written extensively about the auto industry for U.S Eileen is an alumna of Pennsylvania State University and the State University of New York at Buffalo either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content Artificial intelligence (AI) is at the center of a new U.S.-based Apptronik is part of a testing scheme that explores the role of AI humanoid robots and the production of new mechanical products next to each other at the Mercedes-Benz Digital Factory Campus (MBDFC) in Berlin-Marienfelde MBDFC has been the center for Mercedes-Benz future software applications testing in real-world production environments The luxury vehicle company has integrated these future technologies into the globally used Mercedes-Benz Cars Operations 360 (MO360) digital production software ecosystem Mercedes is testing how Apptronik's Apollo humanoid robot could work in its manufacturing facilities. Apollo is one of the world's most advanced commercial humanoid robots. It is an evolution of the company's robotics applications that pulls on experiences learned from building more than 10 previous robots, including NASA's Valkyrie robot Apollo is the first commercial humanoid robot designed for friendly interaction "We have these robots that you see all around us today," Jeff Cardenas "They're largely programmed to do one thing but [what] the future looks like is to have one single robot that can do many different things that can integrate seamlessly into these environments that are already built around humans to work with us and change the way we live at work." Initial testing with Apollo focuses on production with the robots performing repetitive tasks within internal logistics operations transporting components or modules to the production line The company's skilled human workers then assemble and conduct initial quality checks on the transported items working with Mercedes employees to transfer human knowledge to the robots using teleoperation processes and augmented reality That knowledge will be used further within MO360 All is done using AI-based learning technology "One of the ways that I explain this is you can think of this like personal computers in the early '80s These [robots] are basically mainframe computers and what we're entering is the personal computer era I think the important thing for everyone to understand is the beginning of this journey," Cardenas said A specific portion of MO360 is designated for the use of AI in production The integration is designed to allow AI to be "intuitive accessible and usable for everyone," the company said human employees are able to use the Mercedes Digital Factory Chatbot Ecosystem which allows them to ask questions and receive answers from a digital wealth of knowledge of the company's production databases rather than flipping through manuals or calling an expert AI is also being employed to support the knowledge of virtual assistants who analyze data in real time This allows quality deviations to be found more quickly which is intended to lead to less recalls down the line when products are already in customer hands "It's not a replacement of our team members working on the line It's at the end an addition," Jörg Burzer a member of the Management Board Mercedes-Benz Group AG Production Ahead of this robotics trial, MBDFC testing has played an integral role in preparing the company's Rastatt plant for production of the new Mercedes-Benz CLA The role of MBDFC is underlined by Burzer: "Mercedes-Benz Berlin-Marienfelde remains at the cutting edge of automotive production and keeps Germany on the map as a global center for innovation." Investing in German-based production and innovation has been a hot-button issue in the country Volkswagen Group has slashed tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs as it aims to restructure its business BMW and Mercedes-Benz have also made moves to lower headcount in recent years A Horváth 2024 survey of auto industry managers found that nearly 60 percent of German automakers plan to cut jobs in Germany by 2030 Fourteen percent of respondent indicated that the cuts would be "significant" The move comes as regionalization of manufacturing has become more popular especially as variations in global market powertrain priorities change supply bottlenecks happen and shipping/transportation costs increase told the German Press Agency in June that while job cuts are occurring German automakers are still investing heavily in their future "There is a high level of investment in the automation of production facilities and digitalization." Burzer told Newsweek that today's investment in the humanoid robot project is "likely less" money than Mercedes initially invested in robotics when it first instituted the technology in the early 1970s He said: "Artificial intelligence and humanoid robots open up an exciting new frontier which make automotive production more sustainable Efficiency is especially important to automakers today that are investing heavily in research and development of software and hardware while balancing a lack of demand for battery-electric vehicles on the scale that they had anticipated a decade ago they are bracing themselves for predicted economic headwinds globally with the downturn in sales of foreign autos in China the world's largest new vehicle sales market Mercedes-Benz has committed to a multimillion dollar investment into Apptronik to continue the robotics partnership Burzer expects to see widespread use of the humanoid robots across the Mercedes factory landscape by 2030 with each robot costing "less than $100k