Rene Koehler Email & Phone Number

Wanaka, OTA, NZ

Wanaka, Otago, New Zealand

As a self-employed Business Advisor and Innovation Consultant, I work with businesses across industries to help them unlock growth, optimize their operations, and drive innovation. With over 15 years of experience in product management, engineering, and R&D, I provide expert guidance to organizations seeking to improve their strategies and achieve.

Auckland, New Zealand

In my roles as Chief Engineer and Product Manager at Fisher & Paykel Technologies (FPT), I was responsible for driving external venture partnerships and leading cross-functional teams across New Zealand and China, taking projects from early exploration to production. Reporting directly to the Executive Team, I focused on expanding FPT’s reach into markets.

Auckland, New Zealand

As Senior Mechanical Design Engineer, I was responsible for leading design, testing, production planning, and R&D for drive systems in major appliances, with a focus on specific market needs and customer requirements. I managed cross-functional project teams across New Zealand and China, ensuring efficient resource planning and project execution.Technical.

Baunatal, Hesse, Germany

Led the transformation of the powertrain R&D team of 10, driving the shift towards electrification in the automotive sector. Managed a portfolio of advanced engineering projects, including a drivable prototype of a Dedicated Hybrid Drivetrain. Setting up the core team for next-generation automotive technology for Hybrid and Battery-Electric mobility..

Baunatal, Hesse, Germany

Technical Project Management for automotive gearboxes and powertrain components with project investments up to $100m and annual production volumes up to 500,000 units. Coordinating and monitoring the activities for lightweight construction across all manufacturing divisions - gearboxes, exhaust systems, Aluminium and Magnesium foundry, forging, and sheet.

Ingolstadt, Bavaria, Germany

Designed and tested the ultra-high-performance dual-clutch transmissions for the Audi R8 mk2, which built the baseline for the Modular Super Sports Car Platform for Lamborghini and Audi. Led the manufacturing implementation of this high-value, low-volume product with semi-automated manufacturing methods in a highly automated factory environment.

Baunatal, Hesse, Germany

Technical Administrator for production of gearbox components like shafts and gears, and the assembly of automotive gearboxes and transmissions. Acted as interface between production and R&D department to improve quality, reduce scrap rate and implement a better continuous improvement process, leading to 50% reduction in scrap and further cost improvements.

Engineer’S Degree, Mechanical Engineering, Diplom Ingenieur

Graduate Engineer's Degree in mechanical engineering

Industrial Mechanic Certificate, Industrial Production Technologies, Apprenticeship With Certificate Of The Chamber Of Industry & Commerce (Ihk)

Apprenticeship with final exams at the shopfloor of Volkswagen Kassel and at the Vocational School in Wolfhagen.