Skills Shortage Makes it Harder for VW to Meet Anti-Pollution Rules

Volkswagen warned that a shortage of engineers is hampering efforts to get its cars to meet new anti-pollution rules, clouding its sales outlook and overshadowing a forecast-beating 23 percent rise in underlying operating profit.

Aug. 1, 2018

August 1, 2018—Volkswagen warned that a shortage of engineers is hampering efforts to get its cars to meet new anti-pollution rules, clouding its sales outlook and overshadowing a forecast-beating 23 percent rise in underlying operating profit, Reuters reports.

VW has seen a significant number of engine experts depart since admitting to systematic emissions cheating in Sept. 2015. That has left the carmaker short of engineers now needed to work on models complying with stricter emissions tests, Chief Executive Herbert Diess said on Wednesday.

“Engine development expertise has been lost,” said Diess, explaining that getting engines certified for road use has become a lot harder under a new Worldwide Harmonized Light Duty Vehicles Test Procedure, known as WLTP, that takes effect from September.

The carmaker last week poached BMW engine development expert Markus Duesmann to help overcome the problem, but warned that delays in getting road certification will result in bottlenecks for certain model variants between August and October.