World Champion Austria

World Champion Austria YEARBOOK

2022

FOCUS

Technology world market leaders from Austria

A foray into Austria’s economy

The latest from the provinces

Innovation and tradition meet entrepreneurial spirit

Interviews and studies on Austria as a business location

Digitisation, technology, research & development, start-ups

Winter Love always returns

World Champion Austria

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Foreword

The world economy and thus Austria’s companies have been hit hard by the impact of the Covid pandemic. But now we are on the way up again.

Many areas of life have gone back to normal, putting the economy back on track. Our comprehensive set of measures has contributed to this regeneration considerably. We aimed to guide our businesses through these difficult times and thus secure jobs in Austria. At the same time, we are also boosting the quality of our business location and making it more attractive in the face of international competition.

Our focus is on establishing a sustainable and digital economy. Digitisation, research, technology and development secure growth and wealth in the long term, they are relevant factors for the resilience of our businesses.

The challenges of the last few months showed us that innovative capacity is one of our companies’ strengths, helping them to manage the pandemic quite well. In order to be innovative though, our businesses – from start-ups to SMEs and flagship companies – need some relief in the shape of less regulation and more service. That also helps to attract more business settlements of foreign companies, which receive support from the Austria Business Agency ABA to help them get a foothold. ABA also helps businesses to find the right skilled staff.

All our measures also help our foreign trade, which is one of our big assets – every other job in Austria depends directly or indirectly on exports.

About 50 percent of our economic output is generated through trade in other markets. This makes Austria one of the world’s top ten exporters per capita. The innovative capacity of our businesses is a decisive factor – it turns them into high-tech heavyweights and global market leaders.

Our measures to raise the attractiveness of Austria as a business location are very diverse and we will continue to pursue them fervently – for growth and wealth, and for a successful business location.

Margarete Schramböck Federal Minister for Digital and Economic Affairs

© Bundeskanzleramt

Dear readers,

Reprocessing of a ventilator, Vienna General Hospital (AKH), Vienna

Reem Hospital Abu Dhabi, U.A.E.

© UKSH

© ZOOM VP.AT

Oncological rehabilitation for children and adolescents, Leuwaldhof, St. Veit im Pongau

University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein (UKSH), Germany

VAMED offers a complete project and service portfolio for health care as a developer, planner, contractor and operator. VAMED has already successfully implemented more than 1.000 projects for hospitals, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes, health resorts and thermal spas in 95 countries worldwide.

World Champion Austria

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Table of content

At a glance 10 “We want to focus on long-term added value“

Interview with René Tritscher, Managing Director of ABA and thus the highest representative of Austria’s business location.

48 Smart and innovative – Austria’s youth show us what they can do

Every year Austrian students compete in the fields of technology and innovation, incorporating ingenuity and dedication.

12 EY Attractiveness Survey Austria 2021

Significant increase in the attractiveness of Austria as a business location. A record in foreign direct investments in Austria – against the European trend. Austrian businesses, on the other hand, are holding back.

66 Mayor and Governor Michael Ludwig on the ­business location Vienna

Economic data for the province

16 Austria’s stock exchange has a long tradition

68 Vienna – a city benefitting from its economic ­diversity

In the year 2021 the Vienna Stock Exchange celebrates its 250 years anniversary. Austrians have rediscovered their love for stocks during the Covid pandemic.

Christian C. Pochtler, President of the Viennese Federation of Industries, and Walter Ruck, head of the Vienna ­Economic Chamber, talk about the challenges facing Austria’s capital city.

20 Cutting-edge research – an expedition into the f­ uture

71 Innovative community at Seestadt Aspern

Austrian research power is receiving a major financial boost with the new funding programme “excellent=austria”.

22 Mastering the digital transformation with full speed

Michael Zettel, head of Accenture Austria, talks about successful digitisation, challenges and why we are where we are.

Established only one year ago, the EIT Manufacturing Co-Location Center East already had to increase its space due to the high demand.

74 „Heaven, Vienna mine. I’m in the spell of your charms divine“

With or without pandemic: Vienna flies high with business settlements and local founders.

28 The “digital dividend” gives businesses an added value

78 A factory in Vienna turns simple data into smart data

A study by the Federation of Austrian Industries and ­Accenture clearly shows that digitisation boosts growth, added value, jobs and new investments.

34 Best practice: Digitising the SVS

Hans Aubauer, Director General of the Social Health Insurance for the Self-Employed (SVS) on the necessary transformation from a paper plane to a digital high flyer.

The project EuProGigant has moved into gears and The Pilot Factory 4.0 of the Vienna University of Technology is one of its drivers.

84 Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner on the b ­ usiness location Lower Austria

Economic data for the province

86 Lower Austria – companies full of optimism 44 Austria’s 6G research is state-of-the-art in every way

6G for signal processing in high frequency systems, machine learning and unlimited data transfer.

Thomas Salzer, President of the Lower Austrian Federation of Industries, and Wolfgang Ecker, head of the Lower Austrian Economic Chamber, speak about the essentials for the business location.

ReFocus Austria: For Austrian Businesses Worldwide Led by the Foreign Ministry, the Austrian government has launched the country’s largest global outreach programme for economic recovery

Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs Minoritenplatz 8 1010 Vienna Facts & Figures ReFocus Austria is the country‘s largest outreach to boost the

“With ReFocus Austria, we present our country and our companies as a strong, stable and innovative partner in the heart of Europe.”

economy. From September 2021 till June 2022, more than 100 events on five continents will be organised by Austria‘s representations abroad. www.refocus-austria.at Refocus.Austria@bmeia.gv.at

Austrian Foreign Minister Michael Linhart Foreign Minister Michael Linhart in Sarajevo

As a mid-sized economy, Austria has been hit hard by Covid-19:

Since September 2021, more than 50 ReFocus Austria-events

„Although our national economy has recovered better than

have taken place at Austria‘s representations abroad. All of

expected, especially since the beginning of the vaccination

them presented Austria as a strong and innovative partner

campaign, many challenges remain. This is why we have

in the heart of Europe. At the „Austrian-Ukrainian Green-

launched the initiaitive ReFocus Austria,“ says Foreign Minister

Tech Day“, for instance, success stories and pioneering

Michael Linhart.

environmental technologies from Austria were presented in Lviv, Ukraine. In Rome, Madrid and Barcelona, the Austrian

ReFocus Austria is a key component of the Austrian Federal

company Rosenbauer showcased the world‘s first e-fire

government‘s economic comeback plan. As Team Austria,

engine, advocating for e-mobility and a reduction of carbon-

the Foreign Ministry, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and

emissions in the fire-fighting industry. At a street festival

other ministries, Advantage Austria of the Austrian Federal

in Tel Aviv, Austria was promoted as a tourist destination

Economic Chamber and the Austrian National Tourist Office

with “Kaiserschmarren”, a national dish, and Jazz music by

are promoting the Austrian economy worldwide in order

Austrian artists.

to secure domestic jobs and investments. Until June 2022, the campaign will focus on core competencies of Austria‘s

From Buenos Aires to Dakar, from Beijing to Ottawa, ReFocus

economy: renewable energy, e-mobility, sustainability, digital

Austria is sending a clear signal: Austria is back in business!

transformation, infrastructure, urban technology and tourism.

World Champion Austria Table of content

At a glance 90 Happy networking in Lower Austria

Platforms and networks for businesses and science are part of Lower Austria’s economic strategy.

94 Lower Austria is back in the fastlane

Austria’s largest province is right in the middle of an ­economic comeback with excellent growth rates.

118 Governor Günther Platter on the business location Tyrol

120 Tyrol – hard-hit by the pandemic but on the way back up

96 Governor Hermann Schützenhöfer on the business location Styria

Economic data for the province

Christoph Swarovski, President of the Tyrolean Federation of Industries, and Christoph Walser, head of the Tyrol Economic Chamber, talk about “their” businesses and stand up for Tyrol.

Economic data for the province

124 Austria beautifies the eyes of the world 98 Styria – a province full of enthusiasm

Stefan Stolitzka, President of the Styrian Federation of Industries, and Josef Herk, head of the Styrian Economic Chamber, speak about the province’s businesses and show their optimism.

102 Full certification for trustworthy AI

The testing and certification of artificial intelligence takes place where the right know-how is home – in Styria.

128 Governor Markus Wallner on the business location Vorarlberg

Economic data for the province

130 Vorarlberg – business indicators bring optimism

106 Support for positive development in Styria

The Austrian eyewear manufacturers withstood the ­challenges of the Covid pandemic and keep a positive outlook.

Barbara Eibinger-Miedl, Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs, and Doris Kampus, Regional Councillor for Social Affairs, on the stimulus measures and projects.

Martin Ohneberg, President of the Vorarlberg Federation of Industries, and Hans Peter Metzler, head of the Vorarlberg Economic Chamber, speak about the challenges in their province and how to tackle them.

136 Resilient business location in the far West 110 Governor Wilfried Haslauer on the business ­location Salzburg

Peter Unterkofler, President of the Salzburg Federation of Industries, speaks about the good atmosphere in Salzburg and his fear of a possible inflationary spiral.

140 Governor Hans Peter Doskozil on the business ­location Burgenland

Austria’s knitwear and loden producers combine tradition with chic and innovative ideas for international success.

Economic data for the province

142 Burgenland is focusing on digitisation

114 These manufacturers are not pulling the wool over your eyes

The production sector is making a major contribution to the added value and employment in Vorarlberg.

Economic data for the province

112 Salzburg – the industrial sector became the ­saviour

Manfred Gerger, President of the Burgenland Federation of Industries, on “his” businesses and the positive side of the Covid pandemic – the much-needed rapid increase in digitisation.

144 No need for wrinkles despite the Covid pandemic

Austrian cosmetics producers can succeed on the international beauty market also during times of crises.

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148 Governor Peter Kaiser on the business location Carinthia

160 Austrian start-up from Klagenfurt conquers the world

Economic data for the province

150 Carinthia – Striving to be a trailblazer in eco-economics

ITimo Springer, President of the Carinthian Federation of Industries, and Jürgen Mandl, head of the Carinthian Economic Chamber, speak about their “let’s do it” mentality.

Video streaming software provider Bitmovin is the technology leader in this field and full of enthusiasm.

162 Governor Thomas Stelzer on the business location Upper Austria

Economic data for the province

164 Upper Austria – A province in comeback mode 154 Good mood and optimism in the South

The economic data for 2020 is encouraging and much better than was expected at the start of the Covid pandemic.

Now it is time to invest.

Doris Hummer, head of the Upper Austrian Economic Chamber, talks about the growth dynamic and the above-average economic growth in the province.

166 With full speed into the digital transformation 156 Technology or countryside? Carinthia has both!

Carinthia is often only associated with tourism and lakes.

And the carnival. But that’s an image the country is rectifying now.

Upper Austria is making huge investments to ensure the province retains its reputation as a top Central European business location..

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World Champion Austria Interview

“We want to focus on long-term added value“ Interview with René Tritscher, Managing Director of ABA and thus the highest representative of Austria’s business location.

T

wo years ago, René Tritscher was appointed as the head of the new department “Work in Austria” of the Austrian Business Agency (ABA), which actively supports Austrian companies in finding skilled staff abroad and promotes Austria as a job location. The expansion of ABA from a business settlement agency to a full business location agency turned the organisation into a port of call for investors and skilled staff; it now promotes Austria as an attractive place to do business and to work. An active business location policy aims not only to attract the best companies but also the best people.

On 1 July 2021, Tritscher took over from long-standing Managing Director René Siegl as head of the Austrian Business Agency. ”World Champion Austria” met him for an interview.

Being the Managing Director of the Austrian Business Agency, you know Austria as a business location like no other. How is it doing?

The head of the Austrian Institute for Economic Research WIFO, Gabriel Felbermayr, has answered this question recently really well: “There is room for optimism, the second quarter was very positive in Austria. Austria is getting back on track a bit faster than Germany, for example.” This description coincides with talks that we are currently holding with investors. Generally, we can say that those who react quickly during a crisis will usually emerge from it stronger. And Austria did just that.

“Work in Austria” was established at ABA in 2019 as a new service. Is it doing the same job as a recruiter?

Work in Austria’s tasks are fundamentally different from a recruiter’s tasks. We don’t have any specific selection processes or do job interviews. This is how we separate ourselves clearly from recruiters. One of ABA’s main tasks is to highlight Austria as a

place to work. Austria isn’t on many skilled staffs’ radar, unlike Germany, for example. We need to change this. We ensure that Austria is on the radar of talent that are willing to move.

How is ABA supporting Austrian businesses in finding skilled staff?

We are organising events in our target countries Croatia, Poland, Romania and Bulgaria, for example. They specifically target potential candidates, and we showcase Austrian companies. We have also created a nationwide job platform for international, highly skilled specialists. Businesses can register there and advertise their open positions internationally for free.

At the turn of the year, we also established a service point for immigration and residency at ABA. We support businesses in recruiting highly skilled staff from abroad as a one-stop-shop.

Our experts help with all questions surrounding the Red-WhiteRed-Card [N.B. Austria’s immigration and residency permit for non-EU-citizens] and offer support during the application process.

You were appointed Managing Director on 1 July. What chan­ ges does this entail at ABA? Having become Austria’s business location agency, our strategic direction has also changed. In the future we want to pay even more attention to quality over quantity when settling new businesses in Austria. The added economic value for the business location is decisive to us. The Covid crisis has highlighted the vulnerability of national economies and made us aware of how important a low dependency on international production and securing supply chains is. Therefore, we want to focus on longterm added value in future by specifically approaching international businesses from the fields of IT and life sciences, as they create premium jobs.

© ABA

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René Tritscher, Managing Director of the Austrian Business Agency, on the organisation’s tasks and the business location.

Speaking of changes, what needs to change in the business location to keep it attractive? Or is everything in order and there is no need for action?

There is always room for improvement, even though Austria has made unparalleled progress to the top of the European countries as a business location over the last decades. Our economy mainly needs further incentives that promote investments. The Investment Bonus was a very good example, but the Research Bonus also helps to attract international businesses to Austria – or makes those who are already operating here invest more, respectively. I’m thinking of Infineon or Boehringer Ingelheim, for example.

How did the pandemic change ABA, how did you experience the crisis?

The Covid pandemic gave digitisation a massive boost. Not only in education and in the world of business but also at ABA. Like all companies we struggled with organisational details in the beginning. But many ABA employees were used to working from

home already before the pandemic as our teams are travelling internationally to promote Austria as a business location, a place to work and also a place to shoot films.

During the lockdowns we managed to perform a lot of tasks via video meetings and kept working together. We did not only communicate within ABA though, but also with investors. In May 2020 we successfully hosted the first large-scale virtual investor event.

If you permit a personal question at the end, we would like to know how you recharge your batteries? Being in charge of pro­ moting the business location is obviously very challenging.

It may sound corny but my most important source of energy is my family. I am a team player and that’s why I am also a passionate football player. Pursuing a common goal is not only good for the body but also for your mental health.

I am therefore looking forward to continuing working with my great and highly motivated team at the reorganised Austrian Business Agency. ◆

World Champion Austria Investments

EY Attractiveness Survey Austria 2021 A record in foreign direct investments in Austria – against the European trend.

Success for Austria’s business location policy Gunther Reimoser, Country Managing Partner at EY Austria, considers the overall slight decrease of investments into Europe a sign of great trust in the competitiveness of the various national economies: “The Covid pandemic sent Europe into freeze mode in spring 2020. It led to massive austerity measures and halted numerous investment projects. But in the second half of the year the economy went back into gear in many places and the situation

improved significantly for investments. In the end, the decrease in investments was considerably less than initially feared.”

Reimoser believes that the high increase in foreign investments in Austria was the driving force for a further economic upswing: “We consider this increase against the European trend an acknowledgment of the Austrian business location policy – the attractiveness of Austria has gone up considerably during the last

© EY/Stefan Seelig

5,578

investment projects from foreign investors were announced throughout Europe in 2020, which was 13 percent less than the previous year. The last time we experienced such a drop in investments was 2009. But due to lockdown and severe restrictions that affected private and business life, some analysts had expected an even bigger decrease in investments. Several medium-sized national economies such as Poland, Turkey, Austria and Switzerland, however, could actually attract more investments from foreign businesses than in 2019. The number of foreign direct investments in Austria rose a further ten percent in 2020 – against the European trend. 76 new projects meant a new record; in 2019 there were 69 projects.

The main driver of this increase was investments from Germany, where there was an increase of 34 new projects, which was an increase of 42 percent. German companies are responsible for almost every other foreign investment in Austria of late. The number of investments from the United States and China, however, went down significantly compared to the previous year.

These findings come from the 19th EY Attractiveness Survey of business consulting agency EY, which looks every year at the attractiveness of Europe as a business location and actual investment projects from foreign businesses.

Gunther Reimoser, Country Managing Partner at EY Austria

© Pixabay

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The automotive sector came to a halt due to the Covid pandemic, which caused a decrease of 35 percent in investments among these businesses.

year. The Covid crisis caused – temporarily – a full stop in spring 2020 but not among investments. Now we need to capitalise on this boom to kickstart the Austrian economy.”

The situation is very good for a new start: “The business location keeps attracting investments, the number of infections is currently quite low and Austria is a trailblazer in easing the economic Covid restrictions step-by-step. All of these are good signs to quickly give the economy the right impetus and to create new jobs through investments, and in turn stimulate employment,” Reimoser says.

Record investments in Austria in 2020 German businesses were once again the most relevant investors in Austria; they increased their investments by 42 percent compared to 2019. Direct investments from the United States, however, went down by 15 percent. There were seven projects from Switzerland, one more than the previous year. Businesses from other major European economies such as France, Italy, Great Britain and Spain seem to have hardly any interest in investing in Austria. The number of Chinese investments shrunk massively: down to one from ten.

Austrian businesses are holding back Looking in the other direction, there was a clear downward trend: investments from Austrian companies abroad had already gone down in 2019 by almost a quarter to 107 projects. In 2020, this figure dropped down to 74. The number of Austrian investments in Central and Eastern European countries went down from 39 to 29; in 2018 the CEE region had seen 63 investments from Austria. In Western Europe, however, EY counted two more projects in 2020: 70 after 68 in 2019. “In 2020, Austrian companies invested more in Germany with 31 projects, followed by France with twelve projects and Great Britain with eight,” Reimoser says.

Expected increase Last year, businesses from the automotive and the mechanical engineering sector reduced their investments across Europe significantly by 35 and 21 percent respectively. “Classic industrial companies had to slow down their investments massively in 2020.

There was a huge drop in turnover in the manufacturing trade and thus temporarily great uncertainty,” Reimoser says. “Pharmaceutical businesses, however, expanded their capacities considerably

World Champion Austria

© voestalpine AG

Investments

Voestalpine, Austria‘s only crude steel producer, is considered a global pioneer in environmental protection and decarbonisation. With its own „Greentec Steel“ and...

© Pixabay

– their investments in Europe went up by 62 percent. We expect this boom to continue throughout 2021.” Wholesalers and retailers invested almost as much as the year before and the chemical sector slightly less (minus five percent).

Sustainability will gain in importance when it comes to investments.

Reimoser expects an increase in investments in 2021 as the willingness to do so is rising once more in the industrial sector.

Germany’s automotive sector held its ground over the last few years and also during the difficult year of the pandemic. Switching to e-mobility has already taken a big step forward.” Mechanical engineering and the chemical industry are also recovering, mainly due to demand in China. The outlook in the pharmaceutical sector remains very positive, of course.

Restructuring the supply chains and increased nearshoring has become a hot topic among many businesses. “Many European corporations face the challenge of reducing their dependency on products and pre-products from countries such as China, India, South Korea but also the United States. Reimoser does not see a general trend towards nearshoring though, as “this would lead to significantly increased costs and lower competitiveness for companies.” He does believe, however, that there will be a new focus on reliability, planning ability and foremost sustainability.

Decarbonisation will shape investments “In the post-Covid-future sustainability will play a much greater

© voestalpine AG

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... an electrolysis plant for the production of green hydrogen operated on the site in Linz with partners including Verbund, Siemens and Austrian Power Grid.

role in investments than it is doing now,” Reimoser underlines.

“The EU’s Green Deal has set the path and recent rulings, such as the one from Germany’s Federal Court or the ruling against Shell in Den Haag, have highlighted the urgency of the issue once more to everyone: There is no way around a green restructuring of our economy. The European industrial sector does not only have all opportunities but also the responsibility to be a trailblazer in this regard.”

Some business models such as steel, chemicals and mobility will undergo a deep-lying transformation in the years to come.

“The key to being ready for the future is new technologies in a lot of sectors – more than ever. And you need to heavily invest in them now. The main drivers are going to be increasing cost efficiency and the risk of falling foul of environmental regulations.”

Sustainability will determine the settlement decisions of investors more than ever, Reimoser says. “All long-term industrial investments that are being made now have to be made in a CO2-neutral way, otherwise they won’t come good.” This realisation is becoming the norm and will fundamentally change investment activities, Reimoser says.

Boost for digitisation The number of investment projects in software and IT services went down across Europe by 14 percent to 1,046 during the past year. Still, the IT sector is leading the way once more: No other sector has launched as many investment projects.

Reimoser believes that there will be another increase in the importance of IT-related investments in the medium run: “The pandemic had brutally laid bare any issues in the field of digitisation: Those who relied on analogue communication and business models – both businesses and public authorities – got into major problems during the pandemic. Businesses with digital business models however, received a massive boost,” says Reimoser. “The promotion of digitisation and digital know-how in education, training and further education has been a high priority for a while. But the pandemic showed that there is still a massive and urgent need for action. In the years to come we will see a huge increase in digitisation investments. Furthermore, the availability of human resources with the corresponding technological skills will be an important factor that determines where businesses will invest.” ◆

World Champion Austria Financial market

Austria’s stock exchange has a long tradition The Vienna Stock Exchange celebrates its 250 years anniversary. Austrians have rediscovered their love for stocks during the Covid pandemic. j by Reinhard Krémer

Ten years until its inception “Beethoven, whose 250th anniversary of his birth was last year, was one of the first shareholders in Austria. And he also knew: if you want to create wealth, the stock market calls the tune.

This has not changed in 250 years. It becomes especially clear in times of crisis like the current pandemic that economies with developed capital markets are more resilient. We will be discussing this topic and many others at our future forum this year,” explains Christoph Boschan, CEO of the stock exchange’s operating company Wiener Börse AG.

The first efforts to establish a stock exchange in Austria were made in 1761. Ten years later, the plans were put into practice. On 1 August 1771, Maria Theresa issued the charter establishing the state-run stock exchange with the aim of strengthening confidence in the state finances of the Habsburg monarchy. The first day of trading took place on 2 September 1771. Initially, only bonds, bills

© PhilippLipiarski

F

or Austria’s financial market, 2021 is a year of celebration: it is the Vienna Stock Exchange’s (Wiener Börse) 250th anniversary. Founded in 1771 by Empress Maria Theresa, it is one of the oldest national stock exchanges in the world. But upholding tradition is only one facet, its cutting-edge technology and constant awareness of future trends are key features of the Austrian stock exchange. To mark this special occasion, the Vienna Stock Exchange is launching a future forum this year, which will host domestic and international experts on a regular basis to discuss innovation, change and the economy of the future.

The anniversary year was opened with a congratulatory message from Austria’s President Alexander Van der Bellen: “The Vienna Stock Exchange has made an exciting journey. Maria Theresa attracted progressive entrepreneurs to Vienna, stimulated the economy while at the same time also laying the foundation for today’s stock exchange. It continues to play a crucial role to this very day. In dealing with the pandemic, companies need courage, confidence, trust and, of course, a strong equity base. This will help accelerate economic recovery.” His full video message can be viewed online.

Christoph Boschan, CEO of Wiener Börse AG

© bwag

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Stocks were traded in the old stock exchange along Vienna’s Ringstrasse as of 1877; since 2002 the stock exchange is located on Wallnerstrasse.

of exchange and foreign currencies were traded. Stockbrokers, called “Sensale” on the Vienna Stock Exchange, ensured smooth trading and received a commission. The first stock exchange was located at Kohlmarkt 12 (now Kohlmarkt 16). It moved several times over the course of the next 250 years and today it resides – not far from its first location – on Wallnerstrasse 8.

The shares of the Austrian central bank were the first to be listed in Vienna in 1818. Since 1869, investors have been able to trade in the shares of Porr AG and Wienerberger AG, the two longest listed companies on the Vienna Stock Exchange. In 1991, the Austrian benchmark index ATX, was launched and trading became increasingly automated. With the introduction of the Xetra system in 1999, trading became fully automated. The internationalisation of the market advanced rapidly with the connection of foreign banks to the exchange. With cooperation agreements in Central and Eastern Europe, and in the mid-2000s also through equity investments, Wiener Börse acquired partners in the region. Today, its focus as a regional player is on providing stock market infrastructure and IT services. Hardly any other European stock exchange of similar size has a comparable degree of diversification and efficiency as the Vienna Stock Exchange.

“Throughout our 250-year-long history and despite technological modernisation, our fundamental mission has not changed.

We are the central marketplace for the pricing of securities. Our offerings and our reliability create trust and ensure transparency.

We prove this every day operating in a highly regulated environment with fierce competition,” says Boschan.

The ATX is 30 years old The ATX tracks the performance of the 20 largest and most actively traded stocks on the Vienna Stock Exchange. The Austrian national index ATX also celebrates a special anniversary. On 13 May, the birthday of the founder of the Vienna Stock Exchange Maria Theresa, the Austrian stock exchange barometer was published for the first time. At the close of trading on 13 May 1991, a score of 1,192.95 flickered across the TV screens. 30 years later, the Austrian national index showed 6,688.08 points including dividends on 10 May (excl. dividends: 3,376.39 points). Thus, it is close to its all-time high of 6,727.44 points (9 July 2007).

Investors who have consistently invested in ATX shares since the beginning of January 1991 can today look at a total performance of +678 % (annual average return: 6.51 %).

Stock Exchange Award for the best The presentation of the Vienna Stock Exchange Award took place again in 2021. Year after year, the award winners are independently evaluated by expert juries of the ÖVFA (ATX, Mid Cap

World Champion Austria Financial market

© Erste Bank / Sebastian Reich

and Corporate Bond Award), financial journalists coordinated by APA-Finance (Journalist Award) and the VÖNIX Advisory Board (Sustainability Award). The winners received their awards, staggered according to the five categories, at the Vienna Stock Exchange.

Wienerberger AG was able to win the prime category, the ATX award, due to its good performance in the extraordinary Covid-year 2020, very good financial reporting and ongoing investor relations activities. According to the ÖVFA jury, a seamless flow of information, the commitment of the Management Board to investor relations, analysts and investors, a sustainable focus on ESG and a focus on digitisation contributed to the decision. In addition, Wienerberger AG was also awarded the Corporate Bond Award. In the Sustainability Category, Agrana-Beteiligungs AG, BKS Bank AG and Palfinger AG received the Vienna Stock Exchange Award in 2021. They are part of the VÖNIX universe (the sustainability benchmark of the Austrian

Thomas Schaufler is Member of the Board at Erste Bank Austria and Member of the Board for Private Banking at Erste Group.

financial market) and are therefore evaluated for the Sustainability Award; the other categories (ATX, Mid Cap, Corporate Bond, Journalists) only consider ATX and prime market instruments.

All three companies received this award for the first time, based on the VÖNIX rating 2020/2021.

AMAG Austria Metall AG won a Mid Cap Award for the fourth time and for the first time takes first place. The jury’s reasoning: The company achieved top scores in the criteria of financial reporting and investor relations. Likewise, in the areas of strategy and corporate governance, AMAG Austria Metall AG ranked at the top in the opinion of the jury.

The Journalist Award went to Erste Group Bank AG for the second year in a row. The jury of APA-Finance praises the sovereign, professional, fast as well as open communication. Erste Group Bank AG scores with good accessibility, high transparency, professional documentation and is also available for background discussions.

Changing behaviour Lockdowns, high unemployment and short-time work schemes are still burdening the financial situation of many Austrians. This has an effect on their savings and investment behaviour. The willingness to invest is currently still low but the outlook for the next twelve months is already more optimistic, a survey of 1,000 people by Erste Bank shows.

After months of Covid crisis, people long strongly for a financial cushion. According to the representative survey, 38 percent of people said that they would rather leave their money in their bank account due to existential fears. This is backed up by a few figures: In 2020, the sight and saving deposits of private households amount to almost 190 billion euros in Austria. That is about 20 billion euros more than in 2019 (170 billion euros). The increase of 11.9 percent was caused mainly by the Covid-induced lockdowns as households were unable to spend their money and the numerous insecurities that came along.

“Hoarding cash is understandable in some cases but a disadvantage in the long term,” says Thomas Schaufler, Member of the Board for Private Banking at Erste Group. “Inflation and zero interest rates are eating into the cash reserves every day.” The recommendation to have about three net monthly incomes available at all times and invest these savings in a way that an inflation-adjusted asset remains, is still valid. According to the survey, 18 percent said that they “invested more money to yield a

© Erste Bank/Christian Wind

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Erste Group Bank has 16 million customers in CEE. Founded in 1819, it is one of the largest financial service providers in Central and Eastern Europe.

return”. For 17 percent, consumption comes first – they rather spend money then invest it. It is cause for alarm, however, that one in four people is unable to save any money due to their precarious financial situation.

New love for stocks People appear to be more optimistic when it came to savings and investments over the next twelve months, the survey showed: Eight in ten Austrians want to invest their money. On average, they plan with an investment budget of 4,800 euros – 200 euros more than in the same period 1/2020. Classic types such as savings accounts (57 percent, minus one percentage point) and building society contracts (39 percent, -2 p.p.) remain first choice, followed by pension provision (31 percent, +4 p.p.) and life insurance (30 percent, +3 p.p.).

Funds, stocks and bonds are gaining slowly but steadily more interest among those surveyed: 32 percent (+2 p.p.) want to invest into stocks. “The trend is moving in the right direction as you can’t yield a return without securities. We also notice an increased demand particularly in sustainable investment funds,” says Schaufler. The largest increase in investment types can be found in real estate (19 percent), up by six percentage points.

One in three people (34 percent, -3 p.p.) are planning a larger purchase in the near future and earmark a budget of 116,400 euros. This amount went up considerably compared to the previous year (93,800 euros) by 24 percent. Those surveyed still want to finance this purchase mainly with their own savings. But compared to Q1/2020, more Austrians want to use a bank loan or a building society loan (20 percent, +6 p.p.).

Different payment behaviour Since the outbreak of the Covid pandemic paying by bank card or credit card has been booming among Austrians. For the first time in history more than 1.2 billion transactions have been processed by debit cards in 2020 in Austria. “We are still seeing a third more transactions than the previous year,“ Schaufler says.

Opinions on whether the boom in card payments will continue after the Covid crisis differs among Austrians: 48 percent say that they can imagine going back to using more cash again while 49 percent believe that the increased use of cards will stay. “The pandemic showed many people the advantages of card payment and took many reservations away. We see this across all age groups – even older people are now paying with their phones as if they had always done so,” Schaufler explains.” ◆

World Champion Austria Research & development

Cutting-edge research – an expedition into the future Austrian research power is receiving a major financial boost with the new funding programme “excellent=austria”.

E

xcellent=austria is the funding programme of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research to enhance Austria’s reputation as a top location for research among the international scientific community. The e=a funding tracks are managed by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF) and offer researchers new opportunities to conduct top-level research. Universities and other research institutions can consolidate their strengths in a sustainable way. The aim is to boost Austria’s innovative capacity and to find answers to the challenges of tomorrow.

Through excellent=austria, Austria plans in the coming years to send promising research teams on a journey to gain innovative insights into all fields of knowledge. Researchers receive more opportunities to take their research beyond the boundaries of their research institutions and their field, with maximum financial independence—and that in close cooperation with the best in the world. Innovative forms of national and international collaboration are specifically encouraged, and a key role is given to the promotion of young researchers and the speedy transfer of knowledge. The goal is to further enhance Austria’s reputation as an attractive place to conduct research and advance one’s career.

A new dimension of research funding The amount and flexibility of research funding are critical for competing with the best researchers in the world. In the first e=a funding track, the Clusters of Excellence, a total of up to 70 million euros (over ten years) is available to research teams to conduct forward-looking large-scale projects in basic research—the volume exceeds all previous FWF funding programmes. To make the scale clear: A Cluster of Excellence involves large teams, with outstanding research infrastructure, working together for several years. At the same time, excellent=austria also allows for

the dynamic use of funds to account for the progress of the research. Thus, as the project develops, researchers can change course to pursue especially promising directions. An additional goal is to expand long-term collaborations between leading researchers across regional and thematic boundaries.

Excellent=austria offers three funding tracks Excellent=austria will be implemented in three stages to ensure that it is integrated into the Austrian research landscape in the best way possible. The programme kicks off with the Clusters of Excellence for the purpose of developing large national and international projects. Submissions for this track will open in summer 2021. This will be followed by the Emerging Fields, a funding track designed to step up basic research in fields with particularly high future potential. The third option, the Austria Chairs of Excellence, will provide universities and other research institutions with more means to recruit and retain leading international researchers in Austria.

Clusters of Excellence A Cluster of Excellence is characterised by the successful combination of top-level research, research-oriented training and promotion of young researchers, and the national and international exchange of knowledge.

The funding programme provides groups of researchers at Austrian research institutions with the opportunity to achieve outstanding cooperative research results in one field or interdisciplinarily. The goal is to establish this research field in Austria in the long term at a top international level. The promotion of young researchers and research-oriented training are integral parts of the programme, and particular emphasis is also placed on equal opportunities and diversity. In addition, special importance is given to the transfer of knowledge and technology in the

© FWF/Daniel Novonty

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FWF President Christof Gattringer, FWF Vice-President Gregor Weihs, Uniko President and Dean of the Vienna University of Technology Sabine Seidler and Minister of Science Heinz Faßmann

form of collaborations with businesses and society. A Cluster of Excellence is expected to take a leading role internationally in the development and expansion of its chosen research field.

Enthusiasm all around “Excellent=austria takes Austria a big step closer to fulfilling the goals of the RTI Strategy 2030. The idea of an excellence initiative for basic research had been talked about for years, the current federal government included it in its government programme, and now it’s getting started. We provide researchers with attractive opportunities to conduct research here in Austria on par with the best in the world. A key aspect of this is the transfer of knowledge to industry and society”, said Austrian Federal Minister of Science Heinz Faßmann with reference to the presentation of excellent=austria.

“We find ourselves in the exciting situation today that we are promoting an excellence programme on the one hand, while at the same time calling on top government officials to allocate funding to the Fonds Zukunft Österreich. I mention this because the success of excellent=austria also depends on creating a sup-

portive environment”, explained Uniko President and Rector of Vienna University of Technology Sabine Seidler.

“More freedom, more cooperation, more opportunities: we designed excellent=austria with the leading research countries in mind. Projects of unprecedented scope can be carried out in the future together with and at Austrian research institutions”, said FWF President Christof Gattringer, emphasising the successful working relationship between the FWF and universities and non-university research institutions. “The opportunity to expand cooperation within science is very promising for a small research country like Austria. Excellent=austria allows us to offer attractive conditions to encourage close collaboration and to gain forward-looking insights”, continued the FWF President.

The FWF is Austria’s leading organisation for the promotion of basic research and artistic-scientific research across all fields.

The FWF supports researchers and ideas that stand out with their scientific quality in an international peer-review process.

The results better strengthen Austria as a research nation and lay the foundations to tackle future societal challenges. ◆

World Champion Austria Digitisation

Mastering the digital transformation with full speed Michael Zettel, head of Accenture Austria, talks about successful digitisation, challenges and why we are where we are.

Some people consider their business successfully digitised when they check their emails on the smartphone, others when an AI is organising production and at least two of their machines can communicate via 5G. Who is right?

No one. “Successful digitisation” means that all processes – from sales to production and service – are largely automated. Those who are “successfully digitised” don’t sell simple products or

services, they sell smart products and digital services. The majority of Austrian companies are right in the middle of the digital transformation – but on many different levels.

The trailblazers are already far advanced and in particular many medium-sized companies are catching up now. We described the levels of digital transformation in a study together with the Federation of Austrian Industries: Stage 0 is “digitally blind”. The majority of data storage and information transfer is done on paper. Stage 1 means “digital mapping” – IT is used as a tool for work. Stage 2 is called “act digitally’’. These companies use their data, have digital process optimisation, but humans still make the decisions. Stage 3, the final stage, stands for being

© Michael Inmann

T

he digital transformation is often compared to the great inventions and their effects on society. For example, the development of the printing press in the modern era or the steam engine in the mid-1800s. The fact remains that the digital transformation is a technological development that will turn the existing economic, political, social, societal and scientific world upside down. This offers up new opportunities but also brings challenges, allowing for new scopes of action and also making structural changes necessary.

For the digital transformation it is not enough to simply have access to new technologies but to also use them as a modern society – jobs, leisure time and knowledge are determined more and more by digital applications – emails, messengers, browsers, AI, chatbots, augmented reality and so on. Thanks to digitisation we are able to work, study, teach and research largely independent from time and place.

But it also remains a fact that the Covid pandemic and the ensuing lockdowns pushed digitisation right into everybody’s attention. The pandemic five years ago would have been kind of manageable with lots of effort and more debts. But ten or even twenty years ago? A horror scenario we can’t even begin to imagine…

But what does successful digitisation mean? We spoke to digitisation pioneer Michael Zettel, Country Managing Director of IT service provider and consultant Accenture Austria.

Michael Zettel, Country Managing Director of Accenture Austria

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“digitally autonomous”. Data-based products and services are sold, all processes are automated and based on data, decisions can also be made automatically. Digital business models are found in this stage.

How would you describe “successful digitisation”? Would you apply this term to Austria?

As I said before, when a company has reached level 3 it will have achieved successful digitisation.

Like all countries, Austria is at the beginning of the digital transformation. But we have great prerequisites to become digital champions. Right now, it is all about digitising the industrial sector. And we are world-class in terms of industry, maybe even world champion. We need to use this know-how for digital transformation. We must not rest on our laurels; we have to step it up – right away.

What are we lacking?

We do have a lot: successful businesses, hidden champions, a stable political environment and excellent education facilities. But we often lack courage. In addition to know-how and expert knowledge we also need the right mindset. And we need the skills to go with it. We need to believe in ourselves and keep an eye on our goals. This is the main challenge that we have to overcome.

Is the leftover attitude from the Austro-Hungarian Empire of “that’s how we’ve always done it” and “who do you think you are?” still in the heads of people who decide upon digitisation?

Or, speaking in nautical terms, how can we excite a hydrophobic landlubber for a speedboat?

Unfortunately, yes. This type of mentality is very persistent – even 200 years after Count Metternich in the 19th century. We saw particularly now during the Covid pandemic that Austrians

World Champion Austria Digitisation

like to go back to the tried and tested. We have an Anti-Covid App but the newspapers were full with articles asking “who took the train from Graz to Vienna on Thursday at 2.23 pm?” We need to highlight to people the benefits of digitisation much more clearly. We need to remove their “fear” of technology with transparency and education. The challenge is to show the benefits and thus create trust.

Which Austrian company has tackled the digital transformation best, in your opinion?

There are a number of leading businesses that have chosen good, courageous and successful paths. There are a few examples, such as the online banking platform George by Erstebank, Donau Insurance, RHI and OMV. And these are only a few of those who made waves with their digital transformation.

My business is running well, the figures are good – why should I still invest in digitisation? And how do I do that?

That is quite easy to answer: Every investment is proven to lead to more growth in turnover and an increase in productivity. If I want to have success tomorrow, not just today, I need to invest into new technologies. It does pay off – for every type of business. We said it seven years ago in our Tech Vision, which looks at trends for the next five years: Every business will become a digital business. And that’s what happened today.

There are only very dew doubters left. A tradesman or a hairdresser, too, can make a significant difference with the right use of technology.

The digital transformation takes place in several phases. A company needs to become digital step by step in a clever way.

The company, the organisation, needs a digital heart. Then the periphery, such as customer care, needs to become digital. That is a successful way to do it.

© Michael Inmann

The Covid pandemic allegedly triggered a boost in digitisation. Is that true? Is a “digitisation boost” actually the right term to describe schools having online classes, pupils getting their homework via WhatsApp and – to exaggerate a bit – every other Austrian household with at least three people in employment or school lacking at least one PC or laptop? I’m under the impression that this is not really the digitisation that is going to generate economic growth in the future.

The Covid pandemic was a digital litmus test on the one hand, and on the other hand we saw what we could do and what not.

Communication foremost has become digital. But screens and keyboards have their limits.

What is needed for digitisation? “A new mindset, openness and courage!”

Critics cite cybercrime and insufficient data protection as the Achilles heel of digitisation. Is that an exaggeration or does this claim contain a speck of truth?

Cybercrime is definitely a challenge, like any type of crime. When it comes to data protection, Europe is making life hard for itself.

The killer phrase is the “so-called consumer protection.”

© Michael Inmann

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Michael Zettel on how to achieve digitisation: “The company’s core must be digitised first. The company, the organisation, needs a digital heart.”

Yes, data protection is one of Europe’s assets but it is also a self-built hurdle. The United States and China are making the best of their advantage in this regard. This damages our economy and our society.

You have written an entire chapter on data protection in your book “The digital economic miracle”. Why do most Austrians have such an issue with data protection? On the one hand, the most unusual terms and conditions are consented with an “okay”, personal data and pictures are put voluntarily on social networks.

But on the other hand, useful digital achievements such as the electronic health file and the Anti-Covid-App are often attacked with truly idiotic statements. If you allow me to put it bluntly – are we really that stupid? It is quite unbelievable, what is missing?

Education in general? A lack of communication? We maybe aren’t stupid but we have not been “sold” properly?

There is a high level of scepticism when it comes to technology in Austria. Sometimes it is even hostility towards technology. This is something we saw quite clearly during the Covid pandemic. Covid was a catalyst in this regard, too. To me, the key answers are educating people better and creating more trust. We need to inform people about technology and its benefits, we have to make it more transparent as this transparency is the basis for trust. I think and hope that this will lead Austrians closer to technology.

