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
T
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.”
