Siemens AG (headquartered in Berlin and Munich) is a global powerhouse in electronics and electrical engineering. Operating in the fields of automation, digitalization and electrification, Siemens holds leading market positions in all its business areas. The company has roughly 343,000 employees – of which 115,000 or 33% are based in Germany – working to develop and manufacture products, design and install complex systems and projects, and tailor a wide range of solutions for individual requirements.
Innovation is Siemens’ most important growth and productivity driver. In fiscal year 2014, the company invested €4.1 billion – 5.7 percent of its total revenue – in research and development (R&D) to stay at the forefront of technological progress. Today the company employs some 28,800 researchers and developers in around 30 countries, who work on innovations that secure existing business and open up new markets. The degree of innovation and the market success is significantly driven by software, being an inherent element of most of our products. This makes Siemens one of the world ́s largest software houses.
Apart from that Siemens is strongly engaging in sustainable solutions: In fiscal year 2013, Siemens’ revenue from its Environmental Portfolio represented €32.3 billion and well over 40% of total revenue comprising products and solutions that contribute directly to environmental protection and climate change mitigation.
Collaborations are an indispensable mean of developing strategically important technologies. By discussing, sharing, and implementing ideas with scientists from outside the company, Siemens researchers keep abreast of the latest findings resulting from fundamental and applied research all over the world.
With over 7,100 employees worldwide, Corporate Technology (CT) plays a key role in R&D at Siemens. In 19 research centers, Corporate Technology works closely with the R&D teams in the Siemens ́ Divisions. Corporate Technology is networked to facilitate efficient collaboration between its various sites around the world and with the rest of the Company. Its principal research operations are in close proximity to worldwide business activities and technology hotspots: Germany, the U.S., Austria, Russia, India, China, Japan and Singapore are among the most important sites. Establishing own research centers is combined with an intensive cooperation with top universities. This allows responding quickly and precisely to the demands of the customers and to provide solutions that meet local needs. Per year, around 1,000 collaborations are run by/with CT.