German Engineering Federation (VDMA)
©VDMA
The VDMA is the umbrella organisation of the German engineering industry. It is one of the most important service-provider federations in Europe. Its 3,000+ members, largely made up of small and medium-size companies, represent more than 90 percent of sales in the branch of industry which accounts for the largest number of jobs in Germany.
The VDMA is a platform with 39 subsections covering the entire value-creation chain of the capital goods industry - from components through to complete plants, from system suppliers through to service providers. The VDMA is a trade federation working on behalf of the entire industry, both nationally and internationally. It represents the sector's interests constructively and has no ambitions of self-aggrandisement.
The VDMA is committed to advancing the interests of the engineering sector but also to furthering the overall economic wellbeing of the Federal Republic of Germany. Its economic policy stems from its conviction that competition, economic autonomy and open markets are the indisputable basis for individual and collective economic success.
Areas in which the VDMA and its members show their commitment include
- the education and training of young people and the improvement of the school and university system
- research and development as an indispensable basis for innovation and jobs
- internal dialogue within companies as a key element in creating genuine participation and involvement in performance
- the reduction of subsidies, including at the corporate level, and campaigning for sustainable development of public finances
- the unleashing of market forces through deregulation and debureaucratisation
- the creation of investment-friendly conditions as the basis for competitive employment in Germany
