 | |
 Headquarters inHanover, Germany | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| ISIN | DE0005439004  |
| Industry | |
| Predecessor | Englebert |
| Founded | 8 October 1871; 153 years ago (1871-10-08) |
| Headquarters | Hanover, Germany |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people |
|
| Products | Tires,brake systems,powertrains,chassis components,automotive safety,vehicle electronics[1][failed verification] |
| Revenue |  €41.42 billion (2023) |
| €1.854 billion (2023) | |
| €1.156 billion (2023) | |
| Total assets |  €37.75 billion (2023) |
| Total equity | €13.68 billion (2023) |
| Owner | Schaeffler Group (46%) |
Number of employees | 202,763 (2023) |
| Subsidiaries | |
| Website | continental |
| Footnotes / references [2] | |
Continental AG, commonly known asContinental and colloquially asConti,[3] is a German multinationalautomotive parts manufacturing company. Headquartered inHanover, Lower Saxony, it is the world's third-largest automotive supplier and the fourth-largest tire manufacturer.[4][failed verification] Continental specializes intires,brake systems,vehicle electronics,automotive safety,powertrain,chassis components,tachographs, and other parts for the automotive and transportation industries.
The company is structured into six divisions namedChassis and Safety,Powertrain,Interior,Tires,ContiTech, andAdvanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS). It sells tires for automobiles,motorcycles, andbicycles worldwide under the Continental brand. It also produces and sells other brands with more select distribution, such as Viking (limited global presence),[5]General Tire (U.S./Canada),Gislaved Tires (Canada, Spain, Nordic Markets), Semperit Tyres,Barum to serve EU and Russia. Other brands areUniroyal (Europe), Sportiva, Mabor andMatador[6] and formerly Sime/Simex tyres (nowDunlop Tyres Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei).[7] Continental's customers include all major automobile, truck and bus producers, such asVolkswagen,Mercedes-Benz Group,BharatBenz,Ford,Volvo,Iveco,Schmitz,Koegel,Freightliner Trucks,BMW,General Motors,Toyota,Honda,Renault,Stellantis (ex-PSA) andPorsche.[8][9]
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Continental was founded in 1871 as arubber manufacturer,Continental-Caoutchouc undGutta-Percha Compagnie.[10] In 1892, Continental began development and production of pneumatic bicycle tires, which was a major success for the brand. In 1904, Continental became the first company in the world to manufacture grooved vehicle tires.[11] Another major product Continental invented was a detachable wheel tire that was made for touring vehicles (1905). From about 1910,synthetic rubber started to play a major role in car tire production, and one of its earliest proponents was chemist Albert Gerlach (1858–1918), member of the executive board.[12] In the late 1920s, Continental merged with several other major rubber industry companies to form the largest rubber company in Germany calledContinental Gummi-Werke AG.
When theNazis came to power in Germany in 1933, all members of the board of management as well as the authorized signatories and directors of the second management level were obliged to join theNazi party, the works council was purged of "opponents of the regime," and all Jewish members of the supervisory board were forced to resign. As early as the end of 1933, the executive board said Continental was now "a Christian and purely German company".[13][14]
As with many other German companies duringWorld War II, Continental usedslave labor provided by theNazi Party in their factories in the 1940s at Hannover-Stöcken,[15] Hannover-Limmer,[16] Hannover-Ahlem,[17] and others, all offshoots of theNeuengamme concentration camp.[18]
Continental teamed up with FATE in 1999 for the production of tires for cars, trucks, and buses in Argentina[19] and exportation of the San Fernando plant's production to the rest of South America.[20]
In 2001, Continental acquired a controlling interest in Temic,DaimlerChrysler's automotive-electronics business, which is now part of Continental Automotive Systems. The company also purchased German automotive rubber and plastics companyPhoenix AG in 2004, and the automotive electronics unit ofMotorola in 2006.[21] Continental acquiredSiemens VDO fromSiemens AG in 2007.[22] Also in 2007, the company began to construct a plant in Costa Rica to produce powertrain components for North America. The plant was to open in two phases and ultimately employ 550 workers.[9]
In 2008, Continental appeared overextended with its integration of VDO and had since lost almost half of itsmarket capitalisation when it found itself to be thehostile takeover target of the family-ownedSchaeffler AG.[23] By 2009, Schaeffler successfully installed the head of its motor division at the helm of Continental.[24]
