The Stuttgart region lies in the heart of the largest industrial area of Europe and is one of the world’s most important economic centers. The region is characterized by its high level of technology and the key branches of industry that are located here: automobile manufacturing, machine building, electrical engineering and creative industries as well as the information and communications technology sectors.
There is a mixture of companies such as Daimler, Bosch, Porsche, IBM, Hewlett Packard that are active around the world, and many other large and medium-sized companies with such well-known names as Stihl, Mahle, Werzalit, Coperion, Festo, Dieffenbacher, TPS, Tecnaro, Märklin or Kärcher that are market and technology leaders in their respective fields.
A characteristic of all of them is their international outlook and level of exports.Stuttgart is also a leading center of industrial research and development, with 24% of all high-tech jobs located in Stuttgart region. This makes the Stuttgart region one of the most innovative metropolitan areas in Europe. It has already been honored several times with the “Award of Excellence for Innovative Regions” by the European Commission. Situated enticingly in one of the largest wine-growing regions of Germany, the “Swabian capital” fascinates visitors from around the world. Stuttgart offers not only an exciting panorama, with impressive gardens and parks, attractive squares, stately castles, palaces and buildings in a variety of architectural styles, but any number of cultural institutions.
With its top-class collection, the Stuttgart State Gallery (Staatsgallerie Stuttgart) counts as one of the most frequently visited art museums in Germany. The Stuttgart Art Museum (Kunstmuseum Stuttgart), a cube of glass, makes an impression day or night. During the day, its elegant architecture blends easily into the surrounding city environment, while at night it floats over Königstrasse as a sculpture of light. The sensational world of Mercedes-Benz is a magnet for all visitors to Stuttgart.
Covering over 15.000 m 2 of exhibition space on nine levels, the Mercedes-Benz Museum displays some 160 vehicles: The first models – Gottlieb Daimler’s motorized coach and the patented motorized wagon of Karl Benz, both dating from 1886 – can be viewed along with the newest production vehicles. In January 2009, Porsche opened a new and architecturally fascinating automobile museum. In this “floating” structure, a 5.000 m 2 exhibit of about 80 chic sports cars chronicles the interesting history of the automobile manufacturer.