The BMW Group has celebrated a major milestone in its journey towards digitally connected and intelligent manufacturing, with one million vehicles now moved through its plants using Automated Driving In-Plant (AFW) technology. At MINI Plant Oxford, the innovative system has carried out more than 53,000 automated vehicle movements over the last year alone.
MINI Plant Oxford is the fourth BMW Group plant after Dingolfing, Leipzig and Regensburg to use this technology. Since the pilot was launched in Dingolfing in 2022, AFW has progressed from an innovative technology trial to a well-established, scalable standard application that will be rolled out in stages across the BMW Group’s global production network. In this way, the BMW Group is underlining its pioneering role in digital and automated production processes. An average of around 3,500 automated vehicle movements currently take place every day across the BMW Group network.
The network approach is crucial here: AFW is not an individual solution for one plant. The technology can be adapted for different sites, vehicle architectures and production processes. The industrial maturity of the application has been demonstrated by the one million automated vehicle movements already completed.
Using AFW, vehicles can respond dynamically to their surroundings. This not only includes people, but also other vehicles, driverless transport vehicles, logistics traffic and temporary obstacles.
Emergency Preparedness Starts Here
MINI Plant Oxford is the first BMW Group location to connect automated guided vehicles directly with existing control systems. The AFW system precisely positions the vehicle next to a lifting device, where a specific operation is carried out. Automated interaction between vehicle and equipment is enabled by a cloud-based solution. This marks the next logical step in the integration and scaling of automated vehicle movements in the production environment.
Oxford provides a unique setting for this technology. The plant, considered the home of the MINI brand, can look back on more than 100 years of industrial history. Here, state-of-the-art software, sensors and cloud technologies meet a production environment that has been part of British automotive history for generations.
GR Snippets
- MINI Plant Oxford becomes the fourth site to introduce this innovative technology
- From pilot project to production standard – across plants, models and processes
- Optimised production process, efficiency gains for logistics
- Rollout will continue in 2027 at BMW Group Plant Spartanburg
