A new factory of Zumtobel group officially launched in Nis

On September 28, the international lighting company Zumtobel Group officially opened a new luminaire and component production facility in Nis, Serbia. The opening ceremony was attended by Alfred Feldder, Zumtobel Group Chief Executive Officer, Jurg Zumtobel, Chairman of the Zumtobel Group Supervisory Board and Aleksandar Vucic, President of the Republic of Serbia. Representatives from politics also joined the opening ceremony – Gernot Blumel, Austrian Chancellery Minister for the EU, Art, Culture and Media, Nikolaus Lutterotti, the Ambassador of the Republic of Austria to Serbia, Erika Teoman-Brenner, Austrian Trade Commissioner in Serbia and Darko Bulatovic, the Mayor of Nis.

The new plant in Nis will be designed for the production of LED lighting products and LED drivers, which will be mainly for the markets of Central and Eastern Europe as well as the Middle East. The plant consists of two production areas: Component Production Component 1 (Tridonic), which already started production with one line at the end of July 2018; Production area 2 for light fixtures that started the ramp-up in early September. The total investment volume on an area of 40 000 square meters is EUR 30 million.

The construction of the Zumtobel Group facility in the southern industrial area of Nis started in mid-2017 and currently, it employs about 260 people. The Zumtobel Group has developed a long-term plan for its investments in Serbia, which will include an increase in employees to 1100 in line with growth plans for three to five years. The headquarters in Dornbirn will remain the heart of the company with its R&D center and largest current workforce (around 2100 employees) of the entire production group.

Alfred Feldder, Chief Executive Officer of Zumtobel Group, said his new Nis plant, located in the heart of Central Eastern Europe, played a vital role in preparing the way for the future of the company.

“We are convinced that Nis contributes to strengthening our competitiveness while at the same time allowing us to react more flexibly to changing market requirements and to better supply our core European markets as well as the emerging markets in this region”, added the CEO.

Gerno Blummel, Minister of the Austrian Chancellery for the EU, Arts, Culture and Media, congratulated the Zumtobel Group on the impressive new plant in Nis. The company’s decision to invest in Serbia a substantial amount of EUR 30 million confirms the efforts of the government of Serbia to establish the country as an attractive investment place, and as an investment of that scale also strengthens the close relationship between Serbia and Austria.

“Companies like Zumtobel are the business card of Austria and help driving progress in the countries in which they operate. As one of the biggest Foreign Direct Investors, Austria will continue its efforts to further deepen the close political and economic ties with Serbia as well as its support in the EU-accession process”, underlines Gerno Blummel.

Alexander Vucic, President of the Republic of Serbia, expressed his gratitude to the leadership of the Zumtobel group and to all colleagues from Austria and Serbia. “Thanks to the efforts of our Austrian friends as well as the government of the Republic of Serbia, the plant in Nis was completed in only one year and today officially opened”, stated Vucic at the official opening ceremony.