BBS Autotechnik

BBS Autotechnik GmbH, formerly known as BBS Kraftfahrzeugtechnik AG (English: BBS Autotechnique GmbH, previously BBS Automotive Technology AG), is a high-performance automobile wheel design company headquartered in Schiltach, Germany. BBS produces wheels for motorsport, OEM, and aftermarket applications. The company is often credited as pioneering the three-piece wheel and advancing the aluminum wheel industry over many decades, and remains one of the largest producers of automobile wheels in the world. It is a part of KW Automotive since 2021.

The company employs approximately 1,200 employees worldwide (2018). BBS was traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (Symbol: BKS3) with a market capitalization of €8.15M.

BBS Kraftfahrzeugtechnik AG began in 1970 in Schiltach, Germany, by Heinrich Baumgartner and Klaus Brand as a manufacturing plant for plastic auto body parts. The initials BBS are based on the last names of the two founders and the city in which the company was founded (Baumgartner, Brand, Schiltach).

In 1972, BBS pioneered the development of a three-piece racing wheel, a revolution in motorsport design. This original wheel was called the BBS Mahle, named as such due to its partnership with Mahle for manufacturing. By 1975, BBS had developed the popular cross-spoke design and the counter pressure process. BBS entered into a technical cooperation agreement in 1990 with ASA, a Korean company that was starting wheel production. In 1993, BBS merged the gap between their three-piece forged wheel and one-piece cast wheel with the two-piece design found in the RSII, defining BBS as a pioneer in one-, two-, and three-piece wheels. BBS developed a magnesium forged wheel in 1994 for motorsports use, especially in Formula One, which was over 20% lighter than the standard cast aluminum wheels. In 1995, BBS developed the first one-piece flow-formed cast wheel, with the use of FEM analysis. The first hollow-spoke wheel was also developed by BBS, in collaboration with Porsche and Kuka, in 2000. Many of the design elements that BBS has developed and popularized over the years have gone on to be replicated in the automotive and aftermarket industry, such as stepped-lip barrels, Y-shaped spokes, colored center caps, and lug covers.

In May 1987, BBS had its initial public offering, and continues to be traded on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.

In 2007, the primary country where BBS sourced aluminum from, Guinea, experienced political unrest which caused market prices for aluminum to increase dramatically. This significantly affected the company's business and revenue, leading to bankruptcy for BBS and being taken over by the Belgian firm Punch International. In July 2015, South Korean firm Nice Corp became the majority owner. In 2020, BBS Automotive GmbH filed for insolvency, but was acquired by KW Automotive in March 2021, a multinational automotive suspension parts company.

In partnership with KW, BBS has since unveiled new partnerships and endeavors, such as BBS Unlimited, a way to customize and order countless configurations of wheels, rather than relying on only model-specific offerings. BBS unveiled a new wheel technology named Fortega in January 2023 at the Tokyo Auto Salon. The Fortega line of wheels utilizes a new proprietary aluminum alloy which was developed over a period of 10 years, which is stronger and more rigid with 10% lighter weight than conventional aluminum alloys, especially for high-weight electric vehicles.

The multi-stage forging process used by BBS wheels is complex in that it uses multiple stages of compression at 8,000 to 10,000 tons of pressure to densify the wheel blank, while being heated to over 400 °C (750 °F) between steps. This process achieves an ideal material structure with high density and strength, which allows for lightweight and thin milling.