In its efforts to increase sustainability, the BMW Group is utilizing innovative technology and taking advantage of new choices to preserve resources and minimize emissions from painting bodywork.
The BMW Group is the world’s first automaker to employ matte paints generated from biomass instead of crude oil in its European operations. Furthermore, BMW Group plants in Leipzig and Rosslyn (South Africa) use sustainably manufactured corrosion protection. The paints are made from renewable raw materials such as bio-waste or waste from sewage treatment plants. Between now and 2030, the CO2 savings assessed in a TÜV-certified process amount to more than 15,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions.
“By reducing our use of fossil raw materials, we can conserve natural resources and lower CO2 emissions at the same time. To achieve this, we are increasingly relying on sustainability innovations in our supplier network,” says Joachim Post, member of the Board of Management of BMW AG responsible for Purchasing and Supplier Network. “Innovative paints based on renewable raw materials are an important step in this direction.”
Organic waste replaces fossil fuels.
Starting in the early phases of paint manufacture, BASF’s revolutionary production process allows it to substitute petroleum-based precursors such as naphtha with renewable raw ingredients derived from organic waste. This not only minimizes the consumption of fossil resources, but it also avoids the CO2 emissions associated with crude oil production, transportation, and processing.
The corrosion protection and matte paints used at BMW Group plants in Leipzig and Rosslyn are chemically comparable to prior paints and have all of the same properties as regularly made body coatings. BASF uses an externally validated mass balancing approach because bio-based and conventional coatings are manufactured on the same line.
The amount of paint acquired by the BMW Group is calculated to be exactly equal to the amount of bio-naphtha and bio-methane needed for 100% petroleum-free manufacture. The environmentally friendly manufacturing process cuts CO2 emissions from paint production by more than 40%. The two BMW Group facilities in Leipzig and Rosslyn produce approximately 250,000 automobiles per year on average.
