About AVL

In 1948, a group of engine experts headed by Prof. Dr. Hans List joined forces in a joint venture and founded the Ingenierbüro List (IBL). The goal was to develop modern engines, based on the latest findings obtained from fundamental research, whilst at the same time taking into account the growing economic criteria within the industry. The first diesel engines were mass-produced at the Jenbacher Werke in Tirol and the Andritz Machine Works in Graz in 1949.

In 1951, IBL became AVL – Anstalt für Verbrennungskraftmaschinen List. In 1952, the Central research premises were established in Kleiststraße with funds from the Marshall Plan. This site remains the home of our group headquarters and the central research and development premises. One of the most important achievements came in 1958 with the development of the first direct-injection four-stroke diesel engines for trucks to be equipped with swirl ducts. These replaced the two-stroke engines and four-stroke prechamber engines, which had been the norm to this point.

In 1960 AVL expands its business by including the engine instrumentation systems. In 1963, the intensive development of diesel engine technology led to the construction of an 18-cylinder, two-stroke diesel engine generating 2,250 hp. As well as engine development, we also began to manufacture engine testing devices in the early 1960s, and started the series production of quartz pressure sensors, gravimetric fuel consumption measuring equipment, flue gas measuring devices, and complete engine combustion analysis systems. In 1969, the first fully-automatic digital testbed was installed at our headquarters.

At the start of the 1970s, the first fully-automatic AVL test beds went on sale. Other milestones achieved in this decade were the development of capsule technology to soundproof engines, as well as the development of DI diesel engines for passenger cars in 1974. Two years later, we presented the first prototype of a light diesel engine (LD). In 1979 Helmut List, who had been working for the company since 1966 and is the son of the company’s founder, took over as chairman of the board of management.

In 1982, we introduced a procedure that allowed real-time insights into the combustion processes of diesel engines. In 1985, we commissioned a highly-dynamic test bench, with which it was possible to test a real engine in a virtual car for the first time. In 1986, large-scale production began of the world’s first HSDI diesel engine (High Speed Direct Engine), developed by AVL, as a drive system for light commercial vehicles. In 1987 AVL launches its newest division, Advanced Simulation Technologies.
 

In the 1990s, we implemented tomographic combustion analysis (TCA). This made it possible to visually record combustion phenomena in production-based Otto engines. We also started dealing with the topic of electrification at an early stage and, in 1992, joined forces with a manufacturer to develop the testbed demonstrator for a full hybrid drive. This Universal Hybrid System (UHS) combined a combustion engine with two electric engines via a planetary gear. From 1993, we were the first company in the world to supply specific motorsport test beds, with which it was possible to simulate the dynamic requirements of racing engines (for example, Formula 1 and the Indy Series).

In 2002, we opened our test track in Gratkorn, near Graz. In the same year we took over the MTC AB engine test center in Sweden. In 2003, the Helmut List Hall in Graz opened as an event center for up to 2,400 visitors. Also in 2003, we took over the German engine developer Schrick. In 2007, we ramped up our internationalization with the acquisition of French drive system service provider Le Moteur Moderne. In 2008, the new subsidiary “AVL Software and Functions GmbH” was founded in Regensburg, Germany.

The “AVL Shanghai Tech Center” battery laboratory opened in 2010. This was followed in 2015 by a second technical center in China: the “AVL Tianjin Technical Center”. In 2014, we acquired a controlling stake in qpunkt, a company specializing in thermal management, fluid dynamics and acoustics. In 2016, we entered into a partnership with Greenlight Innovation Corp., one of the world’s leading providers of test and production facilities for hydrogen fuel cells, electrolyzers, batteries and energy storage systems. In 2017, we and TU Graz commissioned a joint competence center for the research and development of innovative transmission systems. Further facilities followed in the form of the ADAS battery test lab in Graz in 2018. In the same year we founded AVL Fuel Cell Canada Inc. (“AVL FCC”), a global center of excellence for Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell stacks, with headquarter in Vancouver, Canada. In 2019, AVL offered its comprehensive know-how in new technologies to the maritime business and opens its very first AVL maritime office in Hamburg.

In 2021, the Battery Innovation Center opened in Graz: a competence center for innovative battery concepts, with which we support the automobile industry in its shift to e-mobility. 2022 was an exciting year: we officially opened our new Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Test Center, one of the largest and most advanced test sites for fuel cells and electrolysis systems in the world, in Graz. In parallel, the new Mobility and Sensor Test Center in Roding, Germany, has been established, which is a unique indoor laboratory for the verification and validation of sensors for driver assistance systems. Moreover, we established a unique engineering facility to test conventional and future vehicles in Zalaegerszeg, Hungary. It is directly connected to the AVL ZalaZONE proving ground and provides an all-around solution to test ADAS/AD systems in a real-world environment. Furthermore, we opened our new office in San Sebastián in addition to existing three subsidiaries in Spain.