Austria Credit Score Online

Prefabricated house manufacturer Kampa wants to expand its hub for the Eastern European market in the East Austrian town of Siegendorf, which can be found in the federal state of Burgenland.

Kampa is a company from Germany. The Germans want to invest 2,5 million Euro for its main location in Austria. The extension should include a centre for sampling with a 3D-room, where the customers are able to walk through their house of dreams in a virtual environment before its construction.

The location of Siegendorf should then also be a hub for the Kampa expansion in Eastern Europe. “After the expansion of the European Union, the town Siegendorf is located in the middle of Central Europe. The perfect place for our ambitions in the east of Europe”, says a speaker of Kampa.

Kampa Siegendorf manufactures all houses for Austria, Italy, Slovenia and Hungary. Especially the prefabricated house market in Hungary is becoming very strong.

The amount of employees should be raised up from 100 to 110. The sales of the company in Austria last year were 23 million Euro.

The German combine ThyssenKrupp from Düsseldorf is going to close its plant for the manufacture of elevators in the Austrian town of Gratkorn.

300 employees are affected. The factory should close in 18 months.

Gratkorn is located in the north of Styrias provincial capital of Graz. The main reasons of the closure are the competitive pressure, and a changed situation on the market.

A redundancy programme should cushion the worst destinies of the 300 workers. All of them should find new jobs.

ThyssenKrupp also had to close its factory in Valencia (Spain).

Photographer: Vinicius Tupinamba | Agency: Dreamstime.com

The game manufacturer of the “Photo Play” touchscreen terminals from the Upper Austrian village of Schörfling is doing better again.

The computer games factory should reach the net income area this year. Last year the situation was quite critical. The company was about to fold.

The hard financial reorganization and the 40 percent access of financial investor Hannes Niederhauser, changed the bad situation into a positive one.

The banks and suppliers agreed to quit 13 mio EUR of their outstanding accounts. Financial investor Niederhauser brought 1,9 mio EUR new money into the company, and the managing board decreased from 10 down to 3 members.

Now the future of the “Photo Play” touchscreen terminal manufacturer Funworld should be secured.

The Styrian economic office Eisenberger & Herzog has a proper growth spurt in mind. The company wants to open offices in Hungary, Croatia and Slovenia.

The only problem of Eisenberger & Herzog is the lack of staff with top skills.

The company already has a close cooperation with a very good office in Hungary. This cooperation should be intensified.

“We have no time pressure with our expansion in those countries”, says the manager of Eisenberger & Herzog. He adds: “We don’t want to ruin our good reputation.”

Eisenberger & Herzog needed five years to grow from a little regional office to an international econmic office. The most famous customers of the company are the Austrian Mail (Post AG), Windpark-Deals of the Viennese Electricity, the private equity fonds “Nordwind”, and building projects of Kastner and Öhler in Graz.

The Upper Austrian windows manufacturer Internorm, has to face a double-digit minus in its most important market Germany.

The two main reasons of the dropping sales in Germany are the discontinuation of the first-home buyer allowance, and the lift in value-added tax.

Building a house in Germany became 50.000 EUR more expensive, which decreased the number of new buildings by 50 percent.

Now Internorm hopes German politicans are going to change some of their anticommercial laws.

Internorm is doing much better in other countries like Italy (increase of 20 percent), but also in Eastern Europe the business is going fabulous.

Internorm has a market share in Upper Austria of 31 percent. In whole Austria the percentage amounts 15 percent. Internorm is the market leader in Austria and in Europe, and has 1.689 employees. The exports amount 45 percent.

Tiscover is the subsidiary of the Tyrolean holiday advertising, and one of Austrias first holiday websites in the internet.

Four years ago the provincial government of Tirol decided to sell the website, which offers online bookings for Austrian holidays, but the dot-com bubble bursted and the sale was canceled.

Now should be the right time for a new try to sell Tiscover, but before Tiscover needs a cash injection. Otherwise it wouldn’t be possible to receive an high income of the selling. “Without any cash injection it would be the best to close Tiscover”, even says one tourism insider of Tirol.

The manager of Tiscover thinks different. “Tiscover is doing well”, he says. In 2006 the website made a profit of 242.000 EUR.

The other side of the coin: Tiscover has a deficit carried forward of 4,4 mio EUR, but the capital reserve amounts 9,9 mio EUR. Tiscover has 120 employees and should be sold to a strategic partner.

The boss of the air technology enterprise wants to let his employees take part in the success of his company.

This year 500 employees are going to receive a monthly salary extra. The whole bonus amounts one million EUR.

The business year 2006/07 was a very successful one for the manufacturer of flue gas cleaning, suction, and dedusting plants from Austrias federal state Upper Austria. The sales increased by 14 percent up to 106 mio EUR. “That’s why our workers deserves the bonus”, says Scheuch boss Herbert Kendler.

