For over 150 years, Siemens has been known for its innovations and commitment to providing customers with the highest quality products. This proud history stretches back to the company’s founder, Werner von Siemens.
Von Siemens was born in 1816 in Lenthe, Germany, the fourth-eldest of 14 children. Lacking the funds for a university-level education, von Siemens joined the Prussian army in 1835, where he received three years of intensive training in mathematics, physics and chemistry. Educated by famous scholars including Mathematician Martin Ohm (of Ohm’s Law fame), Physicist Heinrich Gustav Magnus and Chemist Otto Erdmann, von Siemens became one of the top engineers of his time.
Von Siemens left the army in 1849 to concentrate on his growing business. As shown in the following timeline, von Siemens played a key role in the progress of technology in the second half of the 19th century. After his retirement in 1890, his company continued to introduce new technology that enriched lives all over the world.
1846 – Using cigar boxes, tinplate, pieces of iron and insulated copper wire, Werner von Siemens constructs his first invention, the Pointer Telegraph, an updated version of the Wheatstone Telegraph.
1847 – Von Siemens and business partner Johann Georg Halske found Telegraphen-Bauanstalt von Siemens & Halske in Berlin. They receive a patent for the Pointer Telegraph and begin work on innovations, such as water meters and electrically triggered railway warning bells.
1850’s
- Siemens & Halske complete the Russian telegraph network, which covers 10,000 kilometers and extending from Finland down to Crimea.
- Von Siemens introduces profit-sharing to his employees believing that satisfied and motivated workers are more productive.
- Siemens, Halske & Co., a subsidiary, of Siemens & Halske is set up in Britain. Starting in 1865, this facility operates under the name Siemens Brothers.
1983 – Siemens Automotive is founded in Germany by Siemens AG.
1988 – Through the acquisition of Bendix-Electronics, Siemens Automotive expands to the Americas and Asia. Over the next decade, the company expands its global reach through another half-dozen joint ventures.
2000 - Siemens Automotive acquires Atecs Mannesmann VDO, a German-based supplier of information and cockpit systems, navigation, telematics, communication and audio systems and control and fuel systems. The merging of Siemens Automotive and VDO forms Siemens VDO Automotive, one of the world’s leading automotive suppliers of high-tech electronic systems.
Siemens VDO Automotive has a combined workforce of more than 50,000 employees at 137 locations in 34 countries, with more than $8 billion in annual global sales. The world headquarters is shared between Regensburg and Schwalbach, Germany, and the Detroit-area campuses, reflecting the company’s global strengths.
2001 – Worldwide, Siemens AG employs 443,000 people in 190 countries and maintains over 400 manufacturing facilities on five continents.
Siemens AG is a world leader in advanced medical systems, energy and automation, telecommunications, power generation, electronic components and transportation systems. Overall, Siemens is the world's second leading manufacturer of electronics capital goods.
2002 – On January 1, 2002, Siemens Automotive Corp. and VDO North America merged to officially form Siemens VDO Automotive Corporation in the United States.
Company History - VDO
VDO is one of the world's leading suppliers for information and navigation systems, car audio products, control and fuel systems. In 2000, sales for components, modules and systems for the automotive OEMs and the automotive aftermarket were approximately US$ 3.8 billion and the company employed 24,500 worldwide.
Adolf Schindling founded VDO at the end of the 1920’s in Frankfurt, Germany. It soon became the world's leading supplier of tachometers and instrument clusters for passenger cars and commercial vehicles.
In 1991, Mannesmann acquired the company. In 1999, following the takeover of Mannesmann by Vodafone Airtouch, VDO and other non-telecommunications companies of Mannesmann were spun off as a separate business unit that were sold to Siemens and Bosch.
VDO has merged with Siemens Automotive in Europe, the automotive division of Siemens AG, to form Siemens VDO Automotive in April 2001. The merger was completed in the United States on Jan. 1, 2002 creating one of the top ten global automotive suppliers.
North American Market History
VDO has been present in the North American automotive industry since 1966, when it began to supply instrumentation products to U.S. aftermarket. In 1977, VDO opened the manufacturing plant in Winchester, Va. to serve German automotive companies doing business in the United States.
From 1981 to 1996, the company's North America activities were consolidated in a joint venture with Yazaki. It was reestablished as an independent company in 1996.
In 1998, Mannesmann VDO AG acquired Philips Car Systems, based in Wetzlar, Germany. As part of this acquisition, VDO acquired the Juarez, Mexico operation.
The VDO Acronym
VDO is a German acronym with a great deal of rich tradition and history behind it. Translated, it means United German Tachometer Company. Literally, VDO stands for Vereinigte (United) DEUTA (Duetsche Tachometerwerke GmbH or German Tachometer Limited) OTA (originated from the merger of OTA Apparate GmbH with a division of DEUTA in 1929).
