BMW has announced plans to construct a new production facility dedicated to housing component production for the Neue Klasse. The facility, set to comprise three levels and two production lines, will employ the innovative “Injector Casting” process for manufacturing. This process ensures that parts are cast with optimal mechanical properties while significantly reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions due to lower casting temperatures. Moreover, it minimizes resource consumption by requiring less return material.
The introduction of two new production lines is expected to boost the annual production capacity for the fifth and sixth-generation aluminum housings by approximately 30 percent. This enhancement will benefit the fifth generation of BMW electric drives, utilized in current model series such as the iX3, i4, i5, i7, and iX, as well as the forthcoming sixth generation planned for Neue Klasse vehicles from 2025. With the ongoing production of the current series in parallel, BMW will offer electric vehicles featuring both fifth and sixth-generation drive systems concurrently, necessitating drive housings from Landshut.
In the sixth generation, the functional principle of BMW electric motors will remain unchanged, featuring separately excited synchronous machines (EESM) that combine the advantages of permanently excited synchronous motors and asynchronous motors. Notably, the sixth generation has undergone detailed further development, ensuring continued innovation in electric motor technology.
BMW’s current investment of 200 million euros brings its total investment in its largest component plant to approximately one billion euros since 2020, with nearly half of this amount allocated to the expansion of electric vehicle-related production.
Thomas Thym, Head of BMW Group Plant Landshut, emphasizes the plant’s ongoing transformation towards electric mobility, stating, “We are continuously expanding our site’s expertise in both the production of our cutting-edge components and the development of new technologies. This skill set provides us with the flexibility we are going to need in the future.” The manufacturing of central housings for the sixth-generation drive technology in the Neue Klasse represents another milestone in this transformation.
However, the new production hall for electric drive housings will be constructed on the existing site. BMW acquired a plot of land measuring approximately 30,000 square meters adjacent to the Landshut plant in January of this year, earmarked for future production volumes unrelated to the current project.
BMW’s internal supply chain for future electric models continues to evolve, with production of electric drives expanded and extended for the sixth drive generation. Additionally, the company has received planning permission for battery assembly in Lower Bavaria, further solidifying its commitment to advancing electric mobility.
