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voestalpine AG www.voestalpine.com History of the voestalpine Group
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History of voestalpine

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Page 1: History of voestalpine

voestalpine AGwww.voestalpine.com

History of the voestalpine Group

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The Group from 1938 up to the Present

1938-1945: The Linz Site of Reichswerke AG „Hermann Göring“ Berlin

1945-1973: VÖEST

1973-1987: VOEST-ALPINE AG

1988-1995: VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG up to the Beginning of Privatization

1996-2001: Restructuring of the Group. From VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG to voestalpine AG

voestalpine from 2001 up to the Present

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1938-1945: The Linz Site of Reichswerke AG „Hermann Göring“ Berlin

Beginning with 1938 an iron and steelworks – a subsidiary of the Reichswerke founded in Berlin in 1937 – was established in Linz as part of the national-socialist war industry.

The approximately 4,500 inhabitants of St. Peter/Zizlau, the site for the Hermann Göring works, were relocated to other parts of the city.

In 1939 Reichwerke Linz and Alpine Montangesellschaft merged to form Alpine Montan Aktiengesellschaft „Hermann Göring“ Linz.

Southern Harbor Side towards Blast Furnaces

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1938-1945: The Linz Site of Reichswerke AG „Hermann Göring“ Berlin

Hermann Göring works comprised at the Linz site five large companies, among them Eisenwerke Oberdonau, which was given highest priority, because it was an armaments factory.

From 1941 onward the complex of companies in Linz successively began production.

It would not have been possible to build the plants in Linz and to produce armaments without the use of foreign labor. In summer 1938 foreign civilian workers arrived. Later, from 1940/1941, forced laborers, prisoners of war and, beginning at the end of 1942, also concentration camp prisoners were used.

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1938-1945: The Linz Site of Reichswerke AG „Hermann Göring“ Berlin

In the summer of 1944 allied bombing attacks on Linz and the site began.

The number of laborers reached its highest point in 1944. At that time the percentage of foreign laborers (not counting prisoners of war and concentration camp prisoners) averaged two-thirds. In some particular sections of production the figure was more than 90 percent.

Somewhat more than 10 percent of the foreign workers at the Linz site were women.

Laborers for Production, EisenwerkeOberdonau, January 1941 to May 1942

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VÖEST 1945-1973

May 5, 1945 – US troops reached Linz. The plants in the city were confiscated as German assets.

In July, respectively, in October they were renamed „Vereinigte Österreichische Eisen- und Stahlwerke AG“ (United Austrian Iron and Steelworks AG) or VÖEST. In addition, they were separated from Alpine Montan AG.

Vehement differences of opinion on the question of whether the plants should continue in existence. The decision to continue operating the plants in Linz also led to a significant alteration of the regional economic structure.

Summer 1946 – The commanding American officer, General Mark W. Clark, turned VÖEST over to the Republic of Austria in trust. Ten days later VÖEST was nationalized on the basis of the First Nationalization Act.

Iron and Steel Plan 1948 – The production of commercial sheet steel was concentrated in Linz. The same year saw the beginning of an expansion program with foreign capital made available through the Marshall Plan of the USA.

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VÖEST 1945-1973

The success story of VÖEST began with the managing of the post-war chaos and the reconstruction.

An important step was the development of the LD process. After a long period of preliminary work in Austria and other countries, scientists in Linz made the breakthrough. The world‘s first LD steelmaking plant was constructed in Linz. From 1952 onward the LD process revolutionized steel production.

Conclusion of the State Treaty in 1955. VÖEST took over management of the Krems steelworks.

LD Steel Making Plant 1

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VÖEST 1945-1973

In 1957 VÖEST began constructing seagoing vessels in order to prove that plates of LD steel were fully suitable for shipbuilding and also to achieve a degree of stabilization in the shipping costs of VÖEST‘s substantial overseas acquisitions of raw materials. In total, four seagoing freighters were launched by 1967 (Linzertor, Wienertor, Kremsertor und Buntentor).

In 1958 entry into the construction of industrial plants on an international level. In cooperation with the Fried. Krupp company in Essen, Germany, VÖEST began construction in Rourkela (India) of the first steelmaking plant outside of Austria.