The products of Scheuch are needed to guarantee fresh air. This is very important for particular industries. Scheuch is 100 percent in family property. This years sales increase should amount between 20 and 30 percent. The company has two factories. One in Austria, and another one in Slovakia.

Germany is upset about Austria and declares the “tax war” on the little Alpine republic.

Reason: Austria removed its death duties.

Germanies answer to Austria: Germany is going to cancel its double-tax agreement with Austria which exists since 1954. German citizens should not be able anymore to “pay” death duties in Austria.

Germany want to prevent the drain of tax receipts. The agreement should be canceled at the end of the year.

Photographer: Vinicius Tupinamba | Agency: Dreamstime.com

Usually Austria has an excess supply on apprentices. Many young people are still without a promise for a professional education.

Carinthia is different than the rest of Austria. In Austrias Southern province the industry complains about no availble apprentices.

Most of the pupils who start a job training choose traditional jobs like car mechanic (boys) or hairdresser (girls). Only few go into the industrial sector, too few.

Experts blame the bad reputation of the industry for this kind of development.

South Tyrol was taken away from Austria by Italy after the first world war in 1918.

Now enterprises from South Tyrol leaving Italy and moving to Austria. Reason: the taxes of Italy are too high.

The two most famous South Tyrolean enterprises who want to leave South Tyrol and move to Austria are Fercam and Salewa.

High taxes and extraordinary bureaucratic charges makes it more and more difficult for enterprises in Italy. Italian companies which are located close to the border of Austria, like the province of South Tyrol, have found a solution: they want to leave Italy and move to Austria.

The intended destination of those companies is the province of East Tyrol which belongs to Austria.

Logistics company Fercam made profit in the value of 4,2 mio EUR last year. 3 mio EUR of that sum was taken away for taxes. “This is too much”, says Fercam manager Thomas Baumgartner.

The minister president of South Tyrol is worried about such stories. He wants to go to the Roman parliament and beg for tax abatements for the enterprises of his province. Maybe that could change their mind to stay in Italy.

Walter Meinhart thinks that the German market has much more potential as Eastern Europe.

Already this year he wants to earn 20 million Euro in Germany.

Since 2007 the cable merchant from St. Florian, a little town in the east of Upper Austria, is busy with the foundations of distribution establishments in Hamburg, Berlin, Dortmund and Munich. These are the magic places from where wants to conquer the German market.

Meinhart answers the question “why?”, with the consideration that Germany needs much more cable than Eastern Europe. “So it was crystal clear to expand to Germany than to the east of Europe”, he explains.

This year the cable merchant expects sales in the value of 190 million Euro.

The Austrian family enterprise Swarovski suffers under a low dollar price, and cheap business competition from Egypt and China.

These are the main reasons that the company thinks to cut about 400 jobs.

The sales decreased down to 5 percent. Now the company must also decrease its output.

Not that serious is the situation for the managers of Swarovski. “We are going to survive”, they say. There were a much bigger problems for the company in the 70’s, when the oil crisis made the sales go down to 40 percent.

In the last two years Swarovski invested more than 80 million Euro in its location in the Tyrolean town of Wattens.

“Austria Engine” is the good-sounding name of a new aeroplane engine manufacturer in Austria.

Investors of the new company want to stay unknown. The new manufacturer already started to build a factory for 100 workers in the Lower Austrian town of Wiener Neustadt.

Already next year “Austria Engine” should be ready to build aeroplane engines for “Diamond Aircraft”.

“Austria Engine” has the image of an enterprise which is clouded in secrecy. The names and numbers of the investors are completely secret.

The Carinthian logistics specialist “Salomon Automation” is located in the historical town of Friesach, and received a big order from Germany.

The German beverages distributor Wüllner needs the help of the Austrians. 60.000 of its beverage crates are on the move every day. Austrians should help to organize the warehouse management of the Germans.

Wüllner is located in the German city of Bielefeld, and delivers more than 200 customers with 1.300 different items daily.

By more than 300 logistics installations, Salomon Automation is one of Europes biggest logistics specialists. The enterprise employs more than 360 workers.

Efkon is a toll system enterprise from Austrias federal state Styria.

Now the Styrian company caught an order in an estimated value of 10 mio EUR. South Korea wants to have the company for “free flow toll traces”.

Already 550 free flow toll traces and 350 toll boxes with intigrated bord computer and smart card were delivered to the Asian nation. “These are the worlds best toll boxes in the world”, says the boss of Efkon.

The prepaid system guarantees that toll system operators always receive their money. They don’t need to bill invoices. By one card it’s also possible to pay the bus, the underground, the parking taxes and even at the petrol station.

