Kingdom set to be base for UD trucks

The move follows Volvo’s acquisition of Japan’s Nissan Diesel truck company, which has been renamed UD Trucks. Thailand is the last country in which the group has finalised the restructuring of management after ending a dispute with Tan Chong Group over the marketing rights for UD Trucks last year. Now Volvo holds those rights while Tan Chong Group will continue assembling the brand for now.
Jacques Michel, president of Volvo Group (Thailand), which holds the marketing rights for Volvo Trucks and UD Trucks in this country, said yesterday that the company would rejuvenate the UD Trucks brand in the local market by strengthening distribution channels. It will increase the number of dealerships to 17 nationwide from five currently, which focus on after-sales services for only the Volvo brand. The company also targets a 15-per-cent market share in the next few years.
“We also plan Thailand as the production base in the region,” he said.
Michel said the company would overhaul all of its dealerships. Of the total, 14 will feature multi-brand service centres, two will focus on sales of UD Trucks, and one will be for Volvo sales. At present, the company only sells vehicles via its dealership in Bangkok, while the other outlets are used for centre services.
He said that since Volvo took over Thai Swedish Assembly (TSA), which assembles Volvo cars, for Bt1 billion, it had spent Bt1 billion more on adjusting the production line for its own-brand commercial vehicles and heavy-duty trucks.
The new line will start operating next year. For this year, Tan Chong Group will continue to handle assembly for the company.
The revamped plant will focus on exports, producing UD Trucks with 80 per cent of its total capacity. However, the group also gives importance to the Volvo Trucks brand, targeting 20,000 units a year after the opening of the AEC market. Of that, 50 per cent will be exported to Indonesia, which is a large market for trucks, with 18,000 units sold last year. UD Trucks sold 5,000 units. Myanmar is also a potential market for the company’s truck exports.
“This is considered as a long-term investment of Volvo Group in Thailand in response to the growing Thai and regional markets. We will eventually need more than 1,000 hires in 18 months, up from the current 500 workers,” Michel said.
The Thai market for heavy-duty trucks has high potential for growth, as this segment saw a 28-per-cent jump in sales in the first quarter. Last year, heavy-duty trucks recorded 12,000 sales, surging 7 per cent from 2010. Volvo Trucks shared about 5 per cent of the market.