Schaeffler Expanding Electromobility Capabilities

Automotive supplier Schaeffler is expanding its existing German electromobility development and manufacturing campus to meet growing demand for BEV powertrains.

The company is adding an 86,110-sq.-ft. (8,000-sq.-m) building to “significantly up-scale its activities in electromobility and acquiring major customer projects.” This move, part of Schaeffler’s Roadmap 2025 strategic program, represents a key milestone in the expansion of the company’s e-mobility capabilities. Construction has begun and completion is scheduled for the autumn of 2024.

The new complex will consist of two buildings connected by a bridge, have a total floor area of 161,460 sq.-ft. (15,000 sq.-m) and provide space for 400 employees to work together on customer projects and develop new systems for electric powertrains.

Environmental aspects and sustainability will be central, so the complex will generate most of its electricity using solar installations. Sustainable cooling and heat generation will be provided by heat pumps, and an onsite collection tank will harvest rainwater for use in various applications, such as irrigation and sanitary flushing.

In one of the existing buildings at the site, a production hall used for the manufacture of transmission components, Schaeffler currently is building an advanced plant for electric motors known as the UltraELab. This global flagship plant is being built in accordance with the principles of the ‘ultra-efficient factory’ concept developed by the federal state of Baden-Württemberg in partnership with Schaeffler and others.

In 2021, Schaeffler posted more than €1 billion ($970 million) in sales of electrified powertrain solutions and secured new electromobility projects worldwide, valued at €3.2 billion ($3.1 billion). This was matched by its new orders in the first half of 2022 and many of these customer projects ultimately will be handled at the expanded electromobility campus.

Jochen Schröder, head of Schaeffler’s e-mobility business division, says: “Going forward, Schaeffler is eager to acquire more projects involving integrated mechanical, electronic and software systems. To optimally manage these complexities, we are building strong project teams and a future-oriented work environment.”