Norbert Reithofer joined BMW in 1987 as head of maintenance. He became board member for production in 2000 and chief executive in 2006. Harald Krüger joined BMW in 1992 as a trainee in technical planning and production. He became board member for production in 2013 and chief executive in 2015. Oliver Zipse joined in 1991 as a trainee. He followed Krüger as board member for production in 2015 and as chief executive in 2019. Milan Nedeljković began at BMW as a trainee in 1993, ran the plants in Leipzig and Munich, and became board member for production in 2019. On 14 May 2026, he became chief executive.
engineering
Judges Who Are Engineers
The Federal Patent Court has two kinds of judges. The legal members are qualified to hold judicial office. The technical members must be experts in a branch of technology and must have passed a state or academic final examination. Both sit on the court as judges. Commercial disputes follow a related logic. In the commercial chambers of the regional courts, the lay judges must be or have been merchants, board members, managing directors or Prokuristen, holders of commercial power of attorney. They must be at least thirty years old.
A Title in the Company Name
Ferdinand Porsche never enrolled at a university. He trained with his father, took evening courses at a state trade school, and attended lectures in Vienna without enrolling. In 1924 the Technical University of Stuttgart made him an honorary doctor of engineering. In 1931 he registered his design office as Dr. Ing. h. c. F. Porsche GmbH. The carmaker’s legal name today is still Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG.
His doctorate was honorary, earned by what he had built rather than by study. It still stands at the front of the company’s name.
Who May Be Called an Engineer
In Bavaria, the title Ingenieur is protected by a law of 12 July 2016. Above all, it may be used by someone who has completed a degree of at least six semesters at a state or state-recognized German university. The degree must be in a field where mathematics, computer science, the natural sciences and technology predominate. Anyone who uses the title without the right can be fined up to 25,000 euros. The other German states have similar laws.
Behind the Meter, Only the Registered Installer
In a German home, the electrical installation behind the house-connection fuse is not a job for a handy owner. Under § 13 of the low-voltage connection ordinance, apart from the grid operator, only an installation company entered in a grid operator’s register of installers may set it up, extend it or change it. Skill alone does not count. The firm must be on the list.
The Engineer Who Checks the Engineer
For many large or risky buildings in Germany, a second structural engineer checks the first one’s calculations. In Bavaria, for special buildings with difficult structures, this Prüfingenieur, inspecting engineer, is an especially qualified structural engineer who checks the proofs of stability for correctness and completeness on behalf of the building authority. During construction, the inspecting engineer then checks that the building matches the checked calculations. The profession calls it the four-eyes principle.
Inspected by the Book, and Still It Fell
In the night to 11 September 2024, part of the Carolabrücke, a bridge over the Elbe in Dresden, collapsed. An expert report found hydrogen-induced stress corrosion in the prestressing steel. Damage to many tendons had most likely gone undetected despite regular and proper inspections. In July 2026, the public prosecutor closed the investigation and found no sign of a criminal offense. Engineers then asked a new question. Could the inspection methods in use detect this kind of damage at all?
The V-Model
The German state has its own standard for running IT projects, the V-Modell. The first version was developed in 1986 by the federally owned company IABG for the Ministry of Defense. In February 1991, it was made the development standard for software in the Bundeswehr. A civil version followed in 1993, and in 1997 the V-Modell 97 was recommended across the federal administration. The current form, V-Modell XT, appeared in February 2005. It defines the activities of a project, the documents they must produce and the roles responsible for them. The private sector now uses it as well.
Five Months Without Trains
The Riedbahn between Mannheim and Frankfurt is one of Germany’s busiest rail lines. Deutsche Bahn adopted a plan for its complete renewal in September 2022 and awarded the contracts in September 2023. The line was then closed completely from 15 July to 14 December 2024. It reopened on 14 December 2024. Some tracks and a branch line followed by 24 December, and the new ETCS signaling only in 2025. The cost rose by 195 million euros, or 15 percent, to 1.5 billion euros. The Riedbahn is the first of about forty such renewals planned on the same model by 2030.
Recognized Rules of Technology
German construction contracts measure work against the allgemein anerkannte Regeln der Technik, the generally recognized rules of technology. Work counts as free of defects only if it has the agreed quality and follows these rules. A rule counts as recognized only when the great majority of technical experts hold it. It must also have proven itself in practice, not only in science: sich auch praktisch bewährt. For this reason, the standard takes up new methods late. A builder who departs from it carries the risk, because a departure is generally treated as a defect. A new building product with no recognized rule behind it needs a general approval from the German Institute for Building Technology before it may be used.
In November 2024, the federal cabinet approved a draft law for a Gebäudetyp E, a building type for simple and experimental building. Under the draft, in contracts between expert businesses, a departure from the recognized rules would no longer count as a defect under three conditions. It must be disclosed to the client before the work starts. The client must not object at once. And the building must remain safe and fit for use over time. A new government draft went to the Bundestag on 8 June 2026.