MAN Truck & Bus announced major new orders in Saudi Arabia with key customers Almarai and Global Specified Transport Co. MAN Truck & Bus distributor Haji Husein Alireza Co. (HHA) recently handed over 240 vehicles to its longstanding customer Almarai, rejuvenating their current fleet of 1,290 MAN long-haul trucks comprising of the TGA and TGS WW models. MAN recently handed over 100 vehicles TGS WW 4x2 21.400 with MAN TipMatic to Global Specified Transport Co. which marks the first batch of a 200 unit order to be delivered in 2013. As a result of increased market demands, HHA announced plans to build 3 new service centers in the Kingdom, in addition to increasing the coverage of its mobile service fleet. “We are delighted with these significant orders for MAN trucks. Customers in the Kingdom know that MAN trucks come with the ruggedness and reliability needed under tough and challenging operational conditions in the Kingdom to serve their needs. With this expanding customer base, we see the need for building a more comprehensive service infrastructure which is why we are investing in the extension of our current service network. In Jubail, we are currently in the planning phase to construct one of the biggest workshops in the entire Middle East with an investment of SR150 million,” said Taher Al-Khatib, General Manager at HHA. David van Graan, Head of the MAN Center Middle East and Vice President Sales & Marketing, said “We are very pleased at this opportunity to show what MAN trucks can do for such valued customers as Almarai and Global Specified Transport Co with our world class, technologically innovative products and service capabilities. These latest orders reflect MAN's leadership position in the kingdom's transportation sector as customers increasingly rely on MAN as their preferred vendor for their core transportation needs. The expansion of our service support network by HHA will also serve to reinforce our capabilities to offer our customers efficient and economic maintenance management whenever and wherever they need.” Two more MAN workshops will be constructed in Madinah and in Khamis Mushait and will be inaugurated in the second and third quarter of 2014. In addition to its workshops in the kingdoms major metropolitan centers, HHA owns one of the biggest MAN Mobile Service fleets in the Middle East which performs break-down service 24/7 in the Kingdom. HHA will also expand the coverage of the Mobile Service fleet for comprehensive service support. HHA commercial vehicle production company Saudi Automotive Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (SAMCO) recently commemorated the 6,000th MAN truck. The Jeddah assembly plant, which opened at the start of 2009, has been an important pillar of MAN's Middle East growth strategy in one of the fastest growing regions for MAN across the globe. Given Saudi Arabia's large-scale infrastructure development, the commercial vehicles sector in the Kingdom is poised for growth with the transportation and logistics sectors driving demand. The plant has reached a production capacity of 3,000 units per year in 2012. — SG
