Hector Fratty

By Hector Fratty, DVN Editor in Chief

I visited last month the AL Reutlingen research center, where I met with R&D Chief Gerd Bahnmüller and Marketing head Martin Moissl. I was most impressed by the passion-and-technology culture I found at AL. The supplier, formed in the late 1990s by the merger of Bosch and Magneti-Marelli vehicle lighting activities, can be described by the following attributes:

• Global presence: Europe, Americas (North and South), Asia;
• Lighting innovations with a large range of integrated lighting solutions concerning concepts, optic modules, electronics and software, for all kinds of light sources in vehicles’ front and rear lights: incandescent and halogen, 25- and 35-watt HID, LED, IRED, laser;
• Customer-centred orientation, and
• Passion for vehicle lighting embodied by multicultural interdisciplinary teams closely coöperating with the customers and developing comprehensive solutions while respecting environment requirements.

AL company organisation

AL aim to be among global leaders in the exterior automotive lighting. Their mission is to be an innovative and reliable OEM partner with qualified and motivated employees. Their unique corporate culture is based on their multicultural identity and their competitive drive. This is the foundation for their constant innovations and the high-quality solutions they provide. Worldwide, there are about 17,000 AL employees in 26 locations, producing 50 million lamps per year and generating a turnover of around €2.8bn in 2014.

R&D organisation

Gerd Bahnmüller is at the head of R&D since the beginning of 2015. The AL R&D activities have a worldwide footprint with locations in 15 countries. Electronics R&D is headed by Thomas Fröhlich.