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Muenster/Puebla -- On November 29, production of the
new Bora will start at Volkswagen's Puebla plant in Mexico. Responsibility
for coating the Bora model and the New Beetles which are also manufactured
at the plant is in the hands of BASF Coatings. The BASF team works on-site
at the customer's facility.
The spray jets of the paint line hiss, the conveyor belt
hums: "A freshly gleaming New Beetle rolls off the belt every minute",
said Reinhard Albers, head of the Volkswagen paint application system
in Puebla, Mexico. Emilio Haas, BASF Account Manager for VW Mexico, and
a staff of 36 make sure of an optimum paint application process from start
to finish.
"We do all that needs to be done to paint a car",
said Emilio Haas, neatly summarizing the BASF team's job. As system supplier,
BASF is the sole car paint supplier for the VW plant in Puebla and provides
the carmaker with all the materials required to produce perfect bodywork.
And the BASF team does even more: "We optimize the paint application
process on a continuous basis", Haas said.
His staff are responsible for process and material management,
operating the paint mixing room, and warehouse logistics. VW man Albers
appreciates the long-standing support: "We used to have to coordinate
between multiple suppliers. Today, BASF manages the entire paint application
process for VW, which lets us focus our strengths on our core tasks".
Haas, a native of Argentina, has been Albers's main point
of contact for paint application technology for the past two years. The
two men and the service team are the mainstay of the BASF Coatings-Volkswagen
system partnership in Mexico, which is based on a deal signed for an initial
period of five years. Volkswagen and BASF both benefit from this form
of partnership: The system supplier concept helps Volkswagen to save time
and money and guarantees BASF a long-term relationship with its important
customer. "Our partnership is based on working toward a common goal",
Haas commented.
His office is located at the heart of the VW plant. "We're
right here on the paint line to give 100 percent customer support and
provide timely solutions". The team's presence inspires trust. Examples
of good cooperation can be seen on a daily basis. As BASF Account Manager
for VW Mexico, Emilio Haas is privy to all major decisions of the automotive
manufacturer. "Communication is very good - though it's not all sweetness
and light", Albers said. The two men work through suggestions and
criticism item for item at their meetings every morning. "And things
work out", adds the head of the VW paint application plant.
BASF Coatings and Volkswagen have a long history of cooperation
in Mexico. The New Beetle's predecessor, the old Volkswagen Beetle, was
painted using products supplied by the Mexican subsidiary of BASF Coatings,
BASF Coatings de México. A partnership that has lasted so long
deserves its reward: In recognition of outstanding performance in business
development, innovation and flexibility in the implementation of new projects,
BASF Coatings was awarded the Volkswagen Group Award 2004 for suppliers
from the NAFTA region.
BASF : A major international player in coatings
BASF Coatings AG belongs to the global Coatings Division
of the BASF Group. In 2003 the Coatings Division achieved world sales
of 2.0 billion euros. The Coatings Division develops, produces and markets
a high-quality range of innovative automotive OEM coatings, automotive
refinishes and industrial coatings as well as decorative paints, and also
the processes needed to apply them. In this business, eco-efficient water-based,
powder and high-solids coatings as well as radiation-curable systems play
a special part. In Brazil, the company has been successful in the decorative
paints market for years and holds the leading position. BASF has a major,
global presence in the Coatings sector, with significant market positions
in Europe, North America, South America and the Asia/Pacific region, for
example with affiliates in Australia, China, India, Japan, and the Philippines.
Source: BASF Coatings AG
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