BMW partners Science Centre Singapore in the new Science Time Capsule exhibition.

BMW translates its sustainability efforts into a dedicated exhibit.

Singapore – BMW Asia today announced its sponsorship of the Science Time Capsule Exhibition at the Science Centre Singapore from 27 November 2012 to 31 January 2013. The two-month exhibition serves to educate Singaporeans on how science has progressively transformed the world to what we know today.

Titled “BMW: Driven by Sustainability”, the exhibit on display by BMW comes in the shape of a miniature city symbolizing how the world witnesses the evolution of BMW cars over the decades.

Spanning across four key eras (stated as below), each era is represented by varying miniature BMW cars of that time and age, and comes with an explanation on what BMW and its technology achieved during that period in terms of sustainability contribution. This comes in part with the fact that the BMW Group has recently been recognized for its sustainability efforts after being named the world’s most sustainable company for eight consecutive years by the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes.

• Past: The beginning of Sustainability
• Present: Optimisation of fleet & ActiveHybrid cars
• Near Future: Electric cars
• Future & Beyond: Hydrogen-powered cars.

“BMW is truly honoured to be partnering the Science Centre Singapore for such a meaningful exhibition. Science and technology has contributed significantly to human civilization over the years, with cars definitely being one of them,” said Mr Neil Fiorentinos, Managing Director of BMW Group Asia. “At BMW, we are also constantly coming up with the latest in technology and innovations to better benefit our customers and the environment. Bearing in mind our Efficient Dynamics philosophy, both our cars and technology are constantly geared towards achieving greater power without compromising on fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions. Through the Time Capsule exhibition, we hope to showcase BMW’s efforts throughout the years in a succinct and educative manner.”

“Science Centre Singapore will be unveiling the Science Time Capsule for the 3^rd time in history at a time when we celebrate our 35^th Anniversary. The capsule is a symbol of times past and of a history that has shaped our future. With each unveiling, we add snapshots of the present to the growing collection within. We are pleased to partner with BMW Asia to showcase its progressive and sustainable technology. The BMW: Driven by Sustainability exhibit will present to our visitors an unprecedented look at the exciting science & technology evolution behind BMW’s cars, past, present and future,” said A/Prof Lim Tit Meng, Chief Executive, Science Centre Singapore.

Added A/Prof Lim: “This partnership is part of a larger collaboration between the Centre and BMW Asia. We hope to work closely together in the next few years to shore up interest for engineering science through BMW’s exciting technology, with initiatives in the near future that might include educational programmes and exhibits.”

Past: The beginning of Sustainability

Historically, sustainability has always been an integral part of the BMW Group’s corporate strategy. In fact, the company even went to the extent of appointing an environmental officer back in 1973 – the automotive industry’s first. Since then, the company has systematically refined its concept of sustainability. Today, the Sustainability Board, comprising all members of the Board of Management, defines the strategic alignment through binding internal targets, and the Executive Sustainability Committee paves the way for implementation in the relevant divisions.

Sustainability is firmly embedded in the BMW Group’s culture and corporate strategy and the Group owes this remarkable achievement chiefly to its Efficient Dynamics philosophy of achieving greater power without compromising on fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions. This same philosophy also sets the blueprint to which how the BMW Group builds its cars and technology.

Present: Optimisation of fleet & ActiveHybrid cars

The first stage of Efficient Dynamics is to optimize the present BMW vehicles in various forms such as; BMW TwinPower Turbo technology, Eight-speed automatic transmission, Automatic Start/Stop function, Active aerodynamics and intelligent lightweight technology and Brake Energy Regeneration.

Apart from this, the BMW Group has also introduced the BMW ActiveHybrid cars. Developed with an intelligent hybrid drive technology, the BMW ActiveHybrid cars are powered by both a six-cylinder in-line petrol engine as well as an electric motor. This full-hybrid construction has enabled purely electric and therefore local emission-free driving in urban conditions or when coasting.

Near Future: Electric cars

While BMW EfficientDynamics technology already exists in present BMW vehicles in various forms, the second major stage of BMW’s mobility really lies in its electric vehicles.

The visions of future mobility of the BMW Group have been demonstrated in the shape of the BMW i3 Concept and BMW i8 Concept. These concept vehicles provide a glimpse of the first electrically powered production cars from the new BMW i sub-brand, due to be launched as the BMW i3 in 2013 and the BMW i8 in 2014.

The BMW i3 is slated to be the first volume-produced car featuring bodywork largely made of carbon, which is revolutionary in automotive design. The application of this new Carbon Fibre Reinforced Plastic (CFRP) technology enables weight reduction, compared to a conventional electric car, of between 250 and 350 kg. As such, the BMW i3 is able to do 0-100km/h in less than eight seconds, while a high-speed charger achieves an 80% battery charge in just an hour.

The BMW i8 is a new generation plug-in hybrid sports car that goes from 0-100km/h in less than five seconds and boasts fuel consumption of less than three litres per 100km. For more dynamic driving, the sports car has an electronically governed top speed of 250km/h and space for up to four occupants.

Future & Beyond: Hydrogen-powered cars

As the need for greater sustainability progresses, there is a need to look into even cleaner sources of fuel. In principle, hydrogen is available in unlimited quantities. When hydrogen is produced from water with the help of renewable energy, this creates a perpetual cycle where the combustion of hydrogen once again produces water. This makes hydrogen the ultimate fuel of the future, and with it, hydrogen-powered cars will be the norm rather than the exception. BMW recognized this early on and has already engaged in a concerted effort to speed the arrival of the hydrogen future in the form of the BMW Hydrogen 7.

The BMW Hydrogen 7 is the first volume-produced car powered by the fuel of the future: hydrogen. This is the world’s first hydrogen-powered car for everyday use. It proves that driving pleasure, sustainability and environmental protection can be combined.

Source: BMW Asia