New Study Shows That BMW Manufacturing Remains a Significant Economic Driver in South Carolina
- Phil DiIanni
- Annual Economic Impact of $26.7 Billion in SC.
- Plant Spartanburg Supports Nearly 43,000 Jobs Across State.
- Plant's Employment Accounts for 4.8% of All Manufacturing Jobs in SC.
- One of the Highest Employment Multipliers in South Carolina.
Spartanburg, SC - March 21. 2023 ... BMW Manufacturing, the largest BMW Group plant in the world, remains a high-performance economic engine for South Carolina through the company’s continued investment and job creation, according to a new study conducted by the Darla Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina. The annual economic impact of the Spartanburg plant totals approximately $26.7 billion, the report says, which reflects all goods and services produced in the state both directly and indirectly.
The study also shows that Plant Spartanburg supports, both directly and indirectly, 42,935 jobs across the state along with $3.1 billion in wages and salaries. The plant’s direct employment base also accounts for 4.8 percent of all manufacturing jobs across South Carolina.
“BMW has had a tremendous economic impact on the state,” said Dr. Joseph Von Nessen, research economist at the Darla Moore School of Business. “Their arrival in 1992 transformed the Upstate and South Carolina while creating an export-oriented automotive manufacturing cluster that has become one of the state’s fastest-growing industry sectors.”
The study, which was commissioned by BMW Manufacturing, said Plant Spartanburg’s statewide employment footprint has significantly expanded in recent years. Since 2017, the total number of jobs created, either directly or indirectly, increased by an average of 4.3 percent per year. That is more than three times the state’s average (1.3 percent) over the same period.
From 2011 – 2021, South Carolina’s automotive manufacturing sector soared more than 167 percent, the study found, which is faster than any southeastern state. This extraordinarily high growth has helped drive the state’s overall manufacturing growth (+17.2%) and has enabled South Carolina to consistently outpace the national rate of economic growth (+6.3%) during the past decade. In addition, during this time, the plant produced nearly four million BMWs, and the number of jobs onsite expanded from about 6,500 to more than 11,000.
“Since coming to South Carolina thirty years ago, BMW has created thousands of sustainable jobs, invested in our people through training, and contributed to educational, cultural, and civic programs across the state,” said Dr. Robert Engelhorn, president and CEO of BMW Manufacturing. “Our success is due to the dedication of our associates, the support of our supplier network, and the collaboration and cooperation with state and local officials. Now we are moving forward as we begin the transformation of our plant towards battery-electric vehicles.”
Last October, the BMW Group announced its electromobility plan for the United States. The $1.7 billion investment includes $1 billion to prepare the plant for the production of fully electric vehicles and $700 million to build a high-voltage battery assembly facility in Woodruff, SC. By 2030, the BMW Group will build at least six fully electric models in the United States. Due to the timing of this announcement, these investment dollars are not included in the study.
“BMW’s impact on South Carolina is far reaching. The company’s foresight in recognizing the possibilities of manufacturing automobiles here has contributed to our success as an automotive powerhouse,” said Secretary of Commerce Harry M. Lightsey III. “I congratulate BMW on its sustained growth through Plant Spartanburg, and I look forward to seeing how BMW and South Carolina continue to impact the future of the automotive industry.”
BMW Has High Employment Multiplier of 3.5.
According to the study, nearly half of Plant Spartanburg’s annual economic impact comes from the operations of its in-state supplier base. BMW regularly uses more than 500 South Carolina suppliers, 90 percent of which are in the Upstate.
Dr. Von Nessen said such a large in-state supplier base means BMW has a uniquely high employment multiplier of 3.5. This means that for every 10 jobs created at Plant Spartanburg, another 25 are created elsewhere in the state, for a total of 35 jobs.
“This implies that secondary job creation from the plant’s business operations scale up local employment in ways that few other businesses are able to do,” said Dr. Von Nessen. “The combination of Plant Spartanburg’s high total volume of economic activity and its high employment multiplier of 3.5 make it a uniquely strong contributor to the state’s economy. BMW’s commitment to South Carolina will help ensure that the state continues to outpace the United States in economic growth throughout the 2020s as it has in the previous decade.”
To read the full study, visit www.bmwusfactory.com.
Since 1992, the BMW Group has invested nearly $12.4 billion in its South Carolina operations. BMW Manufacturing is the largest BMW Group plant in the world, producing more than 1,500 vehicles each day. The plant is an important part of BMW’s global production network and plays a critical role in meeting the high demand for BMW Sports Activity Vehicles and Coupes in the U.S. and around the world. Nearly 60 percent of its vehicles are shipped to about 120 global markets, making BMW the largest automotive exporter by value in the United States for nine consecutive years. In 2022, more than 60 percent of BMWs sold in the U.S. came from Plant Spartanburg. The model portfolio includes six top-selling BMW X models, five Motorsport X models, and three plug-in hybrid electric vehicle X models. The factory has an annual production capacity of up to 450,000 vehicles and employs more than 11,000 people.
BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC
BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC is a subsidiary of BMW AG in Munich, Germany, and is the global producer of the BMW X3, X3 M, X5, X5 M and X7 Sports Activity Vehicles; the BMW X4, X4 M, X6 and X6 M Sports Activity Coupes; and the all-new BMW XM. In addition to the South Carolina manufacturing facility, BMW Group North American subsidiaries include sales, marketing, and financial services operations in the United States, Canada and throughout Latin America; a manufacturing plant in San Luis Potosi, Mexico; and a design firm and technology office in California. For more information on BMW Manufacturing, visit www.bmwusfactory.com.
BMW Group in the United States.
BMW of North America, LLC was established 50 years ago to support the sales, marketing and distribution of BMW automobiles in the U.S. BMW Motorrad was brought into the fold in 1980. In 1993 BMW Group Financial Services NA, LLC was founded, and one year later BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC began assembling vehicles in South Carolina. In 2002 and 2003, BMW Group established MINI USA, and Rolls-Royce Motor Cars NA, LLC relaunching two iconic brands and rounding out its product portfolio.
Today, the BMW Group has a nationwide corporate footprint in the U.S. which consists of nearly 30 locations in 12 different states. Beyond the National Sales Company and Financial Services headquarters in Woodcliff Lake, NJ, its manufacturing plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina, and numerous other operational facilities, BMW Group in the U.S. also includes Designworks, a strategic design consultancy in Santa Monica, CA, BMW Group Technology Office USA, a technology research and development center in Silicon Valley, and BMW i Ventures, a venture capital fund, also in Silicon Valley.
BMW Group Plant Spartanburg is the largest single BMW production facility in the world, and the global center of competence for BMW Sports Activity Vehicles including the X3, X4, X5, X6, X7, and XM. The plant assembles more than 1,500 vehicles each day, and up to 450,000 annually. Since 1994, Plant Spartanburg has assembled nearly 7 million BMW vehicles in the U.S.
The BMW Group sales organization in the U.S. is represented through a network of 350 BMW retailers, 144 BMW motorcycle retailers, 105 MINI passenger car dealers, and 38 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers. The company’s activities provide and support over 120,000 jobs across the U.S. and contribute more than 43.3 billion to the U.S. economy annually.
Journalist note: Information about BMW Group and its products in the USA is available to journalists on-line at www.bmwusanews.com www.miniusanews.com and www.press.bmwna.com
The study also shows that Plant Spartanburg supports, both directly and indirectly, 42,935 jobs across the state along with $3.1 billion in wages and salaries. The plant’s direct employment base also accounts for 4.8 percent of all manufacturing jobs across South Carolina.
“BMW has had a tremendous economic impact on the state,” said Dr. Joseph Von Nessen, research economist at the Darla Moore School of Business. “Their arrival in 1992 transformed the Upstate and South Carolina while creating an export-oriented automotive manufacturing cluster that has become one of the state’s fastest-growing industry sectors.”
The study, which was commissioned by BMW Manufacturing, said Plant Spartanburg’s statewide employment footprint has significantly expanded in recent years. Since 2017, the total number of jobs created, either directly or indirectly, increased by an average of 4.3 percent per year. That is more than three times the state’s average (1.3 percent) over the same period.
From 2011 – 2021, South Carolina’s automotive manufacturing sector soared more than 167 percent, the study found, which is faster than any southeastern state. This extraordinarily high growth has helped drive the state’s overall manufacturing growth (+17.2%) and has enabled South Carolina to consistently outpace the national rate of economic growth (+6.3%) during the past decade. In addition, during this time, the plant produced nearly four million BMWs, and the number of jobs onsite expanded from about 6,500 to more than 11,000.
“Since coming to South Carolina thirty years ago, BMW has created thousands of sustainable jobs, invested in our people through training, and contributed to educational, cultural, and civic programs across the state,” said Dr. Robert Engelhorn, president and CEO of BMW Manufacturing. “Our success is due to the dedication of our associates, the support of our supplier network, and the collaboration and cooperation with state and local officials. Now we are moving forward as we begin the transformation of our plant towards battery-electric vehicles.”
Last October, the BMW Group announced its electromobility plan for the United States. The $1.7 billion investment includes $1 billion to prepare the plant for the production of fully electric vehicles and $700 million to build a high-voltage battery assembly facility in Woodruff, SC. By 2030, the BMW Group will build at least six fully electric models in the United States. Due to the timing of this announcement, these investment dollars are not included in the study.
