Aviation Industry

The Industry

Besides Seattle and Toulouse, Hamburg is one of the world’s pre-eminent sites of the civil aviation industry. One-third of the aviation-sector jobs in Germany are located in the greater Hamburg area. At the beginning of 2010, the industry boasted a total of 39,000 highly qualified employees.

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(Luftfahrtstandort Hamburg)

The concentrated expertise in the Hamburg metropolitan region covers the entire range from aircraft construction and MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) to airport operations. Apart from the three large corporations, Airbus Deutschland, Lufthansa Technik and Hamburg Airport, a number of research and development institutes and over 300 small and medium-sized enterprises are contributing relevant know-how.

As a production site of the double-deck Airbus A380, the Hamburg metropolitan region has become part of the largest project the aviation industry has seen to date. Airbus Hamburg is responsible for designing and manufacturing the A380 cabin, an undertaking which also involves many other companies in the metropolitan region. Competence centres at the Airbus facilities in Stade (carbon fibre reinforced plastic) and in Buxtehude (in-flight entertainment) are integral to the development and production of the A380.

Key Skills
Aviation Industry Know-How in Northern Germany

The members of the Aviation Cluster of the Hamburg metropolitan region have gained international recognition for their particular expertise in aircraft cabin interiors. The complete A380 cabin is furnished in Hamburg. Lufthansa Technik AG fulfils even the most extravagant cabin design requests at its VIP Completion Centre. Furthermore, many regional supplier companies have specialized in aircraft cabin products and solutions, including Mühlenberg Interiors GmbH & Co. KG (galleys), Dasell Cabin Interior GmbH (lavatories) and ESW GmbH (trolley lift system).

Hamburg-based stock corporation Lufthansa Technik AG is the world market leader in the growing MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) segment. Lufthansa Technik has more than 640 international clients.

Lightweight engineering approaches based on carbon fibre compound materials have become an essential element of aircraft construction. Due to the geographic concentration of users and suppliers in Stade, locally-based companies with an international focus have formed the industry network CFK-Valley e.V., resulting in a matchless integration of research & development, training, processing and application.

Hamburg Airport is another player setting new standards of innovation, e.g. by using proving grounds to test new technologies in airport-related operations and to improve transit and handling times.

Training, Research & Development
Qualification Initiative and Aeronautical Research

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(Luftfahrtstandort Hamburg)

Junior staff development is achieved through a broad range of qualification programmes, dual system vocational training and various academic degree programmes. The universities cooperate with the companies in the region to ensure that their teaching and research address the relevant issues.

Qualified personnel is a success factor. The Qualification Initiative for Aviation therefore works closely with the Aviation Cluster partners to expand the educational infrastructure and to tailor measures to meet the specific demand. The public ‘Gewerbeschule Fertigungstechnik- und Flugzeugtechnik G15’ has gained renown far beyond the Hamburg metropolitan region as a preeminent vocational school for production technology and aircraft engineering. The concept of the Qualification Initiative for Aviation was recognized by the European Commission as an example of "best practice".

The Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW), Helmut Schmidt University/University of the Federal Armed Forces (HSU), the Hamburg-Finkenwerder Technology Center (THF), and many other universities in the region are active participants in an effective research network. The cluster also includes the ‘Technische Universität Braunschweig’ and the German Aerospace Center (DLR).

The research community is taking goal-oriented steps to foster new talent. This is exemplified by the endowed professorship in ‘Cabin Interior Systems’ established at the Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), and the new degree programme in ‘The Architecture of the Aircraft Cabin’ at the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW).

The Airbus corporation and the Private University of Applied Sciences in Göttingen cooperated to set up a degree programme in composites engineering. As of January 2008, the city of Stade has officially become a campus site of the Private University of Applied Sciences. The course of study concentrates on carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP), which ties in with the CFK-Valley supplier and research network which has formed around the Airbus facilities in Stade.

In 2008 the foundation was laid for a ‘Center for Applied Aeronautical Research’ (Zentrum für angewandte Luftfahrtforschung, ZAL) to augment the existing research facilities and cooperation between universities and companies. A key focus of this public-private partnership is research & development in the fields of aircraft cabin interiors and air transportation systems. The centre will also house the Fuel Cell Lab, which will explore applications of fuel cell technology aboard aircraft as an alternative energy source.

Another future-oriented infrastructure project is the newly founded Hamburg Centre of Aviation Training (HCAT). The training facilities co-operation of the industry, universities, and vocational colleges secures the demand-oriented professional training along the value chain. While academic tuition focusses on the cabin and cabin systems, avionics/electronics and structure are the main areas of vocational training and further education.