A final question, Mr Zettel: The digitisation fairy is stopping by, what do you wish?

A different mindset, openness, courage and an acceptance for change and advancement. We also need political willingness to push this. The state needs to be a trailblazer and invest ten billion euros into the digital transformation of the country. That’s what I would want from the digitisation fairy. ◆

World Champion Austria Digitisation

j RECOMMENDED READING

Browsing through the technology gospel World Champion Austria read the book “The digital economic miracle – Austria’s way out of the crisis.”

A

digitisation expert turned book author writes a love letter to digitisation. You might call Michael Zettel a digitisation evangelist. “Entrenching technology in the economy” motivated him to study business informatics at the Vienna University of Technology and at Leeds University. Zettel wants to make Austria’s companies and organisations trailblazers of digital transformation. Let’s stay with the term “evangelist”: Michael Zettel spreads the gospel of digitisation and the book’s blurb already gives a hint: “The Covid pandemic was the litmus test for Austria.

Working from home and digital business models had to work.

New technologies created the resilience we needed. Digitisation is the vaccination against the economic Covid crisis. We can promote sustainable wealth and a sustainable economy thanks to new technologies. Austria has excellent opportunities to become a champion in digitisation.”

AI is only mathematics “The one technology that Austrians seem to be most afraid of is artificial intelligence (AI)” … … “In addition to being a technology, AI has become a hype and a myth. A myth with the air of being a job killer. AI is something menacing in public discourse. Hollywood has contributed to that. The bogeymen of artificial intelligence are half-man-half-machine mutants such as the Terminator. But as usual, Hollywood’s fantasy is far removed from reality.”

Covid as a litmus test “It was the litmus test for our businesses. The subject: digitisation. 16 March 2020 was the digital litmus test. The lockdown showed very quickly who stood where in the race for digital transformation.

Who had already transformed his processes and business fields and who would be successful in the new environment. Being offline was out.”…

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If artificial intelligence had always had a cute face, the general acceptance for AI would be much higher.

… “Technology changes our life. That’s no secret. We won’t be able to stop the triumphal procession of digitisation in Austria – even if we wanted to due to inexplicable reasons. It is our choice to use digitisation or to fight it. But fighting against one of the most deep-lying changes and developments in our economy and society reminds us of Don Quijote.”

Data protection as a growth killer?

“Data is the ‘new gold’ or the ‘new oil’ – these and similar comparisons have one issue: They don’t hold up. Data is not simply a resource. The part that is our personal data is part of us and our technological identity, respectively. This makes data so valuable and means that those who use it need to assume responsibility”… … “Data protection is seen in Europe foremost through the lens of consumers. The basic idea behind the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was to give customers their sovereignty over their data back, which is fundamentally commendable and understandable. But if companies have to seriously consider whether to stop having emails as a means of communi-

cation because it might violate data protection, then the regulation’s implementation is a catastrophe we need to question.”

Digitisation as an economic driver “An analysis of the European Commission shows the role that data is now having on the economy and which significance it will have in future. The Commission believes that by 2025 already more than four percent of the EU’s GDP will be generated by data economy.”… … “Big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence: We are currently seeing the most comprehensive transformation of our economy in the last 30 or 40 years. Technological developments impact companies to a tremendous extent. Technology has never been as relevant for the success of a business model – and for a company’s survival, as the Covid pandemic has shown.”… … “The path to a digital future will lead us through uncharted terrain but not through a jungle.”… … “The question is, how can we achieve the digital trans­ formation.” ◆

World Champion Austria Digitisation

The “digital dividend” gives businesses an added value A study by the Federation of Austrian Industries and Accenture clearly shows that digitisation boosts growth, added value, jobs and new investments.

The results The Federation of Austrian Industries and Accenture prove with their study “The Digital Dividend” that digitisation boosts economic growth, creates and secures jobs, increases the added value and the vertical range of manufacture and investments.

“Digitisation pays off as it leads to a direct, measurable business success. There is a digital dividend,” explains Michael Zettel, Country Managing Director of Accenture Austria: “The higher the digital maturity the better a business performs.”

Christian Helmenstein, head economist at the Federation of Austrian Industries, adds: “Speaking in numbers, digitised businesses record a three-fold higher growth in turnover compared to non-digitised companies. The increase in turnover per level of digitisation amounts to 8.3 percent.”

The digital maturity was divided into four categories for the study: Stage 0 is “digitally blind”. The majority of data storage and information transfer is done on paper. Stage 1 means “digital mapping” – IT is used as a tool for work. Stage 2 is called “act digitally’’. These companies use their data, have digital process optimisation, but humans still make the decisions. Stage 3, the final stage, stands for being “digitally autonomous”. Data-based products and services are sold, all processes are automated and based on data, decisions can also be made automatically. Digital business models are found in this stage.

The 112 businesses surveyed in the study were categorised accordingly. The average growth in turnover at stage 0 was at 3.9 percent, 13 percent at stage 1 and 15.3 percent each at stages 2 and 3.

© Daniel Mikkelsen

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he Federation of Austrian Industries and Accenture already showed with their last study “Raise the Curve – More resilience and growth through digitisation” that Austrian businesses have used digitisation successfully to overcome the Covid pandemic: The more digitised a company is the better it manages the Covid-induced economic crisis.

The Federation of Austrian Industries and Accenture have joined forces once more to look at the (medium-term) connection between a company’s digital maturity and its business success.

The Economica Institute for Economic Research contributed statistical and econometrical analyses.

The results are based on a survey of 112 companies of different sizes across different sectors, in particular the metal industry, machine construction, the chemical industry and the construction industry. Austria’s flagship industries outside the automation-oriented electronics and automotive sector are thus represented strongly in order to support general conclusions on a wide range of sectors.

Michaela Zalesak, researcher at the Economica Institute

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Stages of the digital transformation Digital maturity in 4 stages

Digitally “blind“

Digital mapping

Act digitally

Digitally autonomous

Information mainly paper-based

Use of ICT in the area of communication and information provision

Data analysis, use of data for predicting or forecasting, networking, process optimisation

Fully autonomous control and capacity adjustment, digital business models, use of artificial intelligence

Greater expectations for digital trailblazers The expected share in turnover of digital products for the next five years is 12.5 percentage points higher for the trailblazers in digitisation. Among the “digitally blind”, the digital components only lead to an increase in the turnover share of 5.5 percentage points. “Highly digitised companies achieve the highest increase in purely digital products,” Helmenstein underlines. “The higher the digital maturity, the higher their growth in turnover through digitisation can be expected. The highest potential can thus not

OMV: Digitising the entire exploration and production Digitisation project: c Introduction of SAP S/4 HANA across the entire group c Harmonising, standardising and decentralising the entire exploration and production c Basis for a company-wide digital platform Added value for the company: c Production and financial data for real-time analyses c Modern architecture for cloud access c Increased customer experience through automation and graphical user interfaces c Automated plant administration and predictive maintenance

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Stage 0 (digitally “blind“) A large proportion of data storage and information transfer is still paper-based or not in a digital format.

▌

Stage 1 (digital mapping) Mapping of information by using ICT in communication, digital provision of information and using ICT in the area of work and tools.

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Stage 2 (act digitally) Digital process optimisation; analyses and predictions from the collected data are possible; decisions still rest with people.

▌

Stage 3 (digitally autonomous) Data-based products or services, processes are largely automated and data-supported, decisions are made automatically, capacities are flexibly adjusted in a fully automated manner. The focus is on digital business models.

be found among companies at stage 0 but those that are far ahead in the digital transformation. The benefit of digitisation rises exponentially, new investments continue to pay off.”

Investments are a factor of success, not just a cost factor “Investments lead to investments. They create an investment merry-go-round. Highly digitised companies invest more and benefit more than the average. The higher the achieved digital maturity the higher the digital dividend,” explains Zettel and underlines that you can tell “positive effects on several levels” that push digitisation with the latest generation of investment goods. “These results show that investments into the digital transformation are not purely a cost factor and that they don’t belong to the domain of the CFO. They clearly address a new dimension and are thus relevant for the CEO. Investments into digitisation do not only increase efficiency but mainly growth in turnover,” says the head of Accenture Austria.

The return on sales from investments into digitisation amounts to 45 percent among the innovation leaders. The backbenchers only achieve 25 percent by comparison.

Digitisation as a job engine Digitisation creates jobs: Digitised businesses are more successful, offer more jobs and more interesting careers. Digital trailblazers record a higher growth in staff of up to 7.1 percent.

“Using digital technologies and business models generates sustainable growth, which has a positive effect on productivity and also job growth,” says Michaela Zalesak, researcher at the

World Champion Austria

Higher productivity growth in digitised companies

Digitisation

Employment growth is the result of technology-induced productivity growth. ▌

Highly digitised companies (Stage 2 and 3) were able to realise average productivity growth of 7.1 percent from 2016 to 2019.

▌

For non-digitised companies (Stage 0), growth was 2.5 percent.

▌

Digitisation therefore does not induce productivity growth based on employee layoffs.

▌

On the contrary: digitisation creates new jobs.

Average productivity growth 7,1 % 7.1

5.7 5,7 %

Strengthening international competitiveness ▌

2.5 % 2,5

High labour productivity of companies has a demonstrably positive effect on competitiveness and thus on the attractiveness of Austria as a business location.

Stufe 00 Stage

Stufe 11 Stage

Stufen und33 Stage 22and

Source: Economica

Economica Institute. “Austria faces international competition: If we have a high number of digitised and thus successful businesses we can bring more jobs to Austria in a global competition,” Zettel adds.

Higher domestic added value A high digital maturity has a positive effect on the vertical range of manufacture. A company’s own share goes up. “The vertical range of added value and of manufacture in a company increases with its digital maturity. The company has to outsource less

or may outsource less,” head economist Helmenstein says. The production in domestic companies rises with a higher level of in-house production.

Increased digitisation (processes and business models) offers additional opportunities for the domestic added value, the study says. There are indications on the additional outsourcing of preceding steps in added value among businesses on a higher digital stage. Therefore, the study’s authors implicate that jobs necessary for in-house production do not have to be outsourced abroad or that a company may choose to not outsource abroad.

© Daniel Mikkelsen

Higher resilience during crises thanks to digitisation

Christian Helmenstein, head economist at the Federation of Austrian Industries

c Statistical analyses show that businesses with a higher digital maturity in process control have a significantly higher resilience during crises when it comes to turnover and productivity. c A higher level in digital process control decreased the negative impact of the Covid crisis on turnover and productivity. c Businesses that specialise in data models, data analysis and algorithms in their business models had higher capacity utilisation during the pandemic compared to less digitised companies. c Focusing on analyses over physical production seems to have a positive effect during times of crises.

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Rising sales expectations for digital components Up to 12.5 percentage points is the expected revenue growth of digital products over the next five years along all digital maturity levels. ▌

▌

Highly digitised companies see the highest increase in purely digital products Companies with a low level of digitisation see more growth in partially digital products

Share of sales and expected sales growth of digital components

+12.5 % Points

70,0%

63,2 63.2 %

60,0% 50,7 % 50.7

50,0% 40,0% 30,0%

0,0%

13,5 % 13.5

28.6 % 28,6

25,0 % 25.0

+5.5 % Points

20,0% 10,0%

+11.8 % Points

+11.8 % Points

16,8 % % 16.8

13,2 % 13.2

8,0 % 8.0

Stage 0

Source: Economica

Knowledge-intensive development in digitised companies is done increasingly by domestic staff.

Into the digital age with platform economy A digital platform connects two or more groups of stakeholders on the market – those who offer, and those who demand. This is done in a particularly efficient way that generates added value on all sides. “Businesses that use or operate digital platforms for purchasing record significantly higher turnovers than other companies,” says Philipp Krabb, Manager Research at Accenture. 65 percent of

Stage 1 today

Stage 2

Stage 3

in 5 years

the companies surveyed use or operate digital platforms for sales, 52 percent use them for purchasing. “These figures show that there is a lot of potential as the platform economy will strengthen the path into the digital age over the next years.” In order to close the digitisation gap, companies should bank on platforms. Using them is already having a positive effect on turnovers now, Krabb says.

But digitisation pays off for all businesses: “The study proves that companies that have invested more into digitisation have benefited more through growth in turnover and productivity,” Krabb says. ◆

Siemens: First digital factory in Germany with a digital twin

© Daniel Mikkelsen

Digitisation project: c Implementing a complete digital twin of the Electronics Works Amberg c First digital factory in Germany

Philipp Krabb, Manager Research at Accenture

Added value for Siemens: c Individual production despite physical distance c Targeted and customer-specific solutions c Reduction of travel costs thanks to virtual reality presentations c 300 percent increase in the use of the digital twin due to the Covid crisis

World Champion Austria

© Daniel Mikkelsen

Digitisation

IV-Chefökonom Christian Helmenstein und Economica-Researcherin Michaela Zalesak präsentierten mit Michael Zettel und Philipp Krabb von Accenture die Studie. Christian Helmenstein, head economist at the Federation of Austrian Industries and Economica researcher Michaela Zalesak presented the study along Philipp Krabb of Accenture.

Mondi: Switching to SAP HANA in all factories across 22 countries

Volkswagen: Developing new applications in an industrial cloud

Digitisation project: c Switching to SAP S/4 HANA across the entire Mondi Group c The system change included r 22 countries r 46 factories r About 1,500 users

Digitisation project: c Establishing an industrial cloud c Platform for Volkswagen and partner companies exchange and common development of apps c Production data of 120 production sites with 14 partners

Added value for Mondi: c Future-proof system with a high number of new possibilities c Better, faster and more accurate service for customers c Strengthening the operative system

Added value for Volkswagen: c Developing new applications directly in the cloud c Partners are able to develop their solutions and offer them, Volkswagen can develop them further c Projected increase of productivity by 30 percent and cost reduction of 1 billion euros per year

World Champion Austria

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Companies introduce themselves

Sustainable success with wood Austria has one of the best-performing wood industries in Europe.

Its innovations and know-how are in international demand.

The wood industry combines climate protection with business Wood is a resource that is ideal to protect the climate: It grows back, takes carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere and stores carbon. The high-quality products of the wood industry create a “second forest”, bind carbon and prevent carbon dioxide emissions. Wood is also becoming more and more of an alternative to carbon-dioxide-intensive and energy-intensive products and materials.

The wood industry represents tradition and internationality The businesses within the wood industry have been traditionally strong exporters, and their successes on the international markets secure industrial jobs and spending power in Austria’s rural regions. Despite the Covid pandemic, the Austrian wood

Facts & figures Companies: about 1,300 Number of employees: 28,000 Production: 8.03 bln euros Export: 5.64 bln euros Import: 4.66 bln euros A large number of companies in the wood industry have been family businesses for generations and are deeply rooted in their native region. The wood industry is internationally competitive and successful thanks to efficient production processes and continuous innovation. The companies have created diverse value chains, developed high-level specialisations and established varied sales opportunities.

Association of the Austrian wood industries Schwarzenbergplatz 4, 1030 Vienna Tel. +43 1 712 26 01-0 www.holzindustrie.at

© Pfeifer Group/Uwe Mühlhäuser

Sustainable growth and fewer carbon emissions – Austria’s wood industry offers both. Almost 1,300 companies are operating in wood construction, furniture and board manufacturing, the sawmill industry, ski production and further wood-processing fields.

The wood industry combines the natural resource wood with high technology.

industry managed to record a trade surplus of almost one billion euros. That proves the quality of the products and the expertise of the companies. The main export markets are the EU with 77 percent, followed by the rest of Europe with 12 percent.

The wood industry represents innovation and know-how The Austrian wood industry is regarded highly for its innovative solutions globally. Our companies are constructing trailblazing buildings from wood with leading architects all around the world. Austria is not only exporting products but also engineering, valuable know-how and standards. Innovative capacity leads to international competitiveness.

Companies from the Austrian wood industry have revolutionised timber construction all around the world by co-developing and establishing Cross Laminated Timber (CLT). Today, this wooden building material is the basis for a high number of applications in the construction trade, especially in multi-storey timber construction. Wood is the material of the future for urban development not only because it is a resource that grows back but also because it is a prefabricated, light-weight construction component.

World Champion Austria Digitisation

Best practice: Digitising the SVS Hans Aubauer, Director General of the Social Health Insurance for the Self-Employed (SVS) on the necessary transformation from a paper plane to a digital high flyer.

What does this infrastructure encompass? Users only see the app on their phone or the chatbot “Fritz” on the website. There surely is more?

You need an integrated channel concept. All elements need to interact perfectly. The three elements digital, telephony and

© SVS

When did the SVS start its digitisation process?

The kick-off was in 2015. Since then, we are pursuing a consistent digitisation strategy within the SVS. The predecessors SVA and SVB were strong, long-standing social health insurance carriers. At that point it was necessary to set a new course to seize the chances and opportunities of digitisation in order to facilitate direct communication with our insured. We wanted to turn our administrators into customer consultants.

The new technologies give us a new scope. We have the opportunity to reach a whole new service and communication level which has not been possible so far. We have always looked at digitisation in a holistic way. On the one hand, we have updated internal processes, organisation and internal IT systems, and on the other hand, we took the contact to our customers to a new level. We have launched a website that increased the usability of our services dramatically and we created incentives to establish it as our primary communication channel. An app, a

chatbot and other features followed. Our internal motto was: No more paper. That means: digitise files, update the core system.

The Covid pandemic proved our efforts right. It was an unplanned litmus test that we passed with flying colours. We guaranteed the social security of 1.2 million Austrians. Despite the increased demand, we were always available to our customers. Communication moved from direct, personal communication on location to digital channels. We had the infrastructure already available.

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he Social Health Insurance for the Self-Employed (SVS) is the representative of the insurance sector and public services, and is like so many others right in the middle of the digital transformation. Consolidating existing systems, a fortunately growing number of clients and the creation of digital channels for customer services are some of the challenges that the SVS has to tackle. The SVS considers digitisation a holistic project as it wants to continuously reach out to customers with preventive measures and medical services in a digital way. Implementing this service channel for social security sounds trivial but is anything but easy in an industry that does not always have regular contact to its target group.

Digitisation is not purely an IT issue to the SVS. Efficiency also matters, of course, but the aim is always to free up more staff for customer consultation. Director General Hans Aubauer offers more insights.

The SVS is available on the smartphone and through the chatbot “Fritz”.

© Katharina Schiffl

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Hans Aubauer, Director General of the Social Health Insurance for the Self-Employed: “Our internal motto was: No more paper. That means: digitise files, update the core system.”

personal contact are all interconnected. Routine questions can be answered anytime from anywhere digitally. If a more intensive, individual contact is needed, the first step is via telephone and then with personal consultation and advice. Everything goes hand in hand. Our customers are taken care of completely.

The second dimension is the one that our customers don’t see. Internally we call it “production”. It is the basis for services and takes care of our internal processes. We use artificial intelligence to recognise, to evaluate, to extract and to collate. We increase the automation of standardised processes and rely on the interplay of humans and machines. Thanks to the automation of routine tasks, our experts have more time for personal consultations.

What triggered this development? Did you simply want to keep up with the times or did you really run into the danger of going under with too much paperwork?

We had a mountain of files – 21 kilometres long, which would get you from Vienna’s city centre to the airport. So, yes, mountains of paper were one reason. But we also needed technological updates and saw the incredible potentials that the digital transformation and the use of new technologies offered.

The SVS has the same DNA as self-employed entrepreneurs: We want to constantly develop ourselves further, we want to be better and adapt to new situations. We see ourselves as a modern service provider. Our 1.2 million customers demand this as they face competition out there every day and act accordingly.

It is a mixture of the pressure to be innovative as well as the will and the delight in change and modernisation.

Were you able to do this all on your own or did you have external help? If so, in what way?

Yes and no. The defined goal, the strategic direction and the guidance comes from the SVS in the first step. When it came to

World Champion Austria Digitisation

development and implementation, we also used external capacities. There are different models and concepts for cooperation: From classic service agreements to PPP models.

Which are the technological highlights of the new digital SVS? What are they for?

We are particularly proud to have reached a new level of availability and service. We increased the transparency and consider our insured our customers. “SVS-Go” is a kind of state-of-the-art digital banking for social health insurance. Submitting the bills of your Wahlarzt [N.B. a non SHI-accredited doctor of your choice, whose bill gets fully or in part paid by your health insurance in Austria] is done as quickly and easily as transferring money online. Then the digital processes in the background come into play. It only takes a few days until your money is in your account.

We were able to prove our digital agility during the Covid pandemic when processing the bridge financing for artists for the federal government. The subsidies were usually in people’s accounts after four days. We completed this task quickly, efficiently and with the nous of a service provider.

Internally, we upgraded our mailroom with artificial intelligence. It automatically assigns tags with a high recognition rate and the corresponding allocation. The AI also identifies callers and provides our call centre agents with information on the customer.

Data is often considered a company’s crown jewels and the SVS has a lot of it. Do you plan on doing something with it one way or another?

Using data in the health system would be unethical. Data and the corresponding data usage serve individuals and society. This goes for our medical services but also for customer communication servicing. Customers benefit when their telephone number is recognised and our agent immediately knows who he is talking to while having access to all relevant information. Out health centre offers patients with high blood pressure an app for constant surveillance and analysis. We use his blood pressure data to provide the best individual health service. Our pacemaker programme reads a pacemaker’s data out once a day and transmits it. It discovers atrial fibrillation instantly and prevents a possible stroke.

We have a lot of new programmes in the concept or pilot phase such a sick day consultation and an evaluation of risk data in security consultation.

When it comes to our data strategy, we are at the same point as we were in 2015 with the digital transformation – we are starting into a new future. It goes without saying that the data of our customers has to be secure. Health and pension data is sensible data – like bank data. Therefore, we are treating it the same way. Data protection and data security have the utmost priority.

© Katharina Schiffl

And how have you secured this data? Thinking of cyber­ attacks…

Our datacentre is a specialist service company. We use a stateof-the-art approach with regular checks and tests such as intruder attacks.

“Public service can, should and needs to be a driver of innovation and trailblazer.”

How is artificial intelligence used in social health insurance exactly? How and where is it used? Admittedly, when most people think of artificial intelligence, they have science fiction films in their mind and might imagine several robots in the mailroom who have been hacked by the baddies to create chaos… But on a

© SVS

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The SVS’s online presence: Clear and easy to use. Often complex background processes ensure a smooth operation.

more serious note, how long do you have to test an AI before you can release it on staff and customers?

There are many myths surrounding artificial intelligence. In reality, an AI simply helps to relieve staff from routine tasks. We do use AI, for example, in our mailroom. Artificial intelligence supports staff in granting medicinal products, for example. However, this is always done under strict quality assurance by our staff.

Is your digital transformation finished now? Or is it a case of the journey being the destination? What’s next?

We have already reached a very high level of digitisation with our systematic digitisation strategy. But that is no reason to stop and rest on our laurels. It is our mission to continue. This transformation will probably never end as technologies advance and with it the opportunities that arise.

We will continue to develop our automation and we want to develop customised solutions and individual offers through CRM

(Customer Relationship Management). There are also tremendous potentials in medicine. Digitisation and data usage help in switching from curative to preventive medicine.

Imagine, the digitisation fairy is stopping by, Mr Aubauer.

What do you wish for?

I would wish for an innovation-friendly environment in Austria that always asks first about advantages and benefits of solutions. Public service can, should and needs to be a driver of innovation and as well as being a trailblazer.

And how do you see yourself or the SVS, respectively, in that context?

At the SVS we are pursuing the fast follower strategy and see ourselves in a European and global context. In certain areas we aspire to be an innovation leader. That makes us a hidden champion of digitisation in the public sector. And we are very proud of this. ◆

World Champion Austria Companies introduce themselves

We export safety With intelligent, sustainable solutions, new ideas and innovative concepts, TÜV AUSTRIA makes the economy and society safe.

Digitisation is pervading business and society fast. Existing business models are changing forever and completely new ones are springing up. But both only have a future if they are safe and secure. And TÜV AUSTRIA is making sure they are. What’s more, the company pro-actively and creatively supports customers in leveraging growth potential and thus makes an important contribution to ensuring that digital business models are not only secure, but also successful. Why is TÜV AUSTRIA able to do this?

Quite simply because TÜV AUSTRIA has always been much more than a testing, inspection and certification company.

Thanks to its comprehensive understanding of the tasks and challenges customers face in an increasingly networked working world, TÜV AUSTRIA is in a position to develop appropriate solution packages that go far beyond individual tests. In addition, the internationally active group of companies has positioned itself in the best possible way in times of digital transformation, is constantly expanding its own technological position and is continuously optimising digital solutions, for example with test apps, artificial intelligence for modern test procedures, test solutions, inspection logs, the online assistant tami, and OT and IoT security for networked industrial plants. TÜV AUSTRIA’s own systems house SPP complements the portfolio with individual software solutions in the field of e-commerce.

Facts & Figures TÜV AUSTRIA GROUP The solutions offered by the independent TÜV AUSTRIA Group range from cyber security, IoT, robotics, OT security and artificial intelligence to lift technology, pressure equipment, plant safety, materials testing, education and training, medical and electrical engineering, environmental protection, Industry 4.0, Production 4.0, carbon footprint evaluations, staff, system and product certification. With locations in 27 countries, the leading Austrian testing, inspection and certification company also provides solutions such as e-mobility, loss adjusting, real estate management, calibrations, product testing, technical due diligence and legal compliance checks, testing of photovoltaic and wind power plants, hygiene (water, soil, space, air) and COVID-19 prevention. tuvaustria.com

Labs for cybersecurity and functional safety TÜV AUSTRIA established its own Safe-Secure System Lab in Vienna for testing cyber-physical systems with regard to functional and IT security. The interdisciplinary TÜV AUSTRIA #SafeSecLab, a major cooperation with the Vienna University of Technology, makes a significant contribution to increased integrative safety. In Cologne, TÜV AUSTRIA maintains a lab for security analyses of software and hardware architectures of IoT devices and, in cooperation with the consulting firm DHGP IT-Services, a Certified Security Operations Center (CSOC), which is tailored to the individual needs and requirements of medium-sized companies. With the integration of CIPHRON, a specialist IT service provider from Hanover, TÜV AUSTRIA is strengthening its comprehensive services for IT security in companies and public authorities. In Malaysia, the company operates the TÜV AUSTRIA Cybersecurity Lab with LGMS, one of the world’s leading providers of IT security services, for testing and certification in the Asia-Pacific region. TÜV AUSTRIA is also the first company worldwide to certify AI applications – a result of several years of cooperation with the Johannes Kepler University in Linz.

Austria’s most modern testing and research centre For TÜV AUSTRIA, modern testing and inspection services are always the result of its own research activities. The company has therefore been investing for years in the expansion of corresponding infrastructure, additional qualifications for employees, new hires and collaborations. It started with the construction of a new office building in Vienna-Inzersdorf and the creation of a state-of-the-art working environment for employees, training guests and customers. The EMC Hall, the hall for product safety testing and the Safe-Secure-System-Lab with special services for IT and data security were a first strong signal for the new research and innovation location of TÜV AUSTRIA in Vienna. With the expansion of the Technology & Innovation Center in Vienna, another important development step is now being taken, which will put TÜV AUSTRIA in an optimal position for the challenges of the future. State-of-the-art test halls and laboratories are currently being built for the areas of automotive and e-mobility, materials technology, environmental technology and digital testing services.

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© TÜV AUSTRIA, Andreas Amsüss

Expand market positions, open up new markets TÜV AUSTRIA’s acquisitions and participations in companies are not only a perfect match for the Group’s diversity, but above all for its solid growth strategy. The aim is always to find solutions for local challenges and to develop existing customer relationships horizontally. At the same time, TÜV AUSTRIA is increasingly integrating its solutions vertically – a great advantage for companies with globally distributed production and development sites, which TÜV AUSTRIA supports with safety technology throughout the entire project life cycle, regardless of loca-

TÜV AUSTRIA CEO Stefan Haas (left) with Vienna‘s City Councilor Peter Hanke.

Fong Choong-Fook, LGMS Group; Detlev Henze, TÜV TRUST IT; Michael Post, ­Austrian Ambassador to Malaysia and Brunei with Stefan Haas, CEO TÜV AUSTRIA Group (from left) at the opening of the TÜV AUSTRIA Cybersecurity Lab.

tion. More than 50 companies in 27 countries in Europe, Asia and the Middle East now belong to the TÜV AUSTRIA Group – with a comprehensive range of services in the areas of safety, technology, environment and sustainability, quality management, as well as training and further education. After growing against the industry trend in the crisis year 2020 to 230 million euros, TÜV AUSTRIA Group is aiming for a turnover of around 250 million euros for the business year 2021.

With the strong TÜV AUSTRIA brand, a unique networked range of services, local presence, competence, reliability, team spirit and innovation, the TÜV AUSTRIA Group creates decisive added value for customers and partners. It exports safety. From Austria to the whole world. For 150 years.

© Georg Trummer / Andreas Amsüss, TÜV AUSTRIA

Sustainability and clean technologies Environmental protection has long been part of every company’s daily routine. This is a factor that often has a significant impact on costs. At the same time, competitiveness must not be lost.

The challenge is therefore to combine effective management with the conservation of resources and the environment. Key words here are “sustainability” and “clean technology”. With its integrated solutions, various authorisations and accreditations, experience and, last but not least, the expertise of its employees, TÜV AUSTRIA is able to provide its customers with tailor-made support in the implementation of these measures. TÜV AUSTRIA itself attaches great importance to environmental protection and resource conservation. With sustainable buildings, green electricity from Austria, heat from woodchip plants, modern climate control, LED lighting, PV systems, waste avoidance, the promotion of electric mobility and business trips by train, the company makes its contribution to carbon reduction.

© TÜV AUSTRIA, Osmond

TÜV AUSTRIA is thus guaranteed to have the right solution for all the safety technology requirements of its customers - but also for partners from research and development collaborations.

The use of digital and AI-based technology is already standard at TÜV AUSTRIA.

World Champion Austria Digitisation

Austria’s 6G research is state-of-the-art in every way 6G for signal processing in high frequency systems, machine learning and unlimited data transfer.

Focused cooperation The idea behind the “University SAL Labs” is the focused cooperation with universities on key topics for electronic based systems. Researchers from the University and SAL conduct basic-oriented research in the lab, which can later be implemented in collaborations with industry. “Silicon Austria Labs was founded to conduct international cutting-edge research and to strengthen the Austrian electronics industry and the entire EBS eco-system. The cooperation with first-class researchers from JKU in the field of radio frequency technologies and artificial

intelligence is a central part of our strategy,” says Gerald Murauer, Executive Director of SAL. In addition to JKU Linz, SAL is also working with TU Graz and the University of Klagenfurt in such joint research labs. Several JKU institutes participate in the research labs. “Only those who think one step ahead can shape the future. This cooperation is supposed to do just that: 5G is here now – so we want to think about 6G today, conduct our research and thus shape not only the technology of tomorrow, but also its effects. It is a holistic

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henever a new technology is introduced, somebody is already working on making it obsolete again. Silicon Austria Labs (SAL), Austria’s top research centre for electronic based systems, is working in Linz, one of its three locations, together with the Johannes Kepler Univer­sity (JKU) on key technologies for the wirelessly networked factory of the future. Reliable wireless networking of the production systems is intended to enable highly efficient control of production using digital twins. “Linz should become a centre for 6G in Europe for industrial applications. This collaboration between the JKU, SAL and subsequently with industrial partners also strengthens Upper Austria as a production location,” emphasises Markus Achleitner, Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs and Research.

“The innovation location Upper Austria wants to shape the digital transformation – a central field of action of our Upper Austrian business and research strategy #upperVISION2030 – and be at the fore­front. By using the latest technologies such as 5G and 6G in production, our flagship companies can continue to produce competitively and sustainably in Upper Austria in the future. This keeps the added value in the country and secures highly qualified jobs”, says Achleitner.

Meinhard Lukas, Dean of the Johannes Kepler University Linz (JKU Linz)

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Although 5G is just now reaching market maturity, research on 6G is already underway.

approach that goes beyond the technological implementation.

This is what JKU and the LIT, the Linz Institute of Technology, stand for with their interdisciplinary approach and proven technical know-how,” says Meinhard Lukas.

High-frequency technology meets AI Radio frequency systems provide the physical connection for wireless communication systems. This enables mobile broad­ band connection of mobile devices, wireless “machine-to-machine” communication and increasingly wireless sensor networks in industrial applications. “Radio frequency technology is the technological back­bone, especially for digital applications in the areas of 5G/6G, autonomous driving, medical technology or material testing. While 5G is only just getting market-ready, we are already researching the next generation, 6G,” explains Thomas Lüftner, CTO and Head of Research Divisons RF Systems and Embedded Systems at SAL. “New with 6G is the targeted use of embedded machine learning, i.e. artificial intelligence, for signal processing in radio frequency systems. With our joint labs

with JKU, we are now at the fore­front of international research in this area,” explains Lüftner. The focus on radio frequency technology in combination with artificial intelligence is well located in Linz, as Upper Austria has been operating very successfully in these areas for years.

The labs involved Researchers at the mmW Lab will work together to drive research on millimeter-wave technologies, meaning in the frequency range of 100 to 300 GHz, both of which are used at high data rates in short-range radar and wireless communications. The mmW Lab is managed by Gernot Hueber (SAL), Andreas Stelzer (Institute of Communications Engineering and RF Systems, JKU), and Harald Pretl (Institute of Integrated Circuits, JKU). The interdisciplinary Lab team works primarily on the 6G objectives that include converging communications, radar and high-frequency sensor technology, meaning semiconductor chips containing integrated high-frequency circuits and the correlating system solutions.

World Champion Austria Digitisation

Internationally renowned top researcher Prof. Pedro Julián, an internationally recognised researcher, has recently joined as the head of the research unit “Embedded Artificial Intelligence” at Silicon Austria Labs (SAL) in Linz. Julián has been working on the implementation of neural networks in digital hard­ware (“Neuromorphic Computing”) for 20 years and has also worked at the University of California Berkeley and Johns Hopkins University in the US state of Mary­land, where he still holds a position as visiting professor. Before joining SAL, the native Argentine was a professor at National Del Sur University in his home country.

At SAL, he and his international team are now dedicated to the research topic “embedded artificial intelligence”, a new and

© SAL

The eSPML Lab will focus on new approaches to combine signal processing and machine learning with integrated circuit design to boost performance, be more cost-efficient and reach new levels of performance and capability in the area of embedded solutions. The Lab is managed by Mario Huemer (Institute of Signal Processing, JKU), Thomas Pleschke (SAL) and, lately, also by Pedro Julian (SAL). SAL was able to win the internationally renowned Argentine professor, Pedro Julián, as head of the research unit “Embedded Artificial Intelligence”.

The mmW Lab team: Gernot Hueber, SAL (centre) with JKU Linz members Harald Pretl, Simon Heining, Georg Zachl and Andreas Stelzer

highly innovative research field with high growth potential for domestic industry – and an essential part of 6G re­search, which has been carried out at SAL in Linz for almost two years. The targeted use of artificial intelligence for signal processing in high-frequency systems is new at 6G. This is intended to reduce complexity, costs, and energy consumption of today’s electronic-based systems.

“With Pedro Julián we were able to find a renowned professor

mmW Lab A world-class millimeter wave RF laboratory and test facility paving the way for the RF PHY technology convergence for next generation of sensing and communications up to the high GHz frequency range (30 GHz to 300 GHz) by combining research forces, know-how, infrastructure, and expertise in a joint lab growing PhDs, tenure tracks, and scientific progress of the stateof-the-art jointly done by JKU and Silicon Austria Labs.

We are working on advanced signal processing and integrated circuit design concepts targeting competence to realize class leading integrated circuits on component and SoC level and provide corresponding advanced signal processing methods and algorithms. By making use of circuits and signal processing methods for wireless communication (e.g. 5G and mmWave RFID) and radar systems shall be targeted. System integration aspects in RF and mmWave frontends must be considered and

will be correspondingly handled. For wireline systems, again energy efficiency, interconnect density, and multi-Gb/s data transmitters are current research topics.

Lab Management: c Gernot Hueber (SAL) c Andreas Stelzer (Institute for Communications Engineering and RF-Systems, JKU) c Harald Pretl (Institute for Integrated Circuits, JKU) In close cooperation with: c Institute for Communications Engineering and RF-Systems, JKU Linz c Institute for Integrated Circuits, JKU Linz https://research-network.silicon-austria.com/mmw-lab/

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The eSPML Lab team: Sepp Hochreiter (JKU Linz), Robert Wille (JKU Linz), Markus Hofmarcher (JKU Linz), Venkata Pathuri-Bhuvana (SAL), Simon Schmid (JKU Linz), Lothar Ratschbacher (SAL), Christian Huber (SAL), Gorgoe Bognar (JKU Linz), Andreas Springer (JKU Linz), Thomas Pleschke (SAL) and Mario Huemer (JKU Linz).

for our future-oriented re­search topics,” says Thomas Lüftner, CTO and head of research divisions RF Systems and Embedded Systems at SAL, on the new addition to his team. “I am convinced that Professor Julián and his extraordinarily diverse team of researchers from four different continents and different disciplines will take our 6G research to the next level. Our partners from the industrial sector, with whom we work on various projects, benefit from this in particular.”

Pan-European cooperation But not only SAL and the JKU are busy working on 6G: A European consortium has joined forces with regards to future mobile communication standards and develops the next generation of antennas for wireless networks. NXP, Technikon and the Graz University of Technology are major contributors.

In Europe, all eyes are currently on the 5G roll-out – yet a European consortium consisting of leading companies and re-

eSPML Lab The embedded Signal Processing and Machine Learning (­ eSPML) Lab is chartered to research with two main focuses: 1. data-driven machine learning algorithms to complement and/ or replace model-based advanced signal processing algorithms and 2. related novel embedded implementations through applying digital, mixed signal and/or analog integrated circuit design in new ways.

Machine Learning, Neural Networks and Deep Learning approaches are meanwhile becoming increasingly prominent in various computer science and circuits and systems societies, where system identification and dimensionality reduction are the challenge. The underlying idea of this lab is to bring diverse, yet complementary skillsets in these fields together to jointly achieve solution inspiring research results.

The vision of eSPML Lab is to research and develop a new basis for paradigm shifting signal processing solutions changing the industry. The Lab combines machine learning and signal processing with novel integrated circuit design approaches to make leaps forward – in terms of power as well as cost efficiency and to reach yet unachieved performance and capabilities of embedded solutions.

Lab Management: c Pedro Julián (SAL) c Mario Huemer (Institute for Signal Processing, JKU) In close cooperation with (all institutes JKU Linz): c Institute for Signal Processing c Institute for Machine Learning c Institute for Communications Engineering and RF-Systems, c Institute for Integrated Circuits https://research-network.silicon-austria.com/espml-lab/

World Champion Austria

search institutions in the field of mobile communications and communications engineering is working on the technical feasibility of 6G. Austrian companies Technikon Forschungs- und Planungsgesellschaft mbH (as coordinator) and NXP Semiconductors Austria as well as the Institute of Signal Processing and Speech Communication at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) are substantially involved.

“The world is becoming more and more interconnected.

More and more data has to be transmitted, received and processed by a growing number of wireless devices – data throughput is consistently on the rise. In the Horizon2020 project REINDEER, we are devoting ourselves to these developments and investigating a concept with which data transmission in real time can be scaled practically to infinity,” says TU Graz researcher Klaus Witrisal, an expert in wireless communication technology.

Antennas as wall tile or wallpaper The type of antennas for data transfer has to change; maybe antennas could be wall tiles or wallpapers. How is this supposed to work? Witrisal explains the approach: “We want to develop what we call RadioWeaves technology – a kind of antenna fabric that can be installed in any location of any size – for example, in the form of wall tiles or wallpaper. So entire wall surfaces can act as antenna radiators.”

With previous radio standards such as UMTS, LTE and currently 5G, signals are transmitted via base stations – i.e. antenna infrastructures that are permanently located at a specific position. The denser the network of fixed infrastructure, the

© SAL

Digitisation

Thomas Lüftner and Pedro Julian have joined forces.

higher the throughput (i.e. the amount of data that can be transmitted and processed in a given time window). However, the base stations are a bottleneck. The more wireless devices there are connected to a base station, the more unstable and slower the data transmission. With RadioWeaves technology, that bottleneck would disappear “because instead of a single access point, we can hook in as many access points as we want,” says Witrisal.

Real-time inventory and grandiose stadium experience Witrisal says that the technology is not needed for the private home. But for industrial and public facilities, it holds opportuni-

Horizon2020-Projekt REINDEER Transferring more data even faster – that is the aim of the new antenna technology developed by the project REINDEER (REsilient INteractive applications through hyper Diversity in Energy Efficient RadioWeaves technology). It is funded by the EU Horizon2020 programme with a total of 4.6 million euros.

600,000 euros of this amount will go to Graz University of Technology (TU Graz), where the project is located in the Field of Expertise Information, Communication & Computing, one of the University‘s five main research areas. https://reindeer-project.eu/

Project partners: c Technikon (lead partner, Austria) c NXP Semiconductors Austria (Austria) c TU Graz (Austria) c BlooLoc NV (Belgium) c Ericsson (Sweden) c KU Leuven (Belgium) c Linkopings Universitet (Sweden) c Lunds Universitet (Sweden) c Telefónica Investigacion Y Desarrollo SA (Spain)

ties that go far beyond 5G networks. “If 80,000 people in a sports stadium, all equipped with virtual reality goggles, want to watch the decisive goal simultaneously from the perspective of the goal scorer, this will be possible in the future with a RadioWeaves antenna fabric.” The radio waves would also provide wireless power to the VR goggles. In industrial halls, the technology could provide unprecedented coverage. It would be feasible to locate thousands of objects in real time.

In general, Witrisal sees great opportunities for radio-based positioning technology – a research focus of his working group at TU Graz. The researchers believe that the RadioWeaves technology can be used to locate goods with an accuracy of ten centimetres. “This allows three-dimensional models of goods flows to be realised: for production and logistics through to augmented reality on the sales floor.”