Efkon already made very good deals in Malaysia recently. The market share in this country amounts 100 percent. Also Taiwan and India are two very good sales markets in Asia.

Efkon employs 550 workers, 100 are located in Austria. Last year Efkon was able to achieve sales in the value of 50 mio EUR.

The Upper Austrian manufacturer of starter coal, the enterprise Hoffmann Elektrokohle AG (HEAG), expects a big deal in Japan.

This years sales should increase from 57,2 up to 61 mio EUR.

The Japanese deal should make the dream come true to open the whole market in Japan for the car supplier Hoffmann Elektrokohle AG (HEAG).

Already today the car supplier from Austria has a foot in the Asian market. The company operates a factory in China.

The Upper Austrian Agricultural machinery maker Pöttinger from the little town of Grieskirchen can celebrate a plentiful harvest in sales.

The company was able to increase its sales by 16,2 percent up to 199 mio EUR.

The growth was very strong in the sector of cultivation: 38,7 percent up to 32,8 mio EUR. The sector grassland increased by 11,9 percent up to 141 mio EUR.

Pöttinger has also a strong increase in exports. The export ratio amounted 81 percent. The company made its best deals with Poland, Czech Republic, Germany and Slovakia.

The amount of employees increased from 986 to 1000.

The Upper Austrian textile and fashion chain Fussl wants to open 12 new shops in the next 12 months. The sales of the enterprise should increase up to 73 mio EUR this year.

Fussl is also thinking to open several shops abroad. “But we have no pressure to do that”, says Fussl boss Karl Mayr junior. “The Austrian market is tough and highly competitive enough”, he confirms.

Fussl has its headquaters in the village “Ort im Innkreis”, which is located close to the town of Ried, in the federal state of Upper Austria. The textile and fashion chain has 77 chain stores at the moment, and sees potential for 120 stores in whole Austria.

The expansion is going to start this week in Lower Austrias Bruck an der Leitha. Chain stores in Gänserndorf, Wiener Neustadt, Stockerau (also Lower Austria), Linz (Upper Austria), Bad Vöslau (Lower Austria) and Deutschlandsberg (Styria) should follow.

Watch band manufacturer Hirsch from Carinthia is world market leader. Hirsch sells his watch bands in 62 countries around the world.

This year the sales should increase from 40 million EUR up to seven percent.

The company is located in Carinthias provincial capital Klagenfurt, and manufactures between 6 and 10 millions of high grade watch bands.

Hirsch has 5 manufacturing facilities: one in the headquarter in Klagenfurt, three in India (Bangalore, Hosur, and Dehradun), and another one in China (Longguang Zhen). The secret of success is the connection and combination between flamboyant design and traditional handicraft.

Hirsch has no competitor who can do business competition in all 62 countries at the same time. The only competitor is located in Italy: Morellato. But the Italians are only a competition in the Central European market.

Hirsch employs 1.450 workers world wide. 300 of them are located in Klagenfurt. The company exists since 1765. These are 8 generations.

Omicron Electronics from the Austrias federal state Vorarlberg is the world market leader of checking devices for energy systems.

The enterprise was founded by Rainer Aberer in 1984. The first target was to develope software for telecommunications. Since 1990 Omicron devotes itself in the development of checking devices for guard and measuring equipment in electronic energy systems.

In just a couple of years the enterprise was able to take the leading position in the world market. The sales increased from 300.000 EUR in 1991, up to 42 mio EUR in 2006.

The secret of success? “The customers comes first”, reveals Omicron manager Martin Pfanner.

Important the same way as the customer is also the employee. “Employees are the biggest value of a company”, tells the manager. Omicron created a motivating and exciting environment for its workers. The latest investment in the environment of the company took 7 mio EUR.

Party time in India! The Austrian company “Benczak” from the federal state of Burgenland, is going to build a whiskey factory in the south if India.

When the building of the factory is done, the Indians are also interested in wine, but whiskey had their preference.

Indians are excited about Austrian wine. They are also interested to buy a lot of Austrian grape vines.

The whiskey factory should consist of 12 tanks with a capacity of 300.000 litres. The volume of orders amount seven million Euro.

But this business transaction should only be the beginning of a big cooperation between Benczak and India. Indians also want to buy a whole winery.

“We won’t to create something unique in India”, explains Raghavendra Gowda, who is one of the directors of the Indian alcohol and spirits company.

© Photographer: Franz Pfluegl | Agency: Dreamstime.com

The battle about the walk of the Upper Austrian Energie AG to the stock exchange market is becoming more serious.

The ruling Peoples Party want to finish the deal on the 12th February. The Socialdemocrats prefer to have a delay in the particular case.

The reason for the Socialdemocrats to have a delay is the wish to create a referendum, if the Energie AG should enter the stock exchange market or not.

