As part of its future program “Agenda 4 plus One”, Schaeffler is investing 60 million euros (Rs 512 crore) to enhance its location in Buhl, Germany. This project will see the construction of a new development building and a new headquarter for the company’s automotive OEM division. At the same time, the globally active automotive and industrial supplier will boost its activities in the field of electric mobility worldwide.

Among those in attendance during the groundbreaking ceremony was Georg F. W. Schaeffler, shareholder and chairman of the supervisory board of Schaeffler. Klaus Rosenfeld, CEO of Schaeffler, explained: “With our new automotive OEM headquarters in Buhl, we are taking a further step towards becoming what we want to be: One Schaeffler Group, with one global strategy and one set of strong values. The best way to achieve this is with one common brand: The Schaeffler brand.”

Georg F. W. Schaeffler, shareholder and Chairman of the Schaeffler AG Supervisory Board, signs the city of Bühl’s “Golden Book”. (Standing, left to right): District administrator Jürgen Bäuerle, Klaus Rosenfeld, CEO of Schaeffler AG, Hubert Schnurr, Mayor of Bühl, and Matthias Zink, CEO Automotive OEM at Schaeffler AG.

New infra dedicated for the future of mobility

In his speech, Matthias Zink, CEO of Automotive OEM at Schaeffler, added: “We will be using this new building primarily to develop technologies for electric mobility and mobility for tomorrow for our customers, so its construction represents far more than just a capacity increase.”

Schaeffler has opened global competence centers for electric mobility in Buhl, in Wooster (USA), and in Anting (China), which will be steered from the new headquarters and work as a network on new drive technologies, future mobility solutions for urban living spaces, and components designed to make automobiles more eco-friendly.

A total area of 23,400 square meters is planned, which will include office space for some 500 employees, a canteen, and a spacious conference area as well as prototype construction and test rig facilities. 350 new jobs, primarily in the field of electric mobility, are expected to be created over the next few years.

Georg F. W. Schaeffler (4th from right), shareholder and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Schaeffler AG. The other participants (from left to right) were: Volker Robl, Chairman of the LuK GmbH & Co. KG works council, Trudbert Kraus, Vice President Operations & SCM at Schaeffler Automotive, Robert Wurm, architect, Klaus Rosenfeld, CEO of Schaeffler AG, Jürgen Bäuerle, district administrator, Hubert Schurr, Mayor of Bühl, Matthias Zink, CEO Automotive OEM at Schaeffler AG, and Kai Whittaker, Member of the German Federal Parliament.

The building will also break new ground when it comes to networking and the so-called 'New Work' office concept – an open, modern workplace design that provides functional areas, “3D” communication across all levels, and a canteen that features a “Work Café”. State-of-the-art conference technology will ensure that colleagues around the world can always communicate in real time.

An employee event was also held in Bühl to celebrate the worldwide standardization of Schaeffler’s corporate presentation as part of the company’s future program “Agenda 4 plus One”, with which Schaeffler is driving forward its strategy “Mobility for tomorrow”.

New strategy for a stronger brand

Matthias Zink, CEO of Automotive OEM at Schaeffler AG said, “Our future success depends on having a strong Schaeffler brand, which will give our customers a point of orientation and allow us to position ourselves globally as a preferred technology partner”, Zink continued. The LuK product brand will be retained, but in future will only be used in conjunction with the associated products and together with the Schaeffler corporate brand.

Buhl’s mayor Hubert Schnurr talked about Schaeffler’s historical significance for Bühl: “Schaeffler has always played a part in shaping Bühl, and the updated corporate presentation we see today clearly marks the start of an exciting new era for us all.”