The research project started in January 2021. By 2024, the consortium aims to develop the first hardware demonstrator to experimentally validate the RadioWeaves technology. Witrisal: “6G won’t officially be ready until the end of this decade – but when it is, we want to make sure that high-speed wireless access is where we need it, when we need it.” ◆

© TU Graz/Robert Frankl

© elements.envato.com

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Klaus Witrisal, expert for wireless communication at TU Graz

World Champion Austria Companies introduce themselves

“Our Army” – innovative – researching – securing the future How the Austrian Armed Forces are using a wide variety of measures and a multitude of projects to strengthen Austria as a location for innovation.

Research and development have a long tradition in the Austrian Armed Forces. The National Defence Research Programme FORTE and the European Defence Fund (EDF) provide a fresh and additional impetus in this field of research and, in the long term, can also help to strengthen Austria’s position as a centre of knowledge and technology in the European competition for innovations.

In 2008, the research and development activities of the Austrian Armed Forces were evaluated and put on a new footing.

Since then, the responsible department “Research and Armament Policy” of the Federal Ministry of Defence has been in charge of the corresponding research-related agendas of the Austrian Armed Forces on a national and international level. It contributes, among other things, to developing the capabilities of the Austrian Armed Forces. Through close contact to the most important university and non-university research institutions, to committees such as the Austrian Science Council and the Ministry’s own Science Commission, but also to the industrial sector, the department constantly monitors and evaluates the latest Facts & Figures* Professional soldiers: 15,456 thereof female soldier: 642 Civilian employees: 7.623 Soldiers on foreign missions: ~1,000 Conscripts: 6,264 2021 budget of the Ministry of Defence in mln euros : 2,522.393

Research as a strategic factor Research represents a central factor for the Austrian Armed Forces. It is not only a driver of the organisation’s innovative capacity, but also the necessary and important basis for the development of the armed forces and their capabilities. The research that is indispensable in this context follows a holistic approach and takes place not only in the technological field, but also in social sciences, liberal arts and cultural sciences. In doing so, research must face the challenges of the future in a specific manner to ensure that the armed forces can act as Austria’s

Key technologies Defence Technology 2030

c Artificial intelligence c Autonomous systems c Quantum technology c Space technology

as of 1 May 2021

Federal Ministry of Defence (BMLV) Roßauer Lände 1, 1090 Vienna Tel: +43(0)50201-0 buergerservice@bmlv.gv.at www.bundesheer.at

c Biotechnology cH uman enhancement / augmentation / modulation

c Materials science & nanotechnology c Neuroscience © BMLV/Guenter Wilfinger

*

developments. The Armed Forces also implements internally future-oriented research and development in a large number of projects with other departments in the defence sector, such as the Office of Armament and Defence Technology, the Cyber Security Centre, the National Defence Academy and the Theresian Military Academy.

© BMLV

© Beganovic Amir

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Cutting-edge technology at the Austrian Armed Forces: The remote-controlled bomb disposal robot „Theodor“ in action and a self-propelled transport robot in trials.

“strategic reserve” along their entire range of tasks. This includes not only recognising emergent technological developments and trends in due time, but also making future key technologies usable for the armed forces.

Promoting the business location – initiating strategic developments In the national environment, the Austrian Armed Forces have at their disposal, among others, the security research programme KIRAS and the defence research programme FORTE for security from all sides. While FORTE focuses on the field of defence technology in support of military mission fulfilment, KIRAS follows the dual-use approach and represents the civilian component in the national research environment. However, the national research funding programmes are not only aimed at providing public-sector users such as ministries, authorities, regional governments etc. with access to targeted research results. They are also intended to prepare the Austrian industrial base for collaborations on an international level and thus strengthen Austria as a business location as well as strengthen the competitiveness of Austrian companies in the international environment.

At the European level, the European Defence Fund (EDF) was established to strengthen the innovative, industrial and scientific base of the European defence industry and to make a decisive

contribution to the strategic autonomy of the EU. In the period 2021 to 2027, the EDF will support research and development projects dealing with current defence issues and new security threats with a total of 7.9 billion euros. This is intended to trigger strategic developments in selected industrial sectors and to achieve a better strategic positioning of Austrian companies in the European environment.

A strong and reliable partner for the future During numerous projects and undertakings in the national and international environment, the Austrian Armed Forces have been able to establish themselves as a strong and reliable partner for the Austrian economy and industry. In the last five years alone, about 300 projects have been implemented and about 200 partners from research, business and industry have had access to about 90 million euros in funding in this area. In addition, significant technological advances and innovative solutions have been implemented for the Austrian Armed Forces. The close cooperation between the Austrian Armed Forces and its partners will continue to be both an opportunity and a challenge in the future, because of highly dynamic developments, for example in the areas of digitisation, sustainability and hybrid threats. They require rapid, flexible and innovative solutions for future-proof Austrian Armed Forces and thus for a future-proof Austria.

World Champion Austria Research & development

Smart and innovative – Austria’s youth show us what they can do Every year Austrian students compete in the fields of technology and innovation, incorporating ingenuity and dedication.

Supported by two Federal Ministries “Jugend Innovativ” is the biggest and smartest school competition for innovative ideas in Austria. The competition allows young people to further develop, realise and present their own ideas to the public. The competition is run on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs as well as the Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research by the Austria Wirtschaftsservice AWS and is supported by the Raiffeisen sustainability initiative. “’Jugend Innovativ’ proves that good ideas have nothing to do with age. Instead, what the pupils and apprentices have shown us

this year is how one can successfully create innovations”, says Margarete Schramböck, Federal Minister for Digital and Economic Affairs. She also emphasised that “this is exactly what we need right now, particularly in times like these. The level of drive and enterprising spirit displayed by young people here is sure to secure not only a financial comeback but also Austria’s place as a country of innovation in the long-term”.

Heinz Faßmann, Federal Minister of Education, Science and Research, referred to the outstanding achievements taking place in Austria’s schools: “What these young people have created as part of ‘Jugend Innovativ’ is unique. With the aid of dedicated teachers, extremely special projects have emerged and are a good starting point for young scientists. Receiving support in this initial stage is particularly important in order to illustrate what professional possibilities there are and make use of potential”.

© Parlamentsdirektion/Thomas Topf

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here isn’t enough praise and support to go round for those who will hopefully become part of the coming generation of scientists and be greatly involved in Austria’s success in the field of research and development. We are, of course, referring to the participants of the annual school competitions that are dedicated to innovation and technology. We have chosen two from a very long list: “Jugend Innovativ” (innovative youth) and “Technik für’s Leben” (technology for life) prizes. The large number of entries in both competitions would be too extensive to cover in this article, which is why we have unfortunately decided to “only” introduce the contestants in first place.

The winning teams of the 34th competition round of “Jugend Innovativ” were presented in the competition’s first virtual awards show. The participating pupils and apprentices not only wowed the jury, they also clearly managed to prove how much innovative strength, ingenuity and dedication they have within.

Every year the competition shines a spotlight onto outstanding young talent and recognises the innovative achievements of Austria’s pupils and apprentices. This year, out of 333 entries, seven teams managed to get to the top spot (double win in Design). Two teams were from Carinthia, two from Vienna and the other three were from Salzburg, Lower Austria and Upper Austria respectively.

Heinz Faßmann, Federal Minister of Education, Science and Research

© Team HASCY

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HASCY – (HTLs Asfinag Safety Cat) – the tunnel drone. A collaboration between two HTLs in Klagenfurt, Carinthia (HTL1 Lastenstraße and HTL Mössingerstraße).

The competition has been funded for more than 13 years by the Raiffeisen Nachhaltigkeits-Initiative RNI (Raiffeisen sustainability initiative): “It is very important to the Raiffeisen Nachhaltigkeits-Initiative to promote awareness for climate protection and sustainability among young people as early possible. We are therefore thrilled by the high level and diversity of topics featured in the projects, a commitment that we are rewarding once more this year with an award”, emphasised Andrea Sihn-Weber, CEO of RNI. Creative and innovative diversity More than 800 pupils and apprentices took part in “Jugend Innovativ” in the academic year of 2020/2021. 333 project ideas were submitted, demonstrating their creative potential and innovative capacity. The 30 teams in the final were particularly challenged during the online nationwide final. For the first time in the history of the competition, the teams presented their creative and smart developments to individual expert judges within the framework of virtual project updates and online pitches to the jury and answered the experts’ questions. There was also support and preparatory workshops, which were completed enthusiastically by the participants in the run-up to the competition. The jury was extremely impressed by the standard of this year’s projects and increased the prizes by choosing a double victory, among other things.

The prize-winning projects at a glance The following seven projects were awarded 2.000 euros each.

Joint first prize for design: Smart Kitchen Devices for Philips (HTBLVA Ferlach, Carinthia). A cordless family kitchen appliance with a common base station, intended to inspire regional, sustainable cooking, even when you are short on time. This was developed by a project team from Ferlach using an unconventional method.

Klein-Venedig-Unterach am Attersee (HTBLuVA Salzburg). Like a turbine, this building design twists upwards towards the sky. The project team from HTBLuVA Salzburg designed down to the smallest detail, a gastronomical pearl with a cultural foundation in the form of a museum.

First prize winners: First prize for Engineering I: HASCY (HTLs Asfinag Safety Cat) – the tunnel drone (collaborative project). A large-scale project undertaken by two HTL schools in Klagenfurt (HTL 1 Lastenstraße and HTL Mössingerstraße, both from Carinthia) on motorway safety: A camera carriage slide on the top of the tunnel roof uses the latest camera technology to provide instant clear pictures of dangerous situations.

First prize for Engineering II: EyeSpeaker (TGM School for Technology, Vienna). Two pupils at the Vienna TGM have managed to free people a little from locked-in syndrome: a mix of eye recogni-

World Champion Austria Research & development

Second and third prize winners The second prizes, worth 1.500 euros each, were awarded in the following categories to: HTBLuVA St. Pölten, Lower Austria, for the development of a remote controlled slope mower; Design, HTL 1 Lastenstraße, Carinthia, for their 3D printing with recycled raw materials; Engineering I, HTBLA Neufelden, Upper Austria, for CASA – Camera Aided Sheet Analyzer; Engineering II, HTL for Food Technology Wels, Upper Austria, for their Vegan Broad Bean Drink; Science, HTL Vienna West for a coronavirus traffic light system with CO2 measuring; for entrepreneurship and in the category of sustainability the prize went to HTBL Pinkafeld, Burgenland, for Bambus, a green alternative – assessment of local bamboo provisions and their suitability as a construction material.

The third prize, worth 1.000 euros per category, was awarded in Engineering I to HTBLA Neufelden (Upper Austria) for their autonomous harvesting robot, for Engineering II the prize went to the Austrian school Shkodra Albania for motion track, in the category of Science it went to HLUW Yspertal (Lower Austria) for their project on the effects of glacier coverings with regard to ecology and tourism, and for Entrepreneurship it went to the Vienna HTBLVA

Spengergasse for the FoodAid project: Eat it, don’t waste it! In the category of Sustainability there was a joint prize for three entries: solar blind from HTL 3 Rennweg (Vienna), the decreasing of ammonia emissions given off from liquid manure through tannin from HBLA Ursprung (Salzburg) and RECPEAT – peat substitutes from natural waste materials from HTL Braunau (Upper Austria).

Award for the most innovative schools in Austria From all the participating schools within the framework of “Jugend Innovativ”, the ones with the most best-quality projects in their province were awarded prizes and the title “Most Innovative School in the Province”. The title of “Most Innovative School” was awarded this year in the 34th competition round in Vienna to HTL 3 Rennweg, in Burgenland to HTBL Pinkafeld, in Lower Austria to HLUW Yspertal, in Upper Austria to HTL Braunau, in Salzburg to HTL Saalfelden and in Carinthia to HTBLVA Ferlach.

They go international In addition, selected teams were nominated for international events. EyeSpeaker by TGM – the School for Technology in Vienna, the identification and effects of radioactive exposure on freshwater and saltwater animals by HLUW Yspertal and organic straw insulation by HTL Braunau will all be taking part (virtually) in the EU Contest for Young Scientists.

At the 2020 World Expo in Dubai, the following were all present: Bambus as a green alternative (2nd prize for Sustainability), FoodAid

© Team EyeSpeaker

tion and tables permits people to communicate through blinking.

First prize for Science: The identification and effects of radioactive materials on freshwater and saltwater animals (HLUW Yspertal, Lower Austria). The consequences of the large nuclear accidents in 1986 and 2011 can still be seen in the radiation levels of aquatic animals. Two pupils from HLUW Yspertal have precisely remeasured and found out which fish have taken in the least dangerous levels.

First prize for Entrepreneurship: ThatLearningApp (collaborative project between TGM – School for Technology in Vienna and ITHTL Ybbs and HLW Haag in Lower Austria). The world is my school. They come from three different schools and are taking learning to a new level: this team from Vienna and Lower Austria has created an online platform where personalised lessons among youths can take place on an equal footing.

First prize for Sustainability funded by the Raiffeisen sustainability initiative: Organic straw insulation (HTL Braunau, Upper Austria). The construction industry produces a sinful amount of CO2, now two pupils from HTL Braunau are taking a plunge into this industry with a revolutionary suggestion: a straw insulating board made of purely organic bonding agents, which are 100 percent degradable.

Diana Scharbl and Fabio Wiesinger invented and programmed the EyeSpeaker.

© aws/Katharina Gossow

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Edeltraud Stinftinger and Bernhard Sagmeister, CEOs of AWS, emphasise how invaluable it is for the projects to participate in the Dubai Expo 2020.

(3rd prize for Entrepreneurship), smartLantern (recognition award for Engineering I) as well as Green H2 (the 2020 winning project for Sustainability). “The projects for the ‘Jugend Innovativ’ competition impressively display just how much educational know-how our youth possesses. The creativity and talent of our pupils are internationally sought after. I am particularly pleased that we will be able to showcase our accomplishments at the 2020 Expo in Dubai on a large, international stage”, says the government commissioner responsible for the world exhibition, Beatrix Karl, who was very impressed.

“This year’s winners have managed to beat a total of 333 project teams and wow the jury with their outstanding projects. Now these young people will also get the chance to see how they measure up against the best of the best on the international stage. We are therefore especially pleased that the prize winners are able to not only take part in renowned competitions, but will also be present this year at the World Expo. This exchange is a really important experience for the young people and gives a boost to projects as well as further professional pathways as entrepreneurs or scientists”, say Edeltraud Stiftinger and Bernhard Sagmeister, CEOs of AWS. Technology for Life – 2021 Bosch prize The industry has also been aware of young people’s ingenuity for quite some time. For their part, they offer prizes or act as a collab-

orating partners. Bosch is no exception. Having been present in Austria since 1899, it is today represented in all four business sectors: Mobility solutions, industrial technology, consumer goods as well as energy and building technology. International competence centres for the development of mobility solutions are located in Vienna, Linz and Hallein. Around one third of the workforce in Austria is employed in the area of research and development. So, it seems logical that the most promising pupils get their foot in the door. And what better way to do it than through a competition?

The Bosch group’s Technology for Life Prize has started an initiative in Austria that has been encouraging young talent and supporting their start into working life for 13 years. According to the company, the name speaks for itself: Technology for Life, which stands for reliable, well thought-out, and innovative solutions that make our lives easier.

The winners of the 2021 Technology for Life Prize were once again picked this year in a two-step evaluation process: In the first step, selected Bosch experts carry out a pre-evaluation of the projects for the star-studded main jury, which will make the final assessments in the second step and select the winner of the Technology for Life Prize.

The prize winners will get the much-coveted chance to do a 6-month internship at Bosch Group in Austria as well as an invitation to have an exclusive look “BehindTheScenes@Bosch” at a Bosch location in Austria.

World Champion Austria Research & development

Winner of the Connected Living category: BloodFlowMonitoring Matthias Brinskelle, Christoph Voith, Nenad Avramovic and Philipp Eidkum from TGM Vienna have developed a very practical method for measuring blood flow: BloodFlowMonitoring. Blood flow is measured using optical sensors in the ears and pulse rate monitors around the neck. Additionally, diodes are fitted on both earlobes, which transmit light; the light is recorded by receptors and displayed as a chart on the computer. Sensors are also placed around the neck to measure the pulse. “Measuring blood flow is relatively laborious and occasionally painful. This method makes it all easier.

The project targets health issues and therefore concerns us all.

This is why it fits in perfectly with the Technology for Life Prize”, says juror Andrea Scheichl, Vice President of Service & Support at the Austrian Patent Office.

Winner of Mobility Solutions: Tunnel surveillance system HASCY The HTLs Mössingerstraße and Lastenstraße from Klagenfurt, Carinthia, were able to secure themselves the winning spot in the

category of Mobility Solutions with their HASCY project, in collaboration with Asfinag. (This is now well-known – HASCY also won in the “Jugend Innovativ” competition mentioned before in the category of Engineering I).

In order to be able to monitor every section of a motorway tunnel, Gilbert Tanner, Gabriel Tanner and Andreas Maier from HTL Mössingerstraße in Klagenfurt, developed an innovative solution. They worked together with Emanuel Ladinig, Daniel Morak, Luca Jörg, Lukas Frisch and Dominik Jerey from HTL Lastenstraße, along with Asfinag. They developed HASCY, a cutesy acronym for HTLs Asfinag Safety Cat, which is a carriage slide equipped with several cameras that runs the length of the tunnel on tracks positioned on the roof of the tunnel. As there is also a thermal imaging camera fixed to it, it is possible to detect people even through the thickest fumes. This means that emergency services can carry out their jobs more effectively and the survival chance for an accident victim is higher. HASCY can run up to 100 km/h in the tunnel and is operated remotely at the Asfinag maintenance control rooms.

During standard operations, HASCY can be used to monitor the transport of dangerous goods in the tunnel or to pre-emptively detect possible danger. HASCY is a collaborative project by project teams of both the HTLs in Klagenfurt: the track system including the carriage slide was manufactured by HTL Lastenstraße, the control of the cameras, video surveillance, position detection as well as the controlling of the slide carriage was carried out by HTL

© Bosch

Helmut Weinwurm, who is the sole managing director of Robert Bosch AG and representative of the Bosch Group in Austria, was one of the panel members. He was impressed by the many projects on the topics of Internet of things and connectivity: “For us at Bosch, digitisation and connectivity are particularly important. Here we are increasingly seeing what role the Internet of things and services plays in our daily life and just how important it is to rapidly find solutions that will meet these needs”. He himself graduated from a HTL (Higher Technical Education Institute) and so can appreciate this type of school. “HTLs in Austria represent a real melting pot of talents. We at Bosch will also play a leading role in the development of technology in future. In Austria, we run a range of international competence centres for development and manufacturing within the Bosch Group. In order to do this, we will also need skilled employees in the future. Education is the raw material of the future and this includes training at a HTL”.

Not only Weinwurm but the entire panel for the Technology for Life Prize was incredibly impressed while evaluating the 67 dissertations handed in by the Austrian HTL graduates. 196 pupils from 20 HTLs in eight federal provinces took part this year in the largest company-initiated HTL competition in Austria.

Thomas Prieschl, Jonas Koblmüller, Christian Schlechtl and Jakob Lang from HTL Neufelden win in the category of Industrial Technology.

© Bosch

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The jury for the 2021 Technology for Life Prize: Wolfgang Kern (Ministry for Education, Science and Research), Helmut Weinwurm (sole managing director of Robert Bosch AG and representative of the Bosch Group in Austria), Andrea Scheichl (Vice President of Service and Support at the Austrian patent office), Wilfried Sihn (Vienna University of Technology and CEO of Fraunhofer Austria Research GmbH), Bernhard Geringer (Vienna University of Technology) and Angelika Kiessling (Bosch Austria), who is in charge of the Technology for Life Prize.

Mössingerstraße. Both the comprehensive collaborative work between HTLs as well as the scope and usefulness of the project impressed the panel for the Technology for Life Prize. “This is a very well-rounded project; from the construction of the mechanical parts, the electronic systems and the connectivity all the way to the practical testing. What’s more, the benefits to society are huge and it can clearly be broadly applied, making it real technology for life”, explains panel member Bernhard Geringer, CEO for the Institute for Powertrains and Automotive Technology at the Vienna University of Technology.

Winner of the Industrial Technology category: autonomous harvesting robot No strangers to the competition, in 3rd place in the “Jugend Innovativ” category for Engineering I, the winners were: Jonas Koblmüller, Christian Schlechtl, Jakob Lang and Thomas Prieschl from HTL Neufelden in Upper Austria, who developed and built a harvesting robot that gathers marigold flower heads for the production of ointments and tea. The invention consists of a self-propelled, autonomously driven harvesting robot that can withstand all weather conditions. It also reacts appropriately to constantly changing surroundings thanks to artificial intelligence, which is

handy as no flower is the same as the next. “It has an extremely complex system which touches on different special areas, such as connectivity, autonomous driving, mechanics, optronics that recognises the marigolds. All these factors were outstandingly resolved, documented and presented, making it a worthy winner of the Technology for Life Prize”, says juror Wilfried Sihn, CEO of Fraunhofer Austria Research GmbH and board director for the Vienna University of Technology Institute of Management Science, Industrial Engineering and System Planning.

Every participant is a winner According to juror, Wolfgang Kern, head of the department II/2 for technical schools for commerce and arts at the Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research: “The reason why it’s important for pupils at HTLs to take part in competitions like the Technology for Life Prize is that it is the first big stage on which they can showcase their abilities and what they have learnt. It’s particularly exciting because it’s in the field of technology and always moving with the times. And it’s somewhat of a yardstick to see how well we’re connected with technology and what young people can achieve. It’s like a view or a window into the future”. And by the looks of the participants’ projects, that view certainly does look promising. ◆

World Champion Austria Companies intro themselves

Innovative raw material extraction from Austria To some it’s simply rubbish but for an Austrian start-up it is the basis for power generation and phosphorus recovery.

The Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Regions and Tourism (BMLRT) has successfully completed its work on the masterplan Raw Materials 2030 and earmarked its publication for December 2021.

The aim is to find innovative and future-oriented opportunities to strengthen regions and to create domestic added value.

Strengthening Austria as a business location and the steady expansion of the circular economy are other main objectives. The BMLRT’s masterplan Raw Materials 2030 and its general support of municipalities aim to find pilot regions for innovative projects to encourage young, up-and-coming companies that offer solutions in the gentle extraction of raw materials and within the concepts of the circular economy.

Phosphorus, for example, has been classified as a critical raw material by the European Union. The demand for phosphorus in the EU is to be partly covered by its recovery (Communication from the Commission on the list of critical raw materials for the EU, COM(2017) 490 final - 13/09/2017). For this reason, phosphorus recovery from sewage sludge is mandatory. It is expected that after a transition period, no sewage sludge from medium-sized and large sewage treatment plants (population of 20,000 and more) may be used as fertiliser. At the same time, recovery of phosphorus contained in sewage sludge will be legally mandatory (to be regulated in the AVV Waste Incineration Regulation). It is expected that the regulation will come into force in 2023. In Germany this is already regulated by law.

Contact for the industrial sector

Contact for the mining industry

Andreas Weber

Thomas Spörker

Federal Ministry of Agriculture,

Federal Ministry of Agriculture,

Regions and Tourism

Regions and Tourism

Section IV – Department for Telecom-

Department IV/6:

munications, Postal Services and Mining

Mining – Technology and Safety

+43 1 711 62-653201

43 1 71100 608540

+43 6642645017

Denisgasse 31,

Radetzkystraße 2, 1030 Vienna

1200 Vienna

andreas.weber@bmlrt.gv.at

thomas.spoerker@bmlrt.gv.at

www.bmlrt.gv.at

www.bmlrt.gv.at

© BMLRT

Austria and its consumption of raw materials In general, as much as 25 percent of Austria’s gross domestic product is generated by the domestic raw and basic material generation. Here, about one million people are employed in the extraction and processing of raw materials. In 2018, around 80 million tonnes of construction raw materials were used throughout Austria for the creation and maintenance of infrastructure.

Among other things, this is also to meet the requirements due to increased mobility and the climatic conditions. Also in 2018, Austria consumed a total of about 167 million tonnes of natural resources, most of which represented non-metallic minerals.

Innovations in the field of environmental technology – DenkGrün produces and operates plants for the recovery of raw materials from biological waste and residues.

© BMLRT (2)

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Steadily working towards DenkGrün’s vision: “Imagine a world where all biological waste is used for energy storage and raw material production.”

Innovative start-up DenkGrün The desire to minimise the volume of all organic and plastics waste draws attention to a recently founded, promising Austrian start-up – DenkGrün (ThinkGreen). DenkGrün offers municipalities sensible operating solutions as well as various partner models which can be adapted to individual municipalities. The startup builds and operates plants with which sewage sludge but also plastic waste and liquid manure can be used for raw material extraction and power generation. As in the past, Austrian municipalities are obliged to pay for the disposal of sewage sludge. Thus, the general costs are massively reduced by a Denk­ Grün plant and, in addition, the phosphorus recovery, which will be obligatory in 2030, can be covered.

In addition to safe and cost-efficient disposal of sewage sludge from biological wastewater treatment plants, the focus is on the recovery of valuable substances such as phosphorus and nitrogen, and the associated closing of material cycles, while simultaneously eliminating pollutants. The possibility of recovering raw materials from sewage sludge can ensure affordable sewage sludge disposal in the long term. The DenkGrün plants also produce electricity, which is fed into the municipal grid.

DenkGrün focuses roughly on three essential things: disposal optimisation, phosphorus recovery and power generation.

The work and visions of the Austrian start-up company stand out – at present there is no comparable solution on the world market.

Solutions against climate change for cities and municipalities Every municipality and every city can make a meaningful contribution to climate protection without high investment costs. The start-up is pursuing this mission with an innovative process that recovers all the valuable raw materials from biological waste, produces green energy and at the same time reduces waste that is normally incinerated by up to 90 percent. This happens for example at sewage treatment plants, directly where sewage sludge is produced, or in recycling companies that also want to recover valuable recyclable materials from wastewater or waste products.

The objective is clear: Cycles must be closed and harmful emissions must be reduced. DenkGrün is convinced that they can use every resource – even the smallest resource – to help our environment and the climate.

World Champion Austria Companies introduce themselves

Domestic safety from all sides Austria isn’t a safe country just like that.

The programmes KIRAS and FORTE play a major role in our security.

The emergence of a wide variety of natural disasters and threats to individual security is a constant companion in our everyday lives. As in the previous year, in 2021 the ongoing pandemic and all the associated risks that restrict our public life and threaten Austria as a business location dominated. Austria must also counter these threats with the appropriate research and applied technologies.

Therefore, Austrian has the security research programme KIRAS and the defence research programme FORTE, which fund research projects with an average of 14 million euros annually in order to be prepared for the types of challenges mentioned above.

Research for security Whether it is the support of emergency responders, the protection of critical infrastructure or the development of improved hygiene concepts for the Austrian tourism sector, which was heavily impacted by the pandemic, with forward-looking technologies – the decisive factor is that the research projects help continue to guarantee the actual, but also economic security and wellbeing of Austrians. An essential means to this end is the utilisation of research results. Only if these findings are also applied in a timely manner can they unfold their full benefit and help in overcoming current crises or even prevent the emergence

Security at a glance Annual budget: 14 mln euros Subsidies for research facilities and businesses KIRAS

FORTE

Civil security research 9 mln euros www.kiras.at

Defence research 5 mln euros www.forte-bmlrt.at

Head of programme: Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Regions and Tourism Programme implementation: Austrian Research Promotion Agency FFG Call for tenders 2021: November 2021 to March 2022 Average project subsidy: 200,000 euros to 500,000 euros (max. 85 % of project costs) Project length: max. 3 years Technology readiness level: 4-6 Contact: Executive Department “Security Research and Technology Transfer” E-Mail: stabst.sifo-tt@bmlrt.gv.at

of future crisis. Successful solutions can in turn strengthen the domestic economy, not least if they are exported as concepts to other countries through technology transfers and thus contribute to increasing value creation and securing jobs in Austria. In order to provide some illustration in addition to the theory and dry figures, we would like to present some Austrian-led projects from our tenders below:

KIRAS projects with added value – BioCapture Emerging from the KIRAS project BioCapture, which facilitates mobile identification in police operations, HygienicHotel, a pilot project for contactless and secure guest identification, is being launched in cooperation with the Austrian Hoteliers Association (ÖHV) as a response to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. In order to make the services offered to guests in the tourism sector more hygienic, faster and safer, a contactless identification system is an interesting addition to the conventional chip card system.

Waiting times are particularly unpleasant for guests, as valuable free time is lost.

The prototype implementation reduces the identification process to single seconds. A hygienic, fast and secure access system would also be a worldwide novelty and Austria would position itself at the forefront of technology in regard to hygienic access systems for guests and visitors. The value chain already starts with the production and manufacturing of the system and the devices in Austria, where numerous companies offer their knowhow. End customers would be not only hotels but also stadiums, amusement parks, museums, buildings and event venues and other leisure facilities with restricted access.

KIRAS projects with added value – Securestamp Paper and plastic tickets are used in many of these abovementioned facilities, areas and their surroundings but also in public transport, at events, or for general access control. However, the production and circulation of counterfeit documents is also a widespread problem. This is where the KIRAS project Securestamp comes in, which is developing an overall system that allows such forgeries on original paper to be detected securely and easily by

© BMLRT

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incorporating stochastic, non-reproducible security markers – like a fingerprint in an encrypted form that can be read out later with a mobile detection unit.

An offshoot of the bilateral German-Austrian Securestamp project, the short-term lifetime measurement of inserted homogeneous security particles, is currently being incorporated into the Doculus Lumus system. This is a kind of pocket microscope for checking passports, ID cards, banknotes and the like, which is used, for example, by border guards, police and customs officials. Through 15x or 22x magnification with a highquality glass lens system, the finest details such as paper fibres, printing artefacts and even the slightest deviations of the surface can be seen.

Security can also be learned As important as general security itself is the training of those we entrust with ensuring it. The hitherto missing uniform and binding training and quality standards for security service providers as well as the development of a job description and a

corresponding apprenticeship are implemented in the government programme 2020-2024 for internal security. Building on its predecessor, the AQUS II project researched inhibiting and promoting factors for the implementation of mandatory education and training and corresponding job profiles.

A system and actor analysis identified these factors at the macro, meso and micro levels in Austria; existing international curricula and job profiles were analysed, and future relevant threat situations were surveyed. In the meantime, certain draft curricula for (temporary/marginally employed) employees at events, among others, are already available. There is already a training course model for security personnel in the critical infrastructure and essential inputs for a “security teaching profession”.

The subsidies from KIRAS and FORTE are available to all researchers and businesses that want to tackle tomorrow’s challenges in terms of security policy with their innovative ideas.

Let’s stay secure!

World Champion Austria Companies introduce themselves

Technology-Product-Maps for simple technology transfer The new strategic technology-product maps of the BMLRT show at a glance which technologies are available – for different sectors in different industries.

Technology only makes sense when it is applied. After all, the money invested in research and development only achieves economic sustainability if it can be translated into marketable products and services – and thus into jobs. The individual technology sectors have a very high proportion of applied research and innovation. They stand for highly qualified employment, bundle technological core competencies and have a high share in the development of precisely these competencies. What’s more, international demand is growing.

The international technology markets are exposed to fierce competition. In addition to close networking within Europe, the development of new, unsaturated growth markets is therefore also of great importance for technology transfers. A prerequisite for this is a sound knowledge of the products, the stakeholders and the nature and dynamics of the technology markets outside Europe.

Austrian companies are world market leaders in many technology areas, especially in niche applications. Cutting-edge technology from Austria is characterised by quality, customised solutions and experience – undoubtedly decisive criteria in the awarding of international projects. The task of commercial, international technology transfer is to increase the share of Austrian technology in exports in order to maintain or create jobs, and to

Contacts Ralph Hammer

Marcus Ullmann

Federal Ministry of Agriculture,

Federal Ministry of Agriculture,

Regions and Tourism

Regions and Tourism

Section IV – Executive Department

Section IV – Executive Department

“Security Research and Technology

“Security Research and Technology

Transfer”

Transfer”

+43 1 711 62 65 2109

+43 1 711 62 65 3302

Radetzkystraße 2, 1030 Vienna

Radetzkystraße 2, 1030 Vienna

ralph.hammer@bmlrt.gv.at

marcus.ullmann@bmlrt.gv.at

www.bmlrt.gv.at

www.bmlrt.gv.at

sustainably secure Austria as a location for business, industry and tourism, as well as to highlight the excellence of Austrian cutting-edge technologies.

Technology transfer is highly related to and in line with the foreign trade concept of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Regions and Tourism (BMLRT) and the foreign trade strategy as well as other strategic documents. The sectors relevant to the BMLRT are: •A gricultural and food technologies (incl. irrigation systems, smart farming, viticulture and orcharding, brewery technologies, tractors, towed equipment etc.).

• Mineral raw materials and raw material recovery (urban mining, phosphorus recovery from sewage sludge etc.).

• Environmental and mining supply technologies, recycling technologies, circular economy • Tourism • Technologies for tourism (e.g. access systems, cable cars, ski lifts, skis and other sports equipment, snow-making systems etc.)

• Security technologies • Water and sanitary supply • Forestry and timber industry • Digitisation, information and telecommunication technologies (IT) • Smart technologies for regional infrastructure development Sector-specific technology-product maps – STPL Technology-product maps have the primary purpose of presenting available technologies in a concise and summarised form.

This serves, among other things, to quickly identify and evaluate these technologies in more detail. It is also possible to identify meaningful research activities and any necessary accompanying measures on the part of the public sector. Technology-product maps are drawn up for holistic technology sectors and are not primarily focused on individual companies. The essential components of the STPL are:

© BMLRT/Alexander Haiden

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Austria‘s water is world famous. The best drinking water from the water mains is cause for envy in some other places.

•B rief description of the respective technology and the respective sector: This brief description is intended, among other things, to provide a methodical and practicable differentiation between sectors, and thus to avoid too much overlap with other sectors. Classification of sectors into technology grades (high tech, medium and low tech), among other things, if possible, on the basis of research and development expenditures in relation to added value within the sector.

• Listing of key products within the technology: Here, existing applications and potential future options are described. Also, their (worldwide) distribution and future potential are estimated.

• Existing competencies in Austria: Analysis with regard to market shares, R&D activities, international application of Austrian standards (e.g. EU-BREF) as well as export rate and international market shares.

•M ost important Austrian companies: Internationally active Austrian companies in the technology sector are listed and described with short profiles.

• Most important reference projects in Austria: For many technologies there are already reference projects in Austria, e.g. in the fields of tourism, water/wastewater, waste incineration, transport etc. These reference projects often involve public authorities and can be very helpful for international marketing.

• Main competitors, countries: For the main competitors and countries in the individual technology sectors, their unique selling propositions, market shares, competitive advantages (e.g. national financing) are determined. Strategic suggestions for Austria can be drawn here.

• Most important potential target markets: Analysis with regard to the institutional, structural, political, economic, societal and legal frameworks.

World Champion Austria Companies introduce themselves

The STPL is filled from a wide variety of data sources, such as documents and elaborations of the Austrian Economic Chamber, reports of economic promotion facilities, publications of business associations of other countries, publications of international industry associations, publications of IFIs, publications of bilateral cooperation and the European Union, publications of other international institutions, various internet sources and – last but not least – expert interviews. Through this multitude of sources, each individual piece of information can be checked for its reliability by means of cross-check analysis.

The user group of the STPL is almost as diverse as its data sources. It includes the relevant departments of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Environment and Water Management (BMLRT) with European and international relevance as well as attachés at the respective Austrian embassies, Austrian representations in the respective target country (embassy, Advantage Austria of the Austrian Economic Chamber WKO etc.), Austrian cluster organisations and companies, but also Austrian institutions, research and educational institutions with corresponding relevance and activities.

In particular, the Austria Wirtschaftsservice Gesellschaft AWS (the development and financing bank of the Republic of Austria) should be mentioned here. By granting low-interest loans, guarantees, subsidies and equity capital, AWS supports companies in the implementation of their innovative projects from the initial idea to international market success. It also provides advice and support on the protection and exploitation of intellectual property. In addition, specific information, consulting, services and support are offered to prospective, existing and expanding com-

panies. There is also the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) as the national funding agency for business-related research and development in Austria, universities, universities of applied sciences and relevant experts.

Since AWS was just mentioned, there are a number of funding instruments both in Austria and internationally. In Austria, supportive financing is mainly offered by the Austrian Kontrollbank (OeKB) and the Austrian Development Bank (OeEB). In addition, there is a number of support measures through the Austrian Economic Chamber (e.g. Go International) or special programmes (e.g. Kit4market or Tec4market), which are financed and handled by different agencies.

STPL in agriculture and food technology Austria and Austrian companies are at the forefront of agricultural technology in many (niche) areas (e.g. irrigation systems, smart farming, viticulture and fruit growing, brewery technologies, tractors, towed equipment, etc.). In terms of global efforts to maintain food security while addressing climate change, there is potential for technology transfer in this area. Also, the current Covid-19 crisis may affect food security. Austria’s global orientation is mentioned several times in the bioeconomy strategy.

© BMLRT/Alexander Haiden

•C ovid-19 impacts: To be mentioned here are impairments of the supply chains, travel restrictions, or, more generally, the widespread decline in economic activities or slumps in economic output.

• Risk analysis: Risk analyses are performed using scoring models; the weighting of the individual sub-risks is based on both the authors’ own experience as well as on the opinions of national and international experts and agencies.

• Other facts important for the respective sector • Cross-sector issues by relevance (e.g., financing, national (OeEB etc.), international (IFIs – International Financial Institutions, other bilateral financing), financing advice • Accompanying environment analysis

Austrian technology for the treatment of waste water and the treatment of drinking water can be found beyond the borders of the EU on all continents.

© Huawei

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In Upper Austria, drones and 5G are being used for the first time in agriculture for monitoring large areas of arable land and the specific application of fertilisers.

STPL in water, wastewater management and technology Austria is world-renowned for its water and water management, including wastewater. This topic is of paramount global relevance. Technology-driven solutions for the efficient and resource-conserving use of water are being promoted globally. This may result in opportunities for technology transfer.

STPL in mining, basic materials and heavy industry The Austrian economy has so far been spared to a certain extent from de-industrialisation, as can already be seen in some countries (e.g. Great Britain). Specific technology transfer activities can help to secure the industrial base.

STPL in the wood and forestry industry The Austrian wood and forestry industry has an exceedingly large potential for international activities. The creation of a “top-

ic grid” in the field of forestry and water has already been suggested (incl. climate-efficient forest and forestry management, creation of CO2 balances).

STPL in the tourism industry This can include technologies for tourism (e.g. access systems, cable cars, ski lifts, skis and other sports equipment, snowmaking systems etc.).

STPL in the circular economy This includes technologies in urban mining, resource recovery (e.g. phosphorus recovery from sewage sludge etc.), and recycling and waste technologies.

In any case, there is no doubt that technologies of all kinds will continue to play a central role in the future. And Austria can act as a pioneer and technology leader in this respect.

AUSTRIAN SHOWCASE COMPANIES

HOFMANN over 75 years of tradition Manufacturer of heat treatment plants for the automotive and aviation industry (aluminium and titanium) as well as the steel industry. Some of the world’s best-known companies are among our clients. Our export ratio is almost 85%.

From the entire planning stage to programming and manufacturing – all from one source. You can count on HOFMANN quality. Nothing is left to chance.

The company ACE Apparatebau construction & engineering GmbH is part of the versatile Christof Group and operating on a global scale. For decades, ACE has been developing special solutions for industrial equipment, which are recognised worldwide. The company manufactures complex pressure vessels, heat exchangers, columns, reactors, FCC components and other special equipment for international clients in the petrochemical and chemical industry, the plastics, paper and food industry.

At its headquarters in Lieboch, ACE produces apparatuses with pressures of up to 750 bar, weights of up to 600 tonnes and diameters of up to 5.4 metres.

ACE Apparatebau construction & engineering GmbH Hans Thalhammer Straße 18 | 8501 Lieboch 03136/636000 | ace.office@christof-group.com | www.christof-group.com

Kraus & Naimer is a manufacturer of electrical switchgear and was founded in Vienna in 1907. The company´s logo is the Greek letter phi. Kraus & Naimer is a supplier of various switchgear for industrial customers in the fields of transport (railways, vehicles, ships, etc.), conveyor systems, lift systems, mechanical engineering, and power generation and power distribution systems.

The family-run company is the world market leader in the field of cam switches and operates a global production and distribution network with some 900 people worldwide.

Kraus & Naimer Produktion GmbH Schumanngasse 39 | 1180 Vienna | Austria +43 1 404 06 0 | sales-at@krausnaimer.com | www.krausnaimer.com

Clou Duo – The best of both worlds Austroflamm’s Duo models can burn both logs and wood pellets. They combine the comfort and the technological innovation of pellet stoves with the cosiness of a crackling fireplace. The Clou Duo stands out from other stoves with its large, round glass door and the oval shape. It captivates with its pleasant pellet fire with an automatic thermostat, a timer, an optional air diffuser and an impressive log fire picture. The standard remote control offers maximum convenience and ease of use. You can find more warming ideas at www.austroflamm.com.

AUSTROFLAMM GmbH Austroflamm-Platz 1 | A-4631 Krenglbach | +43 7249 46443-0

AUSTRIAN SHOWCASE COMPANIES

Carbides and tools from Boehlerit, headquartered in Kapfenberg, are the pacesetters for new standards in the machining of metal, wood, synthetic and composite materials. Reliable and efficient processes are ensured worldwide with cutting materials, semi-finished products, precision tools and tooling systems for milling, turning, drilling and forming. The comprehensive Boehlerit product range includes highly specialised tools for crankshaft machining, tube and pipe machining, bar peeling and heavy-duty machining operations in the steel industry.

Further Boehlerit strengths include carbides for structural components and for wear-protection. In coating technology, Boehlerit achieved a world first and unique positioning globally with its Nano CVD bonding layer through to the hardest diamond coatings. Added to this, Boehlerit is the expert development partner for toolmakers with its unrivalled know-how and many years of mastery in metallurgy, coatings systems and the latest pressing technologies.

