Germany enjoys an excellent reputation regarding its dynamic and innovative R&D environment. This is regularly confirmed by leading international comparisons on innovative capability. The latest example can be found in the current Innovation Union Scoreboard (IUS), which is used as an instrument by the European Commission for the evaluation of the innovative performance of European nations. The IUS ranks Germany among the group of leading innovators. Within the EU, only Sweden and Denmark are placed ahead of the German R&D location. With its high innovation output, Germany is a first rate location for R&D projects.
The unique innovative potential of Germany as a research location is also acknowledged by international executives. According to a survey by Ernst & Young, a quarter of the decision-makers asked, think Germany is the most attractive R&D location in the world, ahead of neighbouring Switzerland as well as the USA.
A further expression of the 'world class performance' of German R&D departments is provided by the results of the surveys by the American Chamber of Commerce in Germany (AmCham).
In these surveys 29 percent of the companies state that they are developing their R&D activities in Germany. For this reason, they are increasingly establishing their own research and development centres that are utilising R&D potentials with national as well as global responsibilities.