DEG promotes sustainable and efficient production methods in Vietnam

• Launch of training centre "Lean and Green Factory" at the Vietnamese-German University
• Around 190,000 euros provided from develoPPP funds of the BMZ
• Private partner: Leonardo Group GmbH

DEG - Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH, promotes a training centre for efficient and sustainable production methods at the Vietnamese-German-University (VGU), based near Ho Chi Minh City in the south of the country. Private partner of the project is the Munich-based Leonardo Group GmbH, a company offering consulting and workshops associated with "lean management". Leonardo provides around EUR 260,000, DEG complements this amount by some EUR 191,000 from funds of the develoPPP.de programme of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

Many international enterprises have established new production facilities in Vietnam in recent years. It is now vital for the country to remain competitive also in the long-term. The training centre "Lean and Green Factory", opened at the VGU on 6 December 2014, will help ensure that this is the case. The simulation of production processes at the training centre includes a wide range of sectors. A focus, however, is on sectors of special importance for Vietnam, such as the production of electronics, textiles or consumer goods. Trainings and workshops will focus on how to coordinate the different production steps with a view to making the best use of available resources while complying with environmental requirements. The aim is to develop standardised processes for a sustainable, lean production while ensuring high quality standards.

During the setting up of the training centre, Leonardo will work closely with the “Chair of Assembly Technology and Factory Management" of the Technische Universität Berlin (TU Berlin). It is modelled after long-established training modules of the University of Stuttgart and Hochschule Landshut, University of Applied Sciences. To facilitate knowledge transfer at national level, the training centre also offers workshops for lecturers and professors. This way, "lean and green" methods are to be integrated in the training of engineers.

DEG's current Vietnam portfolio is at around EUR 63m and includes investments in the financial sector, the manufacturing industry and agribusiness. In addition, DEG has so far co-financed almost 50 projects in Vietnam in the framework of develoPPP.de, providing more than EUR 9m from funds of the BMZ and covering measures in the field of qualification, know-how transfer as well as environmental and resource protection.