Munich/Shenyang. BMW Brilliance’s Shenyang Production Base reached another significant milestone with the official roll-off of its 7 millionth vehicle. This achievement not only reflects the BMW Group’s long-standing commitment to the Chinese market and its continued investment in Shenyang, but also marks a new phase in intelligent manufacturing, local innovation, and future production capabilities.

“For more than 30 years, we have been deeply rooted in China. The seven-millionth BMW vehicle from our plant in Shenyang is a significant milestone in this success story: it demonstrates the strength of our local production – and it reflects the high level of expertise, the great dedication, and the exceptional commitment of our Chinese team,” says Raymond Wittmann, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Production.

“With the start of local production of the Neue Klasse later this year, we are opening the next chapter and starting a new era for BMW in China.”

“Seven million vehicles are far more than just a number — they represent seven million times that Chinese customers have chosen and trusted BMW. Beyond excellent products, we have also built in Shenyang a future-proof production system, strong local competences, and an exceptional team whose expertise drives our innovation and success in China. Building on this strong foundation, we are accelerating into a new era through innovation, deeper localization, and intelligent manufacturing, opening the next chapter of BMW’s development in China.” said Ms. Birgit Boehm, President and CEO of BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd.

The milestone vehicle that rolled off the line is the BMW 3 Series Horse Edition. It not only showcases BMW’s agility in responding to the Chinese market but also highlights the outstanding cross-functional collaboration across R&D, purchasing, and manufacturing at the Shenyang Production Base, as well as its ability to deliver stable, high-quality output in a highly competitive market environment.

Deeply Rooted in China: Building a New Benchmark for BMW iFACTORY

From the roll-off of the first locally produced BMW vehicle in 2003 to today’s 7 millionth milestone, BMW has established a comprehensive system in China covering complete vehicle and powertrain manufacturing, localized R&D, and a localized supply chain, making it one of BMW’s most important production and innovation hubs worldwide.

The vision of the BMW iFACTORY serves as a powerful guiding principle for the BMW production worldwide. BMW’s long-term commitment to Liaoning Province and Shenyang continues to translate into a future-oriented, high-quality production system and strong local innovation capabilities, further strengthening the company’s long-term development foundation in China.

Digitalization and AI Driving the Next Level of Smart Manufacturing

As a key practice hub for BMW’s global intelligent manufacturing, digitalization and AI technologies have been widely integrated across all production processes at the Shenyang Production Base. Through intelligent applications, the base continuously enhances production efficiency, quality management, and operational coordination, achieving more efficient, stable, and high-quality manufacturing operations.

This development direction is also highly aligned with China’s ongoing efforts to advance new industrialization and foster new quality productive forces. Leveraging its Shenyang Production Base, the BMW Group continues to drive the deep integration of intelligent manufacturing, digitalization and sustainability, setting a benchmark for high-quality development in the premium automotive manufacturing sector while also contributing to local supply chain upgrading and the cultivation of highly skilled talent. This demonstrates BMW’s long-term confidence in China and its continued commitment to supporting the high-quality development of China’s manufacturing industry.

Building Core Capabilities for the Neue Klasse, Accelerating Toward New Era

BMW Shenyang Production Base continues to promote employee upskilling and capability transformation, fostering a professional workforce tailored to the future of the automotive industry. This provides sustained support for new technologies, new products, and new production models, while continuously contributing “China experience” to the BMW global production network.

At the same time, centered around the local production of the Neue Klasse models, BMW Shenyang Production Base is comprehensively advancing upgrades in its production system, digital architecture, and supply chain collaboration capabilities. Leveraging a higher level of flexible manufacturing, AI-powered quality management, and a highly connected digital production network, the Shenyang Production Base is laying a solid foundation for the local production of Neue Klasse models while further strengthening BMW’s overall competitiveness in electrification, digitalization, and sustainability — continuing to lead the future of premium automotive manufacturing.

