100,000th BMW 3 Series Just After 15 Months

Press Release

BMW “Made in Leipzig”

At midday on 16 June 2006, BMW Plant Leipzig saw the 100,000th BMW 3 Series roll off the assembly line since production launch on 1 March 2005. The BMW 330i in Titanium Silver metallic was destined for a customer in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. This first major milestone was achieved ahead of schedule – impressive confirmation that the Leipzig manufacturing plant is living up to its forecast efficiency.

Daily production at BMW’s Leipzig factory currently stands at around 570 vehicles, with the body shop, paint shop and assembly shop running on a two-shift basis. More than 4,100 new workplaces have so far been created at the facility to meet production targets, with 2,300 staff working directly for BMW and the rest accounted for by suppliers and service partners. Production in 2007 is set to be ramped up to 650 cars a day.

Vehicles produced at the Leipzig plant have so far been delivered to four continents – Europe, Asia, Africa, and South and Central America. Around a quarter of the cars have gone to customers in Germany.

“In this, BMW Group proves that Germany as a business base still boasts the prerequisites for success in the international competitive arena,” said plant manager Peter Claussen on the occasion of this production anniversary. Key factors in this positive development, he stressed, are “the willingness to work and powerful incentive, as well as the advanced skills and qualifications of the workforce”.

In 2001, after weighing up more than 250 offers from around Europe, BMW Group decided to build its new production site in Leipzig. Initial investment ran to some 1.3 billion euros. The result is one of the most modern and flexible automotive production plants in the world.

BMW Plant Leipzig encompasses the entire scope of production, starting with body-in-white welding and paint application, to corrosion protection and cavity sealing, all the way to assembling all the interior features and final assembly, as well as function tests and quality control.