Fraunhofer is Europe’s largest application-oriented research organization. Their research efforts are geared entirely to people’s needs: health, security, communication, energy and the environment. As a result, the work undertaken by their researchers and developers has a significant impact on people’s lives. »We are creative. We shape technology. We design products. We improve methods and techniques. We open up new vistas. In short, we forge the future«
The Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft's research activities are conducted by 67 institutes and research units at locations throughout Germany. The Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft employs a staff of 24,000, who work with an annual research budget totaling more than 2.1 billion euros. Of this sum, more than 1.8 billion euros is generated through contract research. More than 70 percent of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft’s contract research revenue is derived from contracts with industry and from publicly financed research projects. Customers and contractual partners are: Industry, Service sector, Public administration.
International collaborations with excellent research partners and innovative companies around the world ensure direct access to regions of the greatest importance to present and future scientific progress and economic development. The Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft is engaged in a number of international activities mainly in Europe, North and South America, Asia and the MENA-Region. Fraunhofer operates subsidiaries in Europe (Austria, Italy, Portugal, Sweden, UK) and also in North and South America (USA, Chile).