Dyson hires ex-Infiniti president Roland Krüger
British vacuum-cleaner firm Dyson has hired former BMW and Infiniti manager Roland Krüger to head their electric car project. The company already announced they will be manufacturing their EVs in Singapore.
Now Dyson headquarters will move from Britain to Singapore where Krüger will oversee Dyson’s electric car project. Dyson aims to bring a total of three electric cars to market, including the first model in 2021. Dyson CEO Jim Rowan is quoted in the media as saying that Kruger’s appointment is proof of the company’s commitment to the project. Krüger served as president of Nissan’s Infiniti brand from 2014 until earlier this month. He also previously worked for BMW, where he rose to the position of Head of the German Home Market. According to Dyson, Krüger will start with them in April.
Dyson’s debut EV will supposedly be an attention-grabbing small-series car before being followed by more conventional electric vehicles. The company aims to eventually use solid-state batteries in the long term, whereby the first models will be equipped with lithium-ion batteries.
What has been officially announced is that Dyson is relocating its headquarters from the UK to Singapore to be closer to its fastest-growing markets. Dyson’s CEO Jim Rowan Rowan said that the move “allows us to make sure we will be putting our best efforts to secure those opportunities, as well as keeping an eye on those investments, especially EV (electric vehicles) and batteries.” The company insists that the move to Singapore is not influenced by Britain’s Brexit woes.
Despite the move to Singapore, the new EVs will remain distinctly British if the background of their other key employees is anything to go by. Former Aston Martin engineering director Ian Minards heads Dyson’s global product development, while its automotive commercial director, Andy Gawthorpe, was previously marketing strategy and planning director at Jaguar Land Rover.
Also, the company asserts that most of the product development will remain in the southwest of England. At the end of August last year, Dyson announced its intention to build a test site for its future electric cars on Hullavington Airfield in Wiltshire. Overall, Dyson plans to create space for up to 2,000 employees on the new campus in the foreseeable future.
Dyson employs more than 12,000 people worldwide, including 4,500 engineers and scientists. The company’s five-year roadmap to build an electric car division by 2021 includes a total investment of 2.8 billion euros.
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