Across Germany, the electrical engineering and electronics industry has 888,000 employees (2019) and total sales of €191 billion (2019). This makes the sector the second-largest industry in terms of employees, behind mechanical engineering and ahead of the automotive industry.

It is indispensable within the value chains of the manufacturing sector as a system supplier (e.g. automation, medical technology, signaling technology, security systems/cybersecurity, semiconductors, cable manufacturing/conduit construction, electrical components, battery manufacturing, and in each case the associated service and maintenance).

Industry portfolio and sales

The electrical industry has a very broad portfolio. 80 percent of industry revenues are generated from industrial goods, 12 percent from intermediate goods, and 8 percent from durable goods.
Novel products and systems account for around 45 percent of their sales. Every third innovation in the manufacturing sector is based on solutions from the electrical industry. The basis for this innovative strength is the high level of expenditure on research and development: In 2019, companies in the electrical industry invested a total of 19.1 billion euros in this area.

Official statistics show a total of 3,568 electrical companies in Germany in the economic sectors WZ 26 (“Manufacture of data processing equipment, electronic and optical products”) and WZ 27 (“Manufacture of electrical equipment”). 90 percent of these companies have fewer than 500 employees, reflecting the medium-sized nature of the industry. At the same time, 17 percent of all hidden champions in Germany come from the electrical industry.

As an innovation driver for industry, it is actively shaping the digital transformation in the five lead markets of Industry 4.0, Energy, Mobility, Healthcare and Buildings, as well as in the areas of Cybersecurity, Society & Environment and Education & Research.

The electrical industry is driving networking forward, in its own companies, with suppliers and customers, but also in the private sphere. With its cross-sectional technologies, the electrical industry is a driver of innovation and technical – and thus also social – progress. The industry is characterized by excellent competitiveness and high systems competence.

As a “solutions industry,” it makes a significant contribution to Germany’s future viability and influences people’s lives and the way they live together.