160 years of innovation
In 2025, the Eberspächer Group can proudly look back on 160 years of company history. As one of the leading system manufacturers and suppliers to the automotive industry, the portfolio has constantly changed and developed over the past decades. Time and again, there have been phases of transformation in which courageous action was required. This year, Eberspächer is marking its anniversary under precisely these conditions – together with all of its approximately 11,200 employees at 80 locations worldwide.
10 January 2025 – The official “birthday” is July 9 – the day on which the young Jakob Eberspächer founded a small tinsmith's workshop in the basement of his home 160 years ago. At the age of just 25, he manufactured products for everyday use for private individuals, including watering cans, hot water bottles and guttering. As the economy began to boom in the mechanical engineering and textile industries, the founder's sphere of activity expanded. Eberspächer achieved its first major breakthrough with trowel-less roofs – a revolution, as sawtooth roofs often leaked at the time. The installation of panes on sheet metal bars and glazing without putty proved to be a successful model that enabled Eberspächer to grow rapidly. By 1900, the company was already producing its pioneering putty-free products for glass construction for airship hangars and railroad stations – even outside Germany.
ENTRY INTO THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY
The company repeatedly demonstrated its openness to change and innovative strength over the following decades. Driven by the poor order situation due to the global economic crisis in the early 1930s, Eberspächer made use of its existing contacts in the industry. A new business segment emerged: sheet metal was now processed into silencers and the development of the first vehicle heaters began. From the 1950s, the second generation of owners expanded the portfolio to include silencer systems. As early as 1954, the company celebrated its millionth silencer. Thanks to consistent optimization, these soon included integrated exhaust gas aftertreatment – the catalytic converter went into series production on the US market as early as 1974. Ten years before this became a legal requirement in Germany.
To this day, the basis of our success is our employees – they are the ones who develop new things and make existing ones even better with their inventive spirit and outstanding commitment. Our special thanks go to them in our anniversary year.
Martin Peters, Managing Partner
INTERNATIONAL GROWTH
Technological expertise has been one of Eberspächer's key success factors since the beginning of the company's history. Coupled with the right instinct for growth markets, the organization has developed steadily: from the 1980s onwards, new subsidiaries were established in Europe and overseas. To this day, Eberspächer has around 80 locations worldwide, in 30 different countries. 11,200 employees – our Dedicated People – contribute every day to finding the best solution for the customer. “To this day, the basis of our success is our employees – they are the ones who develop new things and make existing ones even better with their inventive spirit and outstanding commitment. Our special thanks go to them in our anniversary year,” says Managing Partner Martin Peters.”
FOCUS ON FUTURE TOPICS
With the increasing number of subsidiaries and employees, our product portfolio is growing: exhaust technology, thermal management, automotive electronics – with our three Divisions, we are now one of the leading system manufacturers and suppliers in the automotive industry.
But the here and now is not enough for us: we are actively pursuing research and development in future topics, such as autonomous driving and alternative drive technologies like the hydrogen engine. Because one thing our 160 years of company history have taught us is that standing still is not an option.