Continental was ranked third in globalOEM automotive parts sales in 2012 according to a study sponsored byPricewaterhouseCoopers.[25] On 6 September 2012, Continental returned to the benchmarkDAX index of 30 selected Germanblue chip stocks after a 45-month absence.[26] IHO Group (investment holding of the Schaeffler family) is the controlling shareholder and currently owns 46% of Continental shares.[27] In November 2018, Continental purchasedKmart Tyre & Auto Service in Australia fromWesfarmers forA$350 million.[28]
In 2017 Continental signed a partnership to be theTour de France official tire sponsor till 2027.[29][full citation needed]
On 13 November 2020, it was announced that Nikolai Setzer would take over as CEO following the short-notice resignation of Elmar Degenhart.[30]
In February 2021, Continental announced that it acquired aminority stake in Recogni, a German-U.S.start-up, to advance itsautonomous driving technology. The start-up is working on a newchip architecture forobject recognition in real time based onartificial intelligence.[31]
In December 2021, as a result of a diplomatic spat betweenLithuania and China overTaiwan andhuman rights, China pressured Continental AG to stop doing business with Lithuania.[32][33]
In April 2022, Continental resumed production of tires in Russia despiteInternational sanctions during the Russo-Ukrainian War due to2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[34]
In February 2024, Continental AG cut around 7,150 positions in its auto unit.[35]
The Interior Division is organised under the following five business units:[36]
Body & Security is leading the development ofvehicle electronics and cabin control systems,[37] with R&D locations in Germany, United States, China, Singapore, Mexico, India, and many other locations around the world, allowing a global reach to nearly every market region.[38]
When Continental decided to purchaseITT Industries' brake and chassis business for $1.93 billion in 1998,[39] the head of ITT's brake division,Juergen M. Geissinger, was hired as the CEO of thefamily-owned bearing and auto parts manufacturerSchaeffler Group.[40]
Ten years later, Geissinger returned to Continental with mother-and-son ownersMaria-Elisabeth andGeorg Schaeffler and aconsortium of banks, to buy control of the company.[41] Continental appeared to have overextended itself with the acquisition ofSiemens' VDO automotive unit in 2007 for €11.4 billion[22] and had lost almost half of itsmarket capitalisation since.[23]
In August 2008 and after a protractedstandoff, Continental agreed to be taken over by the Schaeffler Group in a deal that valued the company at approximately €12 billion.[42] Schaeffler in return agreed to limit its position to less than 50% for a period of four years and support Continental's ongoing strategy. This arrangement was overseen by formerGerman ChancellorGerhard Schroeder.[43] Continental's CEOManfred Wennemer, [de] who had opposed Schaeffler's offer, resigned and was succeeded byKarl-Thomas Neumann [de] on 1 September 2008.[44] Less than one year later, Schaeffler's CEOJuergen Geissinger succeeded in installing his longtime confidant (and former leader and later head of ITT Teves/Continental Brake and Chassis Division)Elmar Degenhart, the head of his automotive division, as the new chief executive of Continental, ousting Neumann.[24] At Continental's 2013annual shareholder meeting Schaeffler gave notice that it will terminate its mutual investment agreement with Continental in May 2014,[45] on which Elmar Degenhart commented, "Notice of termination of the investment agreement is understandable from the vantage point of Schaeffler, our anchor shareholder. We are confident that the two companies will continue their very good and goal-oriented cooperation on into the future."[45]
Continental Tire entered the North American tire industry with its 1987 purchase ofGeneral Tire fromGenCorp, Inc., forming Continental General Tire Corp.[46] At the time, Continental was following other tire manufacturers, such asBridgestone andMichelin, into the American tire market.
Theheadquarters for North and South American tire divisions is located in theCharlotte metropolitan area atLancaster County, South Carolina,United States (with aFort Mill, South Carolina mailing address). The North American headquarters of the CAS division is located inAuburn Hills, Michigan, directly east of theGreat Lakes Crossing Mall. Continental also has a research and development arm in the tech-heavy Silicon Valley, where, among other things, the company focuses on developing technologies supporting autonomous driving vehicles.
From 2002 through 2005, the subsidiary sponsored a newcollege footballbowl game inCharlotte, North Carolina, known for three playings as theContinental Tire Bowl atBank of America Stadium. At the time, Continental was a major employer in Charlotte. However, as financial woes set in at the divisionMeineke Car Care Center took over sponsorship of the Charlotte bowl game from Continental. The first two Continental Tire Bowls were both won byVirginia; the third and final (by that name) edition of the bowl was won byBoston College.
