Photo: Figure | YouTube
BMW takes one more step toward a fully automated manufacturing process. The German carmaker signed a deal with robotics startup Figure and intends to put humanoid robots in its plant in South Carolina. That is where BMW manufactures the X models.
The deal is Figure's first since it was founded two years ago. The carmaker intends to deploy a batch of humanoid robots in its factory in South Carolina and expand to more production centers if everything goes according to plan.
There are 11,000 employees at the Spartanburg plant right now. Figure designed the robots to help in situations of workforce shortages and reduce the number of workers in unsafe jobs, thus taking the pressure off the shoulders of humans.
According to the commercial agreement that the startup signed with BMW, the robots will take over tasks that are tedious, dangerous, or difficult. They should also enable companies to increase productivity and reduce costs, since they do not have a salaries and do not ask for leave to go on holiday. However, they do require maintenance.
The founder and CEO of Figure, Brett Adcock, says that the company conceived the robots to be safe working alongside humans and considers that the deal with BMW is a validation of their work.
BMW would not be the first company to put humanoid robots along the assembly lines. Tesla launched the Optimus bot in September 2022 and presented the Optimus Gen-2 in December 2023. They are also designed to assist EV production.
Honda and Hyundai have also developed similar bots, but have not yet managed to integrate them into their production. The move should, though, happen soon. Amazon is also trialing Digit, a robot that operates in the company's warehouses in the United States.
We have yet to see what the exact task of the Figure-developed robots will be at the Spartanburg plant in South Carolina. It is BMW's only plant in the United States. The German carmaker builds the X models. The X3, X4, X5, X6, X7, and XM roll off the assembly line there. All the other models sold in the US are imported to the country.
The BMW Spartanburg plant, operating since 1994, had the highest production volume of the BMW plants worldwide as of 2019. Approximately 1,500 vehicles per day roll of the production line there. The center is the largest automotive exporter in the United States by value, with figures of $9.6 billion.
BMW and Figure have yet to establish the exact number of humanoid robots to be deployed in the carmaker's factory. But before that happens, the bots will be trained for the tasks they are to perform. As reported by Reuters, this stage might take anywhere from 12 to 24 months.
There are 11,000 employees at the Spartanburg plant right now. Figure designed the robots to help in situations of workforce shortages and reduce the number of workers in unsafe jobs, thus taking the pressure off the shoulders of humans.
According to the commercial agreement that the startup signed with BMW, the robots will take over tasks that are tedious, dangerous, or difficult. They should also enable companies to increase productivity and reduce costs, since they do not have a salaries and do not ask for leave to go on holiday. However, they do require maintenance.
The founder and CEO of Figure, Brett Adcock, says that the company conceived the robots to be safe working alongside humans and considers that the deal with BMW is a validation of their work.
BMW would not be the first company to put humanoid robots along the assembly lines. Tesla launched the Optimus bot in September 2022 and presented the Optimus Gen-2 in December 2023. They are also designed to assist EV production.
Honda and Hyundai have also developed similar bots, but have not yet managed to integrate them into their production. The move should, though, happen soon. Amazon is also trialing Digit, a robot that operates in the company's warehouses in the United States.
We have yet to see what the exact task of the Figure-developed robots will be at the Spartanburg plant in South Carolina. It is BMW's only plant in the United States. The German carmaker builds the X models. The X3, X4, X5, X6, X7, and XM roll off the assembly line there. All the other models sold in the US are imported to the country.
The BMW Spartanburg plant, operating since 1994, had the highest production volume of the BMW plants worldwide as of 2019. Approximately 1,500 vehicles per day roll of the production line there. The center is the largest automotive exporter in the United States by value, with figures of $9.6 billion.
BMW and Figure have yet to establish the exact number of humanoid robots to be deployed in the carmaker's factory. But before that happens, the bots will be trained for the tasks they are to perform. As reported by Reuters, this stage might take anywhere from 12 to 24 months.
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