Tesla Automation GmbH (formerly Grohmann Engineering GmbH) is a German engineering automation company based in

Prüm Prüm () is a town in the Westeifel (Rhineland-Palatinate), Germany. Formerly a district capital, today it is the administrative seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collective municipality") Prüm (Verbandsgemeinde), Prüm. Geography Prüm lies o ...

in the state of

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...

. The company operates a development center in Neutraubling, Bavaria, as well as support offices in

Chandler, Arizona Chandler is a city in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, and a suburb in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area, Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the List of municipalities in Arizona, fourth-most populous city in Arizona ...

, and Shanghai, China. The company was founded in 1983 by Klaus Grohmann and acquired by

Tesla, Inc. Tesla, Inc. ( or ) is an American multinational automotive and clean energy company. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, it designs, manufactures and sells battery electric vehicles (BEVs), stationary battery energy storage devices from h ...

, in January 2017. Klaus Grohmann was ousted after clashing with Tesla CEO

Elon Musk Elon Reeve Musk ( ; born June 28, 1971) is a businessman. He is known for his leadership of Tesla, SpaceX, X (formerly Twitter), and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Musk has been considered the wealthiest person in th ...

. The product portfolio includes machinery for the production of

microprocessor A microprocessor is a computer processor (computing), processor for which the data processing logic and control is included on a single integrated circuit (IC), or a small number of ICs. The microprocessor contains the arithmetic, logic, a ...

s and memory chips,

airbag An airbag is a vehicle occupant-restraint system using a bag designed to inflate in milliseconds during a collision and then deflate afterwards. It consists of an airbag cushion, a flexible fabric bag, an inflation module, and an impact sensor. ...

sensors and

power steering Power steering is a system for reducing a driver's effort to turn a steering wheel of a motor vehicle, by using a power source to assist steering. Hydraulic or electric actuators add controlled energy to the steering mechanism, so the driver can ...

controllers, as well as systems for the production of car door and roof seals, lithium-ion battery cells and modules. Among other things, the company manufactures robotics that are used in the production of batteries and electronics. The firm works closely with universities within dual track studies of mechanical engineering and

robotic process automation Robotic process automation (RPA) is a form of business process automation that is based on software robots (bots) or artificial intelligence (AI) agents. RPA should not be confused with artificial intelligence as it is based on automation tech ...

. In addition, it provides training in the field of technical product design, industrial mechanics, CNC operation, construction technology, IT, mechatronics and industrial electronic technology.

History

Grohmann Engineering was founded by Klaus Grohmann in 1963. It moved its headquarters to Prüm in 1983. In November 2016, the privately held company agreed to be acquired by the American automotive company

Tesla Motors Tesla, Inc. ( or ) is an American multinational automotive and clean energy company. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, it designs, manufactures and sells battery electric vehicles (BEVs), stationary battery energy storage devices from hom ...

. At the time, 74.9% of the company was owned by Klaus Grohmann and 25.1% was owned by the

Deutsche Beteiligungs AG Deutsche Beteiligungs AG (DBAG) is a publicly listed German investment company based in Frankfurt am Main. It manages private equity funds and invests in well-positioned medium-sized companies ( Mittelstand) with growth potential. One focus is on in ...

. At the time, the company had 700 employees, with annual revenues of about €120 million. The deal was completed on 3 January 2017, at which point the company employed 800 people. According to a May 2017 SEC filing, Tesla paid $109.5 million in cash for the company, and in addition paid $25.8 million for a new incentive compensation agreement. In April 2017, founder Klaus Grohmann left the company due to a dispute with Tesla CEO

. Musk demanded the company halt production for competitors, such as

BMW Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, trading as BMW Group (commonly abbreviated to BMW (), sometimes anglicised as Bavarian Motor Works), is a German multinational manufacturer of vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Th ...

and

Daimler AG Mercedes-Benz Group AG (formerly Daimler-Benz, DaimlerChrysler, and Daimler) is a German multinational automotive company headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is one of the world's leading car manufacturers. Daimler-B ...

, to focus on the Model 3. In early 2025, the subsidiary agreed to acquire 300 employees and some of the assets of Manz, a battery production equipment maker in

Reutlingen Reutlingen (; ) is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is the capital of the eponymous Reutlingen (district), district of Reutlingen. As of June 2018, it had an estimated population of 116,456. Reutlingen has a Reutlingen University, univ ...

Union issues

By discontinuing business relations with all customers except Tesla, the company's trade union was concerned with wage levels and with jobs in the long term if electric cars did not have the expected success. Tesla then offered Grohmann employees a raise of 150 euros per month and employee stock options worth $10,000 with a payout over the following four years, as well as a one-time cash payment of 1000 euros. Tesla did not comment on the works agreement. In October 2017, the company agreed with union representatives on a competitive pay structure. According to the chairman of the

works council A works council is a shop-floor organization representing workers that functions as a local/firm-level complement to trade unions but is independent of these at least in some countries. Works councils exist with different names in a variety of re ...

, the future remuneration was at the level of the collective agreement valid for the industry.Deutschland: Tesla einigt sich auf deutliche Gehaltssteigerung
, September 2017

References

External links

* {{coord, 50, 12, 51, N, 6, 26, 51, E, region:DE-RP_type:landmark, display=title Grohmann Automation Tesla factories Mechanical engineering 2017 mergers and acquisitions Companies based in Rhineland-Palatinate Bitburg-Prüm German subsidiaries of foreign companies