BMW Group Korea announced plans to expand its regional distribution center (RDC) in Anseong. (Image courtesy of BMW Group Korea)
SEOUL, Nov. 12 (Korea Bizwire) – BMW Group Korea announced plans to expand its regional distribution center (RDC) in Anseong, investing an additional 65 billion won over the next three years to increase the facility’s size by approximately 50%.
The announcement came during a press briefing held on November 11 at the Anseong parts center for members of the Korea Automobile Journalists Association.
The facility’s total floor area will grow from the current 57,000 square meters to 88,000 square meters by 2027, equivalent to expanding from the size of eight soccer fields to twelve.
The expansion project includes construction of a dedicated warehouse for electric vehicle batteries, equipped with advanced fire prevention systems to meet the demands of the electrification era.
BMW Group Korea, which launched in 1995 as the first foreign auto brand to establish a local subsidiary in South Korea, has steadily expanded its logistics operations over the years.
The company’s first parts center opened in Incheon in 1996 with 8,900 square meters of space, before relocating to Icheon in 2006 where it doubled in size to 16,500 square meters.
In 2017, the company invested 130 billion won to move to the current Anseong facility, which was 3.5 times larger. With this latest investment, total investment in the Anseong center will reach 195 billion won.
BMW Group Korea announced plans to expand its regional distribution center (RDC) in Anseong. (Image courtesy of BMW Group Korea)
“The Anseong RDC is not only the largest among imported car brands in Korea but also the biggest BMW Group logistics center outside Germany among our 40 global locations, including 17 in Asia,” said Jung Sangchun, executive vice president of aftersales at BMW Group Korea.
The center currently houses 60,000 different parts totaling 4.76 million items. After the expansion, inventory capacity will increase by about 60% to 97,200 different parts and 7.72 million items, covering components for BMW vehicles, MINI brand cars, and BMW Motorrad motorcycles.
BMW Group Korea explained that the expansion was part of a long-term plan conceived when construction began in 2016.
The decision to proceed with the investment despite the global economic downturn reflects BMW’s growing presence in Korea’s imported car market.
The number of BMW Group vehicles on Korean roads has doubled to 733,000 since 2017, with 40,000-50,000 new vehicles added annually.
Last year, BMW overtook Mercedes-Benz as the top-selling imported car brand in Korea for the first time in eight years.
The company’s service center network has also grown from 63 locations in 2017 to 83 currently.
The Anseong facility ships approximately 8,500 parts daily, with its annual domestic delivery distance totaling 1,936,750 kilometers – equivalent to circling the Earth 50 times.
The center offers three daily deliveries (dawn, morning, and afternoon) in the Seoul metropolitan area, which accounts for 60% of total volume, through an exclusive “dawn delivery” service. Other regions receive one delivery per day.
The center maintains a parts availability rate of 95.1%, exceeding BMW Group’s global standard of 94%. However, the facility is operating at near capacity with a 97% utilization rate after seven years of inventory growth.
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
