Waiblingen, 9/29/2017 | Company press release
STIHL Group strengthens its site in Langkampfen, Austria
- The largest investment in VIKING’s company history: 22.8 million euros for new buildings
- The production and development facilities are being expanded
- 100 new jobs created
The figures alone are impressive: 22.8 million euros of investment volume, 20,000 square meters of additional usable space and 100 new jobs. These three figures describe the STIHL Group’s biggest building project to date, at VIKING GmbH’s location in Langkampfen, Austria. The official groundbreaking ceremony took place on Friday, September 29 – and the new facilities are scheduled for completion at the end of 2018.
The ambitious project has a clear objective: To eliminate existing capacity bottlenecks and create optimum conditions for further growth. “In addition to efficient production capabilities, the buildings will accommodate engineering and prototyping departments, electrical laboratories, endurance testing rooms as well as an advanced apprentice workshop,” explained Dr. Nikolas Stihl, Chairman of the STIHL Advisory and Supervisory Boards. He called the upcoming activities “a milestone” in the company’s history and a clear commitment to the Langkampfen location by STIHL Group. VIKING Managing Director Dr. Peter Pretzsch emphasized that there are no signs of the positive trend coming to an end: “We are convinced that our premium garden power tools will continue to prevail on the market in the future.” VIKING GmbH has been part of the STIHL Group since 1992 and produces and sells premium garden power tools. In addition, a large proportion of the STIHL cordless electric product line is assembled in Tyrol, Austria.
As well as changes to the buildings, there are other innovations to come too: As of 2019, the entire VIKING product line will be distributed exclusively under the STIHL brand. “This decision is right and logical. VIKING is one of the few manufacturers in the industry to offer such a broad range of garden power tools – from the consumer sector to the professional segment. And all in premium quality,” said STIHL Executive Board Chairman Dr. Bertram Kandziora at the groundbreaking ceremony. In future the plant will be the center of excellence for ground-guided and ride-on garden power tools; it will manufacture products and develop them together with the STIHL parent company in Waiblingen.
Furthermore, he explained that VIKING is a pioneer in the area of “connected products” and already presented a world first in June in the form of its iMow TeaM. STIHL expects the brand changeover to generate a considerable increase in unit sales and revenue, as well as further growth across the whole group. “Langkampfen is and will continue to be an essential part of the STIHL worldwide manufacturing network and will continue to play an important role as a site,” emphasized Dr. Kandziora.