and more than $9,000." The company is focusing on implementation in the U.S and Europe and especially in Germany where there is an aging workforce Burzer is quick to point out that having a fully robotic workforce is not in cards in the near future Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground Newsletters in your inbox See all The Berlin Senate has massively reduced the funds for the procurement of electric buses for the Berlin public transport operator BVG The reason for this is apparently the delayed construction of the depot in Marienfelde which has also delayed the arrival of new electric buses As the German publication Tagesspiegel writes the budget for the procurement of electric buses in the current year is only around eight million euros instead of the planned 33.11 million euros The figures are based on a report by the administration to the transport committee of the House of Representatives It has been known since April that the governing parties CDU and SPD in Berlin want to save 130 million euros on bus and rail services this year It has now emerged that the BVG’s electric bus procurement programme is also affected the Berlin transport administration justifies the reduced budget with “delays in the construction of the new depot” which will also delay the delivery of the planned e-buses the specific issue is the depot in the Berlin district of Marienfelde BVG gave the go-ahead for the planning and construction of the facility there in February a consortium of two companies is to construct the new building for 220 electric buses in Marienfelde Around 228 of BVG’s current fleet of 1,600 buses are battery-electric, 17 of which are articulated buses. Another 50 Solaris buses are to be added in the coming year BVG aims to fully electrify its fleet by 2030 Tagesspiegel now writes that this goal is not considered realistic within BVG “We all know that it won’t work to convert the bus fleet to electric drive by 2030,” an insider is quoted as saying He went on to say that only 50 electric buses were ordered instead of the possible 344 due to the delay in the construction of the new depots on Marienfelder Säntisstraße and in Alt-Friedrichsfelde when the Solaris order was placed at the end of 2023 was awarded the contract by BVG to take on both the planning and execution services for the construction in Marienfelde SBRS is now a subsidiary of Shell Deutschland GmbH – the energy company took over the manufacturer which specialises in charging infrastructure solutions for electric buses The Berlin consortium therefore not only involves a construction company and a charging infrastructure manufacturer but also indirectly an energy company with experience in operating charging stations BVG did not say how expensive the facility in Berlin-Marienfelde There was also no mention of when the first electric buses are to be deployed there the rough timetable was made clear in February in a statement from SBRS: the first “commissioning stage” for the consortium comprises the planning work and approvals Only in a second commissioning stage will the necessary construction measures be realised and carried out in the years 2025-27 on the basis of the planning that has been completed A total of 209 charging points with an output of up to 150 kW will be created at the depot – these are the places for charging the electric buses overnight As can be seen in a rendering and an animated video on LinkedIn these will be mounted on racks in an open area so that the charging cables can simply be plugged into the buses parked there There will also be nine “ultra-fast charging points” with up to 450 kW if the battery of a vehicle needs to be recharged within a short time ARGE BVG Säntis will install a transfer station twelve inverter stations and nine charging masts There is also the option of charging double-decker buses tagesspiegel.dend-aktuell.de I agree with the Privacy policy electrive has been following the development of electric mobility with journalistic passion and expertise since 2013 we offer comprehensive coverage of the highest quality — as a central platform for the rapid development of this technology This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page The GE Hybrid Power Plant is a pilot project that comprises photovoltaic and energy storage technologies to produce and manage the power output The bulk of the power during winters is produced by the CHP, whereas the solar power system produces more power during summers The battery storage deals with any temporary surpluses or shortages of power The plant is based on a scalable business model that can easily be adapted for larger units It was developed in collaboration with Kofler Energies and BELECTRIC Kofler Energies and GE’s planning office BLS Energieplan developed the facility BELECTRIC developed and constructed the solar PV system Kofler Energies will provide the software to arbitrage the energy supply and demand The facility is located at GE’s Power Conversion facility in Marienfelde one of GE’s biggest facilities in Germany is a centre of excellence for frequency converters A partnership led by California-based PowerLight has constructed a 10MW photovoltaic facility in Bavaria The hybrid power plant includes a 600kW solar power system comprising 6,900 First Solar FS-390 thin-film solar modules installed in 345 lines on the rooftop of the production hall The PV system produces 621kW of electricity at peak A central GE LV8000 inverter converts the DC power generated by the solar panels into AC power consisting of a GE Jenbacher J312 gas engine and