Bosch today

with a loss of 1.2 billion euros in the previous year. Apart
from cutbacks and growth in sales, important factors in
this marked improvement included improvements in a
number of areas requiring restructuring measures. These
operational improvements more than offset the effects of
the significantly higher raw materials prices that accompanied
the upturn.
Renewed upward trend in headcount
In the course of the year, the number of associates worldwide
rose by 12,800 – or nearly 5 percent – to 283,500. This
growth was centered primarily on Asia Pacific, where more
than 63,000 associates now work for the Bosch Group.
Headcount in China increased by some 5,000 to 26,200,
while in India it rose by 2,200 to its current total of 20,800.
However, headcount also grew in other regions. In Germany,
it rose to 113,600, compared with 111,700 one year
previously.
Enhancing capacity to innovate
In 2010, having also maintained a high level of spending
on research and development throughout the economic
crisis, we increased R&D expenditure by some 6 percent,
to 3.8 billion euros. At the end of the year, approximately
34,000 associates were working in this area worldwide.
We further strengthened our global research network
by opening an additional research center in Singapore,
with operations in Shanghai and Tokyo. And in order to
pool our research, advance engineering, and process
engineering activities, we also acquired a substantial area
of land close to Stuttgart.