BMW iFACTORY Strategy Promotes Green Manufacturing Worldwide
Dr. Franz Decker: BMW Brilliance is Committed to Contribute to The Sustainability - Oriented Transition of China’s Manufacturing

(Munich/Shenyang) The BMW Group revealed its new “iFACTORY” strategy in 2022: its revolutionary strategy for automotive production of the future. Reducing CO2 emissions is one of the central aims of the BMW iFACTORY with its LEAN. GREEN. DIGITAL approach. The BMW Group's goal is to make electric vehicles more “sustainable” throughout its entire life cycle. Optimum use of resources and circularity are the focus of GREEN. To become even more sustainable, the BMW Group is devising site-specific solutions to reduce CO2 emissions. The various solutions will be deployed in whatever way best suits the site in question.

BMW Shenyang Production Base in China also makes solid progress in energy transformation and resource utilization. It devotes itself to integrating green and sustainable concepts of iFACTORY into all aspects of the entire production base, from production, logistics, supply chain to operation. The Plant Lydia project, which opened in June this year, fully implemented the BMW iFACTORY concept. At 15 billion RMB, Plant Lydia the biggest single investment in the history of BMW in China.

Dr. Franz Decker, President and CEO of BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. stated: “At BMW, we always aim to produce our vehicles in the most sustainable way. With manufacturing experience and expertise as our strength, we are committed to contributing our efforts towards the national green manufacturing transformation and modern industrialization of China.”

Sustainability is the tradition at BMW. BBA’s Sustainability Report has been published every year since 2014, with figures that are fully audited and verified independently.

Mr. Robert Kuessel, Senior Vice President of Technology & Manufacturing of BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. Stated: “Last year the average CO2 emissions to produce one car at our Shenyang production base was just 0.17 tons, taking a leading position in BMW’s global production network. We are focused on the optimum use of resources and circularity to reduce carbon emissions and resource waste.”

100% renewable electricity use

Efficient use of green electricity is the foundation of building up the sustainable production bases at BMW Brilliance. Since 2019, BMW Shenyang Production Base has converted to 100% renewable electricity, contributing to the group-level carbon reduction target in 2030.

At present, there are 290,000 square meters of solar panels at BMW Shenyang production base. By the end of this year, these solar panels will have the capacity to generate 60,000 MWh and save around 45,000 tons of CO2 emissions annually. In addition, BBA participated in the “National Green Power Transaction” pilot scheme and completed a renewable electricity trading volume of 2.78 billion kWh, which ranked first nationwide. These measures will fulfill nearly all of the renewable electricity needs at our Shenyang Production Base until 2025.

BMW Shenyang Production Base is also actively adopting advanced technologies that are beneficial to reduce carbon emissions. In 2021, Plant Lydia and Plant Dadong Extension Projects established the first Combined Heating Power (CHP) system in Liaoning Province. The system enables energy transformation from coal to natural gas, which is expected to reduce CO2 emissions by 50% through energy replacement.

One major focus for BMW Brilliance is the continuing pursuit of energy efficiency. As a result, the energy consumption per vehicle produced has decreased for four consecutive years since 2016. In 2021, it reduced to 1.40 MWh per vehicle, a 7.3% decrease compared to 2020.

Promoting Circularity to Create Resource Möbius strip

The true sustainable manufacturing is closely related to resource recycling. The BMW Group actively promotes the circular economy and use of secondary materials, so that key resources and materials can be recycled and reused in a circular economy. BMW Shenyang Production Base has already realized circular in multiple dimensions in the production process, such as water management and waste management etc., forming its own Möbius strip – close loop of resources.

The most outstanding achievement is the water management to make every liter count by channeling the efforts to reduce water consumption and promote effective management of reclaiming water. BMW Brilliance achieved 1.82 m3 of water consumption per vehicle produced in 2021. The Paint Shop of Plant Dadong Extension Projects has been steadily expanding its water reclamation facility’s capacity, saving 150,000 m3 of water based on 2022 production which is 1.5 times the capacity of the Water Cube (Beijing National Aquatics Center).

Closely cooperating with its steel suppliers, BMW put 57,000 tons of steel back into the production line in 2021 through closed-loop recycling. Today, 99% of waste in the BMW Shenyang Production Base has already been reused or recycled.

Every Step Counts on the Journey to Sustainability

In China, the BMW Group's commitment to sustainability is reflected in all aspects across the entire value chain, from supply chain, production, logistics to operation. As a National Green Plant, sustainability is at the core of BMW Shenyang Production Base. In implementing the BMW iFACTORY in China, the BMW Group is redefining the future orientation of its plants. At the 2nd BMW Group China Sustainability Summit on November 1st this year, BMW will focus on showing its sustainability achievements across the entire industry chain since 2021.

At Home in China, the BMW Group will continue to work together with its partners from upstream to downstream, to protect the lucid water and lush mountains and build a beautiful homeland together!

* All involved data from “BBA Sustainability Report 2021 (EN version)”