Bosch Rexroth appoints Dr. Christina Franke as Board Member for Production and Quality Management
Jan Saeger03/03/2025Lohr am Main
Reinhard Schäfer to retire
Franke will join the Executive Board on April 1, 2025
At Bosch since 2004, currently Head of Linear Motion Technology Business Unit of Bosch Rexroth
Schäfer will leave the Management Board at the end of March and retire at the end of June
Dr. Christina Franke, starting April 1, 2025, Member of the Executive Board of Bosch Rexroth AG with responsibility for production and quality management (image source: Bosch Rexroth).
Lohr am Main – As of April 1, 2025, Bosch Rexroth appoints Dr. Christina Franke (49) as a member of the Executive Board responsible for production and quality management. She succeeds Reinhard Schäfer (60), who held the position since April 2019.
Franke joined the Bosch Group in 2004. Previously, she had studied mechanical engineering and business administration in Saarbrücken and received her doctorate in engineering. Her responsibilities at Bosch and Bosch Rexroth in Germany and China included purchasing, engineering, research and development and manufacturing. She joined Bosch Rexroth as Head of Development of Assembly Technology and took over as Head of the Linear Motion Technology Business Unit in Schweinfurt in 2024.
Dr. Tanja Rückert, Member of the Board of Management of Robert Bosch GmbH and Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board of Bosch Rexroth AG, says: “I am glad that Christina Franke, an expert with extensive experience in various technologies, is joining the Board of Management of Bosch Rexroth. She will further develop the strong international production network and quality management and drive digitalization also in these areas.”
Regarding Schäfer’s upcoming retirement, Rückert states: “I would like to thank Reinhard Schäfer for almost 40 years of full commitment to our company. Over the past six years as a Board Member, he has significantly shaped efficient manufacturing, leading quality standards, and reliable customer supply at Bosch Rexroth. I sincerely thank him for his outstanding contributions and wish him all the best for his retirement.”
Schäfer began his career in 1986 as a production trainee at Rexroth Star GmbH in Schweinfurt and later rose to the position of plant manager and managing director. After the merger with Bosch, he held various management positions in the automotive sector and was a member of the Board of Management of the Bosch Electrical Drives division before being appointed to the Board of Management of Bosch Rexroth in 2019.
Dr. Steffen Haack, CEO of Bosch Rexroth, adds: “Reinhard Schäfer has made a significant contribution to the strength of our company with his expertise and tireless commitment to quality, efficiency, and customer satisfaction. I sincerely thank him for the excellent collaboration and the successes we have achieved together. We are looking forward to working with Christina Franke on the Executive Board. I know her as a team player from our long-standing cooperation and appreciate her broad technical expertise, which will benefit our worldwide production activities.”
The new Head of the Business Unit Linear Motion Technology in Schweinfurt will be announced at a later date. Until then, Franke will continue to hold that position as well.
As one of the world’s leading suppliers of drive and control technologies, Bosch Rexroth ensures efficient, powerful and safe movement in machines and systems of any size. The company bundles global application experience in the market segments of Mobile and Industrial Applications as well as Factory Automation. With its intelligent components, customized system solutions, engineering and services, Bosch Rexroth is creating the necessary environment for fully connected applications. Bosch Rexroth offers its customers hydraulics, electric drive and control technology, gear technology and linear motion and assembly technology, including software and interfaces to the Internet of Things. With locations in over 80 countries, around 33,800 associates generated sales revenue of 7.6 billion euros in 2023.
Basic Information Bosch
The Bosch Group is a leading global supplier of technology and services. It employs roughly 417,900 associates worldwide (as of December 31, 2024). According to preliminary figures, the company generated sales of 90.5 billion euros in 2024. Its operations are divided into four business sectors: Mobility, Industrial Technology, Consumer Goods, and Energy and Building Technology. With its business activities, the company aims to use technology to help shape universal trends such as automation, electrification, digitalization, connectivity, and an orientation to sustainability. In this context, Bosch’s broad diversification across regions and industries strengthens its innovativeness and robustness. Bosch uses its proven expertise in sensor technology, software, and services to offer customers cross-domain solutions from a single source. It also applies its expertise in connectivity and artificial intelligence in order to develop and manufacture user-friendly, sustainable products. With technology that is “Invented for life,” Bosch wants to help improve quality of life and conserve natural resources. The Bosch Group comprises Robert Bosch GmbH and its roughly 470 subsidiary and regional companies in over 60 countries. Including sales and service partners, Bosch’s global manufacturing, engineering, and sales network covers nearly every country in the world. Bosch’s innovative strength is key to the company’s further development. At 136 locations across the globe, Bosch employs some 86,900 associates in research and development, of which nearly 48,000 are software engineers.
Bosch Rexroth closed the 2024 financial year in a difficult market environment with significantly lower sales than in the two very strong previous years.