De productiefaciliteit van BMW Brilliance in Shenyang heeft een nieuwe belangrijke mijlpaal bereikt met de officiële aflevering van het 7 miljoenste voertuig. Deze prestatie weerspiegelt niet alleen de langdurige toewijding van de BMW Group aan de Chinese markt en de voortdurende investeringen in Shenyang, maar markeert ook een nieuwe fase op het gebied van intelligente productie, lokale innovatie en toekomstige productiecapaciteiten.

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Munich/Shenyang. BMW Brilliance’s Shenyang Production Base reached another significant milestone with the official roll-off of its 7 millionth vehicle. This achievement not only reflects the BMW Group’s long-standing commitment to the Chinese market and its continued investment in Shenyang, but also marks a new phase in intelligent manufacturing, local innovation, and future production capabilities.

“For more than 30 years, we have been deeply rooted in China. The seven-millionth BMW vehicle from our plant in Shenyang is a significant milestone in this success story: it demonstrates the strength of our local production – and it reflects the high level of expertise, the great dedication, and the exceptional commitment of our Chinese team,” says Raymond Wittmann, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Production.

“With the start of local production of the Neue Klasse later this year, we are opening the next chapter and starting a new era for BMW in China.”

“Seven million vehicles are far more than just a number — they represent seven million times that Chinese customers have chosen and trusted BMW. Beyond excellent products, we have also built in Shenyang a future-proof production system, strong local competences, and an exceptional team whose expertise drives our innovation and success in China. Building on this strong foundation, we are accelerating into a new era through innovation, deeper localization, and intelligent manufacturing, opening the next chapter of BMW’s development in China.” said Ms. Birgit Boehm, President and CEO of BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd.

The milestone vehicle that rolled off the line is the BMW 3 Series Horse Edition. It not only showcases BMW’s agility in responding to the Chinese market but also highlights the outstanding cross-functional collaboration across R&D, purchasing, and manufacturing at the Shenyang Production Base, as well as its ability to deliver stable, high-quality output in a highly competitive market environment.

Deeply Rooted in China: Building a New Benchmark for BMW iFACTORY

From the roll-off of the first locally produced BMW vehicle in 2003 to today’s 7 millionth milestone, BMW has established a comprehensive system in China covering complete vehicle and powertrain manufacturing, localized R&D, and a localized supply chain, making it one of BMW’s most important production and innovation hubs worldwide.

The vision of the BMW iFACTORY serves as a powerful guiding principle for the BMW production worldwide. BMW’s long-term commitment to Liaoning Province and Shenyang continues to translate into a future-oriented, high-quality production system and strong local innovation capabilities, further strengthening the company’s long-term development foundation in China.

Digitalization and AI Driving the Next Level of Smart Manufacturing

As a key practice hub for BMW’s global intelligent manufacturing, digitalization and AI technologies have been widely integrated across all production processes at the Shenyang Production Base. Through intelligent applications, the base continuously enhances production efficiency, quality management, and operational coordination, achieving more efficient, stable, and high-quality manufacturing operations.

This development direction is also highly aligned with China’s ongoing efforts to advance new industrialization and foster new quality productive forces. Leveraging its Shenyang Production Base, the BMW Group continues to drive the deep integration of intelligent manufacturing, digitalization and sustainability, setting a benchmark for high-quality development in the premium automotive manufacturing sector while also contributing to local supply chain upgrading and the cultivation of highly skilled talent. This demonstrates BMW’s long-term confidence in China and its continued commitment to supporting the high-quality development of China’s manufacturing industry.

Building Core Capabilities for the Neue Klasse, Accelerating Toward New Era

BMW Shenyang Production Base continues to promote employee upskilling and capability transformation, fostering a professional workforce tailored to the future of the automotive industry. This provides sustained support for new technologies, new products, and new production models, while continuously contributing “China experience” to the BMW global production network.

