Berger-Münch Engineering, the Company
Four chapters on the company: profile, history, philosophy & ethics, and reference projects.
Who Are We at BMGE?
System engineering instead of isolated trades – systems that work as a whole.
Berger-Münch Engineering, Lda. (BMGE) is a family-run engineering company based in Germany and Portugal (Setúbal). We combine 30 years of experience in German engineering craftsmanship with state-of-the-art international building, energy, automation and software technology – from the first analysis and planning through installation to long-term maintenance.
System Engineering Instead of Isolated Trades
Complex buildings and technical products are not created by simply adding up individual trades. They only work reliably when automation, multimedia, energy and security systems, among others, are planned as one integrated system based on the user's requirements. This is precisely where BMGE comes in.
Our roots lie in more than three decades of industrial and development experience in automation and control engineering, building automation, electronics, software, system engineering, R&D organisation and international multi-project management, with projects in 20 countries. Today, this experience is applied to high-end building, energy and real estate projects as well as to technical product development.
What Unites BMGE Today
High-End Building Engineering
Evaluation, planning, construction coordination and technical integration for new builds and existing properties.
Building Technologies & Smart Home
Lighting, climate, shading, windows/doors, access, sensors, multimedia, moving building elements and central control.
AI, Energy & Ecology
Adaptive control that learns from user profiles, energy and water optimisation, monitoring and Energy+ concepts.
Assessment, Maintenance & R&D
Technical due diligence, FMEA, maintenance, local service teams and development of our own control, software and AI modules.
What Sets Us Apart
System Engineering Before Individual Optimisation
Requirements, interfaces, responsibilities and acceptance criteria are clarified first, across all trade contractors involved in construction.
Industrial Experience Applied to Buildings
Methods from high-end product development and R&D at major corporations are applied to real estate and building technology to secure 100% quality.
Technology + Economics + Contract
Decisions are evaluated not only technically, but also economically, contractually and operationally.
Lifecycle Instead of Handover
Maintainability, documentation, spare-parts strategy, FMEA and future expandability are part of the planning process, securing lasting, trouble-free enjoyment for the client.
Personal Accountability
BMGE remains accountable at the interface between planning, execution, verification and operation.
Our Method
Analysing the client's personal wishes, dreams and interests – while also showing possibilities that may seem an "unimaginable dream" to them.
Engineering a building system solution based precisely on what fits the client personally.
Combining trades, sensors, data, energy and user interaction into an overall architecture while safeguarding quality through FMEA.
Coordinating suppliers and trades; leading installation, programming and commissioning technically.
Testing functions, documenting deviations and checking edge cases.
Monitoring, maintenance, automation/energy/water optimisation and ongoing technical development throughout the lifecycle.
Quality: Classically Conceived, Modernly Implemented
A technical solution must be plannable, properly executed, tested and maintainable. Good building systems do not replace clean wiring; a high-quality device does not replace correct installation; and an attractive interface does not replace a robust system architecture. Modern technology is deployed wherever it delivers measurable benefit.
History
From AI and control engineering through automotive R&D to integrated high-end engineering.
BMGE is a young Portuguese company with a long technical history. Its professional and personal continuity reaches back to the early 1990s and to Berger-Münch Project Management AG (BMPM), founded in 1996. BMGE is not the corporate legal successor of BMPM, but has taken over its projects since 2023, along with its engineering DNA, experience and methodology.
The Common Thread
From research into adaptive control methods and early AI techniques, through global R&D processes at Siemens Automotive, the management buy-out that created BMPM, international industrial, energy and building-technology projects, to today's high-end building technology in Portugal, one principle runs throughout: technical systems are understood through their interfaces, their data and their lifecycle.
Milestones
Technical University of Munich (TUM)
Research in AI (self-optimising open- and closed-loop control), adaptive control engineering and 2D spatial recognition for autonomous mobile robots – at one of the world's top 25 universities and the internationally recognised top elite university in the EU.
Siemens Automotive / Krones
Software for R&D reporting and capacity planning, as well as international PLC analysis in Brazil.
Siemens Automotive
Central R&D project organisation, process optimisation and global capacity planning for around 1,800 employees across Germany, the USA and France, spanning all technical projects.
Management Buy-Out
Founding of Berger-Münch Project Management AG (BMPM); project management, R&D, system engineering, software/controlling and multi-project management, following the spin-off of the staff unit from Siemens Automotive AG.
Smart Building Development
Automated shading, EIB/KNX, proprietary server/drivers, DALI/DMX and multi-room multimedia across numerous private homes and businesses.
Petrom City, Bucharest
Technical refurbishment and long-term operational/energy optimisation of a roughly 100,000 m² building complex, using proprietary hardware and software for automation, maintenance and continuous improvement, including our central AI server. Client-confirmed savings of €900,000 per year in energy costs.
JORIS / Osterweddingen
Development of a greenhouse/energy complex worth around €15 million, including technical synergies, funding, financing and equity structuring, with building and energy automation delivering savings of 50% on energy costs.
High-End Mechanics + Building Automation
PLC/hydraulic integration for retractable roofs and lift platforms, plus lighting, multimedia and security in a luxury apartment.
