A region reaches for the stars
Baden-Württemberg and the Stuttgart region are strong aerospace locations. Due to the above-average research and development effort and its cross-sectional function, aerospace plays a central role in the regional industry mix. Thanks to its broad range of technologies, it offers numerous starting points for industry in the region - from lightweight construction and aerodynamics to intelligent controls and information technologies. Leading international companies such as Tesat-Spacecom and Thales, but also many small and medium-sized companies such as Johann Maier, develop and produce high-tech solutions in the Stuttgart region and export them all over the world. The company Hyprostatik Schönfeld from Göppingen supplied the technology and know-how for the hydrostatic storage of the world's largest telescope in Chile. There is also a focus for satellite communication technology in the Backnang area: The German Center for Satellite Communication (DeSK) is the central contact for companies, scientific institutions and universities in this field of research and application.
Companies from the Stuttgart region not only enable a view of space, but also conquer the skies with groundbreaking technologies: Since the end of 2020, the first four-seater hydrogen aircraft from the Stuttgart company H2Fly has been taking off regularly from Stuttgart Airport. The Aerospace Forum Baden-Württemberg (LRBW), based in the state capital, represents the interests and mouthpiece of aerospace in southwest Germany.
Strong in research and development
At the German Aerospace Center in Stuttgart, around 700 employees research and work in six institutes on topics relating to aviation, space travel, energy, transport and security. The main research areas include high-performance structures made of composite materials, new vehicle concepts for roads and rails, laser system development, energy storage concepts, gas turbines and technical combustion processes as well as the development of receivers for solar thermal power plants. Also on the campus in Stuttgart-Vaihingen is the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Engineering and Automation (IPA), where, among other things, research is carried out on production techniques for lightweight materials relevant to aerospace. In Denkendorf, Esslingen district, technical textiles are once again the focus of research: the Institutes for Textile and Fiber Research (DITF) located there develop, among other things, the high-performance fibers and composites required for space travel.