BMW Plant Dingolfing to test fully connected logistics

As part of a three-year research project, the BMW Group and three partner companies from Bavaria are exploring the possibilities for making BMW Group Plant Dingolfing a smart factory for logistics.

The 'Autonomous and Connected Logistics' research project was officially launched in September 2019 and is now entering the practical phase. A number of innovative Industry 4.0 production technologies are being combined in an overall concept and tested under real conditions at BMW Group Plant Dingolfing.

Behind the project is a vision of fully connected production in which autonomous transport systems, logistics robots and mobile devices seamlessly communicate with one another and a control system.

As part of the 'Regional Alliances Autonomous Driving' research and development initiative, the Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy is also contributing around $5.1 million to support the Bavarian economy with successfully shaping the digital transformation.

In recent years, the BMW Group production network has piloted several logistics solutions independently of one another, winning the German Logistics Award in 2019. The research project will now move forward to achieve maximum connectivity between individual logistics solutions and integrate them into the BMW production system.

Connecting innovative logistics solutions creates additional transparency over material and machine movements and enables BMW to explore how to best exploit the potential of fully connected production for BMW Group logistics.

Testing of 5G wireless technology, which will be set up at BMW Group Plant Dingolfing as a trial network over the course of the project, will play a key role in linking different logistics solutions.

Within the BMW Group production network, the BMW Brilliance Automotive joint venture has already rolled out the 5G wireless communications network across all its three plants. The long-term goal is to set up a 5G network at all BMW Group plant locations worldwide. Further sub-projects will explore the use of logistics robots, mobile devices and digital displays in the logistics process and test connectivity between different systems.