integrated heat storage runs on natural gas to generate 400kW of electricity and heat for the site during winters A 200kW battery stores the surplus power during high-generation and low-consumption times The stored power can later be released to the plant network and used to meet any increase in power demand surplus power is supplied to the public grid The three systems complement to create a self-sufficient and reliable source of energy 600kW from solar and the remaining from gas Part of the electricity is consumed by the Power Conversion production site while the remaining is supplied to the grid The plant reduces energy costs by 30% compared to conventional power generation systems The solar power system at the hybrid power plant is the world’s first to use 1,500V architecture for a roof-mounted system The amount of material used for cabling and power electronics are minimised and degradation effects prevented due to the high operating voltage The system was installed using BELECTRIC’s PlanTec substructure which is light in weight and does not require penetration through the roof The flexible GE engine either ramps up or reduces production depending on the PV solar energy output weighs approximately 8,000kg and is compact enough to be fitted into a 40ft container generates low CO₂ emissions and has a potential of 90% efficiency in CHP mode The battery solution comprises 154 battery blocks that offer a storage capacity of 200kWh and a maximum discharge power of 100kW The hybrid power plant is backed with an efficient energy management system, which controls the functioning of the boilers The central energy management system remotely accesses all the data related to the measurement readings and the consumption patterns to adjust the power supply It also has separate counters to measure the renewable (solar) and non-renewable (CHP) electricity Germany has set a target to generate 80% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2050 as well as increase CHP-based production to 25% by 2025 The German renewable energy market is currently focused on solar and wind energy while the government aims to shift focus to hybrid options in the future Give your business an edge with our leading industry insights View all newsletters from across the GlobalData Media network Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker Although Mercedes-Benz has used industrial robots since the ‘70s humanoid robots are a whole new level of automation capable of learning and adapting through AI The company is working with U.S.-based robotics firm Apptronik to integrate Apollo one of the world’s most advanced humanoid robots Apollo is initially assisting with intralogistics—transporting parts and materials to assembly lines—so as to allow highly skilled workers to focus on more complex tasks instead Mercedes-Benz is investing millions into this technology; the ultimate goal is having Apollo perform autonomous operations.  part of Mercedes-Benz’s digital production ecosystem is introducing AI-powered chatbots that assist workers in real time making life easier for the company’s employees.  Workers can ask questions about machine maintenance or best practices and receive instant responses in many different languages AI assistants analyze production data to quickly identify and resolve quality issues Mercedes-Benz will also be making new and advanced, high-performance axial-flux motors at the Marienfelde plant starting next year. Designed for electric vehicles these motors have a compact design and offer higher efficiency and power density compared to traditional electric motors Developing these motors required 100 processes in total with 65 completely new to the giant automaker—35 of which have never before been seen in the industry The company has also pioneered new laser technologies and bonding methods resulting in more than 30 new patents.  Berlin-Marienfelde has long been the center of the automaker’s digital production expertise the hub played an important role in preparing the Rastatt plant for the production of the new Mercedes-Benz CLA—the first model to feature the Mercedes-Benz Operating System These latest AI and robotic automation developments are not just improving the Berlin plant but are being tested and put in place across the company’s global production network Image Credit: Shutterstock/Savvapanf Photo Mercedes-Benz wants to significantly increase its vertical integration for the next generation of electric cars through in-house production of the electric drives from 2024 As Daimler’s head of development Markus Schäfer told German media, Mercedes will build the entire drive system for the announced new electric architectures MMA and MB.EA completely in-house from 2024 “The first kit with the axial motors from Yasa for higher performance will be based in Berlin,” Schäfer said “The second kit with Mercedes’ axial engines for the more compact vehicles will be built in Untertürkheim.” Mercedes-Benz had already announced the production of EV components at the Berlin-Marienfelde engine plant in March 2021 At that time it was already said that it would involve the final assembly of electrical components for future compact EQ models as well as the assembly of the so-called EE compartment for the integration of power electronics for battery systems Schäfer does not cite the capacity utilisation of the plants as the reason for the change in strategy “We want to master the overall system of electric motor battery and power electronics as well as possible similar to what is the case with the combustion engine,” Schäfer is