Boehlerit GmbH & Co KG Werk VI-Straße 100 | 8605 Kapfenberg +43 (3862) 300-0 | info@boehlerit.com www.boehlerit.com

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Duvenbeck Group is an internationally operating full-service logistics provider. For more than eight decades, the family company has been inspiring confidence in customers with its unmistakable corporate culture, including major brands from the automotive and automotive supply industry, the consumer industry, the plastics industry and the agricultural vehicle industry. Our portfolio of logistical services is as comprehensive as your requirements. These services range from conceptual development to freight forwarding through to contract logistics.

Duvenbeck Logistik GmbH

Styriastraße 35 | A-8042 Graz +43 316 207 475 503 | Fax +43 316 207 475 507 | www.duvenbeck.de

SUNPOR Kunststoff GmbH Tiroler Straße 14, A-3105 St. Pölten Tel. +43 (0)2742 291-0 office@sunpor.at, www.sunpor.at The reduction of CO2 emissions is the key challenge of the global automotive industry.

Alternative drives or the reduction of fuel consumption and emissions in a combustion engine: our lightweight solutions help our customers to reduce weight and to integrate more functions such as cooling systems. We combine our development knowhow with 200 years of production excellence in the automotive industry.

We set the highest standards for high-pressure die-casting components with multiple aluminium and magnesium alloys. Over 100 die-casting cells worldwide and closing forces from 200 to 4,400 tonnes. We offer the entire value chain from the raw casting to the ready-to-mount component.

GF Casting Solutions Herzogenburg HPDC GmbH GF Casting Solutions Altenmarkt GmbH & Co KG 3130 Herzogenburg | 8934 Altenmarkt | Austria | www.gfcs.com

sunpor – innovations for people and the environment sunpor is one of Europe’s technology leaders when it comes to the production of granules for premium EPS. With cutting-edge production methods. With a wide range of types for all applications from insulation, protection and packaging to innovative special solutions. With extensive and individual support for processors.

Working passionately to achieve one thing: the best ideas for EPS that deliver both economic and environmental added value.

AUSTRIAN SHOWCASE COMPANIES

Innovative refrigeration technology from the world market leader

Carbon-neutral energy generation – with the powerful biomass plants from POLYTECHNIK

AHT is the leading provider of plug-in, environmentally friendly freezer systems and the perfect partner for grocery retailers and food manufacturers. Products that have shaped the industry come from tranquil Rottenmann since 1983. AHT refrigeration systems supply leading discount and supermarket chains as well as well-known manufacturers in the ice cream and beverage industry. AHT was the first manufacturer of propane-powered devices in series. Furthermore, AHT was the first manufacturer of a speed-regulated compressor in the plug-in area. In doing so, we have had a lasting influence on the way the industry looks at the energy consumption of refrigerated goods.

Recycling our environmental resources in an innovative and climate-friendly way has made Polytechnik, an Austrian family-owned company with more than 3,300 plants built worldwide, a global player and a perfect provider of tailor-made solutions for every need – for more than 55 years already. Polytechnik relies on ecologically developed products with state-of-the-art technology and thus makes a significant contribution to carbon-neutral energy generation. These customised systems are used in the wood industry, in the public sector for municipal heat supply, by large energy suppliers and by industrial energy consumers.

AHT Cooling Systems

Polytechnik Luft- und Feuerungstechnik GmbH

Werksgasse 57 | A-8786 Rottenmann +43 3614 2451-0 | office@aht.at | www.aht.at

Hainfelderstraße 69 | 2564 Weissenbach, Austria Tel. +43/2672/890-0 | office@polytechnik.at | www.polytechnik.com

ILF CONSULTING ENGINEERS.

THE EXPERIENCE OF ENGINEERING.

8,000+

SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED PROJECTS ILF helps clients in the Energy & Climate Protection, Water & Environment, Transportation & Urban Spaces and Oil, Gas & Industrial sectors to reach their ambitious goals.

ILF CONSULTING ENGINEERS AUSTRIA GMBH Feldkreuzstraße 3 ∙ 6063 Rum bei Innsbruck

www.ilf.com

Bühler Heidenreichstein signifies courage for unconventional solutions, future-oriented technological expertise and demand-oriented functionalities. The wide-ranging portfolio of services includes fully automated production lines, mainly for metal-plastic hybrid parts, standard plants, plant modules but also completely individually developed fully digitised and autonomous production lines. These plants are delivered to every continent of the world in accordance with every customer requirement and with the highest quality standards. Other core areas are high-quality parts production and component assembly for valve manufacturing, heavy valve construction, railroad technology, hydrants as well as for precision engineering and medical technology.

Metall- und Kunststoffwaren Erzeugungsgesellschaft m.b.H. Bahnhofstraße 31 | 3860 Heidenreichstein | T +43 (0)2862 52321-0 office.bhnh@buhlergroup.com | www.buhlergroup.com/heidenreichstein

AUSTRIAN SHOWCASE COMPANIES

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# future # innovation # energy transition The IMA Schelling Group specialises in developing and producing modularised customer-specific manufacturing systems and processing solutions for the wood, metal and plastics industries. As a leading supplier of batch-size-1 systems for a digital, fully automated networked production, we sell and service our intelligent high-end solutions through our own sales and service companies all over the globe. Our product range includes systems for the entire process chain from storage, dividing, handling and transport, edge banding, CNC machining, drilling to sorting and stacking of panel-shaped workpieces made of wood, metal or plastic. Moreover, we offer you a comprehensive range of services and numerous digitisation products.

WE RELY ON CLEAN TECHNOLOGIES.

CleanTech – made in Austria Schubert Elektroanlagen is an innovative company for electrotechnical equipment in plant construction. Among other things, we focus on solutions in the field of renew­ able energies and on the sustainability of our concepts, thus contributing to a successful energy transition.

With the quality and safety certifications ISO 9001 and ISO 45001, we guarantee our high quality and safety standards. Over 1,000 projects worldwide are impressive proof of our productive capacity.

IMA Schelling Group

Schubert Elektroanlagen GesmbH

Gebhard-Schwärzler-Straße 34 | 6858 Schwarzach | Vorarlberg | Austria Tel. +43 5572 396-0 | E-Mail: info@imaschelling.com | Web: www.imaschelling.com

Industriestraße 3 | 3200 Ober-Grafendorf | Österreich Tel. +43 2747 2535-0 | E-Mail: office@schubert.tech | Web: www.schubert.tech

AUTOMOTIVE TESTING GMUNDNER FERTIGTEILE Ges.m.b.H. & Co. KG was founded in 1972, is patent owner and producer of BODAN-level-crossing-systems. It is used as standard level-crossing-system by many state-owned and private railway companies worldwide.

BODAN is a modular level-crossing-system. It is suitable for all types of rails, sleeper and fastenings. BODAN works like a “bridge-system” and fulfils tracks and streets requirements. The application of the patented polymer-concrete GEFCON guarantees a maximum load ability by extreme heavy traffic as well as long life-cycle. An advantage is the easy exchange of individual panels as well as low maintenance costs. Bodan is exported in 20 countries worldwide

Gmundner Fertigteile Ges.m.b.H. & Co. KG Unterthalhamstraße 1 | 4694 Ohlsdorf | Austria office@gmundner-ft.at | www.bodan.at

With the KS R2R test technology (Road to Rig), it is possible to test drive components individually or in combination at any stage of development as if they were already installed in a real vehicle with real-time capable and true-to-life simulation models (Digital Twin).

www.ksengineers.at

World Champion Austria Vienna Foreword

Vienna is one of the most liveable cities in the world. That sounds like a nice campaign slogan but it is based on years of effort and measures that make Vienna the city it is today.

A well-oiled economy is needed to strengthen our business location in order to offer a secure employment market and even help to expand it. Therefore, we developed the economic strategy “Vienna 2030 - Economy & Innovation”. This strategy builds upon the strengths of Vienna as a business location and makes use of its existing potential. The intention is to put forward “Viennese solutions” to provide answers to the big challenges of coming years from climate change to digitisation and to create jobs and international visibility. This will make Vienna an international top player in these areas. The aim is to create prosperity and quality of life that benefits all Viennese citizens, particularly by creating high-skilled jobs and an excellent infrastructure. We currently find ourselves in the middle of a transformation from an industrial society to a service and knowledge-based society.

Vienna, with its history and tradition, will constantly press ahead with the latest inventions and developments. Creativity is a driver for innovation and an engine for a new Viennese innovation scene.

As you can see, the economy is not just about rough numbers and balance sheets. For us, the economy is a creative and social process with the aim of keeping our high quality of life. For me it is key that people are always at the centre of our economic and innovative activities. That was always part of Vienna’s urban policies, and it will remain so in the future.

Best regards, Michael Ludwig Mayor and Governor of Vienna

© Stadt Wien/PID/Michael Königshofer

Dear readers,

© PID/Christian Fürthner

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After topping the „Economist Intelligence Unit Ranking“ for three years running, Vienna is no longer the world‘s most livable city in 2021 due to the Covid pandemic.

Universities

Economic data

c University of Vienna c Vienna University of Technology c Vienna University of Economics and Business c University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna c Medical University of Vienna c The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna c University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna c University of Applied Arts Vienna c Sigmund Freud University Vienna c Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna c Modul University Vienna c Webster Vienna Private University c JML Jam Music Lab Private University

Universities of applied science c Fachhochschule Technikum Vienna c FH Vienna of the Vienna Economic Chamber c University of Applied Sciences BFI Vienna c Lauder Business School

S o u r c e : S t a t i s t i c a l Ye a r b o o k C i t y o f V i e n n a

c Gross regional product in mln euros1 100,348 c Change from 2000 to 2019 +74.0%

c Gross regional product per capita in euros1 52,700 c Gross value added in mln euros1 c Production sector1

c Services1

89,692 12,665 76,985

c Members at the Economic Chamber2 143,945 c Business formations2 8,514 c Apprentices2

17,365

c Tourism overnight stays (x 1,000)2 4,589 c Foreign trade in mln euros3

c Imports c Exports

35,305 19,428

c Total number of jobs2 842,938 c Patent issuances nationally2 167

1 2019 data, 2 2020 data , 3 preliminary figures 2020 Source: Statistics Austria, Association of Social Security ­I n s t i t u t i o n s , A u s t r i a n E c o n o m i c C h a m b e r, A u s t r i a n P a t e n t O f f i c e , C i t y o f Vi e n n a

World Champion Austria Vienna

Vienna – a city benefitting from its economic diversity Christian C. Pochtler, President of the Viennese Federation of Industries, and Walter Ruck, head of the Vienna Economic Chamber, talk about the challenges facing Austria’s capital city.

T

© Manuel Ortlechner

he Covid crises plunged Vienna into a deep recession.

The gross added value fell by 5.6 percent in 2020, even though it is actually less than the decrease in Austria overall (–6.4 percent) thanks to a less dramatic slump in the first half of the year. The consolidation after summer was also negative, however – minus 4.8 percent (–4.6 percent nationwide). The decrease stems entirely from the Viennese service

Christian C. Pochtler, President of the Viennese Federation of Industries

sector (tourism, transport, culture and leisure), says the Austrian Institute of Economic Research WIFO (Österreichisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung). Employment went down by 2.4 percent in the annual average of 2020 (- 2 percent nationwide), but part of it came down to a statistical one-time effect.

WIFO expects a strong economic recovery during the remainder of the calendar year thanks to the re-opening of businesses and the continuing solid upswing in international (industrial goods) trade. This will give Vienna a growth in added value of real 3.6 percent and in increase in employment by 2 percent in the annual average of 2021 – despite the country being mostly in lockdown from January to May. Vienna will follow the nationwide upwards trend (+3.9 percent and +2.1 percent respectively) with a slight lag resulting from the very slow recovery of the international trade in services and thus urban tourism, which is of course an important economic factor for Vienna. Regional employment will also recover along the strong upwards trend. But even WIFO warns that this outlook should be regarded with caution: There is a high number of uncertainties affecting any prognoses on the economic development this year.

But enough of boring numbers. Christian C. Pochtler, President of the Viennese Federation of Industries, and Walter Ruck, head of Vienna Economic Chamber, will tell us their views.

Mr Pochtler, Mr Ruck, how are the Viennese businesses doing at the moment?

Christian C. Pochtler: Vienna’s industrial sector was able to keep working almost continuously during the pandemic and remains the economy’s engine in times of crises. Still, this period has been and continues to be a big challenge for many of our members, particularly in sectors where they depend on interna-

© Florian Wieser

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Walter Ruck: “We need measures that favour and support the increase of equity capital in companies, e.g. in fiscal law.”

tional supply chains. However, after an initial moment of shock most of them managed to react very well to the new situation and therefore we will be able to contribute significantly to the upswing – if the outside factors permit it. It will be critical for our success to secure enough skilled workers in numerous fields and also to secure highly necessary raw materials and semi-finished products.

Walter Ruck: The Viennese companies are foremost very relieved that they are able to work once again without hardly any restrictions. Furthermore, the business indicators point towards a quicker recovery of the economy than expected. This is very good news, of course. Vienna will benefit strongly from this, as it is a very diverse business location. This is one of our strengths.

But we can still see that sectors that depend highly on tourism are still fighting with the effects of the pandemic. Vienna misses its international guests.

The number of vaccinations kept rising before the summer while the number of infections fell. We seem to have overcome the worst. But have we really? Is the crisis over? What do we need to look out for now?

Pochtler: The vaccinations were and remain the game changer in the fight against the pandemic – both when it comes to health and the economic fallout. Therefore, the Federation of Industries

has always campaigned intensively to have key workers vaccinated quickly after vulnerable and high-risk groups. Together with the City of Vienna and the Vienna Economic Chamber we came to a good solution in spring. But the crisis isn’t over yet.

Aside from issues on health, the economy and the job market will need longer to recover completely from the effects of the pandemic. Political decision-makers need to create clever incentives to boost entrepreneurial activities and to safeguard wealth and jobs in Austria in the long run. I’m thinking foremost of investment incentives such as an investment bonus and long-awaited tax reliefs. The reduction in corporate tax that the government programme has promised would be a good first step.

Ruck: The Delta variant of the virus is currently spreading, unfortunately. The top priority is therefore to avoid further lockdowns. Quick vaccinations and reliable tests are necessary. We are in a good position in Vienna: There is an ample offer to get vaccinated and I’m very happy that we were able to implement city-wide PCR tests quite early. The programme “Alles Gurgelt” ensures that everyone has easy and ample access to PCR tests.

We should always think positive – so what are the positive findings you are taking with you from the Covid crisis?

Pochtler: Every crisis is clearly also an opportunity. We must not carry on as usual after the pandemic is over and revert to old

World Champion Austria

© unsplash/Robert Anasch

Vienna

Viennese businesses need to increase their equity capital. The Federation of Industries and the Economic Chamber want to help them do so.

habits. Rather, we have to learn from the mistakes made during this crisis in order to be ready for the next challenges such as climate change. Something that I learned personally from the crisis is that you can only solve global problems globally. This will apply to climate protection just like it applied to the pandemic – or maybe rather should have applied. In politics we need a more holistic, evidence-based planning strategy combined with the appropriate management know-how to implement measures in an effective and orderly way. If society manages to draw the right conclusions from this crisis and apply them to future problems, then the pandemic will have made us more resilient in the long run. And that is something positive to me.

Ruck: Crises are always an accelerator of developments, and that also applies to the Covid pandemic, of course. The speed of digitisation has gone up, for example. Many businesses that had so far not really tackled the issue have taken the bull by the horn during the pandemic. All related funding has been used up very quickly and we had to keep replenishing the coffers. We need to keep this momentum in digitisation up once the pandemic is over. There are still gaps in high-speed internet coverage, even in Vienna. And from a social point of view, we saw that it makes sense to look out for one another a little bit more.

What is the Viennese Federation of Industries planning for next year?

Pochtler: We will not fully overcome the economic crisis in 2022 either. We will therefore put all our efforts into creating the right conditions for companies in Vienna and Austria that allow for innovative and successful economic activities. These issues include strengthening the equity capital base of our businesses, continuous digitisation and appropriate measures to fight the lack of skilled workers. But next year will of course be dominated by climate change, something that we want to work on closely with political decision-makers in order to create a transformation that is both ecological but also economically and socially sustainable.

And what is the Economic Chamber going to focus on in 2022?

Ruck: The crisis has shown that our businesses need to increase their equity capital. We need measures to promote and support the creation of our own capital – for example in fiscal law. The experiences made during the Covid pandemic need to be analysed in detail and then be worked into a new Epidemic Diseases Act. We need appropriate, contemporary plans to be ready for the next potential crisis. We are going to push for that. ◆

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Innovative community at Seestadt Aspern Established only one year ago, the EIT Manufacturing Co-Location Center East already had to increase its space due to the high demand.

Driver of innovation “In only a very short time, we have been able to establish EIT Manufacturing as a driving force in Vienna to promote innovation in manufacturing. This has only been possible with the great support we have received from the City of Vienna and due to our cooperation with the Vienna Business Agency. We will develop our collaboration even further in the future to combine our strengths for the good of the Viennese manufacturing industry,” says Johannes Hunschofsky, Managing Director of EIT Manufacturing CLC East.

“In Vienna, digitalisation means finding and supporting solutions for the people. On a global scale, especially our small and medium-sized enterprises are challenged to compete in the long run. This is why we are proud to have EIT Manufacturing in

Vienna as an international player to strengthen the business location for digitalisation as well as our companies operating here in the city,“ says Peter Hanke, Executive City Councillor of Finance, Business, Labour, International Affairs and Vienna Public Utilities.

Strengthening the business location Vienna through cooperation The Vienna Business Agency, which establishes and runs the Technology Center Seestadt at the edge of the Austrian federal capital as a technology and innovation hub, also recognised the

© Matthias Heschl

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he EIT Manufacturing Co-Location Center East in Vienna was established last April, being Austria’s first site of a knowledge and innovation community of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), an EU organisation. Only one year later the young organisation headed by Johannes Hunschofsky is already doubling its office space at Seestadt Aspern to meet the needs of a quickly growing team and the demands of local and regional interest groups.

Only last year, the CLC East started operations in its new offices in TZ2 of the Technology Center in Seestadt Vienna with 13 available work stations. From six employees in December 2020, the Viennese team already consisted of twelve members in June 2021 – with a rising trend –, who serve twelve countries in Central and Eastern Europe with its EIT Manufacturing activities and programmes out of the Austrian capital. EIT Manufacturing’s goal is to strengthen cross-national collaboration between industry, academia and research and foster innovation in the European manufacturing industry.

Gerhard Hirczi, Managing Director of the Vienna Business Agency

World Champion Austria

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Johannes Hunschofsky, Managing Director of EIT Manufacturing CLC East and Councillor Peter Hanke teaming up their efforts.

potential of the rapidly growing location of EIT Manufacturing.

To jointly boost Vienna as a location for research and science, the Vienna Business Agency and EIT Manufacturing CLC East have put two cooperation agreements in place. Gerhard Hirczi, Managing Director of the Vienna Business Agency on the collaboration with EIT Manufacturing CLC East: “The Technology Center in the Seestadt is already a hotspot for new technologies, digital production and the Viennese hub for manufacturing technology.

EIT Manufacturing as a European institution fits perfectly in this environment and ensures additional international visibility.”

EIT Manufacturing supports local projects and companies As part of the event programme, various Viennese projects and companies, which have been supported by EIT Manufacturing since 2020, have been presented during the office visit. One of them is Incus, a company for lithography-based high-performance metal additive manufacturing, BoostUp! 2020 participant and also one of the neighbours of EIT Manufacturing CLC East in the Technology Center Seestadt. Also, cleanAIR, a mobile air cleaner with an integrated disinfection function for closed rooms up to 50 sqm was demonstrated by Friedrich Bleicher, Head of the Institute for Production Engineering and Photonic Technolo-

gies (IFT) at the TU Wien, a member of EIT Manufacturing. First tests of the air purification system have been very successful, also the disinfection mode has been examined in various laboratory experiments. The next step for cleanAIR is to obtain the necessary certifications for the market launch.

What is the EIT? EIT is an acronym of The European Institute of Innovation and Technology – it remains open to interpretation though, whether the “I” stands for “Institute” or “Innovation”. The EIT strengthens Europe’s ability to innovate by powering solutions to pressing global challenges and by nurturing entrepreneurial talent to create sustainable growth and skilled jobs in Europe. The EIT is an EU body that is an integral part of Horizon Europe, the EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation. The Institute supports the development of dynamic pan-European partnerships – EIT Knowledge and Innovation Communities – among leading companies, research labs and universities.

EIT Manufacturing is supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a body of the European Union.

It is one of eight innovation communities within EIT. The others are EIT Climate-KIC, EIT Digital, EIT Food, EIT Health, EIT In-

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Councillor Peter Hanke with the quickly growing team of EIT Manufacturing East at the Technology Center Seestadt in Vienna.

noEnergy, EIT Raw Materials and EIT Urban Mobility.

EIT Manufacturing’s main goal is to bring European stakeholders focused on manufacturing together in innovation eco-systems that add unique value to European products, processes and services and inspire the creation of globally competitive and sustainable manufacturing. EIT Manufacturing brings together more than 65 organizations (universities, research institutes and business) including for example: Atos, Avio Aero, CEA – Atomic Energy and Alternative Energies Commission, Chalmers University of Technology, Comau, Czech Technical University in Prague, ESI Group, Festo, Fives Group, Fraunhofer Gesellschaft, INESC TEC, Jozef Stefan Institute, Magna, MONDRAGON, Politecnico di Milano, PRIMA, P&G, Sandvik Machining Solutions, TU Darmstadt, voestalpine High Performance Metals, Volkswagen, Volvo Group, VTT and Whirlpool.

EIT Manufacturing East GmbH is one of the five Co-Location Centers (CLC) of EIT Manufacturing, located in the Technology Center Seestadt in Vienna, Austria. CLC East serves twelve countries in Central and Eastern Europe: Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, North Macedo-

nia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, and Slovenia, of which eleven are EIT RIS eligible countries, being considered modest and moderate innovators according to the European Innovation Scoreboard.

Therefore, the Regional Innovation Scheme (RIS) Pillar Leadership and its eight local Hubs in the CLC East Region are strongly involved in the CLC East network and its activities. CLC East works in close cooperation with its nine full members from industry, research and academia: Atos, the Czech Technical University in Prague, Joanneum Research, Jožef Stefan Institute, LMS – Laboratory for Manufacturing Systems & Automation, Magna, the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava, the Technical University Vienna, and voestalpine High Performance Metals, and its network partners AM-Austria and the Vienna Business Agency. EIT Manufacturing CLC East is additionally supported by three Austrian Ministries (Federal Ministry Digital and Economic Affairs; Federal Ministry Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology; Federal Ministry Education, Science and Research) as well as the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG). ◆

World Champion Austria Vienna

„Heaven, Vienna mine. I’m in the spell of your charms divine“ With or without pandemic: Vienna flies high with business settlements and local founders.

Founding boom But not only new business settlements are a cause for optimism; the economic recovery is mirrored by the number of new business establishments in Austria’s capital. The first half of 2021 saw 4.856 new businesses registered, which is 19 percent more than during the first Covid year 2020. This founding boom has been coming: “We already noticed last year that there is a huge interest in establishing a business in Vienna. Enquiries at the Business Establishment Service of the Vienna Economic Chamber rose by 2.600 in 2020 up to 57.800,” says Barbara Havel, CEO of Junge Wirtschaft Wien and representative of Vienna’s founders. Due to the pandemic many founders postponed their plans and are starting their businesses only now though, says Havel.

The sectors business consultancy, IT, advertising and online re-

tail saw the most new establishments in the first half of 2021 in Vienna.

“We want to help founders as well as we can as the economic situation is still highly volatile,” Havel says. “An entrepreneur needs support, particularly in the beginning, to master unpleasant stumbling blocks. There is a lot that founders need to pay attention to, to prepare and to plan – not only having an idea first, but deciding the legal form of the company, registering your business and dealing with legal and fiscal matters, which often confuse people particularly in the beginning.” The experts at the Vienna Economic Chamber give founders a hand – for free.

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he City of Vienna and the Austrian Business Agency recorded a solid number of new settlements from international companies: Despite the Covid pandemic and all its restrictions, 218 companies from abroad settled in Austria’s capital. “The investments made by foreign businesses during the pandemic show that entrepreneurs believe in Vienna as a business location. In spite of the Covid pandemic we recorded the third-best year in settlements since 2012,” Vienna Mayor Michael Ludwig says. Economic councillor Peter Hanke adds: “These 218 new settlements resulted in 263 million euros of investment, creating 1.718 new jobs.”

44 of these 218 companies come from Germany. For the first time ever, the United Kingdom was second with 16 new businesses. The increase in interest from British companies surely stems from the Brexit in late 2020, when Britain left the European Union. Italy ranks third with 14 businesses, followed by Switzerland, Slovakia and Russia. The United States comes in eighth as the first non-European country.

Barbara Havel, CEO of Junge Wirtschaft Wien and representative of Vienna’s founders

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The Business Immigration Office deals with the needs of expats, helping international workers to settle in faster.

More services for international key workers The City of Vienna cooperates closely with the Vienna Business Agency and the job market service AMS to establish a new service point for international skilled workers and scientists who want to move to Vienna with their families. The idea is to offer advice to expats and their particular needs at one single port of call – called the Business Immigration Office BIO. It bundles all settlement and immigration processes to speed up the move to Vienna.

“Vienna is a cosmopolitan place and skilled workers from abroad do not only strengthen our economy but also enrich our society. The new Business Immigration Office offers the best service available in order to process the settlement of skilled workers and key workers faster and with less red tape,” says Vice-Mayor and Councillor for Integration Christoph Wiederkehr.

“This is not only a huge bureaucratic simplification for them but also for entrepreneurs, for research facilities and education centres.”

The new service point deals with legal matters and offers advice on various topics. In future, it will help international skilled workers, entrepreneurs, organisations, research facilities

and education centres with questions specific to them. Furthermore, the Business Immigration Office will give points and starters on all of the City’s offers on integration. In 2019, the City processed more than 5,000 settlement applications from international skilled workers. By bundling all the individual procedures and creating synergies, these processes will be faster and less bureaucratic in future. Not only will new workers benefit from this streamlined process but also Vienna’s economy as a whole.

“Supporting the upswing” “Vienna as a business location is appealing to international businesses but also for international skilled workers and managers.

They often come with their partners and families and need a lot of help in the beginning. After one and a half years of Covid-induced stagnancy, we see more movement in international business. We can support this upswing with the new Business Immigration Office perfectly,” says Hanke. The service will be run by members of the City Department for Immigration and Citizenship MA 35 in cooperation with a multi-lingual team of experts from the Vienna Business Agency. They will be located at Zelinkagasse 9 in Vienna’s 1st district. ◆

World Champion Austria Companies introduce themselves

ABA: Full steam ahead for Austria as a business location For 40 years ABA has been the first port of call for international business settlements. As a location agency, it makes our country attractive for companies and skilled workers.

5,000 businesses settled “Our strengths are our first-class service, our economic knowhow and our networking skills. All companies that contact us receive customised solutions and benefit from our large network,” explains ABA Managing Director René Tritscher. One focus is the promotion of Austria as a business, research and work location abroad. The 32 strong team of INVEST in AUSTRIA advises companies on settling and entering the market, informs about the location in all its facets and addresses potential investors abroad.

Facts & figures Sector: International business settlements

Finding skilled workers

Film commission Staff (2021): 45 Languages: 15 ABA is Austria’s business location agency. The subsidiary of the Federal Ministry for Digitalisation and the Business Location (BMDW) promotes Austria as a business and research location, an attractive labour market for skilled workers and a filming location for international movie productions.

Austrian Business Agency (ABA) Opernring 3, 1010 Vienna investinaustria.at, workinaustria.at, locationaustria.at

© ABA

Establishing a company in Austria? Setting up a research campus? Finding highly skilled international experts? Or shooting a gripping feature film? The Austrian Business Agency (ABA), a subsidiary of the Federal Ministry for Digitalisation and the Business Location, takes care of all of these issues. The location agency celebrates its 40th birthday in 2022.

“We offer our customers quickly the best solutions to have lasting success in Austria.”

René Tritscher, ABA Managing Director

Since its founding in 1982, ABA has attracted more than 5,000 companies, created almost 70,000 jobs and attracted more than 12 billion euros of investment to the country. In 2021, a strategic reorientation took place towards even more quality and added value for the business location. The goal is to attract more companies in the future-oriented sectors of IT – specifically cybersecurity and autonomous driving – as well as life sciences. Austria is very well positioned in these areas and offers great potential for foreign companies. In return, they can bring investments and attractive jobs to the country.

International skilled workers and film productions In addition to international business settlement, ABA has two other pillars: WORK in AUSTRIA and FILM in AUSTRIA. “With WORK in AUSTRIA, we primarily address domestic companies that are looking for highly qualified skilled workers beyond the

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The CEE headquarters of Robert Bosch AG in Vienna - within the Bosch Group, Austria is an important development location for all types of drivetrains.

country’s borders. As a one-stop shop, we assist them with all issues regarding the employment of foreigners and with official procedures,” explains René Tritscher. Companies can advertise vacancies internationally via an online job exchange, and an online advisor for EU citizens or third-country nationals who would like to work as skilled workers in Austria as well as employers offer answers to questions about living and working in our country.

The FILM in AUSTRIA department acts as a national movie commission and supports international movie productions in their filming activities in Austria. Among the 500 movies shot were highlights such as James Bond, Mission Impossible and the Bollywood blockbuster Tiger Zinda Hai. “ABA brings international movie productions to the country: This creates jobs and strengthens tourism. We network local filmmakers with the international movie industry and in this way make Austria known abroad,” says Tritscher. The services on offer range from subsidies – around 83 million euros so far – to help with the search for locations and filming permits, the search for cooperation partners and networking with filmmakers. All ABA services are free of charge for companies.

40 years of commitment to Austria ABA can look back on a unique success story: In 1982, it was founded by ÖIAG as ICD Austria to create jobs in rural and industrial problem areas. In 1995, it was renamed the Austrian Business

Agency, and since 1996 the Republic of Austria has held 100 percent of the shares through the Ministry of Economic Affairs.

The then settlement agency, from 2007 onwards by the name ABA – Invest in Austria, benefitted from Austria’s location as a hub between East and West. The top companies and research institutions already located here also attracted companies from all over the world.

In 1997, the Location Austria department (today FILM in AUSTRIA) was created, and WORK in AUSTRIA was added in 2019. The renaming back to the Austrian Business Agency (ABA) in 2021 marked the transformation into a business location agency. Numerous awards underline the great commitment, such as the World Bank’s award as “World’s Best Business Location Agency”, among others. Since 2015, the ABA has also held the title of “family-friendly company”.

An international example of success Over the past four decades, many international companies have benefited from ABA’s services. The German Robert Bosch AG appreciates Austria’s advantages as a location for innovation – from the research premium to the qualified workforce to the training at the Higher Technical Education Institutes (Höhere Technische Lehranstalten) and Institutes of Technologies (Technische Hochschulen). “This helps us to attract new projects to Austria or to expand existing ones,” explains sole director Helmut Weinwurm.

World Champion Austria Vienna

A factory in Vienna turns simple data into smart data The project EuProGigant has moved into gears and The Pilot Factory 4.0 of the Vienna University of Technology is one of its drivers.

Big data in production The amount of data grows while its usage is increasingly decentralised. There is still very little exchange in data between the various entities. But digital information comes mainly from the industrial sector as every machine and every sensor generate data. These huge amounts of data, that are often recorded in real-time, are called big data. However, we are not able to analyse and process them properly – yet. By processing this raw data and making it usable, we create smart data.

This smart data can be used, for example, to make global supply chains with low stock-keeping more resilient. Smart systems can also detect problems within the digital eco-system and tackle them when they have access to smart data. The project partners show how this data exchange can take place: “We connect pilot factories in Austria and Germany within EuProGigant in order to show what resilient value-added chains can look like,” says Claudia Schickling, head of the Pilot Factory 4.0 of the Vienna University of Technology. “We also want to offer SMEs easy and practical access to the digital learning eco-system of EuPro-

Gigant so they can learn the rules of digital production eco-systems and strengthen their competitiveness.” In order to achieve this, the project partners are trying to convince as many users as possible to use the new infrastructure and to help develop it.

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he Pilot Factory 4.0 of the Vienna University of Technology (TU Wien) is working on a European production giganet, the EuProGigant, turning big data into small data and making industrial production even smarter.

The binational project was presented in late June in Vienna and Berlin. The project executing organisation, projects and Ministries from Austria and Germany underlined the significance of this project for the digital transformation. 16 project partners are cooperating at EuProGigant in order to develop a data infrastructure that makes Europe’s production and manufacturing sector stronger, more efficient, more resilient and more sustainable.

They include small and medium-sized enterprises, large corporations, universities and research facilities.

Johannes Fröhlich, Vice-Dean for Research and Innovation at the Vienna University of Technology

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Friedrich Bleicher, Head of the Institute for Production Engineering and Photonic Technologies at the Vienna University of Technology, and consortium head Claudia Schickling

One common goal In order to establish EuProGigant Europe-wide it is important to work across borders right from the start. “Our mission as a University of Technology is to pave the way for new technologies along the value-added chain from fundamental research to applied research, creating space for innovation. We achieve this by constantly broadening our horizon and enter collaborations such as this one,” says Johannes Fröhlich, Vice-Dean for Research and Innovation at the Vienna University of Technology. “EuProGigant, our vision of a European production giganet, demonstrates clearly that we all – academics and businesses – can benefit from common structures. They are created best when we collaborate across borders and fields of study, sharing our knowledge.” To ensure that, EuProGigant will establish itself as a European production giganet among the various stakeholders; the project partners already coordinate their efforts with the industrial sector and the science sector.

About EuProGigant and its goals The binational project EuProGigant with a total volume of 8.6 million euros was launched in March 2021. The aim is to create four compendiums, finish the industrial development and the demonstration phase by February 2025. The Federal Ministry for

EuProGigant project partners SMEs, big players, universities and research facilities joined forces for smart data: c A1 Digital International GmbH – Exoscale c Arburg GmbH + Co KG c Brinkhaus GmbH c Concircle Management Consulting GmbH c Craftworks GmbH c EIT Manufacturing CLC Central Gmbh c EIT Manufacturing CLC East Gmbh c Gebr. Heller Maschinenfabrik GmbH c IGH Infotec AG c MTU Areo Engines AG c Pilotfabrik Industrie 4.0 TU Wien c Plasser & Theurer GmbH c PTW TU Darmstadt c Software AG c Stark Spannsysteme GmbH c WFL Millturn Technologies GmbH & Co. KG pilotfabrik.at

World Champion Austria

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Vienna

Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology (BMK), the Austrian Research Promotion Agency FFG and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) are subsidising the project with 5 million euros.

The Austrian-German project EuProGigant is also a lighthouse project for GAIA-X in a production environment.

The aim is to demonstrate and scale a multi-site digitally networked production ecosystem with resilient, data-driven and sustainable value creation to strengthen European industry. The speed and flexibility of value creation by implementing the technical architecture of the data ecosystem in the sense of GAIA-X will be demonstrated. The unique selling point of the approach is the creation of a European knowledge database as a platform for long-term secure and sovereign holistic data management in the cloud. To connect machines to the platform, a vertical integration solution will be created, taking into account the interfaces between machines, tool and clamping systems, edge devices, on-premise solutions and ERP/MES systems.

Developed intelligent data connectors are used to aggregate and pre-process data to differentiate between Smart Data and Big Data. The calamity-reducing effects and resilience are verified by means of a stress test to evaluate the data-driven pro-

duction. At the end of the project, digital services will be available via GAIA-X, which will control the self-orchestration of the data and be able to compensate and adjust for disturbance variables. To exploit the results, the European knowledge database and the vertical integration solution developed will be made available to companies and research institutions, including digital services.

What is GAIA-X? With GAIA-X, representatives from business, science and politics on a European level create a proposal for the next generation of a European data infrastructure: a secure, federated system that meets the highest standards of digital sovereignty while promoting innovation. This project is the cradle of an open, transparent digital eco-system, where data and services can be made available, collated and shared in an environment of trust.

GAIA-X is a project initiated by Europe for Europe and beyond. Its aim is to develop common requirements for a European data infrastructure. Therefore openness, transparency and the ability to connect to other European countries are central to GAIA-X. Representatives from several European countries and further international partners are currently involved in the pro-

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ject. The participants want to invite other European and international partners to join the project and to contribute to its development. Many dialogues are already underway and will be further intensified. Furthermore, GAIA-X is in continuous exchange with the European Commission.

Europe makes extensive investments in digital technologies and innovative business models. The idea is to ensure that those who drive innovations forward are also those who benefit in economic terms. This will help to secure value creation and employment in Europe.

An open digital eco-system is needed to enable European companies and business models to compete globally. This eco-system should allow both the digital sovereignty of cloud services users and the scalability of European cloud providers.

Within GAIA-X, the project partners are developing the foundations for a federated, open data infrastructure based on European values. GAIA-X connects centralised and decentralised infrastructures in order to turn them into a homogeneous, user-friendly system. The resulting federated form of data infrastructure strengthens the ability to both access and share data securely and confidently. ◆

GAIA-X at a glance The aim of GAIA-X is to develop common standards and interfaces for a European data infrastructure and to create an innovation platform. Therefore, openness, transparency and the ability to connect to other European countries are central to GAIA-X.

Goals of the initiative “GAIA-X for the City of Vienna” c Provision of the GAIA-X standard

r for (cloud-based) data services

r f or the urban data region Vienna (date usage with businesses, science and research)

r i n the Data Excellence Strategy 2021 of the City of Vienna c Developing a technological and methodical eco-system to accelerate the data-driven digital transformation in Vienna under consideration of data sovereignty c Using open-source principles c Using open standards and open-source software

World Champion Austria Institutions introduce themselves

A digital hello from Vienna with Viennese online services The City of Vienna’s online offer is quite far-reaching: A lot can be done at the click of a mouse from home. Now the City has its own podcast. Now it is up to you to use these services.

Informed in Vienna – of course digitally via newsletter and app MEIN WIEN heute – the most important news of the day from and around the City Hall every morning in your email inbox. The daily newsletter of City Hall Communications offers an overview of the most important topics from the City of Vienna. Subscribers of “MEIN WIEN heute” receive a compact overview of the current topics from the City’s policies, culture, economy and a preview of the day’s most important dates straight to their inbox, every day from Monday to Friday – free of charge, of course.

Advertorial

© Stadt Wien

Subscribe to the newsletter at www.wien.gv.at/meinwienheute City of Vienna’s app The popular Stadt Wien App offers the right information at the right time for all of those that live in Vienna. Ranging from real-­ time information to a city map and a digital bonus pass. The central search field leads to all information from the city’s administration from A to Z. The smart services of the WienBot are also onboard. It knows the answers to more than 1,000 questions.

Download now for free for Android or iOS. More information at wien.gv.at/app

The City of Vienna Podcast In addition to the City’s multimedia offer there is also the City of Vienna Podcast. What makes the city of Vienna’s podcast so distinguished: It delivers high quality content with added value, lets Viennese people have their unfiltered say and is dedicated to the city’s most important topics. The city of Vienna podcast is arranged in ‘seasons’ similar to the ‘seasons’ on Netflix et al. and goes in search of voices of the city. For example, in one episode the people of Vienna’s questions about the coronavirus are tackled, including a fact check.

The podcast is available as a free subscription on all popular audio platforms such as Apple, Android/Google, Spotify, Deezer and more. Subscribe now!

More info: wien.gv.at/podcast Borrow books online For more than ten years the City of Vienna’s libraries have been offering the opportunity to borrow digital media around the clock. Currently, the libraries offer 80,000 digital titles ranging from current novels, thrillers and literature classics through to literature for children and youths as well as non-fiction and reference books. There is also a range of magazines available covering topics such as art, travel, politics, music, technology, IT, lifestyle and handicrafts as well as daily newspapers. Since 2018, the virtual library also offers eLearning classes. There are over 1,500 training videos on offer, which can be borrowed anytime for both professional and private further education. The Overdrive eLibrary offers around 9,500 English language eBooks and digital audiobooks (English and German). Every month there are on average 65,000 downloads in the virtual library and around 6,000 downloads in the Overdrive eLibrary.

The Virtual Library and Overdrive eLibrary collections are continuously being expanded, with at least 500 new titles being added each month. The digital media can be accessed in any location with Internet access at the click of a mouse and can be used on a wide range of devices. Free apps are available to increase the reading and listening pleasure of the user on tablets

and smartphones. A big advantage is the automatic return feature that avoids customers racking up late fees. This service is available free-of-charge to all customers with a valid library pass.

For more information: buechereien.wien.gv.at

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Advertorial

Digital innovation at the Vienna Library in the City Hall The Vienna Library located at the City Hall is one of the three largest academic libraries in Vienna alongside the Austrian National Library and the Vienna University Library. It holds 650,000 volumes, 1,400 bequests, 250,000 catalogued individual autographs in the manuscript collection and almost 100,000 music manuscripts and around 350,000 posters. This extensive offer is now available to all via the new virtual channels. As if that were not enough, the digitisation of the Vienna Library in the City Hall is continuously being worked on.

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In the meantime, more than 120,000 documents from the unique collection are available online. By 2025, you will be able to access 500,000 documents online, including a further 260,000 manuscripts and 120,000 posters, books and photos. When possible, the valuable documents will be captioned with full texts.

For the text recognition, artificial intelligence will be used as part of a cooperation with the University of Innsbruck.

One of the latest major projects, for example, makes Franz Grillparzer’s entire estate digitally accessible. Thanks to new technologies and digital archives, the library is an ideal situation to support research.

More information (incl. topic search by keyword): digital.wienbibliothek.at New: Digital building applications The vast majority of construction companies and architectural firms have for a long time been preparing their building applications – a total of around 13,000 per year – digitally. Now, digital building applications are available to the people of Vienna with expanded options: The documents can not only be submitted online via mein.wien.gv.at and processed electronically by the building inspectors. Now the entire process – from submission to completion – can be done digitally, too. The digital building application means that the authorities no longer need paper copies of the plans. The inspection of files in the ongoing process can now be conveniently carried out online. For the use of the service electronic delivery and authentication is required; the documents are signed by the digital signature of the authorised author.

