Past, Present and Future

Milestones in the region’s industrial history were the years 1801 (polishing machine for the production of eyeglasses, Rathenow), 1867 (mass production of cardboard plates, Luckenwalde), 1900 (Schwartzkopff locomotive manufacturing, Wildau), 1904 (invention of the thermos flask), 1931 (mass production of the first fax machines suitable for daily use), 1935 (opening of an Opel plant), 2008 (development of a tsunami warning system for Indonesia) and 2010 (opening of the Rolls-Royce Mechanical Test Operations Centre, MTOC).

Backed by this long industrial tradition, Brandenburg’s industrial sector has been demonstrating its inexhaustible innovation potential over decades: between 1950 and 1990, EKO Stahl GmbH (today: ArcelorMittal Eisenhüttenstadt) employed up to six thousand people; TAKRAF, a company whose range of products and services includes mining, yard and port equipment (including the world’s largest bucket wheel excavator) was founded in 1948 as the successor to Lauchhammer Werk, founded in 1725, and has been famous the world over since 1964.

Erkner – the cradle of the plastic age: In 1909 the first synthetic thermosetting plastic, Bakelite® (made of tar phenol and formaldehyde), was produced in the town of Erkner near Berlin. This was the result of the collaboration with Leo Hendrik Baekeland and according to his patents at the Rütgerswerken chemical companies. For a long time, Bakelite was the quintessence of plastic in general before today’s wide range of plastics existed. Even today, phenolic resin is still produced as a matrix for many lightweight components at the historic location under the name of Prefere Resins (formerly Dynea).

Industrial companies have always contributed decisively to the region’s growth, employment and wealth. Moreover, the development of numerous services such as logistics and IT largely depends on the prosperity of industrial companies.

Google is just one of the numerous global players that have invested in Brandenburg. Brandenburg Invest (WFBB) manages to attract new companies to the region.

Examples: A Canadian seating component manufacturer is building a new factory in Schwarzheide. In Wittenberge, with MV Pipe Technologies was won a metal-processing company which will manufacture fire protection systems. Laser Automotive Brandenburg, a Spanish automotive supplier, is investing in the town of Ludwigsfelde. The Dutch company Tulip Cocoa is investing in the town of Velten in new processing capacities for the production of cocoa products as a supplier to the confectionery industry. The Polish firm BOD is setting up a new production site for galvanised parts for the automotive industry in Prenzlau.

Moreover, Brandenburg companies are also expanding on a large scale: Classen Industries is building a new factory for laminate flooring in Baruth; Orafol, the world’s leading manufacturer of self-adhesive graphic films, reflective materials and adhesive tape systems, is investing in its headquarters in Oranienburg; Megaflex Schaumstoff GmbH is expanding its production plant in Guben and Siemens launched a test centre for gas turbines in Ludwigsfelde in 2014.

Such investments will not only boost the creation of new, highly qualified jobs, but also strengthen the profile of the Berlin-Brandenburg region as a leading location for energy technology. Indeed, the above-mentioned Siemens turbine test field is another example of the region’s expertise in that domain, exemplified by companies and institutes such as Anecom Aerotest, FTI Group, Florida Turbine Technologies Wildau, DLR (Deutsche Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt), Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung, BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg, TH Wildau and TU Berlin. Companies such as Rolls-Royce, MTU Maintenance Berlin-Brandenburg, Anecom Aerotest, FTI Group and Florida Turbine Technologies are providing nearly three thousand highly qualified jobs in the region.

The reasons for the success of Brandenburg’s industrial sector lie in the region itself and include a high innovation potential of the businesses, a highly skilled workforce, a modern infrastructure and a high density of R&D facilities. Also worth mentioning are the excellent living quality and affordable real-estate prices — two further factors that make Brandenburg particularly attractive for investors.

In order to perpetuate this success story, Brandenburg’s industrial sector has to take up various challenges for the future, including boosting the exports, securing the access to raw materials, developing sustainable production processes, addressing climate protection issues and securing the availability of a skilled workforce despite the demographic changes in the region.

Brandenburg’s government decided to concentrate the available business incentives on regional growth areas (RGAs) to better take up those challenges. The region’s RGAs are particularly attractive for industrial companies in search of investment locations, as they boast a business and job structure with exceptional potential.

As innovation is another key to success, Brandenburg also developed clusters that promote networking between industrial companies and R&D institutes.

The “ProIndustrie” programm is targeted on the goals of the widely discussed “Industry 4.0” high-tech strategy: extensive networking of machines and staff involved in production processes, integration of customers, real-time reactivity, efficient use of energy and materials, and low-cost small-series production. “Industry 4.0”, the fourth industrial revolution, shall also boost the exports of industrial businesses.

In a word: the goal is to promote innovation and exports, to secure the availability of a skilled workforce, to improve resource efficiency and to structure the dialogue between the social partners as regards the industrial policy.

The BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg launched a project called “Innovation Center Modern Industry Brandenburg” with a view to supporting SMEs in the region. In this case, the goals are to develop an innovative, future-oriented industrial structure, paying particular attention to the needs of SMEs; develop and manufacture intelligent products; and transform the value-added chain and the range of services provided for industrial businesses to improve their competitiveness on internationals markets.