quoted as saying Schäfer added that it has not yet been decided whether this component will be manufactured in-house the head of development assumes that production will be expanded “We will certainly have to discuss globally an expansion of capacity for the electric powertrain because we are accelerating significantly in electromobility and by 2025 half of our vehicles will already be on the market purely electrically or as plug-in hybrids,” said Schäfer – naming the e-drive productions in Berlin and Untertürkheim mentioned at the beginning As Schäfer now – unsurprisingly – further announces, the batteries of the vehicles will also use cells developed in-house for the first time. For the production of cells, Daimler is relying on ACC it is assumed that there will be at least one further production facility in Germany “We will also announce the construction of a factory for Europe with another partner in the near future,” Schäfer said According to information from Automobilwoche, the partner in question is the Chinese cell specialist Farasis. Farasis wanted to build a production plant for Europe in Bitterfeld the standstill should be over in the next few weeks When Mercedes presented its electrification strategy in July there was already talk of eight cell factories to be built together with partners no target year for the eight battery plants was mentioned A “highly standardised” battery cell is to be built in the factories which is to be installed in 90 per cent of all Mercedes models automobilwoche.de (in German) Mercedes-Benz is using the Apollo humanoid robots to move components to its production lines Mercedes-Benz has started to trial the use of humanoid robots in manufacturing roles with an initial focus on repetitive intralogistics tasks It is conducting the trials at a cutting-edge facility in Berlin where it also testing advanced digital technologies and is gearing up to produce axial-flux electric motors Mercedes is using Apollo robots from the US humanoid developer Apptronik to transport components and modules to assembly staff on production lines at the site The robots also carry out initial quality checks on the components as well as collecting data in a production environment to train for specific tasks Mercedes-Benz employees with production know-how have been transferring their knowledge to the humanoids using teleoperation processes and augmented reality Mercedes-Benz is allowing the humanoids to perform autonomous operations which it describes “a technological milestone on the way to a flexible intelligent assistance system for production” To emphasise its commitment to deploying humanoid robots in production, Mercedes-Benz is making a “low double-digit-million” euro investment into Apptronik, which has just raised a further $53m in Series A funding taking the total that it has raised in the oversubscribed round to $403m The German car-maker is testing the humanoid robots at its Mercedes-Benz Digital Factory Campus (MBDFC) – its global centre for production and digitalisation innovation Mercedes-Benz is also establishing the site as a centre of excellence for the production of high-performance axial-flux motors, based on the technology that it acquired when it bought the UK-based axial motor developer, Yasa, in 2021 Manufacturing of these motors due to start next year Producing the axial-flux motors will involve around 100 processes around 65 of which are new to Mercedes-Benz Mercedes is combining new ways of using laser technologies with bonding processes and AI These new production techniques have resulted in more than 30 patent filings Mercedes is combining the development and testing of new processes and technologies with implementing its MO360 (Mercedes-Benz Cars Operations 360) digital ecosystem for automotive production It is testing new production processes and software applications before they are implemented on production lines in its assembly plants Mercedes has added AI functions to MO360 such as a chatbot that allows employees to ask questions about machine maintenance or best-practice methods for manufacturing processes The AI provides precise answers in a choice of languages Another practical use of AI is Mercedes’ “virtual multi-agent system” in which AI-supported virtual assistants analyse complex data in real time to identify the causes of any deviations in production line quality and suggest solutions at the touch of a button “Mercedes-Benz Berlin-Marienfelde remains at the cutting edge of automotive production and keeps Germany on the map as a global centre for innovation,” says Jörg Burzer Mercedes’ board member responsible for production “AI and humanoid robots open up an exciting new frontier which make automotive production more sustainable Mercedes-Benz:  X  LinkedIn  Facebook Apptronik:  X  LinkedIn  Facebook For now the name sounds futuristic – Haus 2019– yet the newest Federal Environment Agency (UBA) office building already meets the requirements of the European Energy Performance of Buildings Directive for 2019 Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Building Ministry to confer the certification document for the new UBA office building in Berlin-Marienfelde at the Bau 2015 trade fair in Munich today "Haus 2019 is the first federal building which was planned and assessed from the very start according to the high standards of the Sustainable Construction Assessment System (BNB)" said Mr Pronold when handing over the certificate and I would like to thank everybody involved in the project for their high level of commitment." The entire rough structure the