The BMW Group is celebrating the 100th anniversary of its Munich home plant. The company has been manufacturing its products as “Bayerische Motoren Werke” at the site in the Milbertshofen district since 1922.
At an event to mark the anniversary, CEO Oliver Zipse emphasized how: “Our home plant – right in the heart of the metropolis that is Munich – has defied the elements of time. Because there have always been people who kept this site moving, always with the right instinct for the times and, above all, with a clear view to the future.” Lord Mayor Dieter Reiter spoke of a “strong commitment to Munich as a business hub.”
It all started with aircraft engines and motorcycles. Then, from 1952, the plant moved on to start producing cars, which are still famous the world over to this day, including the iconic BMW Isetta, racing legends such as the M3 and, since 1975, the most successful of all BMW models: the BMW 3 Series.
In its 100th anniversary year, the Munich plant is impressively demonstrating the leading role it plays in the age of electromobility. The all-electric BMW i4, for example, already makes up a quarter of the production volume – and rising.
The Munich plant’s strong position as a paragon of the BMW Group’s production network, now and in the future, is demonstrated by its transformation into an iFACTORY – the strategic master plan devised by BMW Group Production, emphasizing ‘lean’, ‘green’ and ‘digital’. The Munich plant’s structure is also undergoing transformation. The site of the former paint shop is being converted into a new body construction facility, and from 2024 the company will be constructing a completely new assembly to produce the all-electric ‘Neue Klasse’ on the site of the current engine-building facility.
