Siemens AG is constructing a modern and sustainably designed Siemens Campus Erlangen in the southern part of the city of Erlangen, Germany. By 2030, the company's research center in the south of the city will have been transformed step-by-step into one of Siemens' most advanced locations worldwide. Future-oriented office, research and laboratory jobs will be located on the campus. Equipped with the most advanced building and energy technologies, it will be developed over the long term into Siemens' first CO
2-neutral location worldwide. A new urban residential and living environment will arise on the campus grounds. Siemens will be part of the community as never before. Designed by the Frankfurt architects KSP Jürgen Engel Architekten, the campus's open plan will link the company and society and provide a basis for the exchange of ideas.
The construction project has a planned investment volume of some €500 million and will cover an area of 54 hectares. Siemens Campus Erlangen underscores the company's long-term commitment to its Erlangen location and will be a symbol of innovative power for employees and for the region. The project was planned and designed in close cooperation with the state of Bavaria and the city of Erlangen.
Werner von Siemens, born on December 13, 1816, would have turned 200 years old this year. On November 29, Siemens was marking the anniversary of its company founder's birth by holding a gala event in the Mosaikhalle (Mosaic Hall) at its headquarters in Berlin. In addition to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, more than 100 prominent guests representing government, business, science, culture and the media were present. Joe Kaeser, President and CEO of Siemens AG, opened the ceremony. Nathalie von Siemens, a great-great-granddaughter of Werner von Siemens, Managing Director and spokesperson of the Board of Siemens Stiftung and a member of the Supervisory Board of Siemens AG, as well as Gerhard Cromme, Chairman of the company's Supervisory Board, will also gave speeches in honor of the company founder.
Together with Georg Halske, he established Telegraphen-Bauanstalt von Siemens & Halske, a company of international standing already within his lifetime. With inventions like the electric pointer telegraph, the electric generator and the world's first electric streetcar system, Werner von Siemens had a major influence on the technological development of today's world. His passion for engineering excellence and his relentless drive to create trailblazing innovations still shape the enterprise he founded. With around 351,000 employees in over 200 countries worldwide, Siemens AG is now a leading supplier in the growth fields of electrification, automation and digitalization.
The discovery of the dynamo-electric principle has brought about greater changes to the way our society lives than practically any other scientific breakthrough. By inventing the dynamo machine, not only did Werner von Siemens help bring about the advent of electrical machinery, he was also instrumental in accelerating and facilitating industrial processes. Seen from the perspective of society, this completely changed accepted concepts of time and mobility.
The Velaro D is the fourth generation of high-speed trains that Siemens has developed on the basis of the Velaro platform. Deutsche Bahn AG (DB) classifies the train as the new Series 407 ICE 3 (predecessors: Series 403 and Series 406 ICE 3). In December 2013, Germany's Federal Railway Authority (EBA) approved the trains' operation – also in multiple-unit or so-called double-traction mode – on the Deutsche Bahn rail network. Passenger operation started on December 21, 2013.
Authorization for operation in single-traction mode in France was granted in April 2015. Since June 2015 the trains have been travelling to Paris in regular passenger operation. In addition to Germany and France, the Velaro D is also intended for cross-border operation in Belgium.
Since 2007, trains based on the Velaro platform have operated with high reliability for more than one billion kilometers in China, Russia, Spain and Turkey – equal to roughly 25,000 times around the globe.
In various areas Siemens is committed to helping refugees. In spring 2015 the eight week internship program started and has now been extended to 14 locations. Siemens is also offering six-month special training courses. These courses encompass intensive language instruction as well as pre-vocational training in the areas of mechanics and electronics. The goal is to enable the participants to get an apprenticeship training position. Siemens Real Estate is making space available on a temporary basis at 15 different locations throughout Germany, among these locations are Munich and Erlangen. Countless employees all across Germany have also offered their help and participated in a wide range of donation and aid campaigns.
In May 2014 Siemens, together with the public utilities of Mainz, Linde and the RheinMain University of Applied Sciences, has laid the foundation stone for a new type of energy storage system. Now, time has come: By pressing a symbolic button, the Chairman of the Board of Linde Group, Dr. Wolfgang Büchele, Siemens board member Professor Siegfried Russwurm, two board members of Stadtwerke Mainz AG, Detlev Höhne and Dr. Tobias Brosze, and Professor Dr. Detlev Reymann, President of RheinMain University, officially launched a hydrogen production plant at the Energiepark Mainz on July 2, 2015. With the support of the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology as part of the Energy Storage Funding Initiative the 17-million-project could be realized. The system, equipped with an electrolyzer from Siemens, will convert surplus electricity from wind farms to hydrogen from now on. In this way, it will be possible to store electricity from renewable sources over longer periods of time. With a peak rating of up to 6 megawatts the plant is the largest of its kind in the world.
The principle of electrolysis has been tried and tested for decades. What is special about the Mainz system is that it involves highly dynamic PEM high-pressure electrolysis which is particularly suitable for high current density and can react within milliseconds to sharp increases in power generation from wind and solar sources. In this electrolyzer a proton exchange membrane (PEM) separates the two electrodes at which oxygen and hydrogen are formed. On the front and back of the membrane are precious-metal electrodes that are connected to the positive and negative poles of the voltage source. This is where the water is split. The system in Mainz will thus have a capacity relevant for bottlenecks in the grid and small wind farms.
This year something very special is brewing: 2016 marks the 500th jubilee of the world's oldest food law. In 1516, the Bavarian co-rulers Duke Wilhelm IV and Ludwig X issued a decree in Ingolstadt to the effect that henceforth, only barley, hops and water could be used in the brewing of beer. The "Reinheitsgebot" was born, and its fame has since spread around the world. German beer is one of the country's most popular exports, with around 1.5 billion liters shipped to foreign shores every year. A high proportion of brewers rely on technology from Siemens to prevent any disruptions to production and keep the golden liquid flowing freely. The first electronic control-based automation solutions came into existence in the 1970s. The "Braumat" process control system has since taken care of reliable production and quality consistency in countless breweries the world over. Today, competition for market share in the beer industry is tough. Efficiency and flexibility are vital to success. What remains to be seen: What will the brewery of the future look like? From July 22-24, Siemens is taking part in the "500 Years of the German Purity Law 2016" Festival in Munich as a partner to the brewery industry with its own booth.
Siemens announced today that it has started a 15-year technical support and spare parts supply agreement with the U.S. passenger rail operator Amtrak for its 70 new Siemens ACS-64 electric locomotives in operation on the Northeast Corridor. This is Siemens' largest technical support contract for passenger locomotives to-date in the U.S. In 2010, Amtrak ordered 70 Amtrak Cities Sprinter electric locomotives from Siemens. The first locomotives are already in passenger service.
Siemens Financial Services (SFS) has released new research examining how global manufacturers are using innovative finance to seize market opportunities through digitalization and automation. Conducted among manufacturing finance managers in 13 countries, the study found that manufacturers across the world are reporting a need to invest in new-generation technology in order to meet four key sector challenges.These are: to increase production capacity and flexibility to meet changing demand and drive sales; to improve client service quality while reducing production costs; to improve competitive positioning through improved product quality and broader product range and to optimize efficiency, cost control and manufacturing agility through automation and digitalization.