building meets all of its energy requirements by itself "Haus 2019 is more than a signal of model sustainable building it is also an example of how zero-energy buildings can be planned and built in future" President of the Federal Environment Agency To build a high-quality office building and nevertheless use natural resources efficiently – a balancing act which the Federal Environment Agency has mastered in building the Haus 2019 office building in Berlin-Marienfelde The entire building realises a sustainable method of building For example: a photovoltaic system on the roof and a geothermal heat pump supply the building with all of its energy needs The building even registered an energy surplus in its first year of operation The road leading to this achievement was a very challenging one Project planning was particularly extensive because it had to take into account the entire life cycle of the building Consideration was given to factors such as building quality primary energy consumption and space efficiency There were additional criteria which also had to be taken into account its environmental performance and building maintenance It is now the workplace of 31 UBA staff whose research focusses on the topic of water Haus 2019 was the first Federal Government building which was planned and assessed according to the sustainable construction assessment scheme The success of this project was made possible by the close cooperation of all parties involved Said Maria Krautzberger: "A special 'thank you' goes to the architect Mr Braun (Büro BKL) and building services engineer Mr Nienaber (Schimmel Ingenieure) and to all our partners in the Federal Office for Building and Regional Planning (BBR) and the associated Federal Institute for Research on Building Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR)." This successful cooperation has produced a building whose ecological structure will serve as a model for future federal office buildings For our environment (“Für Mensch und Umwelt”) In this video we give an insight into our work uses Google's DeepMind AI tech and will eventually take over tasks requiring repetitive manual labour Mercedes-Benz is transforming its oldest manufacturing plant, Berlin-Marienfelde, using AI and robots. After opening its Digital Factory Campus at the plant in 2022 to boost research and development of a digital production ecosystem, the company is now letting its Apollo humanoid robots work autonomously Developed by Texas-based robotics company Apptronik they are now being used for repetitive manual tasks such as moving components around a factory floor They will also be used to perform initial quality-control tests on components The company is quick to point out that the robots will only be augmenting its highly trained human staff The company has spent some time training these robots for specific tasks by having experienced human operators control them Augmented reality was also leveraged during the training process Mercedes-Benz will be investing in Apptronik and while the exact amount has not been disclosed the company says it will be in the tens of millions of Euros Apptronik recently signed a strategic partnership with Google to leverage its DeepMind robotics and AI technology AI-powered smart assistants in multiple languages are also being rolled out to help with everyday tasks at the manufacturing facility Employees can use an internal chatbot to access resources such as databases Real-time data analysis is also being performed using AI replacing lengthy and laborious human analysis processes developed by an internal data science team have already reliably identified “patterns and anomalies” helping improve efficiency and solve issues in production let’s embrace it as key part of our solution moving forward” Chief Information Officer of Mercedes-Benz Group AG and Mercedes-Benz AG said in a press statement The company says its efforts are already demonstrating significant value. Production processes and some capabilities of the newly announced Mercedes-Benz CLA, which is the company’s first model to run the new Mercedes-Benz Operating System (MB.OS) software were tested using these tools in preparation for factory production.  As the company continues to evolve towards becoming an all-electric carmaker, it will begin manufacturing axial flux electric motors next year. Developing such technology, which radically alters the geometry of engine design, required developing dozens of all-new processes and techniques, which it says leveraged AI.  Hyundai Exter Adds Two New Variants; ISOFIX Made Standard 2025 Yamaha Aerox 155 Version S Launched At ₹1.53 Lakh MG Windsor EV Pro vs MG Windsor EV: What's Different? Triumph Scrambler 400X Gains New Colour Option MG Windsor EV Pro Launched In India At ₹17.50 Lakh We promise the best car deals and earliest delivery! The luxury automaker, meanwhile, will be renamed Mercedes-Benz Group beginning next February Join the conversation You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account Daimler shareholders on Friday voted in favor of spinning off the company’s truck division Daimler Truck Holdings with shares in the new company to start trading in December Daimler Trucks & Buses is set to become the world’s largest truckmaker after the spinoff is complete In the future we can plan our own route and choose the path that is ideal for us,” Daimler Trucks CEO Martin Daum said at the meeting Daimler will keep a 35-per-cent stake in Daimler Trucks and provide it with a net liquidity of 5 billion euros until the end of the year to be renamed