In 1959 the public management of VÖEST, which had been in effect since the end of the war, was replaced by customary organizational bodies (Management Board, Supervisory Board and Annual General Meeting).

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VÖEST 1945-1973

In the 1960s VÖEST became, by Austrian standards, a huge and multi-faceted conglomerate.

In 1963 the reorganization of VÖEST began.

Beginning with the mid-1960s a special investment program aimed at the modernization of finishing operations (among other things the first slab continuous caster at LD Steelmaking Plant 2).

In 1973 VÖEST, Linz, merged with the operations of Österreichisch-Alpine Montangesellschaft, Wien, to form VÖEST-ALPINE AG.

Assembly works on the steel structure of Europabrücke (1962)

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VOEST-ALPINE AG 1973-1987

The effects of the merger coincided with the international economic crisis. From 1975 the repercussions also reached Austria.

Until 1976 various other companies were consolidated to form new companies and were integrated into VÖEST-ALPINE AG (among others the companies of the Edelstahlindustrie (Böhler, Schoeller- Bleckmann and Steirischen Gussstahlwerke), which were consolidated to form Vereinigte Edelstahlwerke AG (VEW).

1977 – A new form of organization was instituted. The group was broken down into four business segments: steelworks, processing, finished products and industrial plant construction. Commissioning of Blast Furnace A (1977)

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VOEST-ALPINE AG 1973-1987

In 1980 a comprehensive diversification strategy was initiated.

Since 1981 VOEST-ALPINE Group had been operating at a big deficit.

1985 – Crash of VOEST-ALPINEConstant exertion of political influence, the misuse of the company as a national labor pool, changes in international framework conditions, the erosion of individual companies, failures in diversification, in foreign projects and in finished products as well as enormous losses of the trading subsidiary Intertrading led to the crash

which set in motion a far-reaching restructuring process for Austrian industry. The conglomerate was broken-up.

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VOEST-ALPINE AG 1973-1987

1986 – VOEST-ALPINE NEW: A new organizational structure was developed, a streamlining program was agreed upon and an investment program was authorized.

The Stahlstiftung (Steel Foundation) was founded in 1987 to provide support for employees who had lost their jobs.

1987 – The Group approved an investment package promoting environmental protection.

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1988-1995: VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG up to the Beginning of Privatization

1988 – A fundamental reorganization of the ÖIAG Group led to the formation of six holding companies, one of them was VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG.

It encompassed six controlling companies: VOEST-ALPINE Stahl Linz GmbH, VOEST-ALPINE Stahl Donawitz GmbH, Böhler GmbH Kapfenberg, Böhler AG Düsseldorf, VOEST-ALPINE Stahlhandel AG and VOEST- ALPINE Rohstoffhandel GmbH.

Coil Coating Plant (COLOFER)

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1988-1995: VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG up to the Beginning of Privatization

In 1989 the most important holding companies of ÖIAG, among them VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG, were placed under Industrie- und Beteiligungsverwaltungs-GesmbH (IBVG), a wholly owned subsidiary of ÖIAG. In 1990 IBVG was converted into Austrian Industries AG (AI).

1990 – Acquisition of the Swedish Uddeholm Group, which in the following year merged with the companies of the Böhler Group to form Böhler-Uddeholm.

In 1993 AI was dissolved. Three groups were created from AI with the goal of privatization: VA Technologie AG, Böhler-Uddeholm AG and VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG.

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1988-1995: VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG up to the Beginning of Privatization

In order to optimize the portfolio, in 1994 business segments that either lay outside core competences or possessed too little synergy potential for the group were divested (e.g., VOEST-ALPINE Stahl Judenburg GmbH).

In 1995, one year earlier than originally planned, VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG went public and got a new ownership structure.

Dedusting system for Sinter Belt 5 (1993)

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1996-2001: Restructuring of the Group. From VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG to voestalpine AG

A number of acquisitions were made during these years (e.g., the British company METSEC plc., the Dutch Polynorm N.V., the German TSTG (Thyssen Schienen Technik GmbH).

Up to 1998 the product portfolio of the Group was further enhanced through an extensive expansion program and the processing percentage was increased even further.

In mid-1997 a facility to manufacture laser-welded blanks (sheet steel blanks for the automotive industry) began operation after a record construction time of only one year.

