BMW Plant Chennai - Official opening.

Local production in growth market. Munich. The BMW Group is holding
the official opening of the BMW Plant Chennai on 29 March 2007. The
subsidiary company in Delhi started up operations at the beginning of
2007 and opening the plant is the second important step in India's
emerging growth market. To date, around 20 million euros have been
invested in the sales structure and the plant. Long-term
opportunities for growth At the official opening in Chennai, Dr.
Norbert Reithofer, Chairman of the Executive Board of BMW AG commented:
"Particularly in the premium automobile segment, India offers big
opportunities for growth. Opening this plant underpins our long-term
route to profitable growth." In addition to the new production
facilities, consistent build-up of a powerful sales structure has paved
the way for this expanded profile. The BMW Group has been active in the
Indian market through a dealer network over the past 10 years.
Establishment of an independent subsidiary company managed by the BMW
Group was the next key logical step towards creating a significant
platform to serve the emerging growth market in India. Since the
beginning of 2007, Delhi has been the focus of sales operations. The
dealer network will be expanded from there to encompass all the big
cities on the Indian subcontinent. Premium products from and for India
The decision to locate a facility at Chennai was based on the strategy
"Production follows the market". When the plant was
inaugurated, Frank Peter Arndt, Production Director at BMW AG,
explained: "The strategy of local production allows us to exploit
the opportunities available for opening up and exploiting markets with
long-term potential for growth. In India, we will have local production
for a significant proportion of sales with BMW vehicles in the 3 Series
and 5 Series. We are delighted to be operating as a "local
player" in India." The BMW Plant Chennai is located in the
south west of India in the Tamil Nadu region, approximately 40
kilometres north-west of Chennai (formerly Madras in the Mahindra World
City industrial park. The complex covers a total area of 89,000 m²
and has a production area of 13,000m². In February 2007, the first
BMW 3 Series rolled off the production line of the new plant after a
construction period of just 12 months. Initially, BMW Plant Chennai is
employing a workforce of some 120 to build around 1,700 cars a year in
a single shift. The BMW 3 and 5 Series built in Chennai are destined
exclusively for the Indian market. They leave the plant with the
customary premium quality. Naturally, the global standards of the BMW
Group are also consistently applied here to production in India. Final
visual inspections and operational tests ensure that the quality of
each vehicle produced at the Chennai Plant is manufactured to the
specified standard quality. The tests include a seal tightness test
cabin, a rolling road dynamometer and a test track, to check that all
systems are running smoothly in every BMW. Other model series, such as
the BMW 7 Series, X5 or X3 are imported to provide customers with a
large and attractive range of BMW vehicles. When a production site was
being selected, Chennai was the ideal choice because it provided the
best possible conditions for meeting a wide range of different
criteria. One positive aspect was the presence of other automobile
manufacturers including an appropriate supplier industry. Another
advantage was the outstanding pool of qualified labour available at
Chennai. Local logistics offered excellent facilities including an
international airport, a well-developed road network and an ocean port.
"Chennai is an ideal site and I'm very pleased to be in a position
to expand the production network of the BMW Group with a highly
motivated team," commented plant manager Stefan Hülsenberg on
the day of the inauguration. The human success factor Apart from
sophisticated working processes and the most advanced plant technology,
the human factor plays a key role in the production of premium
products. The workforce at the BMW Plant Chennai have all completed 10
years of school education at various levels and have also undergone
several years of further training. 88 percent of all employees also
have experience in the automobile industry. Appropriate skill levels
for operations at the Chennai Plant have been achieved by exploiting
proven knowledge transfer within the BMW Group - the majority of the
120 Indian employees received training for their jobs at the BMW Plant
in Thailand. The project team responsible for setting up the plant was
also supported by colleagues from Munich, Regensburg and Dingolfing.
Ultimately, all of these factors will contribute to ensuring that BMW
vehicles built at the BMW Plant Chennai offer the premium quality which
is the hallmark of the BMW Group the world over. Die BMW Group -
Facts and Figures The BMW Group has a track record of success spanning
90 years. Today, the company ranks among the top ten biggest automobile
manufacturers worldwide. The brands BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce are three
of the strongest premium brands in the automobile sector. In 2006,
the group reported the most successful year in the company's history,
generating earnings before tax of 4,124 million euros. Deliveries of the
three group brands BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce achieved a new global
record with 1,373,970 automobiles and 100,064 motorcycles. The BMW
Group employed a total of 106,575 people worldwide.