Daimler India unveils BharatBenz

Daimler India Commercial Vehicles, a part of Germany-based automobile manufacturer Daimler AG, has unveiled its local brand, BharatBenz, as part of increasing its presence in Indian market. The company is expect to roll out medium and heavy duty trucks from its manufacturing plant at Oragadam, near here, by the third quarter of calendar year 2012.

“The new brand would offer Indian customers the entire range of trucks from six to 49 tonnes across various applications”, said Dieter Zetsche, chairman of the board of management, Daimler AG and head of Mercedes-Benz Cars.

“We are also planning to increase our R&D strength. We already have a team of 500 R&D experts here and we plan to double that number in next two years,” added Zetsche.

“India has become the second largest market for medium and heavy duty trucks. And, by 2020, we expect the truck industry to double. We will play a significant role in this leap”, said Andreas Renschler, head of Daimler Trucks and Daimler Buses.