For more information: mein.wien.gv.at/meine-amtswege

World Champion Austria Lower Austria foreword

The progress in the vaccination programme is having a positive effect on the economy. We are currently experiencing a period of recovery following months of the pandemic. Economic experts are predicting an economic growth of 3.5 percent in Lower Austria this year, and predict a growth of 4.1 percent for next year.

This recovery is still in the early stages, but we are already feeling its effects.

The stages of reopening as well as the progression in the vaccination programme means Lower Austria is on the brink of an economic boom. Companies are investing once again and are employing new staff; unemployment is also falling. But with this boom, there are also some teething problems. Many companies are complaining about not being able to find qualified staff. As a result of this, the Province is committed to helping implement measures to combat the lack of skilled staff. We will only be able to secure sustainable growth and thus secure wealth in our province when we can get as many people as possible into employment.

The great, close partnerships between the Province, the municipalities and the people is the key to success and the basis for combatting both current and future challenges.

Best regards, Johanna Mikl-Leitner Governor of Lower Austria

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Dear Readers,

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TFZ Tulln is a special real estate with office and laboratory space for research and technology-oriented companies with a focus on bio-based technologies.

Lower Austrian technopoles

Economic data

Technopoles are centres where research, education and business synergies are created in one location. They are located around education and research facilities and utilise this favourable location as well as the technological and scientific know-how.

c Gross regional product in mln euros1 61,706 c Change from 2000 to 2019 +84.0%

c Krems – an international centre for health technology. Two local locations: Campus Krems and TFZ – Technology and Research Centre Krems c Tulln – centre for bio-based technologies. Key areas: food and feed safety, bio-based process technologies and agrobiotechnology c Wieselburg – an international centre for bio-energy systems and food and agricultural technology c Wiener Neustadt – medical and materials technology: focus on materials, medical technology, surfaces, tribology (friction, abrasion, lubrication) and sensors/actuators

Source: ecoplus

c Gross regional product per capita in euros1 36,700 c Gross value added in mln euros1 c Production sector1

c Services1

55,154 16,957 36,872

c Members at the Economic Chamber2 138,906 c Business formations2 7,955 c Apprentices2

16,943

c Tourism overnight stays (x 1,000)2 4,569 c Foreign trade in mln euros3

c Imports c Exports

23,673 20,819

c Total number of jobs2 624,906 c Patent issuances nationally2 99 1 2019 data, 2 2020 data , 3 preliminary figures 2020 Source: Statistics Austria, Association of Social Security ­I n s t i t u t i o n s , A u s t r i a n E c o n o m i c C h a m b e r, A u s t r i a n P a t e n t O f f i c e , Province of Lower Austria

World Champion Austria Lower Austria

Lower Austria – companies full of optimism Thomas Salzer, President of the Lower Austrian Federation of Industries, and Wolfgang Ecker, head of the Lower Austrian Economic Chamber, speak about the essentials for the business location.

T

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he optimism among Lower Austrian businesses is increasing. Almost every other company – 47 percent in fact – expect there will be higher turnovers over the next twelve months, says an economic trend survey by the Lower Austrian Economic Chamber. The same survey from last winter showed that back then only 20 percent of businesses expected increased turnovers over the next twelve months.

Thomas Salzer, President of the Lower Austrian Federation of Industries

Only 15 percent of businesses expect falling turnovers; in winter 2020 more than double as many (36 percent) thought so.

The rising expectations are reflected by the willingness to invest.

Three quarters of those surveyed believe there will be rising (30 percent) or constant (45 percent) investment volumes. Last winter less than half of all businesses thought so. The leading reason for investments is digitisation projects (59 percent), followed by capacity utilisation (50 percent), a positive business outlook and investments into green technologies (49 percent each).

Thomas Salzer, President of the Lower Austrian Federation of Industries, and Wolfgang Ecker, head of the Lower Austrian Economic Chamber, know more about the economic situation in Lower Austria.

Mr Ecker, Mr Salzer, how are the Lower Austrian businesses doing?

Wolfgang Ecker: Many companies have used their time wisely to develop new strategies and roadmaps for the years to come. They pooled their resources and developed new ideas. This was reflected by the number of projects submitted to our Encouragement Initiative 2021. It proved how creativity can give businesses a huge boost for their economic success. The diverse mix of different industries in Lower Austria has also been a major advantage. We managed to overcome the economic crisis better by being so diversified. Some businesses, however, are still working on their economic comeback.

Thomas Salzer: We see a spirit of optimism right now. Businesses have done their homework and are confidently looking forward. The in-house Covid test centres at the companies were important to come through these difficult times. In May, in-house vaccinations started. Unfortunately, we still need to convince some staff to get

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Wolfgang Ecker, head of the Lower Austrian Economic Chamber: “Of course, nobody wanted a pandemic but there were also positive sides to it.”

the jab. This is something we need to tackle as we need a high vaccination rate to stay safe in autumn and winter.

The number of vaccinations kept rising before the summer while the number of infections fell. When will the crisis be over?

Ecker: A pandemic doesn’t simply disappear at once. In order to keep the virus at bay, safety measures were necessary and a high vaccination rate is key. The Lower Austrian businesses are making a significant contribution here. It is important to actively create opportunities for Lower Austria as a business location and its companies. We need to facilitate growth, increase the competitiveness and create incentives for investments. And it is equally important to train and further train skilled staff. It is a good sign that according to our economic trend survey almost half of all businesses believe in rising turnovers. Another good sign is that the top reasons for investing are digitisation, capacity utilisation, business outlook and investments into ecology and sustainability. We are looking forward with optimism and I am convinced that we will leave the

Covid crises behind us with team spirit in Lower Austria.

Salzer: Even though the current situation is encouraging, other countries show us that the pandemic is unfortunately not over yet.

Despite the happiness about easing the Covid measures we need to remain vigilant – especially as we haven’t reached the target vaccination rate yet. The economic upswing that we see in the industrial sector must not be endangered by new taxes, levies and environmental regulations under any circumstances.

We all should always think positive – so what are the positive findings you are taking with you from the Covid crisis?

Ecker: Of course, nobody wanted a pandemic but there were also positive sides to it. The awareness for regionality is definitely higher now. We are doing everything to keep it that way and call for people to not shop online at international retail giants but in our province. This secures jobs and apprenticeships, and increases the quality of life locally. The crisis has shown how important local businesses are for local supply.

WeltMeister Österreich Lower Austria

© pixabay

Digitisation is another thing that wouldn’t have gotten such a boost without the pandemic. It is surely something that helped us overcome the economic crisis better than other countries. I consider the digitisation of processes and procedures a big opportunity that we need to keep seizing. It is admirable how businesses reorganised their workflows in very short time, creating and expanding digital offers.

Despite the Covid pandemic, the first half of 2021 saw such a high number of business establishments in Lower Austria like never before. The founding boom defies Covid. A study shows that the virus is considered much less of an existential danger for business establishments than the previous year. Lower Austria’s entrepreneurial spirit is crisis-proof.

Salzer: A crisis is always also an opportunity. And we saw how important the industrial sector is in times of crisis. Thanks to indus-

Almost every other Lower Austrian company believes in higher turnovers.

trial firms, the supply of groceries, medical products and convenience goods was kept up. Despite the restrictions and lockdowns, companies kept producing and kept the country running.

What is the Lower Austrian Economic Chamber going to focus on in 2022?

Ecker: Top of our priority list continues to be managing the pandemic and its effects. It is important that we do everything to help the economy recover in a quick and sustainable way.

We have developed a work programme with entrepreneurs from all industries by the title “Back to the Front!”. It shows that the pandemic has not changed the essential questions of entrepreneurship significantly.

In future it will be all about innovation, skilled staff, new markets and opportunities that arise from ecology and mobility. It will also be about living entrepreneurship. We need clear regulations that are comprehensible and understandable. Red tape needs to be reduced to a necessary minimum and we need to increase self-reliance.

And: We need long-term planning. If you invest you need to rely on the regulations not changing. The practicability of regulations matters, not their quantity. And of course it will be about the financial boosters for our companies: Low taxes, low non-wage labour costs and additional investment incentives through a higher investment tax credit.

And what is the Lower Austrian Federation of Industries planning for next year?

Salzer: On the one hand, we fear that the lack of skilled staff will get worse. The Lower Austrian industrial firms had fewer new apprentices in 2020 than in 2019. This is in part due to an easier progression in school because of the pandemic but also due to the demographic development and the overall trend towards higher school-leaving qualifications. But in reality, an apprenticeship in the industrial sector leads to above-average career and earning potentials.

On the other hand, it is becoming more important to add realism to the climate debate. We have a global problem that we can’t solve locally. There is no point in making the industrial sector in Austria less competitive and close it, and then import products from other regions with higher emissions. That’s a lose-lose situation. We want to get to a win-win situation through innovative solutions in the industrial sector. ◆

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Companies introduce themselves

Lower Austria impressed at the Falling Walls Conference in Berlin Initiated by the Falling Walls Foundation, this international competition honours young researchers who are developing groundbreaking ways to solve the greatest challenges of our time. Research institutes, including many top universities, select their most promising candidates to participate in the Falling Walls Lab finals in Berlin. Daniela Inführ and Sebastian Vogler from Lower Austria represented Austria.

“Falling Walls offers an excellent opportunity for young scientists to present their innovative solutions to major current societal challenges in a global environment, and to discuss them with key decision-makers from research, business and politics,” says Lower Austria’s governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner. “Through this great collaboration, the research province of Lower Austria will become even more visible internationally and also sustainably competitive through the further networking of science and research.”

75 young scientists from 58 nations presented their research work, business models and initiatives in just three minutes each in front of a jury of experts from ETH Zurich, the Nobel Foundation, Google and Huawei Technologies, among others. In addition

Facts & figures As a Tough Tech Incubator, Accent supports projects that combine forward-looking technologies with state-of-the-art science and technology. Each year, Accent is presented with around 200 projects, most of which come from science or have a close connection to scientific institutions. 10 to 15 of these are included in Accent’s incubation programme after intensive review. accent Inkubator GmbH Viktor-Kaplan Str. 2/Haus C/2. Stock, 2700 Wr. Neustadt Tel. +43/2622/90 613 office@accent.at, www.accent.at

© NLK Filzwieser

Lower Austrian ideas convinced an international jury of experts. Accent and Tecnet expand their collaboration with Falling Walls.

Lower Austrian Technology Councillor Jochen Danninger, Daniela Inführ, founder of Agrobiogel, Lower Austrian Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner and Sebastian Vogler, founder of BeetleForTech

to prize money, the winners had the opportunity to present their groundbreaking research results in front of investors, media representatives and Nobel laureates at the Falling Walls Conference.

Optimal conditions in Lower Austria “In Lower Austria, we always strive to turn scientific findings into added value. To this end, we have created optimum conditions in Lower Austria for researchers and students so that they can also implement their ideas commercially,” explains Provincial Councillor for Research Jochen Danninger. “Falling Walls offers a great springboard to network globally and drive innovation. With this international networking, we are taking the next step to further strengthen Lower Austria as a business location.”

This year, the Province of Lower Austria was a partner of the national qualification process with the province-owned company Accent Inkubator and the venture capital fund Tecnet Equity. The implementation was carried out with the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology. The Falling Walls Lab aims to advance exceptional scientific and entrepreneurial visions and to promote exchange between young researchers and young professionals from various fields.

World Champion Austria Lower Austria

Happy networking in Lower Austria Platforms and networks for businesses and science are part of Lower Austria’s economic strategy.

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© Linse 2/Roland Voraberger

or 20 years Lower Austria’s efforts in establishing and running business clusters went by the mission statement “innovation through cooperation”. And this has paid off during the pandemic and also now during the economic recovery. “Our cluster teams are trend scouts,” agree Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs Jochen Danninger and Managing Director Helmut Miernicki. “They are sounding out developments, addressing potential sunrise technologies and presenting them within the various sectors to our partner businesses. It is great to see that after the huge challenges of the past months 34 cooperation projects have been launched in the first half of 2021. This shows us that the upswing has really reached our more than 560 cluster partners.”

Ecoplus Managing Director Helmut Miernicki

1,564 projects, thereof 911 cooperation projects with more than 5,100 project partners, more than 2,200 events with about 98.500 visitors – the figures of the last 20 years prove that the Lower Austrian clusters have been a success. “The figures show that we are on the right track. We are joining forces in a network and developing innovations together in areas where it would hardly be possible for a single company to follow the latest trends and tap the potentials of the latest technologies. This secures the edge in know-how the cluster partners have and also their competitiveness,” Danninger says.

Clusters on different topics Ecoplus, Lower Austria’s business agency, is operating clusters for innovative and sustainable construction, foods, plastics and mechatronics – the latter is also implementing the Province’s e-mobility initiative. The clusters focus mainly on cross-company cooperation projects but also qualifications and information.

Current cluster projects These projects always reflect economic development. Right now, cooperation projects around digitisation, cycle economy and sustainability are becoming more important. The Green Building Cluster of Lower Austria focuses on digitisation in the construction business. The so-called Building Information Modeling (BIM) supports a digital building model in planning, realising and operating a building. The Food Cluster of Lower Austria has put the focus on the sustainable use of resources, among other things. A cooperation project of the Plastics Cluster tries to turn waste materials from the plastics industry into reusable materials for a cycle economy. And the companies in the Mechatronics Cluster work on overcoming the challenges of decarbonisation.

“The pandemic has increased the innovative potential of our cluster partners further – most of them are coming out of the crisis

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stronger than before and with a lot of optimism. The far-reaching network of the Ecoplus clusters proved once more to be viable and stable, and all together we will keep on bringing digitisation, ecology and thematic leadership to our businesses,” explains Ecoplus Managing Director Helmut Miernicki and Claus Zeppelzauer, Ecoplus Manager for Business & Technology.

Clusters for building…

The Green Building Cluster of Lower Austria represents innovative, sustainable construction. Under the motto “innovation through cooperation“, the cluster aims to promote innovation in the domestic construction industry and boost business by pooling potential and expertise into a network of stakeholders from business, research and training as well as from specialist organisations and the regional government of Lower Austria.

One of the Green Building Cluster’s three focus points is climate adaptive technologies, that is technologies that use climate change for innovation in the construction business. Some of the areas tackled are building cooling, building ventilation, rainwater management, green infrastructure and climate-resilient planning. Another focus point is constructive efficiency, i.e. how multifunctional and

optimised components bring competitive advantages and higher added value through guaranteed quality. This includes the resource-efficient use of building materials, hybrid constructions, the use of renewable raw-materials as well as fault-tolerant and resilient building systems. And the third focus point is digitisation in construction engineering, structural change through digitisation in the construction sector. The areas covered are, amongst others, the Initiative BIM@KKMU, the Initiative VR and AR, the Initiative DiTecBau and the Initiative Lean Construction. …. and for food The Food Cluster of Lower Austria is the information, service and contact point for the entire value chain of the food industry in Lower Austria – from agriculture to processing companies and retail.

The cluster initiative is supported by two Departments of the Lower Austrian Government: Business and Agriculture.

The Food Cluster addresses companies along the entire value chain in the food industry as an umbrella organisation. It networks people from agriculture, food retail and wholesalers as well as hospitality. The companies work as a regional group with suppliers and partners from research and development facilities, education cen-

World Champion Austria Lower Austria

tres and service providers for consulting, laboratories etc. The Food Cluster also cooperates with the partners of other clusters such as the Plastics Cluster (e.g. on food packaging) or the Mechatronics Cluster (e.g. in machine construction).

Raw materials, energy, water and soil are valuable resources that are particularly important in the production of foods. The focus on a “sustainable use of resources” reflects the mission of the cooperation projects to have a responsible and optimised use of resources.

The Food Cluster also works on food quality and food safety.

© NLK Reinberger

Fleeting borders between Upper and Lower Austria The Plastics Cluster is a cross-industry network of the plastics sector. Thanks to the collaboration between Lower Austria and Upper Austria, which has existed since 2005, the Plastics Cluster has become the largest network for plastics technology in Europe. The Plastics Cluster thus provides a pre-competitive basis for innovative product development of its cluster partners in business and research in key areas such as bioplastics, multifunctional component development and material cycle / recycling. In addition, its collaboration with the Mechatronics Cluster offers high networking potential for both sectors due to their closely related subject areas.

The Mechatronics Cluster comprises the sectors metal, mechanical engineering, electrics, electronics as well as information and communication technology. With around 44,000 jobs in 1,700 companies, the mechatronics sector is one of the most important areas of the Lower Austrian economy. The focus of the Mechatronics Cluster is on business and research, innovation, cooperation, train-

Helmut Miernicki and Claus Zeppelzauer of Ecoplus with Regional Councillor Jochen Danninger (centre)

ing and project initiation for specific key areas: mobility, advanced manufacturing, Industry 4.0 and robotics.

The aim is to pool potential and expertise to increase the innovative strength and international competitiveness of cluster partners. A special emphasis is placed on the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Both the Plastics Cluster and the Mechatronics Cluster are a cross-regional cooperation between Upper Austria and Lower Austria. The executive organisations are the business agencies Business Upper Austria and Ecoplus Lower Austria.

Electric mobility The initiative “E-mobility in Lower Austria” was launched in 2010.

It is operated by three Departments of the Lower Austrian Government: Business, Environment and Transport. The operational implementation is carried out by Ecoplus.

The cluster’s aim is to provide a valuable contribution to CO2 and energy reduction through electric mobility, as well as provide an impetus for a new mobility trend and boost the region’s economy. As an example, the four project partners have been working on a sophisticated project since 2018 – developing a completely new electric vehicle for municipalities and agriculture, where all key technologies come from Lower Austria. This year saw the construction of a prototype; Regional Councillor Jochen Danninger and Ecoplus Managing Director Helmut Miernicki can offer more details on the cooperation project EMPA-Trac, the Lower Austrian electric vehicle.

“We have been working hard on the initiative “E-mobility in Lower Austria” since 2010, trying to give this new technology room and the right conditions for a smooth use in everyday life. This is reflected in the increasing number of newly registered electric vehicles. The situation is different in the areas of commercial vehicles, however, where internal combustion engines are still dominating.

The partners of the cooperation project EMPA-Trac have entered uncharted territory with their Lower Austrian electric vehicle and have thus become trailblazers,” Danninger says.

Electric tractor in a modular system EMPA-Trac stands for “Electric Modular Platform Architecture-Tractor“. It is not simply an electric vehicle but an e-drive platform for municipalities and agriculture, and its modular system enables the creation of two-, three- or even four-axle vehicles for different types of use. The project partners are Adolf Tobias

© Erich Marschik

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Michael Mader (Hellpower Energy), Rebin Jaber, (AIT Austrian Institute of Technology), Klaus Alberer (TÜV Austria Services), Regional Councillor Jochen Danninger in the EMPA-Trac as well as Adolf Tobias, Birgit Kainz and project manager Peter Kainz from Adolf Tobias Gesellschaft.

Gesellschaft, who also leads the project with project manager Peter Kainz, electric drive specialists from the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology, battery developer Hellpower-Energy and TÜV Austria Automotive.

After more than three years of development, the partners presented a prototype which is located at project initiator Adolf Tobias in St. Andrä-Wördern. “EMPA-Trac’s project duration ended in May 2021 but the project has basically started all over: We are constantly improving and developing the prototype until it is market ready If everything goes according to plan, we will be able to enter the market in 2023,” say project manager Peter Kainz and Adolf Tobias, whose eponymous company is actually operating in steel construction and agricultural technology.

The research and development cooperation project EMPA-Trac received grants from the 9th instalment of the “Lighthouse projects in electric mobility” initiative, which is run by the Climate and Energy Fund. The implementation of the EMPA-Trac project was supported by the e-mobility initiative of the Province of Lower Austria, which is housed at the Mechatronics Cluster. “We are focusing on a cooperative set-up of competences and on the collaborative development of new technologies. EMPA-Trac is a lighthouse

project and proves in a very impressive way what can be done if committed experts are joining forces and are becoming drivers of innovation,” Miernicki says. ◆

Lower Austria – sustainable economic development Ecoplus, the Business Agency of Lower Austria, is a reliable partner of people in business as well as investors and initiators of regional and international projects. It acts as an essential interface between business, politics and science.

It offers tailored advice when it comes to available subsidies, possible business locations, business settlements and regional funding in Lower Austria. Ecoplus is also involved in the management of business parks and investments, implementing cross border projects, developing clusters, technopoles and the House of Digitalisation. ecoplus. Niederösterreichs Wirtschaftsagentur GmbH www.ecoplus.at

World Champion Austria Lower Austria

Lower Austria is back in the fastlane Austria’s largest province is right in the middle of an economic comeback with excellent growth rates.

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umerous business indicators show that Lower Austria is at the start of a long-term growth period. The number of investment projects in tourism and economy has reached a record high this summer and the number of business settlements and expansions with help from the Ecoplus agency is above-average compared to the last few years. In addition, the Economica Institute predicts a growth rate of 4.3 percent for Lower Austria – this year and next.

“Lower Austria has emerged stronger from the Covid pandemic and will make the most of this economic recovery,” says Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs Jochen Danninger. “In order to fully tap the upswing’s potential, we need to push the transformation of our economy and consistently commit to digitisation, ecology and regional products.”

Growth in Lower Austria This year, growth will be carried mainly by the industrial sector.

Goods production will go up by 8.9 percent, retail will grow by 6.7 percent after the lockdown. Next year, the hospitality sector will stand out in particular with experts predicting a strong growth of 30.3 percent for 2022.

“We expect this growth period in Lower Austria to last until at least 2024, if no unexpected shocks come long”, explains Christian Helmenstein, head of the Economica Institute for Economic Research. “Our prognosis shows that Lower Austria is a quick starter in economic recovery with excellent chances for a long-lasting upswing.” Regional Councillor Danninger adds: “There is a lot of investment activity going on. We can also tell by the number of applications for investment subsidies. Intelligent and innovative products with a high level of quality will be the main driver of competitiveness. Therefore, we are creating networking platforms in the fields of health economy, eco-economy, aviation and aerospace in order to give businesses in

these sectors the best possible support for international competition.”

Another reliable figure that shows how well the economy is doing, is business settlements and site expansions. This area is cause for optimism in Lower Austria despite the fact that the first half of 2021 was still heavily under the influence of the pandemic: The number of business settlements and site expansions – and of course the subsequent number of new jobs – has already surpassed the pre-Covid levels. The business agency Ecoplus has supported 62 projects from January to July 2021, helping to create more than 1,000 new jobs in Lower Austria. “Being the Province’s business agency, our task is to help entrepreneurs and support them in difficult times with everything they do,” says Ecoplus Managing Director Helmut Miernicki. “We are constantly putting maximum effort into creating the best conditions.

We want to create the best business location for Lower Austrian and cross-regional companies, and create jobs in the communities – while keeping our ecological responsibility in mind.”

Export and Internationalisation Strategy 2027 Speaking of jobs: One in two euros generated in Lower Austria and one in four jobs are connected to exports. Foreign trade was impacted heavily by the Covid pandemic in 2020 but Lower Austria could defend its position as Austria’s third-best exporter behind Upper Austria and Styria. A drop in exports of 7.6 percent resulted in Lower Austria being within the nationwide average of -7.5 percent. Lower Austria’s exporters turn over goods worth 22.5 billion euros per year. The province’s top export destinations are Germany, followed by Hungary and Italy in third place. The next placed countries are the Czech Republic, the United States, Poland, Switzerland, Slovakia, France and Slovenia. The type of goods exported most to these countries include machines, electronic goods, mineral fuels, iron and steel goods, aluminium

© NLK/Filzwieser

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Presentation of the Export and Internationalisation Strategy 2027: Jochen Danninger, Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs, Alexandra Höfer, deputy head of the Lower Austrian Economic Chamber, Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner, Wolfgang Ecker, head of the Lower Austrian Economic Chamber, and Helmust Miernicki, Managing Director of Ecoplus

and plastics. About 10,000 Lower Austrian companies are exporting their goods every day. But the Province wants this figure to rise with help of the Export and Internationalisation Strategy 2027.

Cooperation for Lower Austria’s economy “Lower Austrian goods are popular abroad, which is why we are among Austria’s top export regions,” says Lower Austria’s Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner. “We want to support our businesses’ foreign trade even more and carry more products made in Lower Austria into the world. We will achieve this with our Export Strategy in conjunction with the Lower Austrian Economic Chamber, offering financial support and tailor-made consultation.” The Province of Lower Austria defined three main thrusts in accordance with economic representatives, which will help newcomers, existing exporters and leading players in their respective sectors to be (even more) successful in the EU markets and beyond.

“The Province of Austria and the Lower Austrian Economic

Chamber are collaborating closely to support our exporters,” says Regional Councillor Danninger. “We are bundling our knowhow for our entrepreneurs. The business agency Ecoplus and the Lower Austrian Economic Chamber will take care of domestic companies. Services on location are carried out by Advantage Austria, the foreign trade centre of the Economic Chamber. We will close the Ecoplus offices in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Poland and Romania. This will save monies and by reducing systemic costs we will be able to pass these savings on to our companies as subsidies. The Province of Lower Austria will also support companies’ first participation in international trade fairs.”

The new export promotion will give Lower Austrian small and medium-sized companies financial aid for their trade fair stalls abroad. They will be able to apply for costs of up to 10,000 euros and the Province will provide 30 percent of these costs. Overall, 500,000 euros have been earmarked for this promotion, giving support to about 150 Lower Austrian companies for their first international trade fair appearance. ◆

World Champion Austria Styria foreword

Styria is on an unprecedented road to success. With an R&D ratio of around five percent, Styria is the number one province in Austria when it comes to research and development and is one of the most innovative regions in Europe.

Our economy benefits greatly from this, but most of all, all Styrians benefit and this creates new opportunities and perspectives for workplaces of the future. Education and training as well as science and research are areas which are of central importance in Styria.

Styria has the most universities outside of the capital Vienna.

With Graz as the centre of student life in our province, Styria is in a good position and is striving towards an active science and research policy. Styrian higher education institutes make a significant contribution towards the business location and thus to the affluence of the province.

In order to ensure Styria remains at the top of Austria and Europe, we will have to ensure we continue to focus on this area.

Our universities, technical colleges and non-university research institutions together with research-intensive business enterprises are the key to a successful future.

I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who has contributed to the “World Champion Austria 2022” book.

Best regards, Hermann Schützenhöfer Governor of Styria

© Erwin Scheriau

Dear readers,

© Lunghammer/TU Graz

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TU Graz physicist and ERC Grant award winner Birgitta Schultze-Bernhardt is working intensively on laser technologies for measuring light-induced processes.

Competence centres

Economic data

c acib (Austrian Center of Industrial Biotechnology) c Virtual Vehicle (K2-Mobility) c MCL – Materials Center Leoben Forschung GmbH c Bioenergy 2020+ c CBMed c Evolaris c Know-Center c LEC EvoLET c PCCL Polymer Competence Center Leoben c RCPE Research Center for Pharmaceutical Engineering c ASD– Acoustic Sensing and Design c MedUni Graz c ECO – Cool c ECO Power Drive c Flippr² c Join c SeCoS c Vision+

c Gross regional product in mln euros1 50,831 c Change from 2000 to 2019 +87.4%

Source: ABA Invest In Austria.

c Gross regional product per capita in euros1 40,800 c Gross value added in mln euros1 c Production sector1

c Services1

45,433 15,950 23,582

c Members at the Economic Chamber2 96,061 c Business formations2 5,944 c Apprentices2 c Tourism overnight stays (x

15,323 1,000)2 10,021

c Foreign trade in mln euros3

c Imports c Exports

17,188 22,265

c Total number of jobs2 520,642 c Patent issuances nationally2 249 1 2019 data, 2 2020 data , 3 preliminary figures 2020 Source: Statistics Austria, Association of Social Security ­I n s t i t u t i o n s , A u s t r i a n E c o n o m i c C h a m b e r, A u s t r i a n P a t e n t O f f i c e , Province of Styria

World Champion Austria Styria

Styria – a province full of enthusiasm Stefan Stolitzka, President of the Styrian Federation of Industries, and Josef Herk, head of the Styrian Economic Chamber, speak about the province’s businesses and show their optimism.

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© Marija Kanizaj

fter more than a year of Covid-induced crisis, Styrian businesses are enthusiastic, a trend survey by the Styrian Economic Chamber shows. All business indicators – from turnover to investments – are well into the black and the trend is pointing further upwards. The Styrian economy is on the up again, the numbers clearly show: Total turnover (+1.9 percentage points, compared to -36.2 in autumn 2020), order situation (+14.7 percentage points, in autumn -34.3),

Josef Herk: “All business indicators in our trend survey are pointing upwards.”

price level (+44.3 percentage points, in autumn -2.8), investments (+27.9 percentage points, in autumn -8.3) and employment (+6.7 percentage points, in autumn -8.6). The feedback from businesses was thus better than the Economic Chamber had hoped. The expectations for the months to come are also high for turnover (+42.4 percentage points), order situation (+35.2 percentage points), price level (+51.3 percentage points), investments (+25.7 percentage points) and employment (+21.9 percentage points). All figures are clearly pointing upwards. If no further Covid restrictions come, the Styrian Economic Chamber believes in a lasting path of growth.

Stefan Stolitzka, President of the Styrian Federation of Industries, and Josef Herk, head of the Styrian Economic Chamber, give further insights into Styria’s economy.

Mr Herk, Mr Stolitzka, how are Styrian businesses doing?

Josef Herk: Considering all factors, they are doing well again.

We went through a difficult time, the Covid pandemic turned all our lives upside down – in particular in the economic sector. We were confronted with restrictions that we could have never imagined. This resulted in a massive crisis that we have managed to overcome quite well thanks to comprehensive relief packages in which the Economic Chamber played an important part. We were able to avoid an economic domino effect. If there are no further restrictions now, we will have reached the light at the end of the tunnel. All business indicators in our trend survey are pointing upwards. 57.7 percent of all Styrian entrepreneurs believe in a better economic climate in the coming months while only 16.3 expect the situation to worsen.

Stefan Stolitzka: Optimism is stronger than any crisis and we have a lot of optimism in Styria. Rightly so – the Styrian indus-

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Josef Herk: „Our trend survey shows that all business indicators are pointing upwards again.“

trial sector kept the country up and running during the pandemic. Almost all areas within the industrial sector are back to the levels of before the economic crisis. That makes us very happy and we can thank the people working in the industrial sector for their staying power and innovative capacity. Global challenges such as volatile prices for raw materials and unreliable supply chains, but also the lack of skilled workers in Austria, burden our businesses. But we are optimistic in this regard, too. Styria is well-placed as a business location; we have excellent companies, making and selling goods that are internationally in demand. We can’t rest on these laurels but we can build upon them.

achievements and we have to utilise it. I therefore call on everyone to get vaccinated. That is the only way to get our freedom back and to protect others.

Stolitzka: We have learnt a lot over the last few months and one important finding was not becoming too boisterous. I believe that we are on a good path to stop the pandemic in the long run but we need to remain vigilant and have to stay strong and responsible. Covid will still be around in the months to come but hopefully it will no longer dominate our lives. The industrial sector is prepared for any possible scenarios to protect its workers while keeping the business up and running. But I hope that we won’t need any emergency plans anymore.

The number of vaccinations kept rising before the summer while the number of infections fell. We seem to have overcome the worst.

But have we really? Is the crisis over? What do we need to look out for now?

Herk: I truly hope that we are over the hill, and in reality, we are the masters of our own fate. Contrary to the situation last year, we now have effective vaccines. This is one of science’s great

We should always think positive – so what are the positive findings you are taking with you from the Covid crisis?

Herk: Being a card-carrying optimist, you are preaching to the converted. And optimism has already returned among entrepreneurs, as our trend survey shows. Something we, the Styrian Economic Chamber, consider a positive effect of the crisis is a return to regional products and services. We can see a real

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© Unsplash/Denny Müller

Styria

The Styrian Federation of Industries is fighting for a timely expansion of broadband and fibre optics coverage with gigabit speeds.

change of mindset; consumers are aware of the added value they create. And we want to build on this.

Stolitzka: It is quite hard to find something positive in the last few months full of restrictions. But I am also an optimist and there is indeed an effect that can be considered positive despite all the tragedy that Covid brought: The increasing digitisation.

The elephant in the room has become a guardian angel in a matter of weeks. Thanks to digitisation, we were able to teach our children at home, people could stay in touch with their families in retirement homes and the industrial sector kept its production up and running, securing thousands of jobs.

What is the Styrian Economic Chamber going to focus on in 2022?

Herk: We are going to put the focus on securing skilled workers.

It doesn’t matter which sector or which region I am visiting right now; everyone is saying the same thing to me: “We can’t find any staff…”. This is a truly paradoxical situation considering the current high unemployment figures, but offer and demand don’t seem to match in the job market. Therefore, we demand a better use of the existing potentials, for example by promoting cross-re-

gional job placements or easier immigration for skilled workers.

Otherwise, the lack of skilled workers will become the upswing’s bottleneck. The Styrian Economic Chamber is pulling out all stops to give skilled education the recognition it deserves – for example with the EuroSkills competition in autumn.

And what is the Styrian Federation of Industries planning for next year?

Stolitzka: We are currently pursuing two paths with great intensity: One is the aforementioned digitisation, which we want to promote and improve. Being the representatives of the Styrian industrial sector, we are fighting for a timely expansion of broadband and fibre optics coverage with gigabit speeds – but also for teaching digital skills.

The second big topic is climate protection and the contribution that the Styrian businesses can make. The Styrian industrial sector plays an essential role in solving global climate issues.

Efficient processes in domestic production already have a massive impact and our highly innovative products help reduce emissions massively all around the world. In this regard, Styria already is a world champion. ◆

AUSTRIA QUALITY SEAL AS A GUARANTEE FOR TOP QUALITY

When you see the Austria Quality Seal, rest assured the product concerned is of certified superior and local quality.

ÖQA „Österreichische Arbeitsgemeinschaft zur Förderung der Qualität“ Gonzagagasse 1/27 | 1010 Wien T: +43 1 5353 748 | oeqa@qualityaustria.com | austriaguetezeichen.at

World Champion Austria Styria

Full certification for trustworthy AI The testing and certification of artificial intelligence takes place where the right know-how is home – in Styria.

AI as key technology Artificial intelligence has already significantly altered products and services and is one of the fastest growing fields. AI offers enormous potential for new business ideas and economic growth. It is the key piece of technology which will guarantee the future viability of the economy and society when faced with global challenges ranging from developments in the pandemic all the way to climate change.

Most AI systems are data-driven, that means they learn desired behaviours from large quantities of data. This highly modern technology allows for extraordinary innovations, however, there’s a good and bad side to everything. AI can also have extremely negative effects if it isn’t used appropriately. When this happens, prejudices can arise, like in the field of human resources or through

unsafe recommendations made by AI in the healthcare sector. AI has become a question of trust.

“The potential of AI in Europe will only be fully explored when data is handled in a trustworthy manner, and fairness and reliability of algorithms and their security is guaranteed,” says Stefanie Lindstaedt, CEO of the Know-Center, and illustrates the plans: “We want to ensure that AI usage is technically compliant, reliable and functions in a non-partisan way with an all-encompassing perspective. Our focus is on all areas that are essential for high-quality trustworthiness of AI, like data, algorithms, cyber security, processes, ethics and law.”

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omething remarkable is happening in the world of artificial intelligence – however, it’s not what some people anxiously fear. Much to the contrary, thanks to a new strategic partnership that has formed between Austrian experts and experts for the reliable use of artificial intelligence. This has turned Styria into a global pioneer in testing and certifying artificial intelligence. It is here that the new initiative was created to develop efficient and independent testing procedures and technology for artificial systems.

Those involved are the Know-Center, which is a leading European research centre for data-driven business and artificial intelligence, the SGS Group, which is a globally leading provider of examinations, testing, verification and certification, as well as IAIK from the Graz University of Technology, one of the top research teams for cyber security. Ethical and legal aspects are brought up by the Business Analytics and Data Science Center of the Graz University of Technology and the activities are accompanied by Austria’s Secure Information Technology Center (A-SIT), which acts as a neutral observer.

Stefanie Lindstaedt, CEO of the Know-Center, watches over AI systems.

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One of the biggest challenges in the field of AI is not the highly-modern technology itself but much more its reliability.

Artificial Intelligence Act Like the General Data Protection Regulation, the European Commission is planning on introducing a decree to regulate AI systems in the future.

The EU Commission presented the draft of the Artificial Intelligence Act decree to regulate systems that use artificial intelligence.

The basic idea of steering the development of AI in the right direction and thus building up trust in the long-term should be fully viewed as a positive development. At the same time, however, there is a danger that the competitive edge will be lost or the development of AI systems will become laborious and more costly, the Know-Center says. It has also “translated” EU-officialese into a more comprehensible language (see box).

The Artificial Intelligence Act intends to include a comprehensive conformity assessment carried out by providers, which would make AI certification indispensable. The aim of the initiative is thus to support businesses in developing competitive and reliable AIbased products and systems, and to dismantle the hurdles for using AI. The multidisciplinary team of experts covers all fields from research and advice to certification.

Obligations for providers and users The decree’s main focus is regulating AI systems in high-risk sectors such as education, human resource management, critical infrastructure and medicine, among others. In future, compliant AI systems must be CE-branded while providers will be largely responsible for conformity assessments of AI systems in high-risk sectors. In some special and particularly high-risk sectors the assessment will be carried out by an external party obligatorily.

Providers must meet extensive compliance requirements like establishing risk and quality management, keeping technical documentation and logs, ensuring accuracy, resilience and cybersecurity adequately. While self-assessment is required for high-risk sectors only, all other applications are encouraged by the decree to be assessed as well.

Users (except for mere private use) are obligated to monitor AI-systems by notifying system providers of any risks or malfunctions and by suspending system operations if necessary.

World Champion Austria Styria

The need for new safety concepts Despite its enormous technological potential, there are also safety issues and risks associated with the usage of AI. There are many ways to attack AI systems. A huge challenge when assessing AI systems is posed by cybercrime. For example, a self-driving vehicle could make fatal decisions if the data that the AI processes in the vehicle is manipulated.

“Traditional static assessments are not sufficient here,” emphasises Harald Kainz, Rector of the Graz University of Technology, adding: “There needs to be research into fundamental, new security technology concepts in order to maintain continuous proof of the sturdiness of AI systems against cyber-attacks, and to protect privacy. This is the expertise that the Graz University of Technology brings to the strategic partnership. The initiative also represents a logical immersion into already existing collaborations in the fields of IT, software engineering and cybersecurity with SGS, the KnowCenter and the University of Graz. This also benefits university research and teaching, which can make use of this new and current information”.

Even if the usage of AI in previous years has increased across all sectors, companies are often still left feeling unsure when it comes to data protection and legal requirements. The planned EU regulation could create additional excessive demands – the DSGVO debacle comes to mind – and decrease or even completely thwart the added value of AI. A lack of legal security due to not having an audit certificate is one of the biggest barriers. According to the Know-Center, concrete support and sponsorship offers are decisive to prevent having the brakes put on businesses’ innovative capacity and the commercialisation of research results. “Auditing approaches for AI are essential for a broad usage of AI in the economy. This is not only a legal requirement, but also builds up trust and can positively influence acceptance in society. Our studies in the field of recruitment show, for example, that people who feel discriminated would rather have

their qualifications assessed by AI than by another person. This is the case in particular when it comes to certified usage of AI with explanation components,” says Stefan Thalmann, director of the Business Analytics and Data Science Center at the University of Graz.

Austria is on the right track Herbert Leitold, General Secretary of A-SIT, also emphasises that “thanks to the pooling of different expertise, we were able to overcome the complex challenges of AI certification – making sure that Austria is on the right track to be able to give providers and users of AI applications better guidance and certainty about the quality of the applications.”

Barbara Eibinger-Miedl, Regional Minister for Research and Economic Affairs, welcomed the initiative: “Artificial intelligence is a key issue in digitisation. Along with great opportunities, there are also challenges. We have to guarantee that there will be reliable systems and a high level of data protection in order to remove barriers when employing artificial intelligence. The fact that the global player SGS is relying on Styrian know-how emphasises the excellent work done by our own domestic partners. Thanks to numerous research projects and digitisation initiatives, we in Styria were able to build up comprehensive capabilities in this field and assume a global pioneering role.” ◆

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“A cornerstone of trust in AI is the maintenance of standards and requirements, which will be proven via conformity assessments, carried out by accredited third parties like SGS. Within our partnership we will develop new multidisciplinary tools and techniques to make these assessments possible and will include fields such as cybersecurity and ethics. This will offer added value to customers all over the world,” explains Siddi Wouters, Senior Vice President of Digital & Innovation at SGS.

Harald Kainz, Rector of the Graz University of Technology, which is a leader in cybersecurity research

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The EU Artificial Intelligence Act decree seeks to regulate artificial intelligence and thus make AI systems and their data more resistant to bad actors.

The EU Decree of an Artificial Intelligence Act The proposal for a regulation lays down harmonised rules on artificial intelligence (Artificial Intelligence Act). Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a fast-evolving family of technologies that can bring a wide array of economic and societal benefits across the entire spectrum of industries and social activities. By improving prediction, optimising operations and resource allocation, and personalising service delivery, the use of artificial intelligence can support socially and environmentally beneficial outcomes and provide key competitive advantages to companies and the European economy. Such action is especially needed in high-impact sectors, including climate change, environment and health, the public sector, finance, mobility, home affairs and agriculture.

However, the same elements and techniques that power the socio-economic benefits of AI can also bring about new risks or negative consequences for individuals or the society. In light of the speed of technological change and possible challenges, the EU is committed to strive for a balanced approach. It is in the Union’s interest to preserve the EU’s technological leadership and to ensure that Europeans can benefit from new technologies

developed and functioning according to Union values, fundamental rights and principles.