Roller leveler and rail cooling bed (120 m) in Donawitz

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1996-2001: Restructuring of the Group. From VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG to voestalpine AG

In 1997 VOEST-ALPINE SCHIENEN GmbH & Co KG in Donawitz started a remodeling and expansion program to ensure the continuation of ist technological leadership.

In 1998 at VOEST-ALPINE STAHL LINZ GmbH the continuous annealing line in Cold Rolling mill 2 – a milestone in continuous annealing technology in Europe – started production, followed in 1999 by Secondary Dedusting 2 and in 2000 by a new vacuum system in LD Steelmaking Plant 3.

In 2001 voestalpine Grobblech GmbH achieved an important success with the product launch of its innovative sour service plates for tubes.

The Donawitz site received a modernization boost. In 2000 this included the conversion of the LD steel mill into a LD compact steelmaking plant incorporating state-of-the-art technology and in 2001, the decision to invest in the modernization and expansion of rail production.

Beginning in 2001 the employee shareholding scheme was implemented on the group level. Employees at the Austrian sites held approximately 4 percent of the shares of their company.

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1996-2001: Restructuring of the Group. From VOEST-ALPINE STAHL AG to voestalpine AG

2001 – Alteration of the corporate structure. Instead of the typical steel structure of flat products and long products a breakdown into the divisions of Steel, motion (from 2005 onward Automotive), Railway Systems and Profilform was introduced.

„More out of steel“ – Constant extension of the value chain.

High-tech-company and market niche provider – Clear orientation towards processing, upgrading, manufacturing of components and provider of specific and complete solutions.

At this time, the name of the Group was changed to voestalpine AG and pursued an umbrella brand strategy under the brand voestalpine.

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voestalpine from 2002 up to the Present

In 2002 the 45.3 percent share of VAE held by Vossloh AG were acquired. With that and the acquisition of the remaining 9.4 percent free-float shares in January 2003 voestalpine Bahnsysteme GmbH became the sole owner of the world‘s leading manufacturer of turnouts.

2002 – Beginning of the Investment program „Linz 2010“: Relining and expansion of Blast Furnace A. Associated facilities were aligned with the new capacity (among others, the sintering plant, the power plant, LD Steelmaking Plant 3, the rolling mills and the coil coating lines). This project was originally scheduled for the year 2010 and entered its last stage in 2007 – and therefore distinctly earlier than planned. Plastic Injection Tower at Blast Furnace A in Linz

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voestalpine from 2002 up to the Present

Follow-up-project „L 6“, in which „L“ stands for the Linz site and „6“ for the increase of the crude steel production of approximately 5.4 million tons to more than 6 million tons per year.

In 2003 the employee shareholding scheme of voestalpine AG increased to around 10.5 percent.

In 2003 voestalpine was fully privatized and a convertible bond for the remaining 15% of government-owned shares was issued.

The bond was converted on August 31, 2005, which meant that voestalpine was then fully in private ownership.

The Group‘s international presence was further enhanced through expansion up to 2008. Among others Eastern Europe, India, China, Brasil, Great Britain.

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voestalpine from 2002 up to the Present

2007/2008 - 100 percent acquisition of the BÖHLER-UDDEHOLM-Group and integration as the Special Steel Division.

A unique economic success story so far with constant new all-time highs regarding turnover, results and workforce.

R&D and Environment – According to EU statistics voestalpine has been the most research-intensive industrial company. Numerous environment and safety awards. BÖHLER-UDDEHOLM: Kapfenberg site, old works

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voestalpine from 2002 up to the Present

In fall 2008 the economic downswing due to the world-wide banking and financial crisis also reached voestalpine. The demand started spiraling downward.

The swiftly implemented crisis management of the Group reacted comprehensively to the deterioriating situation and a cost-cutting and efficiency improvement program was implemented with the objective of achieving optimization across the entire group.

The business year 2009/10 was characterized by the big economic crisis and was the toughest and most difficult in decades.

However, during the first nine months of the business year 2010/11 voestalpine Group was again able to achieve a very significant growth in turnover and results compared to the previous year.

The employees currently hold approximately 13.3% of voestalpine AG‘s shares.

At the end of 2010 voestalpine Group employs approximately 40,000 staff throughout the world, thereof 53% at international locations.