High cost pressure – crisis at KTM alarms: this is what the industry demands

Full warehouses, empty order books, high costs, uncertainty: it is the mix that is causing more and more domestic companies to struggle. The number of bankruptcies is increasing in all sectors. Motorcycle manufacturer KTM will file for bankruptcy on Friday.

“We have been saying for two years that things are going to be tight. In football language you could say: The first half was bad, we are 0:4 or even 0:5 behind. If we keep playing like this, it won’t work. We have to change something,” says Thomas Bründl.

Because KTM boss and chairman of the Upper Austrian Industrial Association, Stefan Pierer, skipped the Advent reception of the Industrial Association in Linz, Bründl took the floor as vice president. The boss of silicone processor Starlim spoke about…

• The big challenges: “We actually have three issues: one is the cost issue, which we have included in the wage and salary system. Moreover, the energy cannot be calculated for us – which is extremely annoying. Bureaucracy must finally come to an end. We are constantly bombarded with regulations and have priced ourselves out of the market in many areas in Europe over the last two or three years. Correcting that is a huge job.”

• The lack of political support: “The question we ask ourselves is, ‘Who else makes economic policy?’ We cannot navigate the situation. Because one thing is clear: if Germany is seen as the sick man of Europe, we will be on a ventilator or in a coma.”

• The government negotiations: “I’m tired of looking for compromises. We need a consensus now – and that must mean: Austria as a place of business must be strengthened with everything we have in our power.”

• The false sense of security and its consequences: “We are still trying to discuss matters in many areas. If you’ve been following this for the past two years, you’ve always assumed much higher growth prospects and then lowered them further and further every quarter. That obviously gave the impression that it wouldn’t be that wild. We’ll get through this. From the experience of not losing employees, it is said that you do not give away employees because it is difficult to get a good employee again. But at a certain point the pain is so great that you have to say: ‘It can’t be done anymore’.”

• The fight for the future: “Businesses need to adapt and change in the same way, but we now need a very strong commitment to Austria as a manufacturing and industrial location. Then we have the opportunity to say: okay, companies are adapting, but at the same time we need a long-term plan, including preconditions, a clear vision that is understood and that creates trust.

• The international competition: ‘The others don’t wait. They come by quickly. We don’t always have to look at China, we also see that in Europe. For example, the Spaniards have second wind and are in a good mood. We need such a positive impulse.”