From December 1st to Volkswagen Autoeuropa will have a new director general: Thomas Hegel Gunther.
Until now, this position was occupied by Miguel Sanches, who will assume the role of Vice President of Operations at Volkswagen Brazil and South America region.
Miguel Sanches's connection to Autoeuropa began in 1993. In 2009, and after having occupied several positions in the areas of assembly and construction of bodywork, he assumed the role of production director, a position that in 2011 he started to perform at Volkswagen Mexico.
In 2014 he took over as vice president of production and logistics and since 2016 he has been the general director of Volkswagen Autoeuropa. In that role, he led the launch of the T-Roc and the growth of the Palmela plant to a record 254,600 units produced in 2019.
Now, in his new role, Miguel Sanches will be responsible for managing the Volkswagen Group's production units in Brazil and Argentina.
the new general director
As for his successor, Thomas Hegel Gunther, his association with Volkswagen AG began in 2000 through an international training programme. Between 2001 and 2004 he worked in the bodywork department in Wolfsburg and in 2005 he became an assistant in the production and components department.
Between 2007 and 2013 he held various management positions in the component area and in 2015, he became Executive Director of SITECH Sp. in Poland (the unit responsible for the supply of seats) and was also spokesperson for the board of directors of SITECH Sitztechnik GmbH.
Since 2018, Thomas Hegel Gunther has been responsible for Volkswagen production and logistics control. Now he will take over from Miguel Sanches and expectations are high, especially at a time when the entire industry is struggling with semiconductor shortages.