In its more than 140-year history, ABB has grown from a pair of start-ups into a global technology leader with operations in more than 100 countries. On the way, it has pioneered many of the technologies that made the modern world possible.
2019 – present: Performing with purpose
ABB develops its company purpose, followed by a new operating model, the ABB Way, which moves decision-making closer to the customer. ABB’s purpose is to enable a more sustainable and resource-efficient future with its technology leadership in electrification and automation.
| 2023 | ABB launches its updated Sustainability Agenda, committing the company to reach net zero by 2050 and to partner with its customers and stakeholders to enable a low-carbon society, preserve resources and promote social progress. | Discover more |
| 2021 | ABB launches a global gender-neutral parental leave program to support a culture of diversity and inclusion. Every ABB employee worldwide who is or whose partner is having or adopting a child is eligible. | Discover more |
| 2020 | ABB introduces the “ABB Way” operating model, decentralizing the company. Henceforth, the company’s 20-odd divisions are the highest operating level, with full accountability for their strategies, resources and performance. | Discover more |
| 2020 | ABB sells a majority stake in its Power Grids business to Hitachi, marking a turning point in its history as a major player in high-voltage power transmission. Henceforth, ABB will focus on its electrification and automation businesses. | Discover more |
| 2019 | In consultation with its key stakeholder groups, ABB develops its company purpose: “To enable a more sustainable and resource-efficient future with our technology leadership in electrification and automation.” | Discover more |
2000 – 2018: Expanding and innovating for a new century
ABB starts a new chapter of expansion and innovation, acquiring leading businesses that strengthen its technology and market leadership in electrification and automation and launching many transformative technologies.
| 2018 | ABB acquires GE Industrial Solutions for $2.6 billion, strengthening its #2 global position in electrification. | Discover more |
| 2017 | ABB acquires B&R, a leader in machine and factory automation. B&R later becomes ABB’s machine automation division. | Discover more |
| 2012 | ABB acquires Thomas & Betts for $3.9 billion, becoming a major player in the US electrification products market | Discover more |
| 2011 | ABB acquires Baldor Electric Company for $4.2 billion, making the company a global leader in industrial motion. | Discover more |
| 2008 | ABB enables the world’s longest high-voltage direct current (HVDC) submarine cable, the 580 km NorNed, linking the power networks of Norway and the Netherlands with a transmission capacity of 700 MW. | Discover more |
| 2000 | ABB delivers the world’s first shore-to-ship power supply system to the Swedish port of Gothenberg. | Discover more |
1988 – 1999: A global technology leader is born
In 1988, ABB is formed from the merger of ASEA of Sweden and BBC of Switzerland. The new company, headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, has annual revenues of $17 billion and 160,000 employees.
1970 – 1987: Revolutionizing manufacturing and power generation
ABB’s predecessor companies, ASEA of Sweden and BBC of Switzerland, usher in a new era of robotics automation while transforming power generation.
| 1971 | BBC starts production of bipolar semiconductors at its dedicated Lenzburg semiconductor facility. |
| 1970 | BBC builds the most powerful transformer in the world at 1,300 MVA (megavolt ampere). |
1940 – 1969: Pioneering high-voltage power transmission while transforming rail and industry
ASEA of Sweden pioneers high-voltage direct current power (HVDC) transmission while BBC launches transformative technologies for industry and rail.
| 1969 | BBC develops the first gearless cement drive. |
| 1965 | BBC builds the first 110 kV gas-insulated switchgear, allowing circuit breakers to operate safely in a confined space. |
| 1953 | ASEA becomes the first company in the world to manufacture synthetic diamonds. |
| 1952 | ASEA designs and installs a low pressure oil-filled cable, built to withstand an atomic bomb, to connect an underground power station to the Swedish grid. |
| 1944 | BBC develops the first high-speed locomotive with drive shafts fitted exclusively in bogies (chassis carrying a wheelset). |
| 1943 | BBC builds the first 110 kV high-speed air blast circuit breaker. |
| 1942 | ASEA builds the world's first 120 MVA, 220 kV transformer in the Stockholm Elverks Värtanstation. |
1883 – 1939: Developing technologies that made the modern world possible
ABB’s predecessor companies, ASEA of Sweden and BBC of Switzerland, are founded in the late 19th century to take advantage of a new technology called electricity. They pioneer many of the technologies that have made the modern world possible.
| 1939 | BBC builds the first combustion gas turbine for generating electricity. | |
| 1933 | BBC obtains the patent for turbine rotors constructed from individual steel disks that are welded together. | |
| 1926 | ASEA supplies locomotives and power converters for the new Stockholm to Gothenburg railway. | |
| 1924 | The first resettable miniature circuit breaker (MCB), invented by Hugo Stotz while working at BBC, is patented, making it possible to use electricity safely and efficiently in homes, buildings and infrastructure. | Discover more |
| 1893 | BBC supplies Europe’s first large-scale combined heat and power plant producing alternating current. | |
| 1891 | ASEA builds the first three-phase transmission system in Sweden. | |
| 1890 | Allmänna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget, later shortened to ASEA, is formed from the merger of Elektriska Aktiebolaget and Wenströms & Granströms Elektriska Kraftbolag. | |
| 1889 | Jonas Wenström invents the three-phase system for generators, transformers and motors. | |
| 1883 | Ludvig Fredholm establishes Elektriska Aktiebolaget in Stockholm as manufacturers of electrical lighting and generators. | |