The BMW Group has celebrated the 50th anniversary of its iconic corporate headquarters in Munich, Germany.

The BMW Group Headquarters, with its suspended construction, is one of the most innovative engineering buildings of the post-war period – because the four cylinders are suspended from a cruciform steel beam construction on the roof.

The architectural marvel was created in Munich in just 26 months between 1970-1972. Over 3.5 million working hours were devoted to the construction site by 500 builders and 200 architects, engineers, and draftsmen. Similarly, over 3,000 façade elements were manufactured for the first time in Europe using the Japanese cast aluminium process. At the time, employees from twelve nations built the BMW landmark.

The building did not grow from the bottom up, as was generally the case, but rather the upper floors were first manufactured time-effectively on the ground, then moved upwards hydraulically on the massive “tower shaft” made of reinforced concrete and completed in several segments. In August 1972, opposite the renowned Olympic site designed by Behnisch & Partner with Frei Otto, the BMW Group Headquarters was completed.

Designed by Austrian architect Professor Karl Schwanzer, the administrative building has since become a timeless icon with global appeal for Munich and the company. With its impressive façade, visionary construction and spatial concept, the “suspended tower” uniquely combines visual conciseness with a constructive and functional logic.

Celebrated in the media as the “most impressive and coolest corporate headquarters in the world”, today the BMW Group Headquarters points the way to a new era of electrification, digitalization, and circularity.