Mercedes-Benz Group from next February to reflect its focus on the car and van business expects the spun-off truckmaker to join it on the DAX listing of Germany’s 40 largest firms in the first quarter of 2022 The truckmaker will focus on developing its high-margin heavy truck business and is betting on a mix of battery-electric and hydrogen vehicles to reach its goal of CO2 neutral production by 2039 Remove Vehicle 2025 Mercedes-Benz GLE 2025 Mercedes-Benz GLE 3.25 "max_msrp": "83200.00"}'class=find-card__content--square data-evt=click data-evt-typ=car_card_click href=/mercedes-benz/c-class/> 2025 Mercedes-Benz C-Class 2025 Mercedes-Benz C-Class 3.50 "max_msrp": "219000.00"}'class=find-card__content--square data-evt=click data-evt-typ=car_card_click href=/mercedes-benz/amg-gt/> 2025 Mercedes-Benz AMG GT 2025 Mercedes-Benz AMG GT 3.25 "max_msrp": "75000.00"}'class=find-card__content--square data-evt=click data-evt-typ=car_card_click href=/mercedes-benz/cla/> 2025 Mercedes-Benz CLA 2025 Mercedes-Benz CLA 3.25 you will need these must have tools and accessories Looking to make car ownership more comfortable Here are our top under-$100 accessories for your car Here are the best windshield wipers on the market right now—these windshield wipers are highly rated both by users and testers You don't need to buy a new car to add Apple CarPlay or Android Auto There's lots of aftermarket gear out there but get these add-ons first—they'll make your daily drive more comfortable and safe transmission or republication strictly prohibited This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. 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By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy You can only pick 5 vehicles to compareEdit your picks to remove vehicles if you want to add different ones You can only add up to 5 vehicles to your picks The split will let the carmaker better take on rivals like Tesla and Porsche, say execs German carmaker Daimler said on Wednesday it plans to spin off Daimler Truck as it seeks to increase its investor appeal as a focused electric Daimler’s decision to break itself up follows the example of other German companies after investors pressed boards to break up conglomerates It also highlights efforts by the Mercedes-Benz luxury car brand to challenge Tesla “This pure play luxury car company is even more attractive to investors who seek a return in that area,” Chief Executive Ola Källenius said during a conference call Wednesday Källenius said he expects the standalone Mercedes-Benz business will be seen as competitive with Tesla and over time earn a higher valuation from investors “It’s about transformation and winning in electric (vehicles) and car software,” he said Remove Vehicle NEXTArticle contentA final decision on the separation will be taken at an extraordinary shareholders’ meeting that could be held at the end of the third quarter and the business could be listed on the Frankfurt stock exchange by the end of 2021 Daimler Truck delivered around half a million trucks and buses to customers in 2019 and generated 40.2 billion euros (US$48.34 billion) in revenue from trucks and 4.7 billion euros from buses Daimler faces traditional rivals such as Sweden’s Volvo It has been racing to bring to market fully-electric heavy-duty trucks to compete with Tesla’s long-awaited Semi truck model Artificial intelligence (AI) is at the centre of a new innovative manufacturing trial in Berlin.  The United Sates-based Apptronik is part of a testing scheme that explores the role of AI MBDFC has been the centre for Mercedes-Benz future software applications testing in real-world production environments.  Mercedes is testing how Apptronik’s Apollo humanoid robot could work in its manufacturing facilities.  Apollo is one of the world’s most advanced commercial humanoid robots.  It is an evolution of the company’s robotics applications that pulls on experiences learned from building more than 10 previous robots “We have these robots that you see all around us today,” Jeff Cardenas “They’re largely programmed to do one thing what the future looks like is to have one single robot that can do many different things to work with us and change the way we live at work,” he added transporting components or modules to the production line.  The company’s skilled human workers then assemble and conduct initial quality checks on the transported items “One of the ways that I explain this is you can think of this like personal computers in the early ’80s and what we’re entering is the personal computer era I think the important thing for everyone to understand is the beginning of this journey,” Cardenas said A specific portion of MO360 is designated for the use of AI in production.  The integration is designed to allow AI to be “intuitive accessible and usable for everyone,” the company said.  which allows them to ask questions and receive answers from a digital wealth of knowledge of the company’s production databases rather than flipping through manuals or calling an expert AI is also being employed to support the knowledge of virtual assistants who analyze data in real time.  “It’s not a replacement of our team members working on the line MBDFC testing has played an integral role in preparing the company’s Rastatt plant for production of the new Mercedes-Benz CLA The role of MBDFC is underlined by Burzer: “Mercedes-Benz Berlin-Marienfelde remains at the cutting edge of automotive production and keeps Germany on the map as a global center for innovation.” TV Independent on YouTube and IndependentNgr (Facebook