Founding of Berger-Münch Engineering, Lda.
Established in Portugal as an operating platform for high-end building engineering, AI/R&D, local implementation and maintenance.
Atlantic Villas L84, Tróia
Integrated high-end R&D/showcase project featuring Energy+, geothermal/solar/PV, security, a moveable pool floor and comprehensive building automation, serving as a demonstration house for interested developers and architects in the Comporta, Cascais and Tróia region.
From Individual Modules to System Architecture
In the early years, the focus was on individual automation and software functions. As projects grew, these evolved into complete system architectures: mechanics, electronics, software, buildings, energy, users, costs, contracts and operations are today managed as one interconnected engineering system.
What Lives On From BMPM's Experience Within BMGE
Philosophy and Ethics
Technology is only good when it is reliable, comprehensible and accountable.
BMGE combines modern technology with traditional German engineering craftsmanship: first analyse carefully, then specify, plan, execute, measure and verify. Innovation is welcome – but not as an end in itself, only when it benefits the client; we do, however, present the client with every technical possibility.
Our Four Principles
Honesty
Risks, limitations, mistakes and conflicting objectives are named openly. Technical credibility matters more than a comfortable sales message. A word and a handshake carry as much weight as a notarised contract.
Responsibility
Whoever plans and decides must understand the consequences. Responsibility does not end with a drawing or a handover; when problems arise, it includes contributing to the solution and owning up to one's own mistakes.
Fairness
Clients, employees, partners and suppliers are judged on performance, conduct and reliability – not on title, marketing or status; anyone who makes mistakes or promises must stand accountable for them.
Willingness to Learn
New technology is tested and adopted when it delivers measurable benefit. Proven methods remain in place as long as they work reliably.
Proven Engineering Principles Come First
Exclusive Doesn't Mean Complicated to Us
A high-end system is not valuable because it has as many functions as possible. It is valuable when the right functions work together: safely, efficiently, comprehensibly, maintainably and adapted to the user's personality. Technical exclusivity comes from system quality, not unnecessary complexity.
Dealing With People and Responsibility
Technical projects are carried out by people. That is why clear responsibilities, open communication, training and respectful conduct are part of engineering quality. Knowledge is meant to be built and shared within the team; specialists are trained hands-on before working independently at a client site. No external firm or technician is engaged whose quality, experience and training does not convince us.
Our Standard
World-class standards are not a marketing slogan for BMGE, but a benchmark we have upheld internationally at many world market leaders. Where a proven standard is sufficient, it is used. Where it is not, we improve, develop or integrate – applying the same standard of safety, traceability and cost-effectiveness.
Reference Projects
Selected projects that reflect the development of system engineering and building technologies.
The track record of BMGE and its professional history spans global automotive R&D, complex building and energy projects, and today's high-end real estate in Portugal. What matters less is the industry than the recurring task: connecting many technical and organisational interfaces into a robust overall system.
Selected Key References and Experience
Siemens Automotive · 1996–2013
Central R&D Project Organisation
Building and optimising project management processes, tools and reporting structures, and global capacity planning for around 1,800 employees in Germany, the USA and France, using in-house systems for cross-company technical R&D projects with a development cost volume of more than €10 billion.
Petrom City / OMV Petrom · 2012–2023
Building Automation, System Architecture & Energy
Technical refurbishment and long-term optimisation of an existing roughly 100,000 m² building complex, using proprietary controllers, servers, software, sensors and actuators for energy and façade control.
JORIS / Osterweddingen · 2015–2018
Greenhouse, Energy, Funding & Financing
Project development and equity participation in a greenhouse/energy complex worth around €15 million: synergy concepts, securing around €1.4 million in non-repayable grants and €2 million in government-backed credit, financing, and development of the synergy energy system using a factory's cooling demand, delivering savings of around €1.5 million in energy costs per year.
High-End Penthouse · 2013
Special Mechanics & Building Automation
Integration of PLC-controlled hydraulic roofs (raising and opening a roof, with the living space lifted above the rooftops of the old town) via lift platforms, together with lighting, multimedia, security and control architecture.
Atlantic Villas B1 · Tróia
Existing Property, Assessment & Maintenance
Building technology, maintenance, modernisation, technical assessment and long-term conversion of a high-value residential property to increase its value.
Atlantic Villas L84 · Tróia · 2024–present
High-End R&D/Showcase Platform
Energy+, geothermal/solar/PV, comprehensive building automation, a moveable pool floor and concealed security functions – designed as a demonstration house to showcase "unbelievable" building automation.
Setúbal · Mixed-Use Existing Building
Refurbishment & System Planning
Complex refurbishment and extension planning for a multi-storey existing property combining residential and commercial use.
BMGE Office & Workshop · Setúbal
Development, Prefabrication & Service
Our own technical base for development, testing, prefabrication, service and hands-on training of local teams, equipped with machinery for metalwork, woodwork and an electronics lab.
Why Our Own Projects Matter
In our own real estate projects, concepts can not only be planned but also practically verified through construction, commissioning, operation and maintenance. This creates a real-world laboratory: system architectures are tested under real conditions, failure patterns become visible, and solutions can be improved before being deployed for third parties.