Bundesrat President Stephan Weil visits Volkswagen in Brazil

Stephan Weil, Minister-President of Lower Saxony and President of the German Bundesrat, today visited the Volkswagen plant at Anchieta with a business delegation consisting of 50 members. Dr. Michael Macht, Member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft responsible for Group Production, and Thomas Schmall, President of Volkswagen do Brasil, presented current projects in Brazil and South America as well as the advanced production processes used at the plant to the visitors. Other items on the agenda included an information session on the Volkswagen SENAI vocational training centre and social projects of the Volkswagen Group Works Council. 

“Brazil is and will remain a cornerstone of our Group strategy. Up to 2018, the Volkswagen Group is investing €3.6 billion in new products and technologies in Brazil. One of the main emphases will be on environmentally compatible production at our Brazilian locations,” Macht explained in Anchieta.

Schmall added: “The investment program underlines our confidence in the Brazilian market. We are forging ahead with the modernization of the Volkswagen product range with a view to meeting the requirements of our Brazilian customers even better.”

A key example is the Volkswagen up!, which is being produced at the Taubaté plant and has been available on the Brazilian market since February 2014. In its segment, the up! sets standards in terms of safety, performance and fuel economy. These are also key features of the Golf, which is to be produced at the Curitiba plant from 2015.

Volkswagen SENAI vocational training centre

The delegation also toured the Volkswagen SENAI vocational training centre at the Anchieta plant. The Brazilian National Service for Industrial Apprenticeships (SENAI) promotes initial and further vocational training in industry. Volkswagen cooperates with SENAI on initial and further training. The Volkswagen SENAI training model was the first to offer dual vocational training on site and has since set standards in Brazilian industry. Over the past 40 years, more than 6,000 skilled workers have been trained at the facility. Currently, about 60 apprentices complete their training at the centre each year. 12 instructors provide theoretical and practical training in 19 classrooms and laboratories.

Group Works Council and workforce support social projects in Brazil

Another key element in the visit was the social program “A Chance to Play” which was launched in Brazil in January 2013. The joint initiative of the Volkswagen Group Works Council and the children’s charity “Terres des Hommes” is committed to helping children at Volkswagen locations throughout the world. Uwe Fritsch, Member of the Volkswagen Group Global Works Council, and Valdir Freire, Vice President of the Brazilian Group Works Council, unveiled a plaque concerning the project “A Chance to Play” during the visit. In Brazil, the successful program supports a total of 12 social projects in the vicinity of the Volkswagen plants. These projects are assisted by donations made by Volkswagen employees throughout the world. They offer deprived children opportunities for sports, games and learning and therefore provide them with development possibilities.