“BMW’s impact on South Carolina is far reaching. The company’s foresight in recognizing the possibilities of manufacturing automobiles here has contributed to our success as an automotive powerhouse,” said Secretary of Commerce Harry M. Lightsey III. “I congratulate BMW on its sustained growth through Plant Spartanburg, and I look forward to seeing how BMW and South Carolina continue to impact the future of the automotive industry.”
BMW Has High Employment Multiplier of 3.5.
According to the study, nearly half of Plant Spartanburg’s annual economic impact comes from the operations of its in-state supplier base. BMW regularly uses more than 500 South Carolina suppliers, 90 percent of which are in the Upstate.
Dr. Von Nessen said such a large in-state supplier base means BMW has a uniquely high employment multiplier of 3.5. This means that for every 10 jobs created at Plant Spartanburg, another 25 are created elsewhere in the state, for a total of 35 jobs.
“This implies that secondary job creation from the plant’s business operations scale up local employment in ways that few other businesses are able to do,” said Dr. Von Nessen. “The combination of Plant Spartanburg’s high total volume of economic activity and its high employment multiplier of 3.5 make it a uniquely strong contributor to the state’s economy. BMW’s commitment to South Carolina will help ensure that the state continues to outpace the United States in economic growth throughout the 2020s as it has in the previous decade.”
To read the full study, visit www.bmwusfactory.com.
Since 1992, the BMW Group has invested nearly $12.4 billion in its South Carolina operations. BMW Manufacturing is the largest BMW Group plant in the world, producing more than 1,500 vehicles each day. The plant is an important part of BMW’s global production network and plays a critical role in meeting the high demand for BMW Sports Activity Vehicles and Coupes in the U.S. and around the world. Nearly 60 percent of its vehicles are shipped to about 120 global markets, making BMW the largest automotive exporter by value in the United States for nine consecutive years. In 2022, more than 60 percent of BMWs sold in the U.S. came from Plant Spartanburg. The model portfolio includes six top-selling BMW X models, five Motorsport X models, and three plug-in hybrid electric vehicle X models. The factory has an annual production capacity of up to 450,000 vehicles and employs more than 11,000 people.
BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC
BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC is a subsidiary of BMW AG in Munich, Germany, and is the global producer of the BMW X3, X3 M, X5, X5 M and X7 Sports Activity Vehicles; the BMW X4, X4 M, X6 and X6 M Sports Activity Coupes; and the all-new BMW XM. In addition to the South Carolina manufacturing facility, BMW Group North American subsidiaries include sales, marketing, and financial services operations in the United States, Canada and throughout Latin America; a manufacturing plant in San Luis Potosi, Mexico; and a design firm and technology office in California. For more information on BMW Manufacturing, visit www.bmwusfactory.com.
BMW Group in the United States.
BMW of North America, LLC was established 50 years ago to support the sales, marketing and distribution of BMW automobiles in the U.S. BMW Motorrad was brought into the fold in 1980. In 1993 BMW Group Financial Services NA, LLC was founded, and one year later BMW Manufacturing Co., LLC began assembling vehicles in South Carolina. In 2002 and 2003, BMW Group established MINI USA, and Rolls-Royce Motor Cars NA, LLC relaunching two iconic brands and rounding out its product portfolio.
Today, the BMW Group has a nationwide corporate footprint in the U.S. which consists of nearly 30 locations in 12 different states. Beyond the National Sales Company and Financial Services headquarters in Woodcliff Lake, NJ, its manufacturing plant in Spartanburg, South Carolina, and numerous other operational facilities, BMW Group in the U.S. also includes Designworks, a strategic design consultancy in Santa Monica, CA, BMW Group Technology Office USA, a technology research and development center in Silicon Valley, and BMW i Ventures, a venture capital fund, also in Silicon Valley.
BMW Group Plant Spartanburg is the largest single BMW production facility in the world, and the global center of competence for BMW Sports Activity Vehicles including the X3, X4, X5, X6, X7, and XM. The plant assembles more than 1,500 vehicles each day, and up to 450,000 annually. Since 1994, Plant Spartanburg has assembled nearly 7 million BMW vehicles in the U.S.
The BMW Group sales organization in the U.S. is represented through a network of 350 BMW retailers, 144 BMW motorcycle retailers, 105 MINI passenger car dealers, and 38 Rolls-Royce Motor Car dealers. The company’s activities provide and support over 120,000 jobs across the U.S. and contribute more than 43.3 billion to the U.S. economy annually.
Journalist note: Information about BMW Group and its products in the USA is available to journalists on-line at www.bmwusanews.com www.miniusanews.com and www.press.bmwna.com