The sudden departure of Andreas Renschler, board member with responsibility for manufacturing and procurement at Mercedes-Benz (left), has led to some fast management reorganisation at the carmaker.
Renschler left the company on Tuesday this week (30th) “of his own accord and by mutual consent” according to a statement from Daimler. He is being replaced by Markus Schäfer, currently responsible for vehicle production planning at Mercedes-Benz, who becomes a member of the divisional board.
“During his time as a member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG, Andreas Renschler gave our commercial vehicles business a global reach,” said Dr Dieter Zetsche, chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler and head of Mercedes-Benz Cars. “In addition, in his function as Board of Management member for Manufacturing and Procurement Mercedes-Benz Cars, he managed the ramp-up of the new S-Class in an outstanding manner and prepared our plants for the start of production of the new C-Class. I very much regret that he is leaving the company for personal reasons.”
Renschler was rumoured to be a likely candidate to replace Zetshe as head of Mercedes-Benz. He joined Daimler-Benz in 1988 and made his first mark in managing the development of the M-Class and serving as president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz US International (MBUSI). He became president of smart between 1999 and 2004 and was then appointed a member of the Daimler Board of Management responsible for the company’s truck and bus units.
Shäfer, meanwhile, has more than 20 years of experience in the field of manufacturing. Most recently, he was responsible for the production planning of Daimler’s car business. Before that, Schäfer was president and CEO of MBUSI.
“Markus Schäfer is a proven expert. His broad knowledge of our manufacturing and his international experience from his positions in the United States make him extremely well qualified for these tasks,” said Zetsche.
