The company recently announced its ‘India 2.0’ project earlier this month, and the Skoda brand is all set to take charge of the VW Group’s India operations. The company will set up an engineering centre in India to locally develop products for both Skoda and VW brands.
Gordon Calder, formerly from Tata Motors, will now be head Skoda’s Engineering Centre in Pune. “We needed someone who has good experience dealing with suppliers and understands the manufacturing ecosystem in India.” said a source.
Calder has worked with Tata Motors since 2012. Calder led the body engineering team of Tata Motors’ passenger car division and the team is responsible for the Bolt, Zest, Tiago, Tigor and Nexon. Before Tata, Calder worked around the world with companies like EDAG, Ford and Nissan, primarily as a body engineer. Skoda will count on his knowledge and expertise to spearhead the VW Group’s MQB-A0-IN platform to meet local requirements and strict costs targets, essential for its India 2.0 project.