The scientific foundation for testing and evaluation of safety-relevant components such as car wheels, truck axles and rail vehicle bodies was laid in Darmstadt in the 1930s. Today, 500 staff from different disciplines work together on the campus of the Fraunhofer Institute for Structural Durability and System Reliability (LBF) in four buildings in Bartningstrasse. Industrial contracts and research projects are carried out. Test rigs are available for complete vehicles or ships' motors.

The department of adaptronics develops active components such as sensors for monitoring of aircraft, for vibration control of mechanical structures and for noise reduction. In the LOEWE centre AdRIA, funded by the State of Hessen, the research staff work closely with the Technical University of Darmstadt.

The newest department of the institute is the Centre for System Reliability with emphasis on electromobility. Under the motto "light and electric", concepts for the mobility of the future are under development.