Against this political context, the Commission puts forward the proposed regulatory framework on Artificial Intelligence with the following specific objectives: c ensure that AI systems placed on the Union market and used are safe and respect existing law on fundamental rights and Union values; c ensure legal certainty to facilitate investment and innovation in AI; c enhance governance and effective enforcement of existing law on fundamental rights and safety requirements applicable to AI systems; c facilitate the development of a single market for lawful, safe and trustworthy AI applications and prevent market fragmentation. eur-lex.europa.eu

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Support for positive development in Styria Barbara Eibinger-Miedl, Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs, and Doris Kampus, Regional Councillor for Social Affairs, on the stimulus measures and projects.

Supporting investments A key prerequisite for an economic comeback in Styria is investments in local businesses. They have been on a consistent high level for many months. The Styrian Economic Promotion Agency SFG currently processes around 150 projects with a total investment volume of around 240 million euros. In the tourism industry, businesses are also continuing to show a high willingness to invest. Currently, another 150 projects with an investment volume of 120 million euros are being processed. “We will continue to assist the investing companies with targeted support measures as their projects are the key for the way out of the crisis caused by the pandemic,” says Eibinger-Miedl.

Significant areas of focus will be investments in the fields of green technologies, sustainability and digitisation. In addition, Eibinger-Miedl wants to further improve the framework conditions for entrepreneurial investments. “I want to turn Styria into the federal province with the most investment-friendly climate.

The establishment of a service point for procedural aid at the economic affairs department is an important step. With this service, investors in large projects have a central contact person who can provide support with all necessary official permits.

“Funds from the recovery plan of the European Union (REACT-EU) make a significant contribution towards supporting investments. “For Styria, there are 29.2 million euros available this year, which can be used to support research and development, innovation, digitisation as well as climate protection meas-

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he Styrian economy is once again on a growth course in many sectors and the situation on the local employment market has also been developing in a positive trend since spring. Nevertheless, the social crisis still needs to be actively tackled, Styrian policy-makers say. With targeted measures for Styrian businesses as well as employees, the Department for Labour and Economic Affairs wants to support this upward trend accordingly over the coming months.

“The Covid-pandemic and its consequences are the greatest test for the local economy and the employment market for the last decades. However, there are currently encouraging signs.

Numerous businesses are once again on the path to success and also the number of people unemployed is declining. Over the coming months, we will be concentrating on supporting this positive trend with stimulus measures as well as a specially targeted skilled labour programme,” agree Barbara Eibinger-Miedl, Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs, and Doris Kampus, Regional Councillor for Social Affairs.

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Barbara Eibinger-Miedl, Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs, and Doris Kampus, Regional Councillor for Social Affairs, want to support the economic recovery with specific measures.

ures. These funds are a key element in our stimulus package over the coming months,” explains Eibinger-Miedl.

New crisis task force for the labour market “Despite the good news, we need to accept that in terms of our society we have not yet overcome Covid and its effects at all,” underlined Doris Kampus, Regional Councillor for Social Affairs.

In May 2021, more than 14,000 people in Styria were classed as long-term unemployed, this is 50 percent more than in May 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic.

In order to be able to tackle the challenges on the employment market more efficiently, the social affairs department has set up a new crisis task force. “The Steirische Arbeitsförderungsgesellschaft (STAF) encompasses all of our existing and future activities in this area,“ added Kampus. “This is the biggest reform in this area for decades.” With 20 million euros from regional funds, the job centre and company contributions, STAF has a decent starting capital available. STAF will coordinate existing foundations such as the care foundation and the climate foundation, and will process new ones directly.

A digitisation foundation with 200 training positions has coffers of 1.5 million euros. This should help solve the acute shortage of skilled staff. Completely new is the regional foundation for small

and medium-sized enterprises, which form the backbone of the Styrian economy. “Up until now we had foundations for sectors such as the automotive foundation or the ATB-Stiftung for individual companies. The SME foundation is something completely new,” underlined Kampus. “Employees from other sectors and from all over Styria participate in a vocational orientation and then take a qualification in their desired profession. “Between 4,000 and 5,000 people will be able to get started in an employment initiative from the social affairs department. “That means concrete help for 5,000 affected people and their families,” Kampus adds.

“With the new crisis task force STAF, the new and existing foundations and with the solid budget, we are well-prepared to create jobs for people in Styria. We all know that it is better to prevent unemployment than to just provide financial assistance.”

Boosting the restart of exports A measure, which is being implemented with funds from the REACT-EU programme, is an export initiative. As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and its effects, the Province of Styria, which is an export-orientated province, noted a significant drop in foreign trade. After the record-breaking year 2019, goods exports dropped by more than a fifth in the first half of 2020, which was considerably more than the Austrian average. “Every second

World Champion Austria Styria

Pushing further ahead with Innovative Business Start-ups “There is a great potential for new jobs in the Styrian start-up scene, which has developed dynamically over the last few years,” says Eibinger-Miedl. That is why the economic affairs department will focus in the coming years particularly on pushing ahead with innovative business start-ups.

The existing funding and promotion programmes offered by the SFG are being expanded upon, and a new support programme for start-ups is about to be launched. In order to support more start-ups in scientific areas, infrastructure is being put in place. Following the opening of the Unicorn Impulse Centre at the Karl Franzens University in Graz, the Data House at the Graz University of Technology, which is currently under construction, and the ZWT2 (Centre for Knowledge and Technology Transfer in Medicine) at the Graz University of Medicine are entering the next stages. The SFG Impulse Centres in Niklasdorf and Lebring are also being expanded. The “Startupmark” which is located

next to the SFG, should allow all domestic players from the startup sector to network and thus increase the international visibility of the province of Styria.

Accelerated broadband expansion is a priority in Styria Styria increased its efforts considerably with regards to the expansion of broadband over the past few years. Now, all 286 Styrian municipalities have access to a fibre optics access point, which is the basis for all connections. Nevertheless, as the Covid pandemic has triggered an additional rapid increase in digitisation in business, science and education, Regional Councillor Barbara Eibinger-Miedl believes that the efforts to further expand broadband availability in Styria must be intensified.

“We have to increase the speed of further fibre optics expansion considerably. As a result of the Covid pandemic, the demand from companies, research and education facilities, municipalities and private households for a powerful data network increased significantly in the space of a few months. We have to take account of this increased demand and expand the infrastructure as fast as we can,” says Eibinger-Miedl. Funding from the federal government plays a key role in the further expansion of broadband, which as a result of further pressure from Governor Hermann Schützenhöfer has helped secure a further 1.4 billion euros for the whole of Austria. Currently being discussed between the federal government, the provinces and the municipalities, is the funding guidelines for the allocation of these funds. “The speed

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Styrian job is secured by foreign trade, thus contributing significantly to the prosperity in our province. We have to ensure that these companies are able to re-establish their export successes from before the pandemic as soon as possible, and at the same time initiate further international business relationships as well as explore new markets,” stresses Barbara Eibinger-Miedl on the importance of the Styrian foreign trade.

The objectives of Restart Export are to get Styrian companies back on the export market as soon as possible and to protect them from possible future export losses caused by economic crises. In order to achieve this, three main focal points were defined. One focus is on supporting businesses with market entry or the expansion of existing markets. A further focal point is the extreme importance of efficient supply chain management; the need for this came to the forefront due to the Covid pandemic.

In order to be able to react quicker to disruptions and disturbances, Styrian companies are to be equipped with useful tools, practice-relevant strategies and expert knowledge on supply chain and risk management. The third main focal point is digitisation, which has enabled new dynamics in international business. Addressing customers in person has increasingly been replaced by digital solutions. Within the framework of Restart Export, businesses are being supported in strengthening international market cultivation and customer loyalty by using digital tools.

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The Styrian broadband initiative aims for high-speed internet in Styria. From Dachstein in the West through to Bad-Radkersburg in the South-East, as far as the eye can see.

of the broadband expansion will also depend on how these guidelines are organised. We are advocating for the funds allocated to Styria to be quickly and unbureaucratically put into use in specific expansion projects,” emphasized Eibinger-Miedl.

“The Covid pandemic has shown us how important a high-performance internet connection is for all regions of Styria.

As the Regional Councillor for Social Affairs, who is also responsible for employment, I can see both in the medium and long term a lot of employment potential, when the Styria is equipped with broadband internet – from Dachstein right through to Bad Radkersburg,” stresses Doris Kampus.

Fibre optics access points in all Styrian municipalities The supply of fast internet in Styria was considerably increased by the Styrian broadband and digital infrastructure company Sbidi, which was established in 2018 by Eibinger-Miedl. Today, all 286 Styrian municipalities have access to a fibre optics access point, this is the basis for further connections. There are currently 17 expansion projects by Sbidi with an investment volume of 107 million euros being implemented in Styrian municipalities.

This expansion is taking place in cooperation with regional companies. In addition, there are further projects by Energie Steiermark as well as other private providers. Sbidi is enabling expan-

sion in rural areas, thus ensuring progress where there is the most need to catch up. This is currently restricted to those regions known as “white areas”, which are not served by private operators. In the future, the focus of Sbidi will be adapted in order to speed-up the expansion of broadband.

Coordinated approach with PIA 2030 As part of the “Internet Infrastructure Platform Austria 2030” (PIA), instigated by Federal Minister for Economic Affairs, Elisabeth Köstinger, all broadband activities by public and private actors are being coordinated. “The further expansion will only succeed if all those involved are actively committed to it and we are able to offer a coordinated approach,” says Eibinger-Miedl.

She also regards PIA as a significant step towards an accelerated expansion of the internet infrastructure.

Eibinger-Miedl is also aware that the province of Styria will have to make an adequate contribution. Over the past few years, special funds were allocated specifically for the expansion of broadband expansion.

If Eibinger-Miedl has her way, it will remain that way and further rural regions will have high-speed internet very quickly.

“This is essential to keep companies and jobs in the regions and to offer people in these regions future prospects,” she says. ◆

World Champion Austria Salzburg foreword

Having the highest gross regional product in Austria, with 50,100 euros per capita (2019), is no reason for Salzburg to be complacent. The fact that the economic region is in a good position is proven in terms of added value in relation of 3:1 between services and production. The image of a ‘tourism province’ is put into perspective, given the fact that this sector contributes only around ten percent to the gross regional product. In comparison, the production sector contributes 24 percent. The province’s science and innovation strategy in cooperation with companies and research facilities capitalises on this solid basis and is focusing on future issues such as life sciences, IT, the development of materials as well as the creative industry.

The fact that Salzburg is in first place when it comes to broadband access is a central prerequisite for the innovative capability of companies, science and research.

We, the people of Salzburg, are realistic enough not to strive for the world championship but are doing everything to make sure we belong to the regional champions in the long term.

Best regards, Wilfried Haslauer Governor of Salzburg

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Dear readers,

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The pharmaceutical GMP unit of the Center for Cross-Sectional and Tissue Regeneration (SCI-TReCS) of the Paracelsus Medical Private University Salzburg.

Education

Economic data

c Paris Lodron University Salzburg c College of Education Salzburg c University Mozarteum Salzburg c Paracelsus Medical Private University c Private Business University Schloss Seeburg c College of Applied Science Salzburg c University of Salzburg Business School c Salzburger Bildungsnetz c IFM – Institute for Management c University Schloss Seeburg

c Gross regional product in mln euros1 29,852 c Change from 2000 to 2019 +95.9%

c Gross regional product per capita in euros1 53,600 c Gross value added in mln euros1 c Production sector1

c Services1

c Members at the Economic Chamber2 46,847 c Business formations2 2,354 c Apprentices2 c Tourism overnight stays (x

Research c Salzburg Research c ICTS Center Advanced Studies and Research in Information and Communication c ZGIS – Centre for Geoinformatics University of Salzburg c Academy of Sciences “Geographic Information Sciences“

Source: ABA Invest In Austria

26,682 6,574 19,896

8,344 1,000)2 20,283

c Foreign trade in mln euros3

c Imports c Exports

12,275 10,346

c Total number of jobs2 235,572 c Patent issuances nationally2 33

1 2019 data, 2 2020 data , 3 preliminary figures 2020 Source: Statistics Austria, Association of Social Security ­I n s t i t u t i o n s , A u s t r i a n E c o n o m i c C h a m b e r, A u s t r i a n P a t e n t O f f i c e , Province of Salzburg

World Champion Austria Salzburg

Salzburg – the industrial sector became the saviour Peter Unterkofler, President of the Salzburg Federation of Industries, speaks about the good atmosphere in Salzburg and his fear of a possible inflationary spiral.

How are Salzburg’s businesses doing?

Overall, Salzburg’s industrial firms overcame the Covid crisis quite well compared to other sectors. The last 15 months showed our national economy how important an export-oriented and well-oiled industrial sector is. We worked hard together for the current economic upswing. We can be proud that the industrial sector acted as an engine for the entire economy even during a crisis. Many companies benefitted from the investment bonus.

An economic survey has hardly ever before yielded such positive results as our latest one. In the months to come many sectors and companies will continue to face a scarcity of resources – just like the corresponding price hikes and supply difficulties,

and the lack of skilled workers that we have been experiencing for years. The markets are in large parts overheated.

The number of vaccinations kept rising before the summer while the number of infections fell. We seem to have overcome the worst. But have we really? Is the crisis over? What do we need to look out for now?

The industrial firms kept working throughout the entire Covid crisis and their in-house vaccination centres made a valuable contribution in fighting the pandemic. We hope that we are out of the woods and are happy about the psychological element of the currently good atmosphere. We are still not back at the pre-Covid levels of 2019, but we are going to get there in 2022.

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eing a province of tourism and culture, Salzburg had been hit particularly hard by the Covid pandemic with the closures of the hospitality sector and cultural facilities. The regional gross domestic product fell by seven percent, which was much higher than the Austrian average of 6.3 percent. A fairly robust boom in the industrial and the construction sector with a subpar decrease in production prevented a bigger slump.

A robust material goods industry and a positive development of corporate service in its wake will ensure that Salzburg’s regional economy will be back on a path of growth this year with an increase of two percent this year, says UniCredit Bank Austria Research. It is not presumptuous to say that Salzburg’s industrial sector helped Salzburg as a business location out of the economic doldrums.

Peter Unterkofler, President of the Salzburg Federation of Austrian Industries, knows more about the industrial firms in the province.

Working from home as a lifeline during the pandemic

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Peter Unterkofler, President of the Salzburg Federation of Industries: “Without digitisation, many businesses would have not survived the pandemic.”

We seem to have overcome the pandemic from an economic point of view in the industrial sector, but we still need to bring other sectors such as hospitality back to the previous level. But the virus hasn’t simply disappeared, it will stay with us in the future.

Therefore, it is of utmost importance to have a high vaccination rate and a high willingness to get vaccinated despite low R-rates.

In terms of the national economy, it is important to not trigger an inflationary spiral – right now, Austria has one of the highest inflation rates in Europe. This is reflected by the prices in retail, hospitality and rents – and the higher prices favour inflation, in turn.

We all should always think positive – so what are the positive findings you are taking with you from the Covid crisis?

Without digitisation, many businesses would have not survived the pandemic – think of working from home and distance learning. 57 percent of companies could manage the Covid crisis better with it. The increased digitisation actually creates more jobs. More flexibility, for example thanks to video meetings and fewer business trips, lead to a reduction of costs and carbon

emissions. Desk sharing will surely lead to reduced costs when furnishing workstations in companies.

The Covid pandemic proved the Salzburg Federation of Industries’ focus on digitisation and education, particularly in the STEM subjects, to be absolutely spot on.

And what is the Salzburg Federation of Industries planning for next year?

We are clearly focusing on fighting the lack of skilled workers, promoting education and generally boosting our business location in terms of investments, digitisation and infrastructure.

We generally believe it is important to promote innovation.

The industrial sector needs to have its competitiveness safeguarded, research promotion and innovation leadership. We are in a great shape for topics of the future such as digitisation, new technologies, energy and mobility transition, green technologies and life sciences. Other things that will occupy us in future to a great extent are carbon neutrality, the question of who is going to pay for the Covid crisis and where future growth will be coming from. ◆

World Champion Austria Salzburg

These manufacturers are not pulling the wool over your eyes Austria’s knitwear and loden producers combine tradition with chic and innovative ideas for international success.

Fine fabric for many different clothes In times past the production of loden, a highly robust wool fabric, was widespread in the Alpine region but today only a handful of producers remain. The oldest is Lodenwalker in Ramsau am Dachstein, which was first mentioned in a document in the year 1434. The fundamental production process, i.e. felting wool fabrics with water, heat and mechanical pressure, has hardly changed since then. Only, in the 19th century machines started to replace manual labour and in addition to domestic sheep more and more fine Merino wool is used these days. The fabric itself has changed, however: It is now soft and fine and no longer hard and itchy like it used to be. That means that loden is now used for much more than rustic loden coats.

The many uses of loden can be seen in Mandling, not even 20 kilometres from Ramsau, where Steiner1888 is located. The manufacturer was founded by members of the Steiner family, which has been operating Lodenwalker since the early 19th century.

The company offers a regional version of a typical loden jacket, called the Schladminger, but the range of products is now dominated by a timelessly chic urban style with sports jackets, blazer coats, capes, parkas, sheath dresses, skirts and cargo

pants. “We wanted to combine international flair with tradition in our designs, resulting in a renewal of our brand through our products,” explains Johannes Steiner about the company’s strategy. He and his cousin Herbert are already the fifth generation of the Steiner family to run the business, and have come up with innovations in fabric production and workmanship. The latest innovation is a particularly light and elastic loden fabric, which was used for the first time in this year’s FS Collection. “The new collection from stretch loden has been very well received. We received a lot of positive feedback directly from our customers at the shops in Mandling and Schladming. We will continue using a lot of stretch loden as the material is very multifunctional,” Steiner says.

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hen people think of Austrian fashion, the first thing that comes to mind is traditional costumes and indeed, items like dirndls and lederhosen are part of Austria’s cultural identity that is held high by traditional brands such as Gössl, Habsburg, Mothwurf and Sportalm. Designer Lena Hoschek also gives traditional costumes a lot of room in her collections. She recently created Austria’s first official huntress jacket in cooperation with the Bavarian traditional costumes label Meindl and the Austrian Hunters Association. And the exclusive piece of clothing is made from Austrian loden, of course.

Huntress jacket from Austrian loden by Lena Hoschek and Meindl

© Giesswein

© Steiner 1888

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Steiner1888 shows different loden styles in its collection.

But the fine loden fabrics from Mandling are not only used in the company’s own collections: “Bottega Veneta, Thome Browne, Prada and Yves Saint Laurent are also using our fabrics,” Steiner says proudly of the fact that renowned luxury brands from France and Italy are buying fine fabrics from the Austrian Alps.

In economic terms, interior design is a much more important field for Steiner than the b2b fashion sector. The company offers cover fabric, blankets, pillow cases and accessories. Demand went up during the Covid pandemic as people were focusing more on their homes due to lockdowns, working from home and distance learning; many invested into redecorating their home, making it cosier. In this area Steiner1888 has an excellent reputation, equipping offices, hotels, restaurants and cruise ships.

In the b2c sector Austria is the most important market though exports play an important role too. Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Norway make up 55 percent of exports and are thus the most important foreign markets that order loden products from Mandling. But Steiner1888 is gaining more fans in the United States and Japan.

Another positive effect from the Covid pandemic for Steiner1888 was the focus on e-commerce: “Last year we launched a new online store to offer customers an even better shopping experience. And that has paid off as the number of visitors went up two-fold. That way we were able to compensate the loss from physical retail in part through online sales.” Overall, the company’s turnover went down by 25 percent in 2020, compared to the previous year. But the situation is on the up again: The second quarter of 2021 saw a two-figure increase in turnover and the positive trend is continuing in the third quarter. A long-term prognosis is very difficult to make at the moment, Steiner says, but he is optimistic for the future. And he has reason to be: The increased interest in sustainably manufactured fabrics from natural fibres is great for loden. © Giesswein

Hollywood stars such as Diane Kruger love Giesswein’s Merino Runner.

Perfect for the sporty runway The same also goes for broadcloth, which is very similar to loden, but is based on a knitted primary material instead of a woven one. The venerable Tyrolean manufacturer Giesswein used it to create the Merino Runner, resulting in a run on its products. There were two reasons for the move from slippers,

World Champion Austria Salzburg

© Gottsein

which had become the company’s most important product group since the mid-1970s, to sporty streetwear from broadcloth. First of all, Giesswein wanted to expand its range of products with something you can sell all year round (cosy slippers are something for winter), and secondly the company wanted to reach younger customers. But specialist sports shoe producers showed no interest in woollen sneakers. So Giesswein decided to enter the unknown and presented its first outdoors shoe in early 2017 with the help of crowdfunding platforms Kickstarter and Indiegogo – but of course also thanks to social media campaigns, classic PR and links on the online store. The idea was a complete success, also in terms of raising the company’s international profile.

The market entry of new models in 2019 was even more successful. By now, Giesswein has sold more than 600,000 pairs of its Merino Runner and expanded its range of products with more sneakers, sports and trekking shoes, Chelsea boots and ballet flats. The range of materials has also become bigger, first with a light high-tech stretch shoe from Merino wool, which was developed in-house. In 2020 the Wood Sneaker followed, which has an upper material made from eucalyptus wood fibres. “We are doing a lot of research as to how we can make our production and our products more sustainable,” says Markus Giesswein, who represents the family’s third generation to run the company.

But the company also comes up with other innovations. In August 2021, a sneaker from novel cactus leather saw the light of day – Giesswein’s first vegan product. In September another

Gottstein’s natural slippers are becoming more and more popular.

woollen running shoe followed, which has a cleverly constructed sole that recuperates a large amount of the ankle’s energy when getting off the ground and thus relieves the runner.

Demand did not suffer from the Covid pandemic but kept rising strongly. The lockdowns and working from home have also had a positive effect on the sales of slippers. And since the online shop became the company’s most important sales channel four years ago, closed shoe stores were not a big deal to Giesswein.

“We are generating 80 percent of our turnover online,” says Managing Director Markus Giesswein. “We were able to fully make up for shut down stores with an increase in online turnover.” The finished goods warehouse was fitted with a new AutoStore plant in summer 2020. It has 31 robots and 17,500 containers across nine levels, which resulted in a higher capacity of 140 storage and 900 retrieval operations per hour. That is the perfect basis to quickly manage the growing number of orders; today, Giesswein is exporting to more than 100 countries in Europe, Asia, the United States and Australia.

Slippers as a fashionable trend piece Despite the Covid pandemic, or maybe also because of the pandemic, business is going very well at Gottstein from Imst, which also specialises in shoes from wool.

Due to the comfortable streetwear trend, the company launched a sneaker from wool felt with great success in 2020.

Gottstein’s focus, however, is certainly on seamless felt slippers that are available in a large number of colours and styles for men, women and children. The collections Species Protection and Rare Wool are something special that targets mainly customers that value luxury and sustainability. Species Protection uses natural, non-coloured wool from rare European sheep breeds such as Tyrolean Mountain Sheep and Stone Sheep, Coburg Fox Sheep, Swiss Jura Sheep and White Polled Heath. The Rare Wool collection is made from felt from fine exotic wool such as yak, camel and alpaca.

Gottstein has its customers in thirty countries and the export ratio amounts to more than 80 percent. “Our biggest markets are Austria, Germany, Switzerland and the United States,” says Managing Director Gerhard Gottstein. “But we see a lot of potential in the Nordic countries and Canada. We have been selling our products successfully online for more than ten years. Therefore, we could compensate for the losses from shut stores very well and attract new customers.” A fly in the ointment, however, is

© Eisbär

© Eisbär

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Protection from the elements or a fashionable cherry on top – the hats from Eisbär are both practical and aesthetical.

that the Covid pandemic made purchasing raw materials more difficult and the rising raw materials prices sometimes cause bottlenecks in the supply chain. But Gottstein has a few more ideas: The company is working on 3D-knitted slippers without any waste and new natural slipper models. He believes that the increasing demand will bring further fortunes. “Today’s customer has not only high standards in terms of quality but also when it comes to the production and the carbon footprint of a product. Regionality is gaining in significance. We believe in this trend and think it is important – and we are convinced that we will benefit from it with our philosophy,” Gottstein says.

Cool hats from fine wool Sustainability is playing an increasingly important role at Eisbär, too. The family business from Feldkirchen an der Donau in Upper © Eisbär Austria is known for its chic hats and scarves, and has been the official outfitter of the Austrian Ski Te a m right from the start. The Covid pandemic put a halt to winter sports and that had an effect on Eisbär’s turnover in 2020, of course. But the loss has been made up in parts from strong growth in online retail, says CEO Ronald Mühlböck: “We tried to see an opportunity in the challenges of 2020, and in the second half of the year we developed and launched the completely new

product line Pulse for Beanie and Tube, both multifunctional items. This collection consists of a multifunctional beanie and a multifunctional tube, a type of scarf. Sustainability is the word here, and sustainability along the entire value chain also comes first for all our fall/winter collections 2021.” The new Sports Style Line uses Merino wool from an eco-farm, just like Pulse, which is treated without chlorine and is coloured in a sustainable way, plus cashmere with a level of recycled material. The Rewool Collection, which includes both popular classics as well as completely new models, will use a composite material from Merino wool and synthetic fibre from recycled plastic bottles for the very first time.

“The sporty streetwear looks and the trendy designs appeal to young, sports-loving customers with an ecological conscience. The feedback we had from retail on our latest innovations have been very positive and thanks to our production being located in Austria, we were able to react flexibly to a higher demand,” says Mühlböck. He is optimistic that good times lie ahead and sees growth potential both in Austria and abroad. Germany is the biggest export market but Mühlböck believes that Europe in general, the United States, Korea and China will gain in importance. In China, the growing winter sports market gives reason to be optimistic. ◆

World Champion Austria Foreword Tyrol

Optimism and courage are beginning to return to our province following the steps to re-open and to ramp up the economy after the severe restrictions, which were implemented due to the Covid pandemic. A large part of this optimism is, of course, due to the sinking unemployment figures and the successful start to the summer tourist season. We can all feel it: things are on the way back up and we are making big steps back towards our normal lives pre-covid. In order to crank up the Tyrolean economic engine following the pandemic, the Tyrolean provincial government is continuously working on specific support and subsidy measures to help the economy as well as the employment market. For us, it is important to kickstart our province back to the road to success and to ensure that the measures we put in place are accurate, and that they are really reaching the people of Tyrol. We want our province to emerge stronger from this crisis.

I am convinced that these measures together with the innovative economy in Tyrol and the hard-working people of Tyrol will be successful.

Best regards, Günther Platter Governor of Tyrol

© Land Tirol/Kaser

Dear readers,

© Sandoz GmbH

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The production of high-quality biosimilars at the Sandoz site in Schaftenau, Tyrol. Sandoz is the largest Austrian supplier of generics and biosimilars.

Education & research

Economic data

c University of Innsbruck c Medical University of Innsbruck c UMIT, private university for health science, health informatics and technology in Hall in Tirol c Management Center Innsbruck c University of Applied Sciences Kufstein c University of Applied Sciences / Health, Innsbruck

c Gross regional product in mln euros1 36,383 c Change from 2000 to 2019 +102.4%

Specific university research facilities c CMBI, Center for Moleculare Life Sciences c Institute for Biomedical Aging Research (Austrian Academy of Sciences) c ADSI (Austrian Drug Screening Institute), cancer research

Non-university research facilities c IQOQI – Institute for Quantum Optics and Quantum Information (Austrian Academy of Sciences) c Institute for Interdisciplinary Mountain Research: Human and Environment (Austrian Academy of Sciences) c Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Aids Research Source: ABA Invest In Austria

c Gross regional product per capita in euros1 48,100 c Gross value added in mln euros1 c Producing sector1

c Services1

32,519 9,364 22,932

c Members at the Economic Chamber2 55,624 c Business formations2 2,947 c Apprentices2

10,666

c Tourism overnight stays (x 1,000)2 33,205 c Foreign trade in mln euros3

c Imports c Exports

12,211 12,963

c Total number of jobs2 329,376 c Patent issuances nationally2 26 1 2019 data, 2 2020 data , 3 preliminary figures 2020 Source: Statistics Austria, Association of Social Security ­I n s t i t u t i o n s , A u s t r i a n E c o n o m i c C h a m b e r, A u s t r i a n P a t e n t O f f i c e , P r o v i n c e o f Ty r o l

World Champion Austria Tyrol

Tyrol – hard-hit by the pandemic but on the way back up Christoph Swarovski, President of the Tyrolean Federation of Industries, and Christoph Walser, head of the Tyrol Economic Chamber, talk about “their” businesses and stand up for Tyrol.

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© Die Fotografen

yrol‘s economy started the second half of the year 2021 strongly. The recovery is visible but the cost of raw materials and a rise in infections remain a risk for autumn. The incidence figure dropped considerably in late spring, early summer, which in turn resulted in the economy going back up. After 15 months of recession there was a strong motion in Tyrol’s economy: The business climate index sprang

Christoph Walser, head of the Tyrol Economic Chamber

from the deep red back into the black and is back at the levels before the pandemic.

Christoph Swarovski, President of the Tyrolean Federation of Industries, and Christoph Walser, head of the Tyrol Economic Chamber, can offer more details.

Mr Swarovski, Mr Walser – how are Tyrol’s businesses doing?

Christoph Swarovski: Most of our members are doing well. But a lot of them are fighting with supply problems and the lack of skilled workers is still there. The huge price hikes in building materials can be absorbed in investment projects. Even though the atmosphere is good right now, we can’t deny the fact that the industrial sector has been hit hard. But we are used to dealing with changes and use our time to find solutions instead of complaining.

Christoph Walser: Our companies are definitely doing better than only half a year ago. Our latest economic indicators show this. In the beginning of the year, the business climate index, that is the mean value between the current economic situation and expectations for the next six months, was at -4 percentage points. Now it went up +44 percentage points and has thus reached the levels of 2019. Optimism is back even though there are differences in the various sectors. 61 percent of businesses in the manufacturing sector are happy with their economic situation; in the services sector this figure drops to only 32 percent.

The biggest challenge in the months and years to come will be the lack of skilled workers. 70 percent of businesses consider this their biggest problem for 2021/2022. Causes for headaches among entrepreneurs are also the increased labour costs (48 percent), supply chain problems (47 percent) and surging energy and raw materials prices (48 percent). This bears down on the

© iV Tirol

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Christoph Swarovski: “In the long run, we won’t be able to afford to close down our entire economy with every virus that comes along.”

businesses’ earnings and makes prices go up for end customers.

I hope that we will return to normality in these areas after initial struggles.

The number of vaccinations kept rising before the summer while the number of infections fell. We seem to have overcome the worst. But have we really? Is the crisis over? What do we need to look out for now?

Swarovski: Nobody thought we’d have a second lockdown and then we ended up having three. So, nothing is set in stone in this pandemic. Therefore, we have to do everything we can to prevent a fourth lockdown – that means staying alert and adhering to the few rules that remain. But the most important thing is to better prepare for future crises. In the long run, we won’t be able to afford to close down our entire economy with every virus that comes along.

Walser: The increasing number of vaccinations are majorly important. The vaccination days we hold in Tyrol – where anyone

can come and get vaccinated without registering beforehand – have been a success and should continue. I don’t believe in compulsory vaccinations. I’m optimistic that we can reach the required vaccination ratio among the population through information campaigns. But, of course, we still need a healthy dose of personal responsibility to prevent infections from spreading.

The virus is still here and we need to learn to live with it. But it is time to say goodbye to simply looking at the incidence rate we need to look at several other factors, in particular hospital admissions.

We should always think positive – so what are the positive findings you are taking with you from the Covid crisis?

Swarovski: It was definitely good to see that the economic sector – and in part also public services – is very flexible under pressure. We also saw that many business trips are not necessarily needed and that we can use our time better. That is going to stay with us and I think it’s a good thing.

World Champion Austria

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© unsplash/Jeswin Thomas

Tyrol

Tyrol is working on a STEM strategy: The aim is to have more science, technology, engineering and mathematics in curriculums.

Walser: If you take a closer look, some positives from the Covid pandemic will remain: The disease showed those that are critical of capitalism how important healthy businesses are for the job market and thus our wealth. Furthermore, digitisation has received a massive boost over the last few months, which will help us in the years to come. And finally, the pandemic strengthened our commitment to Tyrol. The regional business cycle is an important factor to secure corporate success and jobs in the smallscale structures of our economy.

What is the Tyrolean Federation of Industries planning for next year?

Swarovski: We are currently working on a STEM strategy for Tyrol with all the stakeholders. The aim is to have more science, technology, engineering and mathematics in curriculums. Ensuring the strategy’s implementation will be one of our major topics for 2022. Next year, we will also deal more intensively with the issues around the climate, energy, resources, cycle economy and

sustainability. Our members will need support and networking, and we will take care of this.

And what is the Economic Chamber going to focus on in 2022?

Walser: We have drawn up the “Restart Programme” and are in talks with political decision-makers. We need arrangements on a federal and a provincial level to restart our economy in a sustainable way. This includes extending support schemes of those sectors that have been particularly hard-hit by the pandemic but also measures to fight the lack of skilled workers, tax reliefs, reducing red tape and setting up the “Tyrol Fund”. This is a concept where private individuals hold a stake in a company to raise its own capital ratio. This strengthens businesses and secures jobs. We suggest that the Province of Tyrol assumes contingent liability for this. Digitisation and sustainability are also things the Tyrolean Economic Chamber will focus on – we will offer our members a number of different consultancies and support. ◆

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World Champion Austria Tyrol

Austria beautifies the eyes of the world The Austrian eyewear manufacturers withstood the challenges of the Covid pandemic and keep a positive outlook. j by Britta Biron

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here are types of products that you associate immediately with certain countries. These connections only apply to a certain extent in our increasingly globalised world, yet historic facts remain and can be still felt today: cars from Germany, watches from Switzerland, fashion and perfume from France, leather goods from Italy. And Austria?

There are glasses, particularly in the premium sector.

Eyewear, Kiotonakamura and H.I.S. Eyewear). Since then, more Austrian eyewear makers have entered both the Austrian and international markets such as Pomberger Goisern (1984), Gloryfy Unbreakable (2004), Andy Wolf (2006), Rolf Spectacles (2009) and the two Silhouette subsidiaries Neubau Eyewear (2016) and Evil Eye (2019).

When it comes to sizes, design, production and sales strategies, there are sometimes huge differences but also some common ground – the most obvious being innovative capacity and high flexibility. Combined with their focus on the premium segment and highly identifiable branding, these companies managed to overcome the Covid pandemic.

Fashionable pioneering work Silhouette laid the foundations for Austria’s international reputation as a manufacturer of elegant premium glasses. “The company was founded in 1964 and had one goal in mind: To make eyewear more than just corrective lenses – to turn them into an accessory with the highest standards in technolIconic brands ogy and design,” says Mi“When it comes to frames, we acchael Schmied, CMO tually missed our targets, but the and grandson of the sales of lenses went according to company’s founders © Robert La Roche plan in 2020,” says Michael Arnold and Anneliese Pachleitner. It helped that the group Schmied. “Back then, this was a revolutionary had developed spectacle lenses with a special approach and we were pretty much the only ones Robert La Roche has been blue light filter several years ago – they saw an inwith this attitude on the market. Thanks to our innomaking extravagant glasscrease in demand due to more people working from vations, Silhouette has often been regarded as a pioes since 1973. home, playing computer games or watching online neer and innovator for premium eyewear over the streams. Despite the difficult market conditions, the company last six decades.” still launched several new models even though some of the colFrom 1973 onwards, when Austria had already been establections have become smaller. But the pandemic did not change lished as a premium eyewear maker in several countries, Austrithe overall expansion strategy. “We aim for organic growth an designer Robert La Roche showed spectacle wearers all across all areas, markets and brands – more than 20 percent per around the world new highlights with his very first collection. year across the entire group. Simultaneously, we are growing Today, the brand is part of the Graz-based Michael Pachleitner through acquisitions.”

Group, along with nine others such as Daniel Hechter, Spect

© Silhouette

© Andy Wolf/Bastian Thiery

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Styrian independent label Andy Wolf celebrates its 15-year-anniversary.

Silhouette turned glasses into a fashion accessory.

The company is currently focusing on expanding its core markets in Austria, Germany and Switzerland, the United States, France, England and Central Europe – the company from Graz is operating in 60 countries and has an export ratio of 70 percent.

Pachleitner is also adhering to his plan to erect an additional production site for lenses in Germany, earmarking twelve to fifteen million euros for the project. He is sure that the investment will pay off: “Buying behavior shows that people are willing to spend more money for premium glasses including lenses.”

He is particularly happy that the young sports performance brand Evil Eye has succeeded expectations. This goes to show that Silhouette’s decision to split from licence partner Adidas and make their own sports glasses was the right one. About 2,000 specialist stores in Austria, Germany, Italy, Spain, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Switzerland and the Benelux countries are already carrying Evil Eye. Schmied wants to enter further markets step by step; this year, he is focusing on Japan and Great Britain.

Like many other businesses, Silhouette has stepped up several digitisation projects during the pandemic. The Silhouette online store in Austria and Germany saw the addition of a click & collect service as well as a virtual try-on feature. “The feedback is excellent,” Schmied says. “We are going to start offering this service in other markets and also add it to the Evil Eye online store.”

The company also launched a digital showroom in order to tell their retail partners all around the world about new campaigns, products and services in spite of cancelled trade fairs.

After all, the main brand Silhouette is exported to more than 100 countries and the export ratio is at 95 percent. Another plan for

Different designs and lots of innovation Expanding the production site in Linz in 2017 by a lens manufacturing department has paid off for Silhouette. “In times of crises, the advantages of keeping your core competencies close to your chest and your production on location become apparent. The effects of the pandemic were quite different in our sales markets: In some countries, opticians remained open throughout, in others, they were partially closed. Even though the economic effects of the pandemic will be felt for some time we still have ambitious goals and strive for growth,” Schmied says.

World Champion Austria Tyrol

Highly resistant Tyrolean eyewear manufacturer Gloryfy Unbreakable is the inventor and world’s only producer of unbreakable glasses thanks to the patented high-tech plastics NBFX. The company managed to actually increase its turnover in the last year and to continue On firm ground – online and offline its path for growth. “2020 and early 2021 were very challenging, Business is going well despite the pandemic for independent of course,” says founder and managing director Christoph Egger. brand Andy Wolf, which has its 15th anniversary in 2021. The “Sports and eyewear retail is very important to us and the clocompany missed its target of increasing turnover by 20 percent sure of shops has directly affected us. Still, we are looking forin 2020 but at least did not see a decrease. And this was without ward with a lot of optimism.” The glasses’ unique characteristics any income from e-commerce. are a major driver of success, of course. Egger is not afraid, “It’s not easy to find the right glasses online. Often only a few however, that a competitor will make life harder for the company: millimetres decide the perfect fit – be it the width of the frame, “There are attempts to copy us from time to time, but our prothe depth of the lens or the position of the nose bridge. Glasses duction processes are that complex that it’s pretty much imposare a complex item that you can only fully appreciate when you sible to do so.” hold it in your hands and, more importantly, have it on your The company is currently exnose,” explains co-founder and panding its sales network in CEO Andy Pirkheim, when Germany and the Netherlands. asked why the company only The latest new development uses physical sales channels has been a tool to try on glasses such as opticians and fashion online; a service that is so far stores. The distribution network available in Austria, Germany and currently includes 2,500 partners in the Benelux countries. Egger be69 countries which are serviced by © gloryfy unbreakable Unbreakable glasses lieves that smart technologies will gain fully employed and independent sales are an Austrian invenimportance in addition to great design. The model agents, wholesalers and a subsidiary in New York for tion.

Gi31 Amsterdam KTM Connect, which was launched the United States. During the pandemic, the company this year, has a smartphone interface. Gloryfy has also undertakset up a digital portal for its retailers. “That way we can stay in en its first stets in the new field of blockchain technology. Totouch better with our clients and partners, and we could lift our gether with the Viennese design studio Formlos, the company service to a whole new level,” Pirkheim says. created three sets consisting each of a pair of sunglasses and a In order to achieve an annual 20 percent increase in turnover non-fungible token as a work of art; they were auctioned off for this year and also in the years to come, Andy Wolf is focusing on the charity Weißer Ring. expanding its core markets Austria, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Russia, the United States and Canada.

Successful niche player The aim is to optimise its logistics to ship orders on the same Pomberger Goisern also managed to increase its turnover in day. An important driver of success is of course the glasses’ 2020. The company had purchased more raw material than nordesign. The focus is on timeless and chic frames even though mal at the start of the pandemic and filled its storages to the there are always some statement models – with a few particular brim with finished eyewear. When demand increased in the ones for this year’s anniversary. There are also a few projects in second half of the year, Pomberger Goisern was fully prepared: the pipeline when it comes to increased sustainability. “We have “The investment risk paid off. Thanks to our strong sales team just started a project with the University of Applied Sciences FH we didn’t depend on trade fairs but could show our glasses to Joanneum to develop a sustainable glasses case and a polybag. our clients on location,” says Hans Peter Pomberger, which took We are also continuously substituting our acetate with eco-aceover the company from his father and now heads it together with tate,” Pirkheim says. the near future is to launch the Evil Eye online store in more and more countries as it is currently only available to clients in Austria and Germany.

© Johann von Goisern

© Rolf Spectacles

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Rolf Spectacles uses eco-plastics for its Substance Collection.

Johann von Goisern focuses on colourful models.

his son Jürgen. “Many people wanted to escape the bleak reality of the pandemic, which resulted in a higher demand for colourful frames.” And there is hardly an eyewear brand anywhere in the world that offers more colours than the in-house brand Johann von Goisern – a brand that has been the family business’ sole focus since 2010. The company developed its own highly complex layering technique which allows for an unusually high number of different colours, patterns and looks.

Pomberger Goisern focuses on expansion like all of its Austrian competitors. Production numbers are going up and the company is expanding its presence in export markets such as the United States, Portugal and Canada. Pomberger is not concerned by the market power of big players such as Luxottica and Safilo: “The larger these corporations get the more niches they leave to small businesses like ours.”

es such as the Red Dot Award, the Good Design Award of the Slimo d’Or, the Oscar of the eyewear industry, so to speak. The new Substance Collection from innovative plant-based eco-plastics is the company’s latest brainchild. It has already won five awards since its launch in spring 2020, the latest being the European Green Award in Gold from the European Institute of Applied Sustainability. Sales partners and retail customers also like the chic eco-glasses and the year of the pandemic was an economic success for Rolf Spectacles, which makes the company optimistic for the future: “We are expecting growth but how big we will grow will depend on a number of factors,” says CEO Bernhard Wolf. “We want to take good care of our collections and grow with our existing customers in the luxury segment. And the new Substance Collection will open up new markets for us.”

