BMW driverless in-plant system passes one million vehicles as MINI Plant Oxford adopts it
BMW Group's Automated Driving In-Plant (AFW) technology moves new cars without a driver inside defined factory and logistics areas. Oxford is now the fourth BMW Group plant using it, with more than 53,000 automated vehicle movements there in the past year.
BMW Group says one million vehicles have now been moved and guided at its plants using its Automated Driving In-Plant (AFW) technology. The figure covers the group's whole plant network. MINI Plant Oxford has become the fourth site to use the system, after Dingolfing, Leipzig and Regensburg.
BMW Group says more than 53,000 automated vehicle movements were completed at Oxford in the past year. It also says Oxford is the first of its locations to connect automated vehicle movements directly with existing control systems. There, the system positions vehicles next to a lifting device where a specific operation is carried out, and a cloud-based solution handles the interaction between vehicle and equipment.
AFW applies only to new vehicles within defined production and logistics areas. It is not on-road automated driving. The sensors it relies on, including LiDAR, are installed in the plant infrastructure rather than on the cars, so vehicles can be moved regardless of their equipment specification. BMW Group says the system is CE-certified for safe use in the production environment.
The technology was piloted at Dingolfing in 2022, and BMW Group says it will be rolled out in stages across its global production network. Plant Spartanburg in the US is due to become the fifth site to introduce AFW in series operation from 2027. According to BMW Group, an average of around 3,500 automated vehicle movements currently take place each day across the network.
"We recognised the potential of Automated Driving In-Plant early, tested it in a pilot phase and systematically developed it to series maturity. We are now rolling out this technology worldwide," said Raymond Wittmann, the BMW AG board member responsible for Production.
AFW was developed with Swiss company Embotech. BMW i Ventures, BMW Group's venture capital fund, acquired a financial interest in Embotech in December 2024.
Sources
BMW GroupHow THRIVE sources and checks its stories · Corrections, and how to report an error
BMW iX5 shown charging at up to 460kW in US technology demonstration
BMW unveils Concept 7 Protection, a lower-tier armoured 7 Series
BMW M hits one-millionth vehicle as Plant Munich confirmed for electric M3
The Tuesday briefing
The week's fleet numbers and news, every Tuesday morning. Free.
One email a week. Unsubscribe in a click.
Named in this story? You have a right of reply: email hello@thrivefleet.co.uk and a challenged claim will be marked under review while we check it.
Got a story, or a question about this one? Contact the newsroom. We read everything that comes in. With the volume of fleet news, not everything can run, but a story with a number, a date or a decision in it stands a good chance.