ZF Friedrichshafen AG operates 161 production locations across 30 countries, developing mobility systems spanning driveline and chassis technology, active and passive safety systems, and electrified powertrains for passenger cars, commercial vehicles, and industrial applications. Founded in 1915 as a gear specialist, the company employs approximately 161,600 people and reported €41.4 billion in sales for fiscal year 2024. Current technical development centers on software-defined vehicle architectures, including the Chassis 2.0 concept that integrates chassis control with vehicle software layers, and autonomous driving systems deployed in production vehicles.
The company's engineering work addresses hardware-software integration challenges in electrified powertrains and safety systems that must meet ISO 21434 and UN R155 requirements for cybersecurity in deployed vehicles. Production engineering teams use digital twin implementations to optimize manufacturing processes across global facilities. Materials engineering includes active polymer recycling projects developed in partnership with companies like BASF, targeting sustainable component manufacturing at scale.
Technical operations span established domains - driveline components, chassis systems, crash protection mechanisms - alongside newer development in perception systems for driver assistance and full autonomy. The engineering organization works within SAP-based ERP systems and cloud infrastructure, with recent integration of generative AI tools into development workflows. Projects balance production-proven mechanical systems with emerging software-centric architectures as vehicles transition from hardware-defined to software-defined platforms.