70 years of inductors and capacitors made in Germany

Heidenheim is one of TDK's longest-standing facilities. Today, some 430 employees produce inductors and power capacitors at the 29,000 m² facility, of which approximately three quarters are shipped to customers in the automotive industry.

More than two thirds of the electronic components manufactured here are for the European market.

Over the years the focus of the plant has evolved from pure manufacturing to development, process design and logistics in order to support the company's global business. About 30 percent of the employees are now employed in these areas. Production processes and automation concepts developed in Heidenheim are used in all other plants for inductors and capacitors.

Growing percentage of sales with products for e-mobility

Among the components manufactured here are innovative PCC power capacitors for hybrid and electric vehicles. These components are built into the power supply units for electric motors, where they stabilize voltage, store energy and thus play a part in facilitating better vehicle acceleration. The share of products made in Heidenheim for cutting-edge e mobility applications currently stands at about 15 percent and is growing all the time.

Figure 1:

EPCOS high-power inductors and power capacitors and TDK ACT data line chokes are manufactured in Heidenheim.

Miniaturized data line chokes account for by far the largest number of units produced here. These inductors enable interference-free data exchange between in-vehicle electronic controllers. They are increasingly also being used in driver assistance systems and in both telematics and autonomous driving applications.

Investment in cutting-edge production concepts

Further process automation with cutting-edge machines and Industry 4.0 concepts are being employed for the production of power capacitors. For example, the plant is currently working on the installation of a fully automated production line with several robots.

Figure 2:

Production of power capacitors in Heidenheim.

Profile plant in Heidenheim

Products

Inductors

• Signal use inductors
• Power inductors

EMC filters

• Data and signal line chokes
• Design & Application Center for power EMC filters

Aluminum electrolytic and film power capacitors

• Design & Application Center for aluminum electrolytic capacitors
• Power capacitors
• Components for power factor correction (PFC)

Certifications

• ISO 9001
• ISO/TS 16949
• ISO 14001
• ISO 50001

History