- Second place in the European Patent Office's application rankings for 2017
- About 19 percent more applications filed in Europe than in the prior year
- 7,450 inventions worldwide in fiscal 2017 – 34 inventions per day
Siemens – followed by Robert Bosch and BASF – submitted more European patent applications than any other German company in fiscal 2017. In addition, among companies worldwide that filed European patent applications in 2017, Siemens advanced from sixth to second place, after the Chinese company Huawei, which was ranked No. 1 for the first time. In 2017, Siemens filed patent applications in Europe for 2,220 inventions – about 19 percent more than in the previous year, representing a greater increase than was achieved by any other company among the top ten. The European Patent Office (EPO) published the latest statistics today in Brussels.
3i is the Siemens-wide program that promotes, implements and rewards employee ideas and initiatives. What is a good 3i idea? It is one that identifies "what" should be improved, outlines "how" something can be improved and explains "why" the idea's implementation will be a real improvement for our customers, employees and/or Siemens itself.
- Award presented by the German Zentrum Ideenmanagement interest group
- More than 160,000 suggestions last fiscal year
- Measurable benefits of over €300 million companywide
Siemens was awarded top honors for its idea management program at the German congress of the Zentrum Ideenmanagement ("Idea Management Center"), which took place in Fulda over the last two days. Within the framework of "3i ideas – initiatives – innovations," as the Siemens idea management program has been called since 1997, the ideas, initiatives and innovations of Siemens employees continue to contribute to the company's success today. Under the program, Siemens employees submitted more than 160,000 suggestions – or an average of more than 400 a day – in fiscal 2017. Nearly 125,000 of these ideas were ultimately implemented, bringing Siemens benefits last year totaling over €300 million – more than ever before.
- Booth slogan: "Digital Enterprise – Implement now"
- The time for implementation has arrived: Focus on industry solutions
- Practical examples and applications demonstrate competitive advantages gained by merging the virtual and real worlds
- MindSphere-Version 3.0 on Amazon Web Services (AWS)
At the Hannover Messe 2018, Siemens will be showcasing a comprehensive series of examples which demonstrate how users can harness the potential of Industrie 4.0 by implementing Digital Enterprise solutions. The focus of the 3,500-square meter booth in Hall 9 is on industry-specific implementation of Digital Enterprise solutions over the whole life cycle. Examples from aerospace, automotive, food and beverage, electronics and machine building as well as the chemical, fiber and oil and gas industries illustrate how companies of any size and from any industry can increase their competitiveness with individual digital solutions – through greater flexibility, efficiency and quality as well as shorter times to market. MindSphere Version 3, concrete use cases and references from Siemens and partners such as OEMs as well as the new global user organization MindSphere World will all be presented in the 700-square meter MindSphere Lounge. Siemens will also be demonstrating how producers can already benefit now from industrialized additive manufacturing, and showcasing Sidrive IQ, the new digital platform for the MindSphere-based evaluation of drive data. Also featured on the Siemens booth will be integrated solutions for industrial enterprises and infrastructure projects in the power utility sector, with the focus on smart energy management using MindApps.
- Shareholders ratify acts of Managing and Supervisory Boards by large majorities
- Dividend proposal of €3.70 per share accepted
Jim Hagemann Snabe is the new Supervisory Board Chairman of Siemens AG. At today's constituent meeting of the new Supervisory Board, the 52-year-old software expert was elected to succeed Gerhard Cromme. Gerhard Cromme's term of office as Chairman and member of the Supervisory Board expired at the conclusion of the 2018 Annual Shareholders' Meeting. A member of the Supervisory Board since 2003, he had been its Chairman since 2007.
We released our first quarter results for fiscal year 2018 on January 31, 2018. The Press Conference and the Analyst Call were broadcast live.
Siemens held its Annual Shareholders' Meeting at the Olympia Hall in Munich on January 31, 2018.
- Orders rose 14% to €22.5 billion and revenue was up 3% at €19.8 €billion, including strong growth contributions from Mobility and Digital Factory and new business particularly resulting from the merger of Siemens' wind power business with Gamesa Corporación Tecnológica, S.A.
- Book-to-bill ratio rose to reach 1.13, the highest ratio since booking of large Egypt orders in Q2 FY 2016
- On a comparable basis, excluding currency translation and portfolio effects, orders increased 7% and revenue grew 1%
- Industrial business profit at €2.2 billion, down 14% due mainly to a sharp decline in Power and Gas which more than offset excellent performance in the short-cycle businesses and Mobility; current quarter impacted by negative currency effects while Q1 FY 2017 benefited from a portfolio gain; Industrial business profit margin at 11.0%
- Net income rose 12% to €2.2 billion; the current period included a largely tax-free gain from the sale of shares in OSRAM Licht AG and benefited from sharply lower income tax expenses due mainly to the revaluation of future tax positions following U.S. tax reform; basic earnings per share (EPS) increased to €2.68 from €2.41 in Q1 FY 2017
"The first quarter underlines the strength of our company. We take advantage of the growth momentum of the global economic upturn and set benchmarks in industrial digitalization. We clearly understand our opportunities and we know what we have to do."
On January 24, 2018, the most powerful high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) transformer began its journey from the transformer factory in Nuremberg, Germany, to China. The transformer will first be transported to the harbor in Nuremberg by special heavy load transporter, where it will be loaded onto a ship. Its journey will take it to Rotterdam via the Main-Danube Canal, and from there it will be shipped to China, where it will arrive after several weeks on the high seas. In July 2016, Siemens received an order to manufacture four transformers of this type. About a year later, the world’s first 1,100 kV transformer was completed and successfully passed the tests in the testing facility. The enormous dimensions of the transformer – 37.5 meters long, 14.4 meters tall, and 12 meters wide – posed a logistical challenge for the team. In operation, the transformer weighs just under 900 tons and its efficiency is well above 99% of the rated power. For the first time, the transformer will enable a high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) transmission with low losses over a record distance of 3,284 kilometers with a transmission capacity of 12 gigawatts. HVDC transformers are part of the converter station that convert alternating current into direct current at the beginning of the transmission line and convert it back again at the end of the line. The conversion from alternating current to direct current helps to transmit energy over long distances with low losses. Transformers are key components of an HVDC line: Thanks to the transformer, the Changji-Guquan project will be able to transmit direct current with a huge 1,110 kilovolts for the first time in the world. The new transformer not only makes the transmission of this record voltage level possible, but it is also the world’s most powerful tested transformer with a capacity of 587 megavoltamperes. Siemens has thus achieved a new dimension in high-voltage direct-current transmission. The HVDC line between Changji and Guquan will be operated by State Grid Corporation (SGCC), a Chinese grid operator. The connection is expected to begin operation in 2019.