At the same time, centered around the local production of the Neue Klasse models, BMW Shenyang Production Base is comprehensively advancing upgrades in its production system, digital architecture, and supply chain collaboration capabilities. Leveraging a higher level of flexible manufacturing, AI-powered quality management, and a highly connected digital production network, the Shenyang Production Base is laying a solid foundation for the local production of Neue Klasse models while further strengthening BMW’s overall competitiveness in electrification, digitalization, and sustainability — continuing to lead the future of premium automotive manufacturing.

+++ Traditie ontmoet de toekomst: 104 jaar jong en met de allernieuwste technologie +++ De serieproductie van de nieuwe BMW i3 gaat in augustus 2026 van start +++ Er volgen nog meer modellen +++ Vanaf 2027 een fabriek voor volledig elektrische voertuigen +++

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Munich. BMW Group Plant Munich is approaching the biggest milestone in the transformation process: series production of the BMW i3, the second model in the Neue Klasse range, gets underway here in August. This marks the start of the rollout of the Neue Klasse within the BMW Group’s global production network.

“We have been making rigorous preparations. With the BMW iFACTORY we have devised a consistent, strategic framework for our production,” explains Milan Nedeljković, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, Production. “We have paved the way for the upcoming start-ups in all our plants and have invested heavily in technologies, digitalisation and AI.”

BMW Group Plant Munich has undergone extensive modernisation in recent years. The result is a plant that now works even more efficiently, flexibly and digitally, and is optimally positioned for the requirements of electric mobility and the Neue Klasse.

But that’s not all: as of 2027, the Munich plant will exclusively produce all‑electric vehicles and thereby achieve a further boost in efficiency. This is assisted by proactive planning, close collaboration with development teams and suppliers, as well as modern production technology in the new structures. “We have considerably reduced production costs over recent years. With the start of production of the BMW i3, we will reduce overall production costs at the Munich plant by a further 10 per cent, bringing them below the level of the current vehicle generation,” says Peter Weber, Head of BMW Group Plant Munich. In addition to optimised production processes and targeted automation and digitalisation, the new vehicle architecture of the Neue Klasse also ensures efficiency.

Plant Munich is investing around 650 million euros in its transformation into a fully electric production site.

Highly efficient production at historic site

Plant Munich has been consistently reinventing itself for more than 100 years – from a location outside the city to today’s site surrounded by it. The facility has undergone a fundamental process of redevelopment for the Neue Klasse – with production of up to 1,000 vehicles a day continuing during this period. A new body shop and state-of-the-art vehicle assembly including new logistics areas were set up on an area spanning around a third of the plant’s footprint. Extensive updates have also been made to existing technologies.

Plant manager Peter Weber highlights what the workforce has achieved: “The people at the factory played an essential role in making this transformation a success. With their high level of expertise, enthusiasm and tremendous dedication, our employees have shown that world-class industrial production is possible even under the toughest conditions. The BMW i3 is just the beginning – several Neue Klasse models will be manufactured in Munich in the future, including the BMW i3 Touring.”

A vision for all technologies: the BMW iFACTORY

The BMW iFACTORY focuses on the areas of efficiency, sustainability and digitalisation. Within this framework, the company’s plants around the world are implementing site-specific solutions and, in so doing, strengthening the company’s resilience as well as its ability to deliver reliably at any time and worldwide. This vision has now also been consistently implemented across all technologies at BMW Group Plant Munich.

“We have rethought the entire value stream from supplier to finished customer vehicle. We have looked at every single process in detail and made optimisations. Now our plant is even more efficient, more flexible and even more digitised than ever before. We are thereby safeguarding the future viability of the plant,” adds Peter Weber.

In the press shop, steel and aluminium boards are turned into tens of thousands of components on highly automated press lines daily. Uniform press and tool standards across the global production network result in efficiencies on many levels: installation and integration of the systems are standardised, tools for the presses can be swapped within the network, and employees can work at various locations and help each other. An AI-assisted camera system supports quality control before an underground transport system moves the parts to the body shop. Output has increased significantly compared with previous structures. Cuts of steel and aluminium are collected, sorted and then used to manufacture new steel or aluminium coils.

