BMW Group announced an expansion of its operations in Spartanburg, SC, with the opening of a 20,000-square-meter press shop dedicated to producing parts for the new X3 SUV.
This $200 million investment is set to boost production capabilities and create more than 200 jobs in various fields, including tool and die technicians and maintenance for automated machinery.
"The advanced production methods used in our press shop will ensure the highest quality and efficiency of body components for our customers," said Robert Engelhorn, president and CEO of BMW Manufacturing. "Having this press shop on-site fits our ‘local for local’ strategy, whereby we produce major parts at the location where we need them."
The new press shop will manufacture critical components of the X3 such as the outer skin, exterior body sides, doors, side panels and tailgate. It features cutting-edge servo technology, enabling up to 18 strokes per minute and the production of more than 10,000 components daily, depending on size.
This development is part of a larger $1.7 billion investment BMW Group announced in October 2022 to enhance its U.S. operations. This includes $1 billion to prepare Plant Spartanburg for the assembly of fully-electric vehicles and $700 million to build a new high-voltage battery assembly plant in Woodruff, SC. Plant Woodruff, expected to be completed by 2026, will produce sixth-generation batteries for BMW's upcoming electric vehicle lineup.
BMW is gearing up to produce six fully electric vehicles at Plant Spartanburg by 2030. The facility, BMW’s largest global assembly plant, employs more than 11,000 people and produces more than 1,500 vehicles daily, catering to global markets with its X Series SUVs.