“A delay would scare possible investors and would lead to massive additional costs”, worries Upper Austrias minister Josef Pühringer from the Peoples Party about the Socialdemocratic wish.

Official indications confirm additional costs in a value of 40 million Euro. The sum consits of 26 million Euro interest duty, and 14 million Euro for an increase of stock up to 200 million Euro.

The traditional enterprise with its famous ceramic design has financial problems. Now the company decided to start a new export offensive to get out of the debts.

Since three years the Gmundner Ceramics is in the red. Backward sales bring the company in a deep crisis.

Now a new export concept should bring the enterprise out of the debts again. The manager expects an increase in sales of five percent up to 10,1 mio EUR.

Chinese competitors with cheap ceramic products, started to ruin the Austrian business three years ago. The people are now sick of those products, and start to buy products from Austria again. This brings some hope for the company.

Gmundner Ceramics exists since 1903, and employs 200 workers who manufacture 2,6 mio plates, cups and vases every year.

The cigarette manufacturer “Austria Tabak” was government property until the end of the millennium.

Then politicans sold the factory to the Japanese combine “Japan Tobacco” to get some more money for their budget.

Now the Japanese decided to close the factory in two years. 300 workers are affected, and the close-down should happen gradually.

The Japanese want to concentrate their production in Austria on one place. This should be the Lower Austrian town of Hainburg. Hainburg was chosen because its factory is not under protection of historic buildings and monuments, in contradistinction to Linz.

“It’s not allowed to make business with Iran”, says the US-government and points its finger to several Austrian companies.

Especially the OMV, which is Austria’s largest oil-producing, refining and gas station operating company with important activities in other Central European countries, is very pressured by the USA.

Also Austrian banks feel the discomfort of the US-American politicans about their activities.

The Austrian economy is worried about the serious danger of war between USA and Iran. Austria is doing a lot of business with Iran. 340 mio EUR is the value of the exports from Austria to Iran every year. Also some big project of Austrian companies in Iran are on the line.

Lower Austrias building material manufacturer Ardex from Loosdorf is the Austrian location of the German enterprise.

Now Ardex invested 8 mio EUR in the extension of the Austrian location. Also the export should be increased.

Two new buildings were erected for the production process. One already existing building was extended.

Ardex manufactures special building materials for the range of application for slab, mortice, floor and wall. The most important products of Ardex are slab glue, mortice bulk and silicone, as well as spackling compound for the floor, Epoxid industry floors, and glue for parquet flooring.

The most important countries for the export are Italy, Turkey, Hungary, Poland, Ukraine, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Serbia, Albania, Cyprus and Greece.

Ardex has 137 employees in Austria, and locations in more than 50 countries with 1780 co-workers. The sales of the whole combine amount 490 mio EUR. The sales of Ardex in Austria are a well protected secret.

The first time since 2001 the Austrian fashion industry made more sales than four billions EUR.

Small and high-priced merchants benefit by the increased consumer acceptance. They are the true winners of the new sales record.

Not only the sales increased in the Austrian fashion business, but also the amount of fashion shops. Notable: not the big fashion chains opened the shops. The majority were small merchants.

The building firm from Austrias federal state Upper Austria enforce its railway building sector, and buys the traditional Lower Austrian railway building company Petri.

Swietelsky has 6.600 employees and 1,11 billions EUR construction benefit. The enterprise from Upper Austrias provincial capital Linz has confirmed the deal to the federal competition authority.

Now Swietelsky and Petri Bahnbau have to wait for the decision of the federal competition authority.

Petri Bahnbau has 50 employees and sales in the value of 6,43 mio EUR. The profit of the last business year amount 612.000 EUR.

The Lower Austrian principal of the yacht charter company “Akuda” has to go to imprisonment on remand. Suspicion: defalcation and fraud.

Akuda Blue Water and Holidays was also known as “Blu Balu Yachting”. The spokesman of the company shows himself clueless. “We committed no crime”, he says.

The intermediate result of the investigations against Akuda shows 800 aggrieved persons. Prepayments for charter travels were not forwarded to the according charter companies.

“We still don’t know where the money disappeared”, says one of the investigators, who want to open the bank accounts of Akuda by court order now.

The cross-country vehicle manufacturer Arctic Cat from Salzburg is still stepping on the accelerator pedal: new chain stores in Europe are planned.

Arctic Cat AG wants to stabilize its market position in Europe. The Americans want to focus the whole business in Europe by its Austrian subsidiary from Salzburg.

Two years ago Arctic Cat won the business price of the growth competition in the federal state of Salzburg. Now the company wants to built up a chain store network in Italy, France, Germany and Great Britain.In the past year Arctic Cat Austria made sales in the value of 17 mio EUR. The increase in turnover amounts 83%!