Following the announcement of the temporary end to the strikes at its supplier, ZF Brandenburg, the BMW Group is assuming that it can restart production of the BMW 3 Series on Monday, June 30, 2003. The Chairman of the Management Board of BMW AG, Dr. Helmut Panke, welcomed the decision of the union, IG Metall, to return to a more constructive route in the current tariff dispute. As Dr. Helmut Panke stated, "The efforts made yesterday by everyone involved to display a reasonable front have paid off. Today's decision by IG Metall is a first, important sign of a sense of responsibility for economic development and jobs in the New Federal States."
After gearbox production had stopped at ZF in Brandenburg on June 17, 2003, the BMW Group had to interrupt production of about 1,800 BMW 3 Series vehicles per day because of a lack of gearboxes. This week, the BMW Group's car factories in Munich, Regensburg and Dingolfing and its internal supplier plants in Berlin, Landshut, Wackersdorf, Hams Hall (UK) and Steyr (Austria) were also affected by the measure.
It is proposed that ZF will resume gearbox production on Thursday, June 26, 2003. When the ZF-supplied gearboxes are back in supply, the BMW Group will resume production of the BMW 3 Series after an essential preparatory phase that will require two business days to complete. The internal supplier plants will also restart manufacturing at full capacity again.
