BMW 2004 Annual Report Download - page 135

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opening up a new segment for the BMW brand.
Also, for the first time in the history of the BMW
brand, the Company now offers a BMW Convertible
with a diesel engine, the BMW 320Cd Convertible.
Finally, in the autumn we presented the new
BMW M5, the most powerful 5 Series Sedan in the
75-year history of BMW automobiles. This vehicle
combines the characteristics of a thoroughbred
sports car with the traditional qualities of a luxury
sedan. The new M5 will be available from April
2005 and is already a clear sign that we have no in-
tention of slowing down in 2005. On the contrary,
we shall continue the success story of the BMW
brand with new products, such as the new BMW 3
Series, the updated BMW 7 Series or the new
BMW M6.
In 2004 we added the MINI Convertible to
the MINI brand. The Convertible, which met with
strong customer demand from the very start, is
now available in three engine variants, ranging
from the MINI One through the MINI Cooper to the
MINI Cooper S.
The Rolls-Royce brand celebrated its centenary
in 2004. Rolls-Royce has always been the epitome
of luxury and perfection in automotive engineering –
and beyond. The Rolls-Royce Phantom embodies
the brand’s claim authentically and convincingly.
With the Rolls-Royce 100EX Experimental Car,
presented in the spring of 2004, we showed fur-
ther potential for this outstanding brand. We are
currently working on a convertible based on this
experimental motor car, which will be launched in
2007.
Apart from adding a large number of new
products to our range, we continued to strengthen
our international presence in 2004. Through new
sales companies in Hungary and Malta and, since
January 2005, in Portugal, we now serve three more
promising markets more intensively than before.
In May 2004 we opened the new plant in
Shenyang, China. As part of the production and sales
joint venture with our Chinese partner Brilliance
China Automotive Holdings, this plant plays a
special role in the BMW Group’s strategy for Asia.
At the same time, the year 2004 was marked
by the development of the new BMW Leipzig plant
where series production of the BMW 3 Series be-
gins in March 2005. Leipzig is more than just a new
plant for the BMW Group. It is also a statement of
the BMW Group’s faith in Germany as an industrial
base. Here we now produce automobiles success-
fully at four locations. Like all plants of the BMW
Group, the Leipzig plant is fully integrated into the
BMW Group’s production network and thus has
plenty of scope for flexibility. “Breathing structures”,
elaborated in cooperation with employees’ repre-
sentatives, enable us to adapt production capacities
flexibly to market requirements. These optimum
production structures not only give the Company
room to manoeuvre, but are also essential for
profitable growth.
In Leipzig, we are relying on the strengths that
have always determined the success of the BMW
Group. The great flexibility of the production net-
work, combined with the motivation and dedication
of the employees. The capacity for innovations
which demonstrate the premium claim in the sub-
stance of our products. And the awareness that
only sustainable policies geared to long-term,
profitable growth can bring success on a permanent
basis.
We shall continue to utilise these strengths
and thus to steer the BMW Group’s course to
success. To be more specific, in 2005 the BMW
Group will continue to grow. We are expecting
further growth in the retail volume for all brands.
At the same time, our Company faces special
burdens in 2005 due to a combination of strong
competition in the markets, the development of
the exchange rate of the US dollar and higher
prices for raw materials. We shall need to take suit-
able measures to cope with these burdens and
thus demonstrate, once again, the strength of the
BMW Group.
You may rest assured that we shall continue to
devote all our energy to achieving our objectives:
the BMW Group is the most successful multi-brand
premium manufacturer in the automobile industry –
and we shall do everything in our power to keep it
that way.
Helmut Panke
Chairman of the Board of Management