The subsidiary announced that effective 1 January 2006, it would implement massive cuts on health care for retirees across the country. After a class-action lawsuit, the company andUnited Steelworkers union, representing the retirees, agreed to a settlement whereby the company would continue to fund benefits.[47] Later that year, it announced it would cease tire production in Charlotte[48] and would close its tire production plant inMayfield, Kentucky.[49]
In 2011, CTA announced that it would build a plant inSumter, South Carolina. The plant will cost about $500 million and employ 1,600 workers by 2020.[50]
In February 2016, CTA announced that it would build a Commercial Tire plant inClinton, Mississippi, with an investment totaling approximately $1.4 billion and employing 2,500 people when the plant reaches full capacity in the next decade.[citation needed]
In October 2016, CTA purchasedHoosier Racing Tire.
Continental was one of the companies bidding to work withGeneral Motors to provide the battery pack for theChevrolet Volt extended-rangeelectric vehicle (E-REV).[51] It is the primary contractor for a system usinglithium-ionbatteries fromA123 Systems. General Motors instead signed a contract to assemble packs with cells purchased fromCompact Power.[52]
Continental continues to look at developments and innovation in the field of Automotive electrical-energy storage systems. These include developing solutions for gasoline and diesel driven engines as well as the rapidly-developing area of electrified systems. By offering a comprehensive technology toolkit to auto manufacturers, they enable these manufacturers to develop customised electrification in their vehicles, resulting in more efficient systems that produce lower emissions.[53]
In April 2016, Continental AG together withHonda's U.S. subsidiary, were honored with the 2016 Automotive News PACE Innovation Partnership Award[54] for the Bidirectional Long Range Communications (BLRC) System, developed by the Body and Security Team in the Interior Division.[55] TheRadio Frequency Device, helps the car user to operate a remote control key fob from more than half a kilometer away, to start the engine and climate control function, while receiving feedback from the vehicle (such as locked/unlocked). TheRadio Frequency System, powered by a single standard coin cell, and an innovative vehicle-mounted RFtransceiver, was developed together by Honda and Continental, and was debuted on theAcura MDX in 2013 and was quickly followed by theAcura TLX andAcura RLX in 2014.
In 2015, Continental AG was honored with two PACE Awards for its Bare Die High-Density-Interconnect (BD-HDI)Printed Circuit Board Substrate Technology for Transmission Electronics[56] and its Multi-application Unified Sensor Element (MUSE).[57]In 2018, Continental won a PACE (Premier Automotive Suppliers' Contribution to Excellence) Award for its Digital Micromirror Head-Up Display technology. Along withAudi, Continental also received an Innovation Partnership Award for their Safety Domain Control Unit (SDCU).[58]
In 2020, Continental won an inaugural PACEpilot award for its Virtual A-Pillar technology that helps to eliminate forward blind spots. PACEpilot is an offshoot of the long-standing PACE awards, and the programmes seeks to recognise innovations in automative technology that have moved to the working model phase of testing.[59]
'*' Denotes labor representative[61]
Continental AG has acquired the American rubber company Veyance Technologies, Inc. based inFairlawn, Ohio. Veyance will be integrated into the company's ContiTech division, and will serve as the regional home office for ContiTech in North America.
The Brazilianantitrust authority Council for Economic Defence (CADE) made it official on 29 January 2015, described in a press release on the 30th, from the company. The total transition was $1.6 billion. The company will divest Veyance'sNAFTA air springs business in Mexico and its Brazilian steel-cord belting business in response to some of the concerns raised by antitrust authorities, the release said, employing about 600 people work in those operations.[62]
Nicht nur seien sofort danach »sämtliche Vorstandskollegen sowie die Prokuristen beziehungsweise Direktoren der zweiten Führungsebene zum sofortigen Eintritt in die NSDAP« verpflichtet, der Betriebsrat von »Regimegegnern« gesäubert und in den ersten beiden Jahren etwa eine Million Reichsmark an diverse NS-Organisationen gespendet, sondern auch alle jüdischen Aufsichtsratsmitglieder zum Rücktritt gezwungen worden. Stolz konnte der Vorstand bereits Ende 1933 verkünden, Continental sei nun »ein christliches und rein deutsches Unternehmen«.
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