Bucolic Spartanburg, SC, will get a new boost when BMW drops $900 million on the plant to expand its capacity to 350,000 units per year. Spartanburg will become one of the world’s largest BMW plants. The BMW Group already invested USD 750 million in the expansion of the plant for production of the new BMW X3 between 2008 and 2010. Now, the plant is being expanded again to make room for the X4.
Last year, the BMW plant in Spartanburg produced 276,065 vehicles for more than 130 markets around the world, an increase of 73 percent over the previous year.
Much to the delight of SC governor Nikki Haley, BMW’s total investment in South Carolina will grow to approximately $6 billion.
Little known factoid: More than 70 percent of the vehicles produced in Spartanburg (192,813) were exported, making the BMW Group the largest automotive exporter to the non-NAFTA countries.
Your headline says $600M, and your article says $900M. Which is it?
That 9 missed a screw ….
Also, SC governor, not NC
I don’t understand why all the car magazines and websites say that the BMW plant is in Spartanburg. It isn’t. It’s actually in Greer, SC. I live about 5 minutes away from it. Spartanburg is about 15 miles east of the plant.
BMW themselves refer to it that way. Having never been there, I assume Spartanburg is the nearest large town/city?
Spartanburg just sounds cooler than Greer to those of us who’ve never been there. Mental images of chiseled warriors building BMWs by hand, shunning the use of mechanical aids, a single man pulling a vehicle down the line as it’s assembled…
It’s because it’s in the county of Spartanburg. I don’t know if all plants use this scheme but apparently BMW does and the company I work for, which coincidentally is a direct supplier for the Spartanburg plant also does this throughout North America.
“More than 70 percent of the vehicles produced in Spartanburg (192,813) were exported, making the BMW Group the largest automotive exporter to the non-NAFTA countries.”
Anyone know a handy source for statistics like that – what US built models are exported to which countries?
That BMW plant is a huge economic engine; there are dozens of auto related manufacturers with new plants located near Spartanburg that supply BMW as well as other OEMs.
Not a UAW member to be seen…
They are going to build an X4? Say it isn’t so…
Wish it was in NC! I’d sure try to get a job there.
Where the hell do you get off calling Spartanburg “Bucolic” (of or pertaining to shepherds; pastoral)? The Census Bureau defines an area urban as “core census block groups or blocks that have a population density of at least 1,000 people per square mile;” Spartanburg’s is 2,066.3 as of the 2000 census (last data I can find).
Maybe he’s been there.
Quite obviously, he has not, not have you. Spartanburg has:
A Marriott convention center:
http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/spamc-spartanburg-marriott-at-renaissance-park/
A cultural center:
http://www.chapmanculturalcenter.org/index.php
Denny’s corporate headquaters:
http://www.hoerrschaudt.com/commercial/dennys.php
A 952,550 sq ft. mall:
http://www.westgate-mall.com/shop/westgate.nsf/index
It was also named the 8th most dangerous city in the US:
http://www2.wspa.com/news/2011/dec/28/spartanburg-ranked-8th-most-dangerous-city-us-ar-2946929/
None of these are the mark of a farm town.
Spartanburg County as a whole has some large rural areas, but he didn’t say County and it’s also well over 800 sq. miles compared to around 530 sq miles for Mecklenburg (Charlotte) or Fulton (Atlanta) counties.
It’s not New York or even Tulsa but it’s not Mayberry either. It’s part suburb of Greenville and also the core of its own MSA. It’s definitely not rural.
He was writing to his preconceived notions and not any facts. Any website with the word truth in it should contain that and not just what someone dreamed up. Shame on him for doing that and shame on you for suggesting he was right without even beginning to offer any evidence to the contrary.