Airship construction in the first third of the 20th century attracted considerable industry and contributed significantly to Friedrichshafen's relative prosperity. Friedrichshafen is best known for having been home to the Zeppelin Airship Company, the Dornier Flugzeugwerke, Tognum AG and its commercial internal combustion engine manufacturing subsidiary - MTU Friedrichshafen Gmbh as well as ZF Friedrichshafen AG, a manufacturer of transmission systems. Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, who was born in Konstanz (Constance), originally had his airships built in a floating airship hangar on the lake which could be aligned with the wind to support the difficult starting procedure. There is a large Zeppelin Museum sited near the lake shore. In recent years a number of small Zeppelin airships have been constructed using modern technology (Zeppelin NT) and these can be booked for sightseeing tours. There is also a Dornier Museum, located at the Friedrichshafen airport, which displays restored Dornier aircraft and technology.
Apart from industry and tourism, various regular commercial exhibitions, such as Aero (aviation technology), InterBoot (water sports) and EuroBike are important economical factors. Furthermore, the Graf-Zeppelin-Haus cultural centre has become a popular location for congresses, conferences, and other events
