BMW 2012 Annual Report Download - page 255

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Every 20 minutes, on the dot, a heavily laden tugger
train jolts to a start at the Tiexi plant’s supplier building.
Materials are transported through a
300 -metre tunnel
directly to the assembly lines, where the supplied parts
are immediately built into new
BMW vehicles. The parts
are manufactured right next door in the plant’s supplier
hall, where four partner companies with around
500 as-
sociates currently produce car seats, axles, roof liners and
shock absorbers for
BBA . The concept of housing major
volume suppliers directly on-site, unique in China, gen-
erates a whole range of benefits, both for
BBA and the
regional partners themselves. “It gives us a real home ad-
vantage,” says Sherman Du, general manager
of a seat
manufacturer based at the plant. “Because our
produc-
tion is here on-site, we are able to meet demand from the
plant straight away – and, if problems arise, we can fix
them right on the assembly line.”
Many of the materials and vehicle parts that have to be
shipped from farther afield will be delivered to the Tiexi
plant by rail in the future. The completion of a direct
train link between port and plant will allow a significant
percentage of transport volumes to be switched to rail,
largely eliminating the need for truck delivery. This will
not only improve the plant’s
CO2 balance sheet, but also
its supply security. In icy temperatures and difficult road
conditions, truck delivery is much riskier than rail.
Sherman Du’s company builds car seats.
REGIONAL
SUPPLIERS
“The plant and the region
strengthen each other
through jobs, advanced
technology and constant learning
from one another.”
Fiona Zhang
Material carriers deliver supplier
parts directly to the assembly line
just in time.