Executive Vice President Procurement EADS and Airbus

Klaus Richter was appointed Executive Vice President Procurement of Airbus effective as of November 2007. He is in charge of all procurement across the entire Airbus organisation, of developing strong partnerships with suppliers and ensuring timely delivery of all purchased goods on-cost and with the proper quality. 

In addition, Mr Richter leads the corporate sourcing department of the EADS group, which coordinates the development and application of procurement processes and tools across all EADS divisions. EADS Corporate Sourcing also hosts the EADS Global Sourcing Network with local offices in India and China. 

Before joining EADS, Mr Richter was Senior Vice President Materials Purchasing for BMW, based in Munich, Germany. In this position, he was heading all supplier relations for direct materials and equipment across the entire company. 

Mr. Richter graduated from the Technical University of Munich where he obtained a doctorate in mechanical engineering in 1991. After graduation he received a Humboldt scholarship and spent two years as a researcher and teacher at the University of California at Berkeley. 

Following his studies, Klaus Richter began his professional career with McKinsey&Com in 1993 as a management consultant for Automotive, Electronics and Aerospace businesses and product development, a role which he retained until he joined the BMW Group in 2003 as head of purchasing strategy for production materials. 

Press Department 
June 2012