Aerospace and Transportation Systems

In 2018, the Aerospace and Transportation Systems division achieved the highest revenues in its history. In total, it reported earnings of € 1,380 million, an increase of € 14 million or 1.0 %.

Development compared to previous year*

Turnover in € m
from 1,366
( + 1.0% ) 0
Investments in € m
from 47
( - 8.5% ) 0
Employees
from 5,489
( + 6.1% ) 0

Turnover by sales regions

  1. European Union
    64.4%
  2. North America
    16.2%
  3. Central and South America
    3.5%
  4. Non-EU countries
    4.0%
  5. Asia and Oceania
    10.3%
  6. Africa, Near and Middle East
    1.4%

Liebherr maintaining its market position

The international aviation industry continued to grow in the reporting year. While the commercial aircraft segment developed positively, demand for business aircraft stagnated. In regional, military and helicopter markets a sideways trend could be recognised.

Liebherr once again maintained its market position as one of the top system suppliers for the air traffic industry. In 2018, several aircraft programmes with Liebherr systems on board achieved certification or entry into service: Bombardier’s Global 7500, Embraer’s E-Jet E2 and the A330neo from Airbus.

The division introduced a new product line of stand-alone electronics for the aviation market, the success of which materialised through a contract with Boeing. This goes along with the research project “More Electric Aircraft”, which focuses on solutions for a more efficient aircraft that weighs less and consumes less fuel.

Furthermore, Liebherr and a major American automotive partner have agreed to explore together opportunities to collaborate on the development of a hydrogen-powered auxiliary power unit (APU) for aircraft applications.

Liebherr continues to play an increasing role within the aviation industry.

Supplying modern transportation and mobility concepts

The rail transport industry continued on a growth course in 2018. Liebherr signed a major contract to deliver air-conditioning systems to a public transport company in Vienna (Austria). The division will equip 34 trains with air conditioning units, thus ensuring better travel comfort in the Vienna subway.

Another contract involved the supply of charging cable cooling units for e-mobility charging stations across Europe and the USA. This contract enables Liebherr to contribute significantly to the development of e-mobility. Over the past year, investments have been made primarily to further expand and modernise the facilities in Lindenberg (Germany) and Toulouse (France) to facilitate the transition to industry 4.0.

The division anticipates a further increase of turnover in 2019. This development will be driven by increased build rates of aircraft manufacturers and by a very solid growth of service revenues worldwide.

* Restatement first time adoption of IFRS 9 / 15 / 16.