Deutsch (Germany) 
Polski (PL) At the beginning of 2021, EIT Manufacturing CLC East welcomed a new member as part of the EIT Manufacturing consortium: voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH joined the European network of EIT Manufacturing to drive innovation, digitalisation and sustainable production in Europe. In the first year of its partnership, voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH is already involved in several international consortia for EIT Manufacturing projects.
The manufacturing industry is key to Europe's economic, social and environmental sustainability and an important driver for industrial innovation, job creation and the growth of European society. To foster innovation and technological progress in the European manufacturing industry and to become the global leader for innovation in this sector, EIT Manufacturing brings together European manufacturing stakeholders in an innovation ecosystem. EIT Manufacturing is an innovation community supported by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), an EU body.
More than 65 organisations are already part of the EIT Manufacturing consortium, including leading industrial companies and renowned universities and research institutes from across Europe. The diversity and multidisciplinary nature of the partnerships are the basis for the complementarity and know-how required to address the ever-increasing challenges of the European manufacturing industry. Since 2021, voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH, located in Vienna, has been part of this large network.
Philipp Horner, Head of Business Optimization & Circular Economy at voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH says about the cooperation with EIT Manufacturing: "voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH is very proud to be a member of the EIT Manufacturing consortium. EIT Manufacturing's strategic focus fits perfectly with our mission. As a leading supplier of high performance materials with a unique service network, we support our customers in achieving their ambitious goals in terms of performance and sustainability. Working together with the various members of the consortium from across Europe - be it industry, universities or research institutes - gives us tremendous opportunities to jointly exploit potential in the areas of innovation, digitalisation and sustainable production."
EIT Manufacturing and voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH - a perfect match
The High Performance Metals Division of the voestalpine Group is focused on the production and processing of high-performance materials and customer-specific services, including thermal applications, high-tech surface treatments and additive manufacturing processes. voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH is the global market leader in tool steel and one of the leading suppliers of other products made from high-performance materials. Its key customer segments are automotive, oil and gas exploration, mechanical engineering as well as consumer goods and aerospace.
"voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH and EIT Manufacturing CLC East are a perfect match. From the very beginning voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH has been involved in EIT Manufacturing activities as an Activity Partner and they have participated in all our matchmaking events and tenders. We are very happy to have voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH as a partner in our European network," says Johannes Hunschofsky, Managing Director of the EIT Manufacturing CLC East.
In the annual EIT Manufacturing project call for 2022, voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH was involved in several project proposals in international project consortia. Four of their applications were successfully included in the EIT Manufacturing Business Plan for 2022. One of the projects will be implemented under the EIT Manufacturing focus area "Flexible Production Systems for Competitive Production", another under the focus area "Low Environmental Footprint Systems & Circular Economy for Sustainable Production", and two projects will be implemented in the area "Human-Machine Collaboration for Socially Sustainable Production".
"With voestalpine High Performance Metals GmbH we have a strong partner to address the current and future challenges in the manufacturing industry. With their competence, expertise and network integrated into the unique and strong ecosystem of EIT Manufacturing, I see mutual benefits. With combined forces we will work side by side on our common vision and the strategic positioning of the European manufacturing industry on a global level," Hunschofsky continues.