Wolf sees a lot of potential in Asia but the course is also set on expansion in the United States, Canada and the United Arab Emirates. “The world of eyewear is very exciting. Numerous small and innovative labels invigorate the market and show that glasses are not only becoming more popular, they are also becoming a popular fashion accessory. Glasses are not simply corrective lenses but a way to underline your character or to even change it.” ◆

Focus on sustainability Rolf Spectacles from Tyrol also show that success is not a matter of size. In the beginning, the company’s hinge-less frames from premium woods were making waves, later it added frames from stone, titanium and horn. Numerous models won renowned priz-

World Champion Austria Foreword Vorarlberg

The province of Vorarlberg has implemented a comprehensive stimulus programme very early on in the Covid-19 pandemic. Our aim was to support a quick recovery, stabilise the employment market and to put the right measures in place for an economic comeback. The ambitious programme included employment measures, considerable investment into constructional infrastructure, special grants for the tourism sector, the agricultural and forestry sector, the arts and culture sector as well as increased support for the field of digitisation. A package for families was also put together. Vorarlberg can be very proud of its many companies and employees, who have shown extreme flexibility and tremendous dedication during this period. The local economy has proven itself to be very adaptable and extremely robust. Vorarlberg’s strong starting position as well as the solid and forward-looking financial strategy will help to ensure that the province returns as quickly as possible to its successful path of growth.

Best regards, Markus Wallner Governor of Vorarlberg

© Luca Fasching

Dear readers,

© Jeppe Carlsen

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As the world‘s leading supplier of intelligent and efficient lighting solutions, the Vorarlberg-based company Tridonic brings light to the world.

Vorarlberg’s advantages

Economic data

c Strategically beneficial location in the midst of Europe’s strongest economic regions

c Gross regional product in mln euros1 36,383 c Change from 2000 to 2019 +100.9%

c Advanced infrastructure, also for the transport of goods and individuals

c Gross regional product per capita in euros1 48,100

c Business sites as professional technology and impulse centres

c Gross value added in mln euros1 c Production sector1

c Services1

c High availability of skilled and motivated staff

c Members at the Economic Chamber2 27,351

c Above-average productivity

c Business formations2 1,414

c Relatively low energy prices (e.g. electricity)

c Apprentices2

c Great range of funding opportunities due to a healthy regional banking sector c Professional local supply industry c Attractive economic promotions for innovation and investment projects c Efficient administration with short distances and no red tape

c Tourism overnight stays (x

17,128 6,627 10,414

7,115 1,000)2 6,405

c Foreign trade in mln euros3

c Imports c Exports

7,634 10,414

c Total number of jobs2 165,001 c Patent issuances nationally2 49

c Business-friendly environment c High quality of life, numerous sports and leisure opportunities Source: ABA Invest In Austria.

1 2019 data, 2 2020 data , 3 preliminary figures 2020 Source: Statistics Austria, Association of Social Security ­I n s t i t u t i o n s , A u s t r i a n E c o n o m i c C h a m b e r, A u s t r i a n P a t e n t O f f i c e , P r o v i n c e o f Vo r a r l b e r g

World Champion Austria Vorarlberg

Vorarlberg – business indicators bring optimism Martin Ohneberg, President of the Vorarlberg Federation of Industries, and Hans Peter Metzler, head of the Vorarlberg Economic Chamber, speak about the challenges in their province and how to tackle them.

A

© Frederick Sams

fter a few years of solid growth in the gross added value, Vorarlberg’s economy suffered a heavy setback in 2020 due to the Covid pandemic. Real gross added value (without agriculture and the timber industry) fell by 6.4 percent, which was in tune with the Austrian average. In retail, turnovers fell by 3.8 percent and thus not as bad as in the rest of Austria (-4.6 percent). The production index of sold products was slightly worse than the year before (-3.2 percent) but still better than the Austrian average of -5.5 per-

Hans Peter Metzler, head of the Vorarlberg Economic Chamber

cent. Vorarlberg’s building sector, however, recorded a strong growth of 3.2 percent (the Austrian average was at -1.8 percent).

“The short work scheme and Covid reliefs prevented employment numbers from falling even more,” says Regional Councillor Marco Tittler.

The pandemic had a high impact on all economic areas and tourism was hit the hardest of all sectors in 2020. Vorarlberg’s export industry also recorded noticeable slumps in turnover in the first half of 2020. Preliminary figures for the months January to June 2020 show goods worth 4.87 billion euros exported and goods imported to the amount of 3.7 billion euros. Compared to the same period the year before, exports fell by 8.4 percent and imports by 8.5 percent. The trade balance stayed in the black with 1.17 billion euros. All over Austria, exports went down by 12.6 percent and imports by 11.7 percent. This year, the trend is pointing upwards again, according to the figures from Vorarlberg’s economic report.

Martin Ohneberg, President of the Vorarlberg Federation of Industries, and Hans Peter Metzler, head of the Vorarlberg Economic Chamber, offer further insights into the province’s economy and industry.

Mr Metzler, Mr Ohneberg, how are Vorarlberg’s businesses doing at the moment?

Hans Peter Metzler: The pandemic has hit us all; the challenges of a global pandemic are manifold and know no borders between sectors. One-person-businesses and international top players alike were faced with novel, never-seen-before facts from one day to the other. Hardly anything was more important than planning reliability, tax reliefs, financial aids and promotion programmes, investments, innovation, digitisation, supply with raw

© Fasching

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Martin Ohneberg: “Vorarlberg currently sits in last place in Austria when it comes to competitiveness in the field of innovations.”

materials, good solutions for staff. This crisis gives us the opportunity to better understand the inner workings of growth. The economic trend is pointing upwards, in any case, as the latest economic report on Vorarlberg shows.

Martin Ohneberg: After the initial huge insecurity at the start of 2020 and the unforeseeable effects of the pandemic on the economy, there are now – one year later – clear signs of an upswing: The order books are well-filled, the outlook among businesses is good. The high prices for raw materials and their scarcity, combined with a lack of skilled workers, dampen the mood. These factors have led to companies being unable to ramp up their production as much as they wanted to. I can tell you that the industrial sector in Vorarlberg is in an optimistic mood but the effects of the pandemic will stay with us throughout the next year.

The number of vaccinations kept rising before the summer while the number of infections fell. We seem to have overcome the worst. But have we really? Is the crisis over? What do we need to look out for now?

Metzler: A lot of the optimism is surely carried by the increasing vaccination rate. We were also able to avoid another lockdown

in Vorarlberg (N.B. while the rest of Austria was locked down), which was psychologically and economically very important. We were the role model in Covid test concepts and their digital organisation. But the way out of the economic crisis was full of setbacks and losses, and now we must not endanger the hardearned and patiently awaited status quo with careless actions, underestimating Covid. Neither our economy nor our society will be able to take another full lockdown and state of shock.

While we are taking care of the current, specific challenges of the pandemic we must not forget our fundamental challenges and goals: Jobs, investments, research, education, sustainability and climate protection, infrastructure and so on. Even though collaborating with politicians is working out quite well, we need to stay on the ball with these topics and ensure the creation of the right conditions – that’s how a partnership works.

Ohneberg: The pandemic has shown that there are clear weaknesses, ranging from playing catch-up in terms of digitisation and insufficient cross-regional cooperation to finding the right balance between work and taking care of your family. We have to learn from this and prepare ourselves as the pandemic isn’t over yet. We need to improve the willingness of people to get vaccinated so we can return to normality. After all, we have to

World Champion Austria

© unsplash/Marcus Ganahl

Vorarlberg

Vorarlberg can offer market-ready, climate- and environment-friendly processes, products, services and consumption patterns – and a beautiful countryside.

learn how to live with this disease. If there is one thing I could wish for, it is for the media to report less about Covid to reduce the hysterics surrounding it.

We should always think positive – so what are the positive findings you are taking with you from the Covid crisis?

Metzler: The staying power, the flexibility and the resolution of businesses, but also politicians, entrepreneurs and the public tackling the problems together is something that has impressed me and given me a lot of optimism every day. This has surely helped in dealing with the daily bad news and also helped find common ground to get out of the crisis.

A lot of businesses have also shown a large degree of flexibility and sometimes seized the opportunities of the pandemic.

It is my wish and my aim to clearly define with everyone what “our” contribution is – what we as an Economic Chamber can do for everyone, for businesses and for our country, now and in future. And businesses take up a central role; they have learnt a lot during the pandemic: To be more flexible with changes and to adapt better to new situations. These experiences will make them come out of the pandemic stronger, and that is cause for optimism in many regards.

Look at the figures for business establishments 2020. Overall, we saw 1.200 new companies founded in Vorarlberg – that is on average three per day. This is not only 11.3 percent more than the year before, it comes also in spite of Covid. The latest figures for the first half of 2021 already show 756 new businesses established in Vorarlberg, which is an increase of 33 percent. This entrepreneurial spirit makes everyone optimistic.

Requirements and expectations of products and services are becoming more and more complex, and Vorarlberg’s businesses are holding their own quite well in the face of stiffer global competitiveness thanks to their innovative capacity. The pandemic actually turned out to be a real booster for innovation: The number of patent applications from Vorarlberg speaks its own language and our Innovation Prize puts the creativity and efforts of our businesses in the limelight.

When it comes to exports, Vorarlberg once more recorded a volume above ten billion euros in 2020; Vorarlberg’s export economy fell by 2.6 percent, which can be considered a success due to the problems with the pandemic.

Ohneberg: There was a strong shift in values in our society, which went deep down the population. Secure and great jobs

© unsplash/Marvin Meyer

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The Federation of Industries wants to speed up infrastructure projects such as the Bodensee expressway. Pictured is the motorway junction Bregenz along the A14.

have gained in significance. The same goes for a good education, no matter whether it is an apprenticeship, in school or university. Regional products and the seal of quality “Made in Vorarlberg” have also gained highly in importance. For the industrial sector regionalisation and globalisation are not mutually exclusive. The industry is committed to Vorarlberg and the added value in its surrounding environment, but it needs global markets. We also learned that we have to pay more attention to balancing family life and work life. Industrial companies are already doing a lot in this regard, for example by offering in-house childcare. But political decision-makers need to do more to create the right childcare conditions for working parents.

What is the Vorarlberg Economic Chamber planning for next year?

Metzler: It’s obvious but I still would like to point it out as clearly as I can – 2022 is going to be an important year. We are right in the middle of a restart that needs a clear path paved with many individual topics: The Economic Chamber has already given Vorarlberg a big impetus with our wide-ranging strategy process in 2018. Our aim is to have more input from entrepreneurs in decision-making processes and to represent the inter-

ests of entrepreneurs with new approaches. We managed to develop our organisation further, to identify specific projects and to implement them. This process has gained more importance due to the pandemic, it is not a flash in the pan. We saw that it pays off to constantly challenge yourself and to stay in touch with the latest developments. It is all about shaping and tapping potentials, opportunities and our future.

Sustainability is the buzzword: Climate change, environment protection, energy efficiency, social challenges and responsibility – the hurdles and opportunities for the economy are manifold.

The important thing is to not let the various goals of environmental, social and economic policies stand in each other’s way. They have to be on equal footing and have to go hand in hand. Vorarlberg’s economy is strong in exports and has many key technologies. This gives our province the potential to offer market-ready, climate- and environment-friendly processes, products, services and consumption patterns. Vorarlberg can create regional added value and thus make a significant contribution to stopping climate change, to protecting the environment and to assume social responsibility.

A small region like Vorarlberg depends on clever partnerships for the future. Thinking just inside our borders, also on a purely

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© pixabay

Vorarlberg

Education is a major topic for the Vorarlberg Economic Chamber.

mental level, curbs developments in our province. We all need to join our forces and find business location partners for Vorarlberg’s future.

After finishing school, too many young people still lack the basic skills of the three Rs that you need to get further education.

Our education system fails too often in providing individual support for children and teenagers according to their talents and skills. Young people are often not aware of the many opportunities they have in choosing an education or a job. The number of drop-outs reflects this issue. Apprenticeships are still underappreciated by society. Therefore, we need education, education, education. And education goes hand in hand with the digital transformation: We need more digital training, more digital initiatives such as conferences and hackathons. We need more transparency, more exchanges of information, an eco-system for digital innovation as a business location factor. We need to improve our innovation infrastructure. And we need a broad approach in changings mindsets: Changes and innovations are often regarded as risks foremost and not as opportunities.

And what is the Federation of Industries going to focus on in 2022?

Ohneberg: We will continue to highlight the significance of Vorarlberg’s industrial sector for the common good: It provides one billion euros of additional, voluntary monies for its staff, for the people of Vorarlberg and beyond, e.g. through medical services and health measures, further trainings, supporting sports associations and much more. Also, Vorarlberg’s industry is paying more than 2.2 billion euros in taxes and duties per year, that is more than Vorarlberg’s annual budget of 1.9 billion euros. We want to highlight the added value of the industrial sector for our province and thus create a more economy-friendly mindset.

But there are, of course, also political issues that we will fight for in 2022. I believe that our pressure will be needed again next year when it comes to infrastructure projects such as the S18 Bodensee expressway. The same goes for childcare, where not enough is being done yet. We also have to be braver when it comes to land use planning and try new paths. The lack of skilled workers and jobs in general will also be an issue we will have to deal with in the years to come – after all, our business location needs to stay attractive. Vorarlberg currently sits in last place in Austria when it comes to competitiveness in the field of innovations. This simply can’t be the case and we will not only point out this issue, we will also offer solutions. ◆

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World Champion Austria Vorarlberg

Resilient business location in the far West The production sector is making a major contribution to the added value and employment in Vorarlberg

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he production sector remained surprisingly stable during the Covid-19 pandemic and its lockdowns despite problems in the international supply chains and the resulting loss in revenue. The high flexibility and the adaptability of many companies and the good mix of industries in Vorarlberg managed to dampen the lower economic output. A study took a closer look at the workings of supply chains this

summer: “Its recommendations for action aim to further strengthen the resilience and adaptability of Vorarlberg’s economy in order to counter future economic shocks effectively from a position of strength,” says Governor Markus Wallner, who presented the study with Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs Marco Tittler and Jimmy Heinzl, Managing Director of the Vorarlberg business agency Wisto (Wirtschafts-Standort Vorarlberg GmbH).

© VLK

About the study “Vorarlberg is one of the world’s top economic regions. The Covid-19 pandemic has led to losses not only internationally but also in the export-oriented economic area of Vorarlberg. The federal government reacted with a number of immediate relief measures for businesses and the Province of Vorarlberg added a complementary programme. The study ‘Resilient Added Value in the Face of Covid-19’ was part of this package,” Wallner explains the study’s background.

The results of the study are based on trend and network analyses, complemented by economic research and qualitative interviews with 20 companies from Vorarlberg’s production sector between October and December 2020, as well as an online survey of 107 companies in February 2021. The study was published by Pöchhacker Innovation Consulting, the Institute for Industrial Research IWI and Wisto.

Regional Councillor Marco Tittler: “Vorarlberg is shaped by the industrial sector.”

Vorarlberg’s industrial characteristics Governor Wallner considers the task of the public sector – in addition to immediate relief measures for secure liquidity – to create the right incentives: “Topics for the future such as innovation, digital know-how, circular economy, the availability of skilled staff and new work concepts need to be pushed so the production sector can remain a main driver for growth and wealth.”

© Bianca Bals

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Working for Vorarlberg’s economy: Regional Councillor Marco Tittler, Governor Markus Wallner and Jimmy Heinzl, Managing Director of Wisto

Vorarlberg is shaped heavily by the industrial sector and the material goods production makes an above-average contribution, Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs Marco Tittler adds: “The production sector and its roughly 65,000 employees make up almost 40 percent of the regional added value, which is ten percentage points above the national average. This plays a major role in the creation of jobs and wealth. 28 percent thereof can be accounted purely for the production of goods.” Measured by size, Vorarlberg’s most important industries are metal production, food production, textiles production, machine construction and the production of rubber and plastics goods. These five industries have a high degree of specialisation and generate 65 percent of the industrial added value in Vorarlberg.

Jimmy Heinzl also considers the production sector’s strong performance highly significant: “Almost one in three employees in Vorarlberg is working in the production sector and material goods production generates high multiplying effects in terms of turnover, added value and jobs – in Vorarlberg and all over Austria. The high industrial density in Vorarlberg is thus making a significant contribution to the power of the regional and national economy. Preceding and subsequent economic areas along the value-added chain also benefit.”

When calculating economic multipliers, there are direct, indirect and induced effects. Direct effects are production, added

value and jobs that companies generate directly through their ongoing operations. Indirect effects come from intermediate consumption, i.e. companies generate demand at suppliers, dealers and service providers, who in turn generate intermediate consumption at other companies. Induced effects are created by consumption made possible from direct and indirect employment, and by investment effects.

Impact of the Covid-19 pandemic – resilient Vorarlberg Global trade took a massive hit and international supply chains were faced with far-reaching problems due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdowns. Factory closures, production stops and impaired logistics chains led particularly at the beginning of the pandemic to supply shortages and missing raw materials. This was further impaired by a reduction in customer demand for consumer and investment goods. Those regions that are connected closest to the international added value chains were impacted particularly badly by the slump in international trade.

Due to above-average export and import ratios in Vorarlberg’s production sector and the geographic position right in between its most important foreign trade partners, domestic companies are integrated heavily into the regional, national and international added value chains. Despite the therefore higher dependence

World Champion Austria

© Zumtobel (4)

Vorarlberg

Zumtobel developed a lighting solution for the new headquarters of BBC Wales in Cardiff to create the ideal lighting conditions for journalistic work.

on imports in specific commodity groups, the economic region Vorarlberg was impacted less badly by the Covid pandemic than other Austrian provinces.

The surveys conducted for the study showed that many of the production companies from Vorarlberg overcame the pandemic relatively well: “The diversity of industries and the high degree of specialisation among the industrial companies are a major asset of Vorarlberg and a central factor for the resilience of the regional economy. The crisis has shown that diversified regional added value networks are more resilient against external shocks.

Increasing this resilience and the adaptability helps secure jobs and thus increases the regional added value,” Tittler says.

Securing the business location Due to the tremendous importance of the material goods production for Vorarlberg’s added value and job market, the province aims foremost to secure the production sector, to facilitate growth for this significant economic area and to ensure its resilience remains high. According to Heinzl, there are five fields of action: Field of Action 1 focuses on securing the availability of scarce production factors. This includes not only the availability of raw materials, auxiliary materials and operating materials but also industrial real estate for expansion projects. Field of Action 2 targets the expansion and safeguarding of resilient added value chains. In order to minimise the negative impacts and depend-

encies in case of global shocks, a package of measures is recommended. Relocation of important economic fields into the European common market, securing key businesses on location, pushing regional companies for public tenders and internationalising and diversifying the customer base are issues that need to be tackled.

Field of Action 3 focuses on modernising economic structures as processes of structural adaption are decisive for the long-term success of a business location. This includes promoting innovation dynamics, supporting the digital transformation of the economy, pushing the establishment of digital and high-tech startups as well as the strategic-selective settlement of businesses.

A major factor for a well-oiled business location are the right framework conditions for employment. Field of Action 4 targets improvements in this area such as creating the right infrastructure, legal guidelines, the availability of production factors in general and public business promotions. Deregulating and accelerating administrative processes, accelerating the digital administration, step-by-step expansion of freight transport infrastructure and setting up high-performance broadband networks are the most important issues here.

Field of Action 5 focuses on creating more awareness for regionality and regional added value. The strategic significance of the production sector for Vorarlberg needs to be highlighted and communicated better to increase the awareness among people for regional added value. ◆

© Studio Wälder

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Jimmy Heinzl, Managing Director of the Vorarlberg business agency Wisto

Overview of the study’s findings c Integrating Vorarlberg’s production sector into international added value networks is an essential factor of success for the domestic economy and a driver of the regional economy. c The region’s politico-economic focus should be on securing the existing added value fields and supporting the further growth of existing businesses. Selective business settlements to close gaps in the added value, to modernise the economic structures and to improve the access to (digital) technologies are effective complementary measures. c Economic stimulus plans for the production sector need to target future-proof investments and measures. Topics such as innovation, digitisation, digital know-how as well as new work concepts and models have a high significance here. c Vorarlberg has a good mix of industries and a regional added value chain on a high level. The crisis has shown that diversified regional added value networks are more resilient against shocks. The diversified economic structure needs to be preserved. c The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the production sector transpired foremost through a slump in customer demand (i.e. order deferrals and cancellations), though some economic fields actually saw increases in turnover (e.g. the food industry).

c Research for the study gave the impression that the production sector already had a very professional supply chain management prior to the Covid pandemic. Existing strategies had been accentuated and developed further by the experiences made during the pandemic. The various ways to secure supply chains are now much more diverse (e.g. stockkeeping of critical components and broadening the supplies base). c Therefore, safeguarding the resilience of added value chains is also considered a core task of companies themselves. c Providing the necessary production factors in sufficient quantity and quality is an effective way to secure added value in the production sector on location. This concerns foremost the availability of (technologically) skilled staff and commercial real estate for expansion projects of domestic companies (in the production sector). c The framework conditions of employment need to be finetuned in the best way possible for the international competitiveness of Vorarlberg’s production sector. This concerns the right infrastructure on the one hand (e.g. connections to cross-regional transport networks and comprehensive broadband networks), and efficient, automated and mostly digitised administrative channels on the other hand.

The entire study “Resilient Added Value in the Face of Covid-19” is available at: www.wisto.at/studien/wertschoepfungsketten

World Champion Austria Burgenland foreword

Burgenland already implemented an array of measures last year in order to cushion the effects that the Covid pandemic has had on the economy and on the employment market.

This year we have put together a power package of measures for growth and employment. This power package is a strong investment engine, which helps to ensure that we emerge from this crisis stronger than ever. The three pillars of this initiative are anti-cyclical investments, investment incentives from the provincial organisations and start-up funding for growth and employment.

This power package includes specifically, amongst other things, infrastructure measures to stimulate the regional economy, investments into the health sector, a skills campaign in the care sector, the Green Energy Campaign by Energie Burgenland and the assistance campaign for single-person and small businesses.

I am very confident that with all of these measures and a joint effort from all of us, we will soon be back on the road to success and will be able to strengthen our location in a sustainable manner.

Best regards, Hans Peter Doskozil Governor of Burgenland

© Manfred Weis

Dear Readers,

© Franz Helmreich

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Company founder Markus Bohrer in his laboratory at Dr Bohrer Lasertec GmbH in Neusiedel am See - it is considered the epitome of research and development in Burgenland.

Business parks

Economic data

c Heiligenkreuz c Overall size of 680,000 sqm

c Located in the border triangle between Austria, Hungary and Slovenia c Kittsee c Overall size of 350,000 sqm

c Located near Vienna and Bratislava

c Müllendorf c Overall size of 587,000 sqm

c Direct connection to the A3 motorway

c Parndorf/Neusiedl am See c Overall size of 1,075,000 sqm

c Direct connection to the A4 motorway

c Gross regional product in mln euros1 9,273 c Change from 2000 to 2019 +93,3%

Centres of technology c TZ Eisenstadt – computer science and communication c TZ Güssing – renewable energies c TZ Jennersdorf – optoelectronics and LED technologies c TZ Mittelburgenland – computer science and e-business c TZ Neusiedl am See – innovative companies c TZ Pinkafeld – economics and science

c Gross regional product per capita in euros1 31,600 c Gross value added in mln euros1 c Production sector1

c Services1

8,288 2,360 5,653

c Members at the Economic Chamber2 26,440 c Business formations2 1,582 c Apprentices2 c Tourism overnight stays (x

2,567 1,000)2 2,287

c Foreign trade in mln euros3

c Imports c Exports

2,387 2,185

c Total number of jobs2 105,164 c Patent issuances nationally2 13

1 2019 data, 2 2020 data , 3 preliminary figures 2020 Source: Statistics Austria, Association of Social Security ­I n s t i t u t i o n s , A u s t r i a n E c o n o m i c C h a m b e r, A u s t r i a n P a t e n t O f f i c e , ­P r o v i n c e o f B u r g e n l a n d ,

World Champion Austria Burgenland

Burgenland is focusing on digitisation Manfred Gerger, President of the Burgenland Federation of Industries, on “his” businesses and the positive side of the Covid pandemic – the much-needed rapid increase in digitisation.

T

© IV Burgenland

he Austrian Institute for SME Research’s economic report for Burgenland’s trade and craft sector has given reason for hope: Companies ranked the business situation in the 2nd quarter of 2021 considerably better than in the same quarter of the previous year. Even though supply difficulties and price increases continue to cause concern, especially in the investment goods sectors, the outlook for the third quarter is one of cautious optimism. The shortage of skilled workers remains a problem.

Burgenland’s companies in both the capital goods sector as well as in consumer related sectors are optimistic. A survey by the Austrian Institute for SME Research also showed that one in four companies is looking for employees.

Ingrid Puschautz-Meidl, Managing Director of the Burgenland Federation of Industries

“The capital goods related industries, which primarily include the trades in the construction industry, can not complain about the lack of orders. However, these businesses are suffering as a result of the strained situation on the procurement market,” explained Division Chairman Gerald Guttmann from the Burgenland Economic Chamber. “It is encouraging to note that for the first time since the 4th quarter of 2019, businesses in the consumer-related sector (automotive/mechatronics, food, health/wellness, creative/design) are once again predominating with optimistic turnover expectations.”

Economic survey in the industry sector The economic survey for the 2nd quarter of 2021 by the Burgenland Federation of Industries and the Industry Division of the Burgenland Economic Chamber also paints a much more positive picture than in the previous quarters. For almost all of the indicators queried, the assessment is more optimistic and in part much better than in the previous quarter. However, this does not mean that we can predict that the situation will ease in the long term. The booming global economy is causing problems in the supply chain of domestic companies and is causing costs to increase rapidly. Burgenland’s industry can also be very pleased with the high-capacity utilisation and the full order books, but at the same time faces the problem of significantly increased costs, explains Ingrid Puschautz-Meidl, Managing Director of the Burgenland Federation of Industries. “Many companies are operating at full capacity, but whether this will result in an economic success remains to be seen due to the uncertainty of rising costs.”

It is positive to note that 19 percent of the companies surveyed want to employ new staff in the next three months. “However, recruiting more employees in Burgenland is becoming increasing-

© IV Burgenland

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Manfred Gerger, President of the Burgenland Federation of Industries: “The shortage of skilled staff was already a problem before the Covid pandemic, and it has become even more acute now.”

ly difficult due to the shortage of highly-qualified employees in the STEM subjects,” says Puschautz-Meidl, who confirms the increasing problem of finding the right staff.

Manfred Gerger, President of the Burgenland Federation of Industries, knows more about Burgenland’s industrial firms.

Mr Gerger, how are Burgenland’s businesses doing?

The economy is picking up speed rapidly, the order books in some parts are also full. Unfortunately, the scarcity of raw materials and a shortage of skilled workers right through all levels of qualifications is holding back an economic upswing. Only a small proportion of companies are benefiting from the massive rise in raw material prices caused by the high demand. The other companies are suffering from a lack of earnings because the increasing costs can not be passed on directly to the customers. The shortage of skilled staff was already a problem before the Covid pandemic, and it has become even more acute now. What we need is a holistic strategy that includes all the relevant topics.

The number of vaccinations kept rising before the summer while the number of infections fell. We seem to have overcome the worst. But have we really? Is the crisis over? What do we need to look out for now?

As global travel is still restricted due to the Covid pandemic and

the vaccination rate is still not close to the important 80 percent mark, it is not possible to talk about an end to this crisis. The uncertainty of what autumn will bring in terms of infection figures and possible new restrictions is also having an impact on the mood throughout the industry. What we need therefore is a more rapid rate of vaccination in the population, combined with better information for those who refuse to be vaccinated.

We all should always think positive – so what are the positive findings you are taking with you from the Covid crisis?

I have been very impressed by the incredible flexibility of the entrepreneurs and their employees in overcoming the crisis. The enormous digitisation drive that has swept through all areas of life has been of great importance for the country. Without this crisis, we would never have caught up so quickly in this area.

And what is the Burgenland Federation of Industries planning for next year?

The focus of our work will be increasingly on digitisation, research and development, resource management and in the recruitment, training and development of employees.

Acting as a location advocate, we are always trying to play an active role in shaping the framework conditions in the province and on a federal level. ◆

World Champion Austria Burgenland

No need for wrinkles despite the Covid pandemic Austrian cosmetics producers can succeed on the international beauty market also during times of crises. j by Britta Biron

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aries and numerous distribution partners in over 70 countries, this family business has also included skincare products for the end consumer in its range. This product range was enlarged last year by a liquid hyaluronic acid mask and this summer by five special serums added to its Farewell range. Parallel to the latest launch, an online shop for consumer products in the most important markets also opened.

Hyaluronic acid makes everything run smoothly It’s not rare to see medium-sized Austrian businesses among the world market leaders in various industries, like furniture fittings (Julius Blum), cable cars (Doppelmayr), LED systems (Lumitec) or plastic packaging (Alpla). However, there are also home-grown companies in the beauty business getting in on the global act.

Corma Pharma is among the leading producers of hyaluronic acid injections, without which minimally-invasive aesthetic medicine – a field that has been expanding in previous years – would quite literally not be able to run smoothly. Alongside the professional products, which are developed and manufactured in the factory in Leobendorf, Lower Austria, and more than 12 subsidi-

Big player in eyelashes and eyebrow styling GW Cosmetics is another Austrian world market leader in the field of dyes as well as care and styling products for eyebrows and eyelashes; a booming market for many years now. RefectoCil and Beauty Lash serve the professional and consumer sectors. Then there is also the luxury natural cosmetics brand Master Lin in the product range, and GW Cosmetics is also successful in the private label sector. Altogether, the company makes 700 products in its factory in Leopoldsdorf and has an annual production output of around 25 million units.

While the Covid pandemic led to big losses for several large cosmetics brands, it didn’t have a negative impact on GW Cosmetics. Very much to the contrary. In 2020, turnover went up by around 23 percent to 32 million euros and it was able to continue its growth trajectory. “We’re very pleased with this. We owe this success on the one hand to our employees who worked throughout the lockdown and on the other hand to our sales and private label partners, who also tirelessly fought hard for our customers during the pandemic,” says Beatrice Cox-Riesenfelder, who runs the company along with owner Rainer Deisenhammer.

The closure of hair and cosmetics salons in many markets did at times seriously impact professional business, the largest business sector. However, the demand for consumer products increased

© Croma Pharma

hen people talk about the beauty of Austria, they usually mean its scenery. However, the formula Austria = Beauty seems to come undone when it comes to beauty in terms of cosmetics. Even though there are no Austrian cosmetics companies that are in the same league as international beauty giants such as Estée Lauder or L´Oréal, size isn’t everything.

Corma Pharma has expanded its b2c range with five new special serums.

© Ringana

© GW Cosmetics

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GW Cosmetics is one of the global market leaders in brow and eyelash styling.

Ringana was able to continue its rapid growth of previous years during the Covid crisis.

significantly, in large part because having to wear a facemask really brought the eye area, and thus eyelashes and eyebrows, into the foreground. “We managed to ascertain this in particular in the UK, in Australia, South America and Eastern Europe. Online sales also experienced a boom and influencers gave some products a real boost,” says Cox-Riesenfelder.

In order to gear up for further expansion, product capacity, the development laboratory as well as administration will be upgraded.

GW Cosmetics will invest five to six million euros in the expansion of the factory in Leopoldsdorf.

2020. Of course, we would like to achieve such pleasing numbers again this year. Our goal is 220 million euros and based on the first months of this year, we are optimistic that we can achieve this,” says Andreas Wilfinger, who founded the company together with his life and business partner Ulla Wannemacher in 1996 and has since been running it.

They already export to 34 countries; the current export ratio is already 64 percent and rising. The focus is on European countries but also on those further abroad, such as Hong Kong, where Ringana already has enthusiastic customers. Its growth potential lies in the expansion of existing markets but also in the development of new ones. “An increasing number of people are looking for honest beauty products, which can be produced without additives or artificial preservatives, which avoid microplastics and are vegan.

We decided to have this in our products from the very start, even if there was no foreseeable trend in that direction,” explains Wannemacher. “Now we have a head start in quality and know-how, which is reflected in our products”.

To make sure that this doesn’t change in future, a lot is invested in their own research and development and new discoveries in the field of plant-based agents. Production procedures are also continuously being monitored. “The staff in our research department is required to think outside of the box and to create the best products that don’t seem easily possible. They are neither limited when it

A fresh boost from Styria This year, Ringana has managed to take a big step in its expansion.

Recently, this successful producer of premium fresh cosmetics (care and cleansing products for skin and hair) as well as dietary supplements moved its headquarters from Hartberg to St. Johann in der Haide, where its warehouse and production sites are also located.

The Ringana campus has received investment totalling 70 million euros and will be co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund. It will have a high-performance distribution and shipping station added to it, so that logistics operations can keep up with the rapid growth, which not even the Covid pandemic has managed to halt. “Despite the pandemic presenting a challenge for us, we were able to increase our turnover by 38 percent to 160 million in

World Champion Austria Burgenland

comes to costs nor the choice of the raw materials. Regular reformulating and new formulating guarantees that Ringana products always offer maximum performance and are based on the latest scientific methods. Our only goal is to create high-end products,” explains Wilfinger.

Ringana also sets itself high standards as an employer. In the year of the Covid pandemic, 100 new people were employed and this year it will also be significantly expanding its workforce. It is looking for specialist staff as well as apprentices and its training programme has been remarkably expanded. Alongside office administration and operations logistics, there are now also apprenticeships in the fields of metal, engineering and process technology as well as information technology and laboratory technology. Wilfinger isn’t concerned about not being able to find enough interested people (in other words: a lack of skilled staff), he says: “Aside from a highly modern, new workplace and large development potential, we offer our employees a lot of benefits, such as free vegetarian lunches in our new Ring(lunch) canteen, an occupational health doctor and free public transport tickets for the Vienna area, to name but a few. Additionally, we have our own staff development programme, which is constantly being improved based on feedback offered by our employees.”

and natural cosmetics shops as well as health food stores,” says an overjoyed Martin Saahs, founder and CEO of the Demeter-certified grape cosmetics from the Wachau Valley region. “2020 wasn’t easy for anyone on the market. We are still noticing the drop in customers and lack of desire to buy on the retail market. Nevertheless, we can see that regional, Austrian products were also in demand during the crisis.”

Since the beginning, the range on offer has been substantially expanded and today comprises skincare for face and body, shower and bath gels, shampoo, hand and foot lotions, anti-ageing serums as well as special products for babies and children. Sustainability and naturalness didn’t only determine the ingredients but also the packaging. The ingredients being grapevine water, grape seed oil, lime-tree blossom, elderberry seed oil or saffron in 100% organic quality, which originate from the same factory and are processed on site. The packaging is made of glass or aluminium and is therefore recyclable and free from microplastics and chemicals.

…and fresh whey from Upper Austria Another home-grown cosmetics start-up which couldn’t be held back by the crisis is Vielö from Sattledt in Upper Austria. The cleansing and care products for hands and body are whey-based and certified organic. They are therefore subject to significantly stricter legal regulations than natural Innovative formulas from grapes from the Wachau region… cosmetics. In the beginning – the There are examples demonstrating that even first products were launched in late small businesses that are starting to establish 2018/early 2019 – founders Christian themselves on the highly competitive beauty Paunzenberger and Alexander market won’t fail during big crises. One Daspersgruber had to do a lot of such example is Die Nikolai, an ambiexplaining, as both product tious newcomer in what is the groups were often wrongly long-time booming niche market “lumped together”. Neverof ecological, sustainable and theless, according to Paunnatural care products. It has rezenberger it was possible to ceived an extra boost thanks to “quickly develop Vielö into a the Covid pandemic. high-quality and uncompro“Five years ago, we delivmising organic, sustainable ered the first natural beauty skincare alternative for deproducts which were made manding and critical customfrom unused raw materials ers, who expect more than from the Nikolaihof vineyards. © dieNikolai just a nice label. This has only Since then, our products have been possible thanks to our been showcased in nine counDieNikolai is the only Demeter certified grape-based cosmetics brand in the world. wonderful partners.” The pantries, in more than 150 organic

© Vielö

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The organic cosmetics brand Vielö is expanding its range of cleansing and care products for hands, body and hair this year with a skincare line for complexion.

demic certainly didn’t halt this encouraging development, but it did adversely affect it. Almost all retail, restaurant and hotel partners were closed and had sufficient stock and little demand for extra deliveries after lockdown.

“We therefore had production costs for quantities that we were in large part unable to sell to our partners. This was by all means a challenge, but one that we were able to meet thanks to our constant internationalisation and the breadth of our partnerships within sales,” explains Paunzenberger. He also points out that thankfully there were also positive outcomes during the pandemic: “The coronavirus caused a huge change in purchasing behaviour as increasing numbers of consumers looked for high-quality, authentic, regionally produced and sustainable alternatives.” A big advantage was that hand hygiene became so important. “When people started washing their hands a dozen times a day with our hand soap and realised that it didn’t dry out their skin, this had positive implications for our hand care products as well as our other items, such as body wash and shampoo.”

Vielö sells its products in its own online shop as well as via more than 75 partners in Austria and Europe. “The export share is currently 20 percent with a tendency to increase greatly. However, this doesn’t mean that we will neglect the domestic market and our roots here. Vielö is designed and made in Austria, which means Austria will continue to be hugely important to us.” Paunzenberg-

er sees great potential for growth on the domestic market as well as internationally. True to the brand, this should occur in a sustainable way: “We are very selective when choosing which partners we collaborate with and form partnerships based on common values and principles.” The range on offer is also being expanded.

A to-go line with hand balm, body peeling and body lotion in 50ml tubes has been newly launched. A refill system, which has already been successfully established in the b2b sector will shortly be extended to the b2c products, and this year a complete skincare line will also be launched.

Austria carries out research with Chanel Last but not least, local science is also getting heavily involved in the international cosmetics business. Since the end of 2020, the Medical University of Vienna, the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences and the Vienna University of Technology, together with the French luxury brand Chanel, have joined forces in the Christian Doppler Laboratories. They are researching the interplay between metabolism, cell communication and cellular quality control in accelerated skin ageing caused by environmental stress in order to create the foundations for more effective anti-ageing products. Another goal for the research team is the development of new methods to track the signs of ageing on healthy people’s skin in an easy, quick and pain-free way. ◆

World Champion Austria Carinthia foreword

Things are on the up again. Carinthia is back – not only on the road to success, but back where our province was before the outbreak of the Covid pandemic, in the fast lane.

The fact that Carinthia was able to navigate its way relatively well through the many challenging months of the pandemic by comparison, from both an economic and socio-political perspective, is backed up by many statistics. Such as the fact that the number of people in employment as well as the unemployment figures were almost approaching the admirable pre-pandemic figures at the start of summer 2021. On the one hand, that is due to the wide mix of sectors in industry and business, which contributed significantly towards a greater crisis resilience according to experts. On the other hand, another factor of success is the very close coordination between the provincial government and the health and social services. In the regular joint government meetings strategies and measures were determined in order to strengthen Carinthia as a business location with its businesses and employees. This strong partnership is one of the reasons that so many successful global businesses chose Carinthia as a location for their internationally visible investments.

We will be pressing ahead with our new location marketing strategy, highlighting these and other advantages of Carinthia on a worldwide scale – “Carinthia– It´s my life“!

Best regards, Peter Kaiser Governor of Carinthia

© Gernot Gleiss

Dear Readers,

© Infineon Austria

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Infineon invested 1.6 billion euros in the construction of its new high-tech chip factory in Villach - one of the largest investment projects in the microelectronics industry in Europe.

Education

Economic data

c Alpen-Adria-University Klagenfurt c School of Management, Organizational Development and Technology (MOT) c University of Applied Sciences Carinthia c International School Carinthia c Coding School Wörthersee

c Gross regional product in mln euros1 21,506 c Change from 2000 to 2019 +73.7%

c Gross regional product per capita in euros1 38,300 c Gross value added in mln euros1 c Production sector1

c Services1

19,222 6,592 12,337

c Members at the Economic Chamber2 42,981

Research c ASSIC Austrian Smart Systems Integration Research Center c SAL – Silicon Austria Labs c Joanneum Research – Institute for Robotics c Lakeside Labs – Platform for Information and Communication Technology c W3C – Wood Carinthian Competence Center

c Business formations2 2,376 c Apprentices2

7,232

c Tourism overnight stays (x 1,000)2 11,083 c Foreign trade in mln euros3

c Imports c Exports

6,215 6,846

c Total number of jobs2 209,886 c Patent issuances nationally2 16

Source: ABA Invest in Austria

1 2019 data, 2 2020 data , 3 preliminary figures 2020 Source: Statistics Austria, Association of Social Security ­I n s t i t u t i o n s , A u s t r i a n E c o n o m i c C h a m b e r, A u s t r i a n P a t e n t O f f i c e , Province of Carinthia

World Champion Austria Carinthia

Carinthia – Striving to be a trailblazer in eco-economics Timo Springer, President of the Carinthian Federation of Industries, and Jürgen Mandl, head of the Carinthian Economic Chamber, speak about their “let’s do it” mentality.

C

© Johannes Puch

ompared to the other provinces, Carinthia’s economy got away with the smallest of bruises after the Covid pandemic thanks to an impressive foreign trade balance. Exports are still the driving force of the economic upswing, says Christoph Schneider, head of the Department for Business and Trade Policy at the Austrian Economic Chamber: “Exports are the driving force behind the economic come-

Timo Springer, President of the Carinthian Federation of Industries

back. 53 percent of Carinthian businesses surveyed by the Austrian Economic Chamber clawed their way back to the levels of the year before the pandemic; turnovers and orders are seen in a significantly more positive light. But there is still some restraint in investments despite Carinthia managing the economic crisis of the pandemic “almost the best of all”, says Schneider: “In Tyrol, the slump was almost twice as big.” The biggest challenge now is quite obvious, say the businesses: 80 percent struggle to find the right staff. Carinthia isn’t alone here – the lack of skilled staff makes life harder for all businesses across Austria.

