BMW preps Leipzig plant for Neue Klasse production
BMW has used a five-and-a-half-week production break at its Leipzig plant to carry out extensive upgrades ahead of Neue Klasse production. To this end, 240 lift tables were replaced and 160 new robots were installed. BMW is yet to reveal which models will be produced there.
As early as June, BMW announced plans to prepare its Leipzig plant for the Neue Klasse during an extended summer shutdown. The conversion is now largely complete, with the full extent of the work becoming clear for the first time. According to the Leipziger Volkszeitung, more than 2,000 contractors worked across the 241-hectare site during the five-and-a-half-week period. Vehicle production was halted throughout this time.
The most significant changes were made in the assembly area, where BMW replaced 240 hydraulic lifting tables to accommodate the underbodies of future vehicles. Swivel hangers and electric overhead conveyors were also renewed or had their suspensions reinforced, primarily to support the increased weight of the Neue Klasse models’ underbodies – which integrate the high-voltage battery and electric powertrain. In total, around 1,500 tonnes of steel were removed from the production facilities and replaced with new structures. To test whether the transport systems could handle the heavier vehicles, BMW loaded existing vehicles with sandbags and transported them through the systems.
Extensive work was also carried out in the body shop, where BMW installed and programmed 160 new robots. According to the LVZ, the decommissioned machines are currently lined up in a hall, dubbed the ‘Terracotta Army’ by employees. Once removed, the space will be used for manufacturing new doors and flaps. A neighbouring former storage hall is also being prepared for Neue Klasse bodywork production.
Besides this, BMW also made adjustments to the paint shop, expanding its facilities to accommodate the more robust steel underbody of the new vehicles – as well as replace older technology.
A nearly two-billion euro investment
Overall, BMW has invested a low three-digit million sum in these latest upgrades. Over the past five years, the carmaker has poured nearly two billion euros in the site, according to its own figures.
However, BMW has not yet revealed which Neue Klasse models will be produced in Leipzig. The new BMW i3 entered production at the Munich headquarters earlier this month; while currently, the Leipzig plant produces the BMW 1 Series, the 2 Series Gran Coupé, the 2 Series Active Tourer, and the Mini Countryman – including the electric version.
The production of Neue Klasse EVs would mark a return to a familiar role for Leipzig. From 2013 to 2022, the plant manufactured the former i3, the BMW Group’s first mass-produced battery-electric model. Late last year, works council chairman Jens Köhler alsocalled for Leipzig to play a larger role in future EV production. It remains unclear which model will eventually take up that role, but BMW has now put the necessary technical infrastructure in place.