Nam Hyun-woo has worked as a staff writer at The Korea Times since 2013, mostly covering business and politics. He currently belongs to the Business Desk where he covers topics such as emerging tech, AI, ICT and Korea's chaebol community. Prior to joining the team, he was the paper's correspondent for the presidential office of Korea during the Yoon Suk Yeol and Moon Jae-in administrations.
Han Sung Motor satisfies customers with fast service
A technician repairs a Mercedes-Benz at Han Sung Motor's Yongdap Service Center in Seongdong-gu, Seoul, Oct. 29. Korea Times photo by Nam Hyun-woo
By Nam Hyun-woo
By Nam Hyun-woo
An artist's impression of Han Sung Motor's Yongdap Service Center in Seongdong-gu, Seoul / Courtesy of Han Sung Motor
Mercedes-Benz Korea official dealer Han Sung Motor is winning customers' favor with its fast-track maintenance and service system at the Yongdap Service Center in Seongdong District, Seoul.
The center was set up in 1988 as the first official Mercedes-Benz service center in Korea. After operating for more than 30 years, a large-scale expansion was started to set up two eight-story towers that provide faster and seamless service.
The first tower opened in May, occupying 17,713 square meters of floor space. When the second tower is completed, the center will be Han Sung Motor's largest in the country.
Designed as an integrated service center to provide various maintenance and repairs, the center has 51 technicians and engineers working at 43 bays, providing services for about 100 vehicles a day.
When The Korea Times visited the center on Oct. 29, floors two to seven were fully dedicated to services, and engineers on each were busy repairing paintwork or body frames, attending to engine problems or doing other major or minor work on vehicles.
Of notice was the Car-O-Liner collision repair equipment in a facility on the fifth floor. This equipment measures the damage to the body frame and compares it with the normal body of the model, thus informing technicians on the repairs needed.
Ventilation systems operate at all bays, extracting vehicle emissions from the repair space and collecting the gases at a central purification facility before discharge into the atmosphere. The system means the center's air quality is maintained and there are fewer health concerns for those inside the building, the center's chief Kim Il-jin said, adding that all Mercedes-Benz service centers will be required to have such a system.
“Our service center is equipped with maintenance manuals for all Mercedes-Benz vehicles and all kinds of special tools for specific vehicles so we can provide seamless service to customers,” Kim said. “Also, we have accumulated knowhow since 1988 and operate a transparent pricing system to ensure customers' trust.”
Kim said the center's great advantage is its speed of service, enabling customers to visit just a day after making a reservation. In terms of regular inspections and simple consumable replacements, customers can get their vehicle back on the same day.
To improve customer satisfaction, the center is now providing free pick-up and delivery at the desired time, enabling customers to get repairs to their vehicle without visiting the center. The service will continue until June 2021 to commemorate the center's expansion.
The center is also operating Mercedes-AMG exclusive work bays and dedicated staff to repair the high-performance brand vehicles.
“Yongdap Service Center provides fast and consistent services by analyzing customers' needs,” Han Sung Motor CEO Ulf Ausprung said. “In addition to its continuous expansion, the center also plans to provide smartphone-based services to allow customers to have their vehicles serviced with less human contact.”