BMW Group scales use of automated driving technology across four European plants

BMW Group recently celebrated reaching a milestone in its digitalisation journey as it moved its one-millionth vehicle using Automated Driving In-Plant (AFW) technology.

AFW allows vehicles to be moved around production and logistics areas without the need for a driver. The vehicles can be moved from one production area to the next, then to in-house vehicle testing areas and across outdoor logistics areas.

How does AFW work?

Developed in collaboration with Swiss technology company Embotech, BMW Group's Automated Driving In-Plant system combines external sensors, cloud architecture and motion planning software to allow driverless vehicles to respond dynamically to people, other vehicles, driverless transport vehicles, logistics traffic and temporary obstacles.

LiDAR sensors are placed along the route to constantly capture the environment, enabling secure vehicle navigation in real time, while AI is used to support the continuous development, simulation and operation of AFW technology. BMW Group's Dingolfing plant – the first site to test this technology – currently operates the largest LiDAR infrastructure in Europe.

The technology was launched as part of a pilot project at BMW Group's plant in Dingolfing in 2022, then rolled out to two other German sites: Leipzig and Regensburg. The latest BMW Group plant to adopt the technology is Mini Plant Oxford, which is the group's first site outside of Germany to implement AFW and also the first location to connect automated guided vehicles directly with existing control systems. Here, the AFW system precisely positions vehicles next to a lifting device, where a specific operation is carried out.

In a statement, BMW Group said that AFW has progressed from an innovative technology trial to a well-established, scalable standard application that will be rolled out in stages across its entire global production network. On average around 3,500 automated vehicle movements are completed across these four plants each day, with more than 53,000 automated movements recorded at Mini Plant Oxford alone in the past year.

“One million vehicles moved using automated driving technology and the deployment of this technology at four sites to date demonstrates the innovative strength and scaling capabilities of our production network," said Raymond Wittmann, member of the BMW board of management responsible for production. "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.”

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Wittman descrived AFW as a prime example of BMW Group is "translating the vision of the BMW iFactory into industrial practice" and driving efficiency, digitalisation and intelligent connectivity across its global production operations. BMW Group's AFW rollout is set to continue next year, with the technology due to be introduced at BMW Group Plant Spartanburg in South Carolina in 2027 – marking the group's first AFW application outside of Europe.

The BMW iFactory concept is BMW Group's strategy for the future of car production that is being implemented at every one of its plants around the world. It aims to improve efficiency, sustainability and digitalisation in an effort to future-proof car production. As well as autonomous transport systems, the concept focuses on the implementation of AI and sustainable energy sources.

BMW Group is not the only automotive OEM to trial automated vehicle movements in its operations. At the Port of Emden in Germany, Volkswagen Group Logistics is working with partners on the AutoLog project, exploring how automated driving can make logistics processes better, safer and more environmentally friendly, while addressing a shortage of terminal operators.

On the Red Sofa at ALSC Europe 2026, Peter Hörndlein, managing director of vehicle logistics at Volkswagen Group Logistics, described the pilot's initial result as "promising" and noted that it has already proved that it is possible to have remote-controlled or automated driven vehicles smoothly interacting with manually driven vehicles.