Prof.Dr.Jochem Heizmann, Member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen and President and CEO of Volkswagen Group China, together with Zhang Hailiang, President of Shanghai Volkswagen, and Zhang Pijie, President of FAW-Volkswagen, engaged with customers in celebrating the delivery of 20 million cars to Chinese customers at the Group Night in Beijing, April 19, 2014. Provided to chinadaily.com.cn

At Volkswagen Group Night held on the eve of the 13th Beijing International Automotive Exhibition, Volkswagen Group China, together with its joint ventures Shanghai Volkswagen and FAW-Volkswagen, celebrated the delivery of 20 million cars to Chinese customers.

"Tonight Volkswagen Group China is celebrating the delivery of 20 million cars to our Chinese customers. This is a unique moment for us. With our passion for engineering we paved the way for our success over 30 years ago, when we were one of the first foreign automotive companies to venture into China”, said Prof. Dr. Jochem Heizmann, Member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen as well as President and CEO of Volkswagen Group China. Together with Zhang Hailiang, President of Shanghai Volkswagen, and Zhang Pijie, President of FAW-Volkswagen, Prof. Dr. Heizmann engaged with customers at the celebratory moment at the Group Night in Beijing.

"Everything we do is about people: our customers, our employees and the society," added Prof. Dr. Heizmann. "That is why in our new 'Ren Wei Ben' strategy for China, we put the focus on people and aim to become the most people-oriented car manufacturer."

Satisfying the needs of all customers

In the first quarter of 2014, the Group delivered over 880,000 vehicles to customers, realizing a growth of 14.5 per cent over the same period of last year. By the end of this year, Volkswagen Group expects for the first time to deliver more than 3.5 million cars to its Chinese customers.

Meanwhile, Volkswagen Group is further increasing its production capacity to meet consumers' demands for individual mobility. By 2018, the Group's annual production capacity in China will reach over 4 million units.

In 2014, Volkswagen Group will also extend its new energy vehicle model range by introducing the electric up, followed by the new e-Golf and in 2015 by the A3 e-tron and the Golf GTE with their innovative Plug-In Hybrid technology. The next step in 2016 will be the localization of its most advanced Plug-In Hybrid models in China.

At the same time, Volkswagen Group will continue to enhance customer service, focusing on expanding its dealer network with a focus on tier-3 and tier-4 cities. This year, the Group will open more than 350 new dealerships, expanding its retail network to more than 230 cities across the country.

Creating 600,000 jobs

The skills, creative ideas, and commitment of employees are the driving force behind the success of Volkswagen Group. Through 2018, Volkswagen Group, together with its joint ventures and dealer network, will have created more than 600,000 jobs in China.

In 2018, the Group will directly employ over 100,000 people – almost 20,000 more than today. This year, dealer network staff will increase by up to 360,000 employees at almost 2,750 dealerships. In four years, the dealer network will have more than 500,000 people serving its customers across China each day.

Volkswagen Group is also committed to educating the future talents of China’s auto industry and society. Today, the Group sponsors research and training at more than 30 Chinese universities and technical schools.

Children are the future of society

For Volkswagen Group, economic success is always closely linked with environmental protection and social responsibility.

Volkswagen Group is committed to implement the newest environmental and resource friendly technologies, in order to set the trend for sustainable products and production. Till 2015, the company is committed to make our combustion engines an additional 11% more fuel efficient. With its ‘Think Blue.Factory’ concept, Volkswagen ensures that resources at its factories are efficiently used and eco-friendly recycled.

Children are the future in every society around the world, and for this reason Volkswagen Group is deeply involved in creating future opportunities for China's next generation. Beginning in April 2014, Volkswagen Group began rolling out a series of child safety awareness programs and road shows to promote children’s road safety in 17 cities. In 2013, the Group and its joint ventures announced their donation of 5,000 child safety seats to families across China.