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Effective research and the use of the latest production techniques form the basis of the competitive ability of a corporation on the international market. The complexity of modern leading technology, and the way in which it implemented in the automobile industry, requires multidisciplinary teamwork, both from within the organisation and from outside it.
Therefore the BMW Group maintains relations to internationally recognised scientific institutions, such as the Frauenhofer-Institute and Max-Planck-Institute company, as well as to colleges and universities worldwide. This is of particular value for non-commercial, basic research as research partnerships offer the chance to utilise company resources for more specific purposes. This also makes technical and economic risk- sharing possible. The BMW Group integrates competent contractors and systems developers in the research projects, using the Virtual Innovation Agency (VIA). The agency offers a direct online communication platform for all interested parties.
The automobile manufacturers also co-operate on important questions of research.
The research pool "Automobiltechnik e.V." promotes scientific automobile research, together with selected research institutes and colleges of higher education. The European Council for Automotive R&D (EUCAR) is responsible for Europe.
Mobility, traffic and environment are important topics, not only from an economic and scientific point of view, but also from a political angle. The three project areas receive government backing. and the European Commission Research Programme and the Ministry for Education and Research supports projects dealing with the key question of mobility. In addition, the BMW Group is actively involved with several organisations and associations, and thus seeks to maintain its presence within the respective economic interest groups.
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