Timo Springer, President of the Carinthian Federation of Industries, and Jürgen Mandl, head of the Carinthian Economic Chamber, offer further insights.

Mr Mandl, Mr Springer, how are the Carinthian businesses doing?

Jürgen Mandl: Carinthia’s economy got out of the economic crisis quite well. With an economic slump of 5.6 percent Carinthia managed 2020 better than the Austrian average of minus 6.5 percent. The recently published export data for 2020 confirm this comparatively good result: The decrease of 7.8 percent is much better than we feared at the start of the pandemic. Still, the surplus of 630 million euros in our foreign trade balance is an impressive sign of life.

Timo Springer: We are currently seeing a strong economic upturn from which almost all businesses benefit. In this regard, we are no different from other provinces. There are only slight differences among the various sectors. That was different during the crisis. Only a lack of raw materials and supply problems put a strain on businesses and sometimes actually prevent the excellent order situation from making an impact on profits.

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Jürgen Mandl: „The crisis showed clearly where Carinthia has to play catch up but also were our strengths lie.“

The number of vaccinations kept rising before the summer while the number of infections fell. We seem to have overcome the worst. But have we really? Is the crisis over? What do we need to look out for now?

Mandl: I hope so. We all need to do our utmost to get through autumn and winter well. Vaccinations are the only effective way to keep the virus at bay, in my opinion. We just can’t lock down everything once more. In economic terms we now need to adapt cleverly to the changes where ever it is possible. Unusual situations sometimes demand unusual measures and often also offer unusual opportunities: There is a lot of funding for investments at the moment. Those who are able to so do should now prepare for the future. At some point we will leave the Covid pandemic behind us and begin a new chapter in Carinthia’s successful economic history.

Springer: The number of vaccinations and the falling number of infections is surely a silver lining. The worst seems to be behind us. The easing of Covid measures has not caused any problems so far. It is therefore the right time to return to a certain level of

normality. By now, we have learned enough about the virus and its variants to know that it won’t go away. It has become part of our everyday life. Plus the „3Gs“ (N.B. the 3G rule, short for German “geimpft, getestet, genesen – vaccinated, tested, recovered”) guide us in a reasonable manner through the pandemic.

We all should always think positive – so what are the positive findings you are taking with you from the Covid crisis?

Mandl: It has been impressive to see what entrepreneurs and their staff managed to achieve. Being optimistic is a pre-requisite for the self-employed. It was quite motivating to see their “let’s to do it” mentality. On top of that, the crisis showed clearly where Carinthia has to play catch up but also were our strengths lie.

Springer: The Covid crisis has surely also had some positive effects. Think of the acceleration in digitisation across the economy and society. Unfortunately, Europe hasn’t benefitted here as much as the United States and China, where the big digitisation platforms are located. But it becomes apparent that many companies had to fundamentally think their business models

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© ÖBB/isochrom

Carinthia

Visualisation of the Koralm Tunnel in Carinthia. Once finished the journey between Klagenfurt und Graz will shrink to 45 minutes.

over. And in many cases the course has been set towards green technologies.

What is the Economic Chamber going to focus on in 2022?

Mandl: It will still be important to support those sectors that are still highly affected by the pandemic. We need to find new ways to host events and markets in a suitable setting with one eye on potential virus variants. But the focus is also clearly on the next developments in the new economic area that is Southern Austria.

The opening of the Koralm Tunnel in 2026 will have a massive positive effect. The two provincial capitals Klagenfurt and Graz are getting closer to one another with a new travel time of only 45 minutes. Therefore, we have to plan already now for the new economic structures in Carinthia and Styria but also the Baltic-Adriatic-Axis between Trieste and Gdansk to get the best out of our region.

Another common focus in terms of business policy will be the eco-economy: A type of economy in which fossil fuels are being replaced step by step by sustainable resources. It could make

Carinthia a European trailblazer in renewable energies and the appropriate know-how. In order to take this unique opportunity for our businesses and for the wealth of our population, we will need to keep young people in our province and motivate them to take up special training. Otherwise, we will have full order books but not enough staff to process them.

And what is the Carinthian Federation of Industries planning for next year?

Springer: I think we will return to a certain level of normality.

That means, that we can continue to work on the issues that are important to Carinthia: Having an appealing urban area with education facilities that attract more people from outside of our province. Raising our economic-technological profile and filling gaps in the value-added chain. Marketing our province as a place of industry, technology and education – and as a place to live.

As we all know, the industrial sector and its service providers contribute 55 percent of the province’s added value, tourism and leisure activities only make up 15 percent. ◆

© SalzburgerLand Tourismus, Michael Groessinger

Winter Love never lets you go

World Champion Austria Carinthia

Good mood and optimism in the South The economic data for 2020 is encouraging and much better than was expected at the start of the Covid pandemic. Now it is time to invest.

I

ncreased export turnovers and a positive business outlook defined the Carinthian Investment and Business Conference, where business representatives gave the provincial government a first-hand account of the atmosphere across the sectors.

The appropriate business and investment index shows that Carinthia mastered the pandemic well and now experiences an economic upturn. Surveys among regional businesses show that they consider the opening of the Koralmbahn railway line (planned for 2026) and the subsequent closer ties between Carinthia and Styria a very positive development for the future.

With an economic slump of 5.6 percent Carinthia managed 2020 better than the Austrian average of minus 6.5 percent. The recently published export data for 2020 confirm this comparatively good result: The decrease of 7.8 percent is much better than feared at the start of the pandemic. Still, the surplus of 630 million euros in the foreign trade balance is impressive, everyone agreed at the conference.

Promoting Carinthia as a place to work and live “We are already right in the middle of the restart after the pandemic’s many challenges,” said Governor Peter Kaiser, underlining the good cooperation of the Province with the health and social services, which stood the test of the pandemic. “The figures show that we managed to get out of the economic crisis quite well. We will keep doing everything we can to offer people the best-possible protection. We commit to vaccinations and testing, and a vaccination rate as high as possible,” Kaiser said. For the job market, Carinthia needs the right combination of skills and an attractive business location. In this context, Carinthia will also need a new approach in terms of the immigration of people that are needed to secure the economy and the wealth of the people. “Carinthia offers education, innovation, tourism, more markets and cross-regionality.

Furthermore, we will have improved economic centres thanks to

the Koralmbahn railway line. And we will be blowing our trumpet on these things internationally,” said Kaiser.

Vice-Governor and Councillor for Employment and Economic Promotion Gaby Schaunig considers the pandemic a magnifying glass that has highlighted Carinthia’s weaknesses but also its strengths. One of these strengths is the Province’s collaboration with health and social services, businesses and the job centre: “We have been a winning team since 2013 and did not need to start building trust only during the pandemic.”

Another of Carinthia’s strengths is its good mix of trades and industries, its industrial sector, its research and its high quality of life. Businesses are investing specifically into sustainability, greening, digitisation and research, Schaunig said. She also highlighted the Green Tech Cluster, operated with the Province of Styria, the Silicon Austria Labs and the Silicon Alps Cluster. Carinthia wants to approach more small businesses, mainly as part of the Digital Innovation Hub, that are looking at digital transformation with sustainability in mind. Plans for the job market include a stronger focus on skills; Schaunig pointed out that there is already a training scheme in place, organised in cooperation with the Carinthian building sector.

Cautious optimism Sebastian Schuschnig, Councillor for Economic Affairs and Tourism, spoke of a gasp of relief among Carinthia’s businesses and a cautiously optimistic outlook for the future. He considers the investment bonus a highly effective instrument. It helped businesses across many sectors to invest into greening, expanding capacities and innovation. Schuschnig also highlighted the positive development of Carinthia’s exports. The economic upswing has also been carried by the Province’s investment boosts, securing added value and jobs. 50 million euros have been put aside for roads, bridges and bicycle paths in 2021 alone. “Investments into the infrastruc-

© WKK/Peter Just

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Carinthian Investment and Business Conference: Christoph Schneider, department head for trade policy at the Austrian Economic Chamber, Sebastian Schuschnig, Councillor for Economic Affairs and Tourism, Gaby Schaunig, Vice-Governor and Councillor for Employment and Economic Promotion, Jürgen Mandl, head of the Carinthian Economic Chamber, and Governor Peter Kaiser

ture are not only important for a business location but also for a stimulus plan. We will need a good infrastructure in future to transport people and goods from A to B – no matter what type of engine or propulsion we are using,” Schuschnig said and underlined: “We must not curb these investments. When it comes to the traffic infrastructure in Carinthia, there definitely won’t be a building freeze.” But Schuschnig also pointed out that, “many businesses in almost all sectors are urgently looking for staff” – a common effort is needed to find a solution.

Strong export economy and …

Christoph Schneider, department head for trade policy at the Austrian Economic Chamber, presented details from the Carinthian business and investment survey. The outlook of entrepreneurs for 2022 is much better, overall turnovers and orders are well into the black. But there is still some restraint in investments despite Carinthia managing the economic crisis of the pandemic “almost the best of all”, says Schneider: “In Tyrol, the slump was almost twice as big.” 80 percent of those surveyed expect to be back at the levels before the crisis within one year; 53 percent of Carinthian business-

es say they have already clawed their way back to the pre-crisis levels. Almost 80 percent of those surveyed consider the opening of the Koralmbahn railway line and the subsequent closer ties between Carinthia and Styria very positive. When asked about the effects of business policies, 93 percent said that they believe in the positive aspects of innovation and research. Exports continue to be the driving force behind the upswing, Schneider said: “Exports are the pacemakers of our sprint back.” … positive mood in Carinthia Jürgen Mandl, head of the Carinthian Economic Chamber, also underlined the good mood among entrepreneurs: “That’s how we managed to overcome the last 18 months.” Now everything needs to be done to make sure we stay clear of more trouble in autumn and winter. Vaccinations are the only effective way to keep the virus at bay, Mandl stressed: “We simply can’t lock down everything once again.” But he also pointed out that not all sectors are back on track and benefitting from the economic upturn: “We need to find new ways to host events and markets in a suitable setting to give those entrepreneurs their business back”. ◆

World Champion Austria Carinthia

Technology or countryside?

Carinthia has both!

Carinthia is often only associated with tourism and lakes.

And the carnival. But that’s an image the country is rectifying now.

Promoting the business location “Carinthia has much more to offer than outsiders think and more to offer than people know about us. That’s something we have to tell the world,” says Martin Gruber, member of Carinthia’s provincial government. He believes that the province’s economy received a boost from the new campaign and the new business location magazine, which has the subtitle “It’s time for your success story in Carinthia” and is translated into four languages.

Due to the Covid pandemic, the deck has been reshuffled for

Carinthia. “Digitisation has opened up many doors, supply chains have become shorter. It is the perfect time to invest in advertising our business location,” believes Gruber. It is therefore particularly important to show how business-friendly and investment-friendly the province is. “And when the Koralm railway is finished, Carinthia will have another ace up its sleeve,” he says optimistically. Carinthia has also become a trailblazer in sustainability and eco-economy: Busses running on hydrogen will soon be a clear indicator of this development.

When someone in Carinthia speaks of “economy”, “settlement”, “talent”, “innovation” and of course the “business location”, the province’s settlement and holding agency BABEG (Betriebsansiedlungs und Beteiligungsgesellschaft) is usually involved. “Right from the start we felt that BABEG could get 100

© Johannes Puch

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arinthia has launched a new image campaign under the name “You know our lakes – now you’ll meet our pioneering spirit” to broaden its appeal as a business location. The campaign’s name signals the direction that Carinthia wants to go: Making all those factors come to the fore that went unnoticed so far – after all, Austria’s southernmost province has far more to offer than crystal clear water and beautiful mountains (without meaning to diminish the picturesque countryside). Outsiders often see Carinthia as a pure tourist destination and thus underestimate the province considerably.

Carinthia is a high-tech region with major assets in the industrial sector, the IT sector and the manufacturing industry. More than half of the added value and almost 50 percent of employees can be found in the manufacturing trade.

Carinthia – It’s My Life! This claim wants to spread the excellent unique selling points and diverse opportunities as a business, work and residential location. One major goal of business location marketing is to connect sustainability with innovation and to put the focus on eco-economy, research and development, as well as education. The idea is to interest companies in Carinthia as a business location and interest people in the province in general. Focus groups set up in Munich (Germany), Vienna, Graz and Ljubljana (Slovenia) helped to define what was needed.

Markus Hornböck, Managing Director of BABEG Carinthia

© LPD Kärnten/Gerd Eggenberger

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Governor Peter Kaiser (centre) with Martin Gruber (left) and Markus Bliem, head of the Strategic Provincial Development Programme

percent behind the campaign and its branding. We were actually involved in various talks and due to its importance for Carinthia we are looking forward to a great cooperation with the business location marketing unit,” says Markus Hornböck, Managing Director of BABEG. The cooperation between BABEG and the business location marketing unit is very close and will get closer in the future, he adds.

Business location Carinthia Carinthia, located at the heart of Europe in the border triangle Austria-Italy-Slovenia, combines high-quality technology and an attractive research landscape. Austria’s southernmost province is becoming an innovation hub in the Alps Adria Region thanks to its good infrastructure and a high research ratio. Statistics show how much emphasis Carinthia is putting on research: The South of Austria (Carinthia and Styria) is among the top ten innovative regions in the European Union. According to the Regional Innovation Scoreboard 2017, Southern Austria is among the “Strong Innovators” within the European regions. In this category, Southern Austria is second in front of Eastern and Western Austria.

“Carinthia’s strength is focusing on certain fields that are home to businesses that have become European and world mar-

ket leaders. Application-oriented research is another asset of our province,” says Hornböck. Carinthia is one of the European hotspots for Electronic Based Systems (EBS). These are key technologies for all modern applications and the basis for innovation. In addition to the excellent fields of study and education opportunities, Carinthia can offer a lot of jobs with internationally operating high-tech companies. International corporations with a strong foothold in Carinthia such as Infineon, Intel, flex, CISC Semiconductor and LAM Research are beacons that shine far beyond the province’s borders along with local heroes such as Ortner Reinraumtechnik, Augmensys, PMS Elektro- und Automationstechnik and Wild Hi-Precision. The Silicon Alps Cluster connects the industrial sector with research, education and public funds with the overall aim to strategically develop the business location. It combines challenges, strategies and potentials of a key sector for Carinthia’s future.

Carinthian success stories: start-ups Conquering the world economy from Klagenfurt am Wörthersee?

Yes, that really is possible, as shown by the two technology start-ups Bitmovin (see the following pages) and Anexia.

Anexia was founded as a classic Internet service provider in 2006. Today, the company provides premium, customised web

World Champion Austria

solutions and is one of the few IT companies able to hold its own in Cloud Hosting against Internet giants such as Google, Microsoft or Amazon. Founder and CEO Alexander Windbichler is one of Austria’s most successful young entrepreneurs. Anexia is an innovative IT service provider, offering a wide range of services in software development and hosting from 90 offices worldwide.

200 employees work at the company and generate a turnover that grows by a fifth year on year.

Cloudhosting, the provision of storage space for company data, is particularly sought after by international clients. Despite its international reach, Anexia wants to stay true to Carinthia – the high safety level of its headquarters is appreciated by US customers in particular. “In the current planning phase, we are working on several concepts and fathom different options. In any case, it is certain that our headquarters will remain in Klagenfurt.

© Alex Gotter

Carinthia

Alexander Windbichler, CEO and founder of Anexia: “We’re staying in Carinthia!”

What Carinthia has to offer Carinthia c … is a high-tech region c … is among Europe’s top research regions with ample subsidies c … is among the group of “Strong Innovators” and thus one of Europe’s most innovative regions c … has a highly skilled and highly motivated workforce c … has internationally successful flagship companies from the fields of information technology, sensory technology, microelectronics, machine construction and manufacturing systems c … has the latest technology infrastructure and technology hubs such as the Lakeside Science & Technology Park Klagenfurt and the Villach Science & Technology Area c… offers focused research facilities and forward-looking education centres c … is a springboard to enter new markets c … has numerous industrial and commercial real estate with ample additional areas available for industrial and commercial use – at good value for money c … combines a high quality of life for entrepreneurs, staff and families with a highly appealing technology and business location

The demand for our services is growing steadily and so we are pleased to continue expanding our staff. In order to adapt to this growth, we are looking for new facility options”, explains CEO Alexander Windbichler.

Carinthian success stories: flagship companies One of the most innovative flagships within and on behalf of the Carinthian economy is no doubt Infineon Austria, headquartered in Villach and with other sites in Klagenfurt am Wörthersee, Graz, Linz and Vienna. The Villach headquarters bundle the global business responsibility, R&D and production. The emphasis lies on the development of ever-smaller, energy-efficient chips for automotive, industrial and consumer electronics applications.

Flex, a manufacturing service provider for electronic components, operates worldwide, with 100 sites across 30 countries.

One of them is the site in Althofen, Carinthia, as the flagship operation for medical technology within the business, producing and developing electronic modules and complete devices for high-calibre international customers from the fields of medical technology, automotive and industrial engineering.

Highly specialised technology all-rounder Wild operates sites in Völkermarkt in southern Carinthia as well as in Wernberg bei Villach. Wild is a well-known provider of optomechatronic systems, optical technologies and industrial technology systems.

The Wild specialists develop and manufacture high-quality prod-

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Anexia has more than ten subsidiaries in Europe and the United States with 100 international server locations, serving 100.000 clients.

ucts to order and guarantee stable processes throughout the product life cycle. The Wild portfolio includes products for medical & life science, lab technology, in-vitro diagnostics and analytics, laser technology, optical metrology as well as semiconductor technology.

Technology combined with timber Weissenseer in Greifenburg is a family-run company that has had remarkable successes in timber construction. The WCB-Factory – Weissenseer Compact Building-Factory – is a highly compact, efficiency-optimised factory in which highly energy-efficient buildings and building skins (Smart Skins) are modularly manufactured in the smallest of spaces. Intensive research into the development of innovative manufacturing solutions in connection with the building material wood was the key to this novelty.

A consistently sustainable concept that is attracting worldwide attention. Demand increases sharply as the WCB factory can be used anywhere in the world, regionally and directly on site. This enables forward-looking partnerships and new business models.

“You see, Carinthia really has a lot to offer and we have to spread the word all around the world,” says Hornböck. “We are convinced that Carinthia is not only the perfect business location but also offers an excellent quality of life. Our cooperation with the business location marketing unit will help to strengthen Carinthia’s economy and infrastructure.” ◆

Good to know about Carinthia as a business location BABEG is Carinthia’s official port of call for foreign companies that would like to settle in Carinthia or want to expand their operations in the South of Austria. Information and networking are key factors, focusing on communication and cooperation – between businesses, research facilities, strategic holdings and education centres.

The team for international investor services advises entrepreneurs, investors and start-ups, and accompanies them right from their first idea to founding a company in Carinthia – and beyond. The free consulting service ranges from general information on the business location to support when looking for real estate and staff.

Babeg Kärntner Betriebsansiedlungs- & Beteiligungs GmbH Völkermarkter Ring 21-23 9020 Klagenfurt am Wörthersee | Austria T +43 463 908290 E-Mail: office@babeg.at www.babeg.at

World Champion Austria Start-up

Austrian start-up from Klagenfurt conquers the world Video streaming software provider Bitmovin is the technology leader in this field and full of enthusiasm.

Who is Bitmovin?

Bitmovin was founded in 2013 by a group of students at Klagenfurt University: Stefan Lederer, today the CEO of Bitmovin, Christopher Müller and Christian Timmerer, both board members. The three of them researched and developed MPEG-DASH video streaming, an open-source technology, and quickly realised that their solutions were far superior to those offered by large corporations such as Apple or Microsoft, who also had their hand in the game. They filed a patent application for their improvements and implementations – today’s basis for all Bitmovin products.

In just a few years, Bitmovin made it to Silicon Valley. In 2014, the business received subsidies from the AWS (Austrian Promotional Bank) and the KWF (Carinthian Business Support Fund) as well

as from investors such as Speedinvest or Constantia Industries. In 2015, Bitmovin was the first Austrian business ever to be accepted into the Y Combinator programme for start-ups and received 10.3 million US dollars. Investment fund Atomico is also among those who invested in the company, as is German TV giant RTL and other big players such as Zattoo and Bouygues Telecom.

Today, Bitmovin is an award-winning leading provider of video infrastructure for global digital media companies and service providers. The company has been at the forefront of industry innovation and all major developments in the digital video streaming industry. Bitmovin built the world‘s first commercial adaptive streaming player and deployed the first software-defined encoding service that runs on any cloud platform. Its cloud-native technology offers the most flexible and scalable media encoding, playback, and analytics solutions available with unparalleled device reach, ease of integration, and world-class customer support. Bitmovin customers benefit from optimised operations, reduced time-to-market and the best viewer experience possible.

© Bitmovin

S

ince the invention of television broadcasting in the 1900s, the broadcasting industry has always sought innovative technology that can improve the viewing experience for users. Over the years and with the introduction of over-thetop streaming services, the bar keeps rising as the industry continues to pack more visual quality into fixed spectrum and bandwidth allocations. More and more data is being streamed and video players are struggling with lag. Then Bitmovin came along.

Bitmovin began as a spin-off of the University of Klagenfurt and has since morphed into Austria’s first start-up on its way to gaining unicorn status. The company offers products for high-efficiency streaming and the provision of multimedia data via the internet. It developed a cloud encoding service that processes high-quality videos without lag and which is up to 100 times faster than its competitors. Bitmovin is also offering a HTML5-based video player that is in high demand among video platforms, media and entertainment companies around the world – such as Ooyala, YouTube and Netflix in the United States, Technicolor in the United Kingdom and Flimmit in Austria.

Bitmovin founders Stefan Lederer, CEO and Christopher Müller, CTO

© digital.emagazines.com

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Bitmovin won the 2020 Technology & Engineering Emmy Award of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) in the United States.

Maximum efficiency with maximum speed Bitmovin continues to be a leader in the research and development of actual perceptual quality metrics standards. The metrics are used to emulate the human perceptual system and leverage the information to maximise the efficiency of video encoding parameters. Bitmovin customers such as the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and Hulu Japan, are actively working to implement perceptual quality metrics with the Bitmovin Encoder product and its per-title encoding capabilities.

Another key area where Bitmovin has played a significant role is in the use of massive parallel encoding to enhance encoding speeds. Bitmovin‘s DNA and its origin story came from its founders‘ contributions to the development of the ISO/IEC MPEG Dynamic Adaptive Streaming over HTTP (DASH) standard, which today is used by most streaming services worldwide. Thus, the Bitmovin Encoding product has been created with segmented processing in mind which allows for massive parallel processing to accelerate encoding speeds across all available cloud infrastructure while maintaining the highest quality in the market and minimising bitrate.

With this technology, media and entertainment companies such as the BBC, the National Rugby League (NRL) Australia and Globo Brazil are able to reduce the encoding time of their content from hours to minutes and reduce delivery costs by up to 50 percent.

Award-winning technology Bitmovin has been honored with a Technology & Engineering Emmy Award by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS). Through its submission, Bitmovin demonstrated how its use of machine-learning and optimisation techniques have contributed to the ”Development of Massive Processing Optimised Compression Technologies.“ “Bitmovin is extremely honored to receive an Emmy Award for our technical contributions to the booming area of online video streaming,“ says Stefan Lederer, CEO and co-founder Bitmovin.

“Since we founded Bitmovin, our mission has been to help the transformation of video consumption towards online streaming using technology, and in particular improve the industry‘s viewing experience with the most advanced encoding technology developed by our R&D team. The Emmy award validates our tireless efforts to optimise workflows and deliver the highest-quality streaming video across all devices.“ “The Technology & Engineering Emmy Award was the first Emmy Award issued in 1949 and it laid the groundwork for all the other Emmys to come,” said Adam Sharp, CEO & President, NATAS. “We are extremely happy about honoring these prestigious companies, again in partnership with NAB, where the intersection of innovation, technology, and excitement in the future of television can be found.” ◆

World Champion Austria Upper Austria foreword

Dear Readers,

© Land OÖ

Upper Austria is back on the road to success. With a predicted economic growth of 4.1 percent, the growth in our province will be much stronger than in other regions.

One thing is clear: The economic boom has begun, and we have to take full advantage of it. We need to invest energy, courage and confidence into it, that’s why we have a clear goal in sight. We want to remain a production location and still want to be one of the strongest and most livable regions in Europe. We want the people in our province to have the best opportunities available to them.

We want to walk this path together with the people in our province, who are courageously and engagingly preparing for the future. That is the only way we will be on top in the future. We want to create a climate where people have confidence to try new things. That is how we will ensure we will have our place in the fast lane to success.

Best regards, Thomas Stelzer Governor of Upper Austria

© Rosenbauer

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Rosenbauer has been awarded the Austrian State Prize for Innovation for its electrified „Revolutionary Technology“ (RT) fire fighting vehicle.

Education and research in Upper Austria

Economic data

Universitäten

c Gross regional product in mln euros1 68,380 c Change from 2000 to 2019 +94.0%

c Johannes Kepler University Linz c University of Art and Design Linz c Catholic Theological Private University Linz c Anton Bruckner Private University Linz

Colleges of applied science FH Oberösterreich University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria c Campus Linz – health and social sciences c Campus Hagenberg – information, communication, media c Campus Wels – technology, life sciences c Campus Steyr – business management

Postgraduate courses c Limak Austrian Business School GmbH

c Gross regional product per capita in euros1 46,000 c Gross value added in mln euros1 c Production sector1

c Services1

61,119 24,387 35,772

c Members at the Economic Chamber2 101,844 c Business formations2 5,771 c Apprentices2

22,861

c Tourism overnight stays (x 1,000)2 5,433 c Foreign trade in mln euros3

c Imports c Exports

27,315 36,667

c Total number of jobs2 665,691 c Patent issuances nationally2 281

Source: ABA Invest in Austria.

1 2019 data, 2 2020 data , 3 preliminary figures 2020 Source: Statistics Austria, Association of Social Security ­I n s t i t u t i o n s , A u s t r i a n E c o n o m i c C h a m b e r, A u s t r i a n P a t e n t O f f i c e , Province of Upper Austria

World Champion Austria Upper Austria

Upper Austria – A province in comeback mode Doris Hummer, head of the Upper Austrian Economic Chamber, talks about the growth dynamic and the above-average economic growth in the province.

T

© Land OÖ/Lisa Schaffner

he province of Upper Austria managed the Covid crisis relatively well and the current economic upswing has come faster than was expected. “The data show that Upper Austria’s economy is moving from crisis mode to comeback mode – we would not have expected this to happen so quickly,” Regional Minister for Economic Affairs Markus Achleitner said at the start of summer.

According to forecasts, the 2022 gross regional product of Upper Austria will be again at pre-crisis levels and above, at just under 70 billion euros. By comparison, the figure for 2019 was 68.38 billion euros and 63.66 billion euros for 2020. Achleitner is

Upper Austria’s Regional Minister for Economic Affairs Markus Achleitner

also pleased with the developments on the employment market, but the shortage of skilled workers remains an important issue.

In terms of economic growth, following the slump caused by the Covid crisis, it is predicted there will be around 4 percent growth in 2021 and around 5 percent growth in 2022. This is above average when compared to Austria as a whole. Upper Austria was able to score points in the pandemic by the fact that many companies did not bury their heads in the sand but instead placed an even stronger focus on research and development. This is reflected in the figures for the federal government’s investment premiums. With almost 60,000 applications, just under one in four applications was submitted by a company from Upper Austria.

These companies will receive 1.5 billion euros of subsidies from the federal government, triggering investments of up to 16 billion euros. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that over 90 percent of the applications came from small and medium-sized companies.

The Regional Minister for Economic Affairs is also very pleased about projects which encourage the settlement of new businesses: Despite the pandemic, the Upper Austrian location agency Business Upper Austria has supervised more than 500 business relocation and expansion projects. 141 of those have been successfully completed, which is more than in the record year of 2019. And in terms of business start-ups, Upper Austria saw a strong increase in the number of start-ups – 8 percent more than in 2019: exactly 6,009 companies were founded in Upper Austria in 2020.

Doris Hummer, head of the Upper Austrian Economic Chamber, knows more about “her” business location.

How is Upper Austria getting on as a business location?

Over the past 18 months Upper Austria has been able to impressively demonstrate how important it is to work together con-

© Hermann Wakolbinger

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Doris Hummer, President of the Upper Austrian Economic Chamber: “We will support and encourage our members to seize the opportunities of digitisation and innovation.”

structively under these difficult circumstances with all location partners to positively shape the future. Fortunately, we can see that the economy has recovered significantly since the summer and the comeback is progressing very well. According to forecasts by Bank Austria Unicredit Research, Upper Austria’s economy will grow by 4.1 percent in 2021 and no other Austrian province is showing such a high growth momentum this year.

Also, with regards to the employment market, Upper Austria has come through the crisis relatively well. In the meantime, more people in our province are in employment than before.

What lessons can be learned from the Covid crisis?

Digitisation is an indispensable basis for new services, business models and distribution channels. And Upper Austria’s businesses have great opportunities through innovation and new technologies to be economically successful and to create new jobs. One of the biggest challenges for companies is the equity base. The Covid pandemic has shown that the trade and craft sector, retail and the tourism and leisure industries – differing depending on the size and sector – still have a lot of catching up to do. To increase their resilience to crises, companies need a better equity base.

What does the Upper Austria Economic Chamber plan to focus on in 2022?

Using our business location master plan, we have already focused in recent years on the burning issues facing our companies in order to take their concerns into account. This master plan has been evaluated this year and rolled out once again.

One of our most important concerns is how to increase the availability of skilled workers, for example through educational measures and, in particular, by making apprenticeships even more attractive. Furthermore, we will support and encourage our members to seize the opportunities of digitisation and innovation.

Exports play a key role in the success of our economy. We therefore want to position Upper Austria more strongly as an export province and support our companies as best we can in the development of new markets, particularly in the fields of environmental and energy technology as well as developing attractive export destinations. Another permanent undertaking is to continue to work on easing the burden on businesses by reducing taxes and levies, and cutting red tape.

We will also focus now on sustainability and greening. As an Economic Chamber we are committed to the ecological transformation and don’t just see this as a necessity but also as an opportunity. However, this process must be socially and location-wise compatible, and our companies must be able to plan and have the opportunity to invest securely. ◆

World Champion Austria Upper Austria

With full speed into the digital transformation Upper Austria is making huge investments to ensure the province retains its reputation as a top Central European business location.

T

© Hermann Wakolbinger

he digital transformation has an impact on nearly all areas of life. It forms the basis for the further development of the latest technologies and is thus setting the course for the Upper Austrian economy and industry.

Upper Austria’s business and research strategy #upperVISION2030 focuses on the creation of knowledge and added value using data as well as using the innovation potential of new technologies. Within the framework of this programme, around 4.8 million euros will be allocated to the “Digital Transformation” funding call. Research & development projects that support the advancement of digital solutions in companies as well as the

Upper Austria‘s Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs and Research Markus Achleitner.

transfer of innovation from science to industry are also being funded.

The Covid pandemic as a digitisation accelerator “The pandemic has accelerated digital transformation. Now we must strengthen the digital know-how of domestic companies to make them fit for the future and also further strengthen their competitiveness. A recent location study by Teodoro Cocca (Professor for Asset Management at the Johannes Kepler University in Linz, Austria) has shown among other things that as a reaction to the Covid pandemic Europe’s leading industrial regions are placing specific emphasis and efforts on the area of digitisation.

Pushing forward with the digitisation of domestic businesses, particularly SMEs, is also a clear mandate for Upper Austria. After all, we have a clear goal, we want to position ourselves amongst the top regions in Europe,” explains Upper Austria’s Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs and Research, Markus Achleitner.

“With our current funding call ‘Digital Transformation’ we want to give an additional boost to the digitisation of Upper Austrian companies. In order to achieve this, we are investing around 4.8 million euros of state funding,” Achleitner announces.

Increasing the level of digitisation “In order to secure Upper Austria as a business, industrial and research location and to maintain its international competitiveness, we have to continue to drive innovation in the development of products, processes, services and technologies,” he says. Digitisation has a special role to play: “One thing we have witnessed during the pandemic in particular is that companies with an advanced level of digitisation have a better resilience to crises, achieve higher revenue, employee and productivity growth, and make more investments”, Achleitner emphasises. The core competences and key technologies at the business and research loca-

© Land OÖ/Lisa Schaffner

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Gerhard Dimmler, Research and Development Manager at Engel Austria and Advisory Board spokesman of the Mechatronics Cluster, FFG Managing Director Henrietta Egerth, Upper Austria‘s Regional Councillor for Economic Affairs and Research Markus Achleitner and Günther Schallmeiner, head of the Upper Austria branch of Siemens AG Austria

tion Upper Austria, especially in the fields of information and communications technology, are to be further developed and expanded upon with the current Upper Austrian business and research strategy #upperVISION2030.

In addition, there will be a stronger focus on ensuring a more rapid implementation of research results into real-life applications.

Information and communication technology is of central importance in a digital world and especially in a data-driven economy.

“We want to generate knowledge and value from data. The knowhow development is to be driven forward, especially in new technologies such as artificial intelligence, data-driven modelling and simulation etc., in order to exploit their potentials for existing applications, processes and products in various areas of the economy,” explains Achleitner.

Funding call ‘Digital Transformation’ By 2030, Upper Austria is set to become a model region for the implementation of the digital transformation, with people at its heart. Particularly in the areas of machine learning / artificial intelligence, the benefits and positive effects for people and society should be clearly in the fore. For this reason, the Province of Upper Austria is making concerted investments in the following topics for the future: After the two funding calls ‘Circular Economy’ and

The focus of the strategy The Upper Austrian business and research strategy #upperVISION2030 defines numerous specific implementation projects. Among other things, this involves the sustainable integration the results from the activities of the Flagship Initiative Digitisation.

Here are a few examples: c The development of appropriate formats/instruments for the digital transformation of SMEs c Focus on data centres when settling companies c Expansion of the research focus on secure systems c Establishment of a multidisciplinary research focus in the field of data-based modelling c Establishment of a software competence centre in Hagenberg with the focus on software development, IT security and prescriptive analytics c Creation of a (scientific) platform for human-centered AI c Establishment of an AI quality test & certification centre c Support programmes to increase the level of digitisation among SMEs

World Champion Austria Upper Austria

Strategic goals and the focus of the funding call Through digitisation business models are being adapted, new distribution channels are being explored and existing value chains are being rethought. Data-based decisions have an increasingly higher importance in companies and the use of new technologies has, in addition, an influence on existing organisational forms. A prerequisite for the networking of machines and processes is the user acceptance of new technologies. Topics such as data security and control over data are therefore becoming increasingly relevant.

That is the reason why the focus is particularly on the following strategic goals: The generation of knowledge and value through the use of data, exploiting the innovation potential of new technologies such as big data or artificial intelligence, as well as striving to achieve a pioneering position in the field of human-centred artificial intelligence and setting quality standards for AI systems in terms of security and reliability. In addition, the projects must meet one of these technology priorities: “Pervasiveness of data and supporting software tools”, “the digitisation of business processes”, “new business models” and “machine learning / artificial intelligence”.

Siemens as a driver of digitisation “With around around 8,000 employees and a turnover of around 2.6 billion euros in the 2020 business year in Austria, Siemens is

a significant player in the establishment of industrial digitisation and automation solutions. Research and innovation are the central focus here. The industrial sector in particular is currently experiencing rapid development. The demands on companies, especially those that are in international competition, are increasing. The aim is not only to increase the productivity and efficiency of production, and to bring the issue of sustainability more to the foreground, there is also a greater need today for individual products and solutions while the quality requirements remain the same, or are even increasing,” says Günther Schallmeiner, head of the Upper Austrian branch of Siemens AG Austria and adds: “New products and models are being brought onto the market quicker than they were a few years ago. The reason for this is the use of modern technologies – from Edge and cloud computing to artificial intelligence (AI) and digital twins. They create intelligent value chains and new business models. The use of and the networking of intelligent technologies saves costs, energy and time. This means that from the initial idea through to the development, sales, production, logistics, service and recycling, the individual process steps can be networked with one another, and capacities can be fully utilised. Today’s digital transformation is the future of tomorrow. However, it requires continuous innovation and constant learning.”

© Stadt Linz

‘Digital Health’, the Province of Upper Austria is providing a further 4.76 million euros for the funding call ‘Digital Transformation’ within the business and research strategy #upperVISION2030.

This will – in continuation of an already tried and tested cooperation – be carried out jointly with the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG).

‘The Covid-Pandemic has accelerated digitisation’ is currently perhaps one of the most-cited findings by business researchers.

It is true that the crisis has indeed created more awareness for the potential of the digital transformation. Many companies have massively upgraded in this area and have done so much quicker than planned. “Recent studies show that these investments are worthwhile. Digitisation leads to both a direct and measurable business success. We want to make this successful formula even more accessible to local companies together with the Province of Upper Austria with the funding call ‘Digital Transformation’, stressed FFG Managing Director Henrietta Egerth.

Günther Schallmeiner, head of the Upper Austrian branch of Siemens AG Austria

© Spitz (2)

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In addition to its optimised digital processes, Spitz GmbH has now also switched its entire PET beverage range to 100 percent recycled PET.

Sustainability through digitisation using the example of Spitz Automation and digitisation processes in the industry are no longer just about pure efficiency gains but also about the question of ecology and sustainability. Digitisation can also make a significant contribution there. One example of this is the Upper Austrian food producer Spitz, which relies heavily on digitisation. The fully automated production in small batches is already ensuring high flexibility, efficiency and quality. The consistent, integrated solution not only increases process stability and product quality, but also minimises potential sources of error at the same time. Spitz uses the Manufacturing Execution System (MES) solutions with the Simatic IT Production Suite. This enables production and manufacturing systems to be controlled, manufacturing processes to be coordinated with the supply chain, and the gap between business management systems and process control systems to be closed. Materials management is integrated into the automation, as is the collection of operating data, which is also used for energy management.

The digital transformation from a business perspective “The challenges have become considerably more complex over the past few years, as the different technological fields are becoming increasingly intertwined. At the same time mechatronics is helping us to solve these challenges. The comprehensive understanding of systems in combination with powerful calculation capabilities makes optimisations and further developments possible both in the engineering of our machines as well as in industri-

al implementation, which were unthinkable years ago. The new solution possibilities go far beyond those based on many years of experience. That is why mechatronics can be described as an enabler of digitisation,” explains Gerhard Dimmler, Research and Development Manager at Engel Austria and Advisory Board spokesman of the Mechatronics Cluster. Dimmler sees the greatest potential for the next few years in digitisation and digital transformation. “To put it simply, I see digitisation as a modular system of methods full of new technologies that we can consistently develop and use.” However, it also requires a change of mindset both within a company as well as in the collaboration between industries and companies. “My belief is that we can both foresee and estimate technologies, but the associated application possibilities far exceed our horizon. We will also need this when it comes to the topics of sustainability and the carbon footprint due to increasing environmental political pressure,” says Dimmler.

Different levels and invisible elements It is very important to differentiate between the different levels of digitisation. On the one hand, we distinguish between digital technologies as visible products or services. It is precisely the mechatronic approach that makes it possible to use the technologies of digitisation on an industrial scale, and to implement them successfully in development, production and manufacturing in order to create added value. Whether it be through more intelligent products or services or the concerted use of AI in conjunction with domain-specific knowledge. ”In this area we are already of-

World Champion Austria

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fering products on the market with great success. But when it comes to service in combination with digitisation solutions we are only at the beginning,” explains Dimmler. “On the other hand, we can see the compelling need to address the issue of software systems as invisible elements of digitisation, even if this is often not so exciting. Among other things, we understand this to mean data consistency, digital twins, a coordinated ERP system, security and much more. These are topics that occupy us within our company, which take up a lot of time and resources and are not really visible when they work. In addition to the companies themselves, the providers of software solutions are also in demand. It will become an interplay between requirements and implementation possibilities in the conflict area between profitability and necessity. Here, we are still in the concept phases,” says Dimmler.

The next level describes the medium-term and future foundations of the digital transformation that will solve the challenges that we do not even know about today. Here, science is concerned with questions about cyber-physical systems, miniaturisation as well as the decentralisation of AI and much more. Upper Austria as a business location has been and will be particularly shaped by

© Engel Austria

Upper Austria

Gerhard Dimmler, Research and Development Manager at Engel Austria and Advisory Board spokesman of the Mechatronics Cluster.

the scientific orientation in this field, and as a result the innovative output of its businesses will be influenced in the future. That is why it is also a matter of proactively shaping the measures and activities as well as about incorporating future needs in the context of digitisation. ◆

Objectives of the funding call “Digital Transformation” In order to make Upper Austria’s companies fit for digitisation, the submitted projects should fulfill the following objectives and thus become a driver for the future competitiveness of Upper Austria as a business location: c Objective 1: The project must make a concrete contribution to rapidly transferring research results into commercial application, thereby further strengthening and expanding Upper Austria’s position in the field of digital transformation. c Objective 2: The project must sustainably strengthen the value creation of companies and institutions, and close the gap between developers and users/implementers of digital solutions. c Objective 3: The project result or the solutions envisaged must have an impact on the following aspects: • It must contribute to maintaining and increasing the competitiveness of the participating companies and institutions.

• There should be potential for cross-industry or cross-sector solutions, the development of new business models or the developing of new markets.

• Development of future-oriented products, services, tools and processes through rapid transfer to commercial application.

• Significance for the environment of a company (customers, suppliers, cooperation partners, etc.) c Objective 4: The effects of the project results must subsequently be evaluated in the participating companies and institutions for example through: • internal training and further education of employees • Change in organisational structure, long-term implementation etc.

• Änderung der Organisationsstruktur, usw. nachhaltig verankert werden.

MODERN. INNOVATIV. DIGITAL. Austrian’s industry is building our digital future today – for tomorrow.

www.iv.at The Federation of Austrian Industries

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