BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM INTERNATIONAL GMBH

History

YearDetail
1885-1948 Innovative beginnings
1885 Albert Boehringer purchased a small tartar factory in Nieder-Ingelheim, now part of Ingelheim am Rhein.
1893 Experiments were undertaken to produce citric acid, which resulted in the formation of lactic acid. After two years, the company registered its first patent for a new process for manufacturing lactic acid baking powder.
1917 The research department was established on the initiative of the chemist Heinrich Wieland, a cousin of Albert Boehringer. This R&D department will be responsible for all research and development activities across the company’s acid, alkaloid, and pharmaceutical sectors. 
1933-1945 The National Socialism period also affected Boehringer Ingelheim as a manufacturing company. Some of its seizure of power included delayed production of consumer goods, import limitations, and foreign currency restrictions. 
1945 The CELA Landwirtschaftliche Chemikalien GmbH (Agricultural Chemicals Ltd.) was founded to manufacture pesticides that help farmers safeguard their crops against the potato beetle plague
   
1948-1990 Going global
1948 The first foreign subsidiary, Bender & Co. GmbH, was established three years after the end of the Second World War.
1950 Boehringer Ingelheim collaborated with Pfizer & Co., the American pharmaceutical company in the field of antibiotics. 
1955 Boehringer Ingelheim received an offer from Pfizer & Co. to sell and distribute Terramycin antibiotics. This development marks the beginning of the animal health sector in Boehringer Ingelheim. 
1961 The Institute for Pharmaceutical Research, focused on virology and pharmacology, was founded in Vienna. 
1977 The Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation was established to promote biology, chemistry, medicine, and pharmaceutical science research.
1989 The company launched Alveofact, a surfactant substitute for respiratory distress syndrome in newborns.
   
1990-2024 Value through Innovation
1993 The German pharmaceutical business with two sites in Ingelheim and Biberach was under one joint management.
2000 Boehringer Ingelheim Center sets new standards in Ingelheim, which include administrative and corporate functions at the heart of company operations.
2003 Boehringer Ingelheim invested approximately $288.4 million to expand its biopharmaceutical active ingredient production facilities in Biberach.
2004 Boehringer Ingelheim acquired STEAG Microparts GmbH, a micro-technology company in Germany, from STEAG AG Essen. 
2011 Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly received authorization from the European Commission to market Trajenta (linagliptin), a drug used to treat adults with type 2 diabetes.
2019  Boehringer Ingelheim partnered with Lupin Ltd. to develop and commercialize a novel Oncology drug to treat KRAS-driven cancers. Under this agreement, the company will strengthen its portfolio for patients with lung and gastrointestinal cancers.
2023 Boehringer Ingelheim signed an agreement with IBM to utilize its foundation model technologies to discover novel candidate antibodies for developing efficient therapeutics. 
2023 Boehringer Ingelheim unveiled its advanced Biologicals Development Center (BDC) in Biberach an der Riß, Germany. With an investment of 378.6 million, the company significantly enhances its innovation power and development of biopharmaceutical development capabilities in Germany.
2024 Boehringer Ingelheim opened its new biogas power plant in  Ingelheim site, Germany. The new biomass power plant minimizes the CO2 emissions produced by the energy generated at the plant by 50%.