Plant Munich has set up a new body shop for the Neue Klasse featuring systems planned and realised using a virtual twin. A total of 800 new industrial robots take care of the joining processes here; decreasing the number of joining processes to five reduces process complexity. With an automation rate of around 98 per cent, robots perform the majority of standardised processes. Automated surface inspection (ASI) assists with quality assurance.

In the paint shop at Plant Munich, digital and AI-assisted systems control central quality processes. Automated surface inspection (ASI) uses cameras and artificial intelligence to detect even the most minor deviations on the surface and documents them digitally. Automated surface processing (ASP) works on the variations detected directly during the running process. To purify the exhaust air, the paint shop uses the energy-efficient, electrically powered eRTO process. This is complemented by heat and energy recovery as well as water-saving cycles.

What once was the home of engine manufacturing at BMW Group Plant Munich has become a new assembly area for the Neue Klasse. The assembly area is set up for end-to-end digital processes: vehicles, systems and tools are interconnected and digital live tracking and automated inline quality checks support employees in the assembly line process. During assembly already, the BMW i3 digitally transmits the status of up to 20,000 features to the production system. Ergonomic workstations, height-adjustable systems and simplified processes lighten the load for employees, while targeted training supports new digital fields.

Aspart of the transformation, logistics at BMW Group Plant Munich has focused squarely on efficiency and direct integration of production. The logistics department at the Munich plant moves around 2.5 million parts every day; in future around 70 per cent of these parts will be delivered directly to the assembly workstations. This will reduce internal transport distances, save space and accelerate supply to the production lines. This is made possible by a multi-storey building structure developed specially for the plant’s city location. Delivery is at ground level and then conveyor technology transports the parts to the right levels, where they are distributed directly to the assembly workstations. This enables the principle of direct delivery to be applied systematically even in a multi-storey plant. At the same time, the level of automation in logistics has been significantly increased. Automated supply systems, smart transport robots and driverless transport systems will handle around 60 per cent of supply tasks in the future. A digital logistics control station manages all processes centrally, ensuring transparency and data-driven optimisation.

Unique to Plant Munich is the in-house seat manufacturing facility. It is a “plant inside a plant” and takes on a central role for quality assurance and expert evaluation within the production network. The seats for all versions of the models produced in Munich are manufactured here and delivered to vehicle assembly directly and “just in sequence”. The in‑house seat manufacturing facility is regarded as the benchmark for quality assurance across the BMW Group. Modern, largely automated processes ensure seamless quality control. This is complemented by fully automated end-of-line checks, including for safety-relevant components. The seat manufacturing facility also systematically strengthens the BMW Group’s in-house expertise. It serves as a competence centre and innovation hub, tests new materials, technologies and manufacturing concepts, and supports the evaluation of costs, quality and production processes – making an impact far beyond the Munich location.

Global network, regional value creation: high-voltage batteries and e-drive

With the new assembly plant for high-voltage batteries in Irlbach‑Straßkirchen (Lower Bavaria, Germany) around 90 minutes away, the BMW Group is significantly boosting value creation in the Bavaria region. In keeping with the “local for local” approach, Irlbach-Straßkirchen will deliver high-voltage Gen6 batteries to the Munich plant as well as other German locations. Here, the batteries will be installed in the BMW i3. Manufacture of the high-voltage batteries combines a rigorous zero-defect approach with the latest production technologies, which were developed at Bavarian pilot plants. With seamless inline quality controls, digital twins and the systematic use of artificial intelligence, the BMW Group is setting new standards in battery production.

The Gen6 e-motor for the BMW i3 is produced at BMW Group Plant Steyr in Austria – a location that has been manufacturing drivetrains for over 40 years. With the first e-motor in the portfolio, the plant is developing its role as a prime example of technology openness. All core components of the highly integrated e-drive – from the rotor and stator to the inverter and transmission – are produced on-site. New production lines and state‑of‑the‑art clean room environments have been set up for this. The aluminium foundry at BMW Group Plant Landshut supplies the e-motor housing for Plant Steyr.