BMW to cut European workforce, increase U.S. production

[darknightohio]

BMW to cut European workforce, increase U.S. production

March 10, 01:41pm EDT

Following on the heels of the news that it will be expanding its Spartanburg production facility, BMW has announced that it will be further reducing its European workforce. The German automaker plans to ramp up its U.S. production by 50 percent by 2012, which will in turn take its toll of BMW's European workforce.

BMW plans to cut 5,600 more jobs this year — on top of the already announced 2,500 cuts — which is about 7.5 percent of BMW's total workforce.
BMW blames the shift in production on the weak value of the dollar, which makes U.S. production more cost effective.
Within the next four years, BMW plans to produce 240,000 vehicles annually in the U.S., up from its current level of 155,000 units.

Does this mean we will get more 1ers?

[Year1of1]

they r gonna come into america while its cheap, speeding things up before the dollar bounces back... good business sense-

[Spook]

Not so sure that the dollar will 'bounce back'. It will be a very long time before we absorb the $3 trillion dollar hit from foreign adventures in Iraq or the escapades of unregulated speculators in our financial markets.

My concern is that the cars coming out of Spartanburg will not be the quality of the cars from Germany. It isn't clear that they have demonstrated themselves to be equals if Consumer Reports is to be believed. Nissan has the same problem with the giant SUV's they make in Mississippi. Of course, Honda seems to have broken the code to build quality cars here so there is hope. Also, where do they make Mini's? They seem to be of good quality.

I'm glad I'm getting to experience an ED delivery for a high performance German car. That might be a more rare event 5 years from now.

-Spook

[joelk]

Originally Posted by Spook

Not so sure that the dollar will 'bounce back'.

i agree ... at least for a long while.

i read about this a while back ... iirc they were going to move all X3 production to S.C. basically it wouldn't affect 1er production.

[jraymond]

Spook, do you really believe there is a quality issue between the Z4,X5 and the rest of the models? I have never seen anything like that.

Can you cite where Consumer Reports has this stated?

[Atorak]

I've heard there are a lot of problems with X5s myself. A couple of people I know personally owned them and were in and out of the shop constantly. Windows dropping off the tracks, electrical programs, etc.

The years were approximately 02-03's I believe.

Also, here is a list I found of common problems associated with the X5. It is noted that X5s, according to Consumer Reports, typically have twice as many problems compared to the average vehicle.

http://www-ksl.stanford.edu/people/k..._problems.html

[yak52pilot]

I had a Z4 for only a year. The reason i got rid of it was the horrible reliability. Promised myself to never buy an american bmw again

[jraymond]

I have had the same type of problems with my X3 built in Austria. Does the Z4 not have issues?

[SCA]

QC is an issue at BMW Manufacturing in Greer. Keep in mind many parts are outsourced.

[Spook]

Originally Posted by jraymond

Spook, do you really believe there is a quality issue between the Z4,X5 and the rest of the models? I have never seen anything like that.

Can you cite where Consumer Reports has this stated?

My apologies for not having Consumer Reports at hand. As an alternative here are some links from JD Powers that reflect my impression (and it is only an impression). The Z4 and X5 don't look so bad until you compare them to the 3 series and 5 series.

http://autos.nytimes.com/2007/BMW/Z4_Series/235/2609/287142/researchRatings.aspx

http://autos.nytimes.com/2007/BMW/X5_Series/235/2607/287143/researchRatings.aspx

http://autos.nytimes.com/2007/BMW/3_Series/235/2594/286233/researchRatings.aspx

http://autos.nytimes.com/2007/BMW/5_...chRatings.aspx


-Spook

[Nixon]

You have to pay to get consumer reports articles online. They are very active about getting their reports removed from websites that post them for free.

[Spook]

Having had a chance to consult the latest consumer reports I would say that my perception of lesser Z4 reliability was incorrect. They did have a bad motor year (2006) and the older ones are suspect in several areas, but overall it looks better than average and solid in that regard. The X5, however, does have issues.

-Spook

[Brandon26pdx]

I'm sure the Germans must be thrilled to be losing their high paying assembly jobs

[hector]

Originally Posted by Brandon26pdx

I'm sure the Germans must be thrilled to be losing their high paying assembly jobs

nothing to worry about; just have the bundesbank pump some money into the system and everyone will be allright.

[Tijuana]

I don't imagine BMW process controls are as loose in the US as American auto makers. There were more likely design issues with the vehicles mentioned with problems than there were manufacturing mistakes. It is much more about the process than the workers, and processes can be transferred to any country, IMO. To claim that American workers are lesser than foreign workers is a bit ignorant, especially for an American. MINIs are made in the UK, and I don't see too many people saying the British make cars that are well built and run flawlessly.

[Spook]

I would think the assumption that processes flow seamlessly from the home country and there are no cultural or work ethic issues to overcome would represent a less than informed postion. When my company either outsources or does a start up in a different part of the country we face that challenge and as an engineering manager I often get to pull my hair out until things are sorted out. Some companies overcome this in time, others don't.

-S