ZF Friedrichshafen's supervisory board has named Martin Fischer as a new member of the board of management.
The 49 year old is expected to join the board on 1 November, 2019, taking over from the retiring Franz Kleiner at the start of 2020.
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"Fischer has worked in leading functions with major automotive suppliers for around two decades, many years of which were also spent in the US. During this time, he gathered extensive experience in electronics," said Franz-Josef Paefgen, chairman of the supervisory board.
"Following his positions in the areas of body electronics, chassis electronics and driver assist systems, he most recently shaped the transformation from conventional to electrified transmissions and as such is very well versed in the challenges facing our industry today."
Fischer, who has a doctorate in the field of electrical engineering, followed a graduate programme at Siemens Automotive before taking over a range of responsibilities including the product areas of chassis electronics and wireless products at Siemens VDO Automotive, then joined Hella in 2006 where he held a range of top management roles in the electronics business – initially in Germany and then from 2007 in the US.
In 2014, Fischer joined BorgWarner where he served as VP and general manager of the turbocharger division for Europe and South America. In 2018, he became president and general manager of the group's global transmissions systems business unit based in Detroit.
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By GlobalDataBased in Livonia, Michigan, Fischer will take over Kleiner's management board responsibilities for electronics and ADAS as well as active and passive safety systems, the North and South America regions, plus corporate quality.
"As a member of the board of management for ZF's US location, Kleiner made crucial decisions concerning the rapid integration of TRW, acquired in 2015. He therefore made a significant contribution to ZF's corporate success," said Paefgen.
