EANS-News: BEST INNOVATOR AWARD 2010/2011: WACKER Wins Prize for Outstanding Innovation Management
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Munich / Berlin (euro adhoc) - June 9, 2011 - Munich-based chemicals company WACKER has received this year´s Best Innovator award in the Chemicals category. The competition´s joint organizers - management consulting company A.T. Kearney and German business weekly "WirtschaftsWoche" - announced the results during an award ceremony at the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology in Berlin on Thursday afternoon. Along with nine other prize winners, WACKER was recognized for its sustainable innovation management. The Best Innovator award ceremony, held for the seventh time this year, was attended by Parliamentary State Secretary Ernst Burgbacher.
This year was the first time that Munich-based chemicals company WACKER had taken part in the prestigious innovation competition. "The Best Innovator jury identified systematic processes at WACKER that showed its ability to pursue innovation management as a core competency," said competition initiator Dr. Kai Engel, a partner at A.T. Kearney. As an example, he cited WACKER´s appointment of technology managers. "WACKER employs innovation-focused technology managers who permanently monitor the entire supply chain and continuously align the company´s innovation effort to megatrends and to dynamic developments in specific technological and customer segments," explained Engel. "That was one of the main reasons behind our choice in the Chemicals category."
WACKER Executive Board member Dr. Wilhelm Sittenthaler, who accepted the Best Innovator award at the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology, thanked the jury. "We are very pleased to have won the award. This success confirms that we are on the right track in innovation management." WACKER´s innovative strength, Sittenthaler stressed, has been the basis of its business success. He mentioned the latest trends in microelectronics as a case in point. WACKER´s Siltronic subsidiary, a leading supplier of hyperpure silicon wafers, the starting material for computer chips, has only been able to meet the chip industry´s twin demands - of ever larger wafer diameters and increasingly small design rules - through intensive research and development. "Innovations enable us to keep pace with our customers´ accelerating demands. That is why it is vital for us to create a fertile environment and to maintain a sound innovation-management process that optimally supports and drives the pioneering strength of our company."
Today, WACKER scientists are already searching for tomorrow´s solutions in numerous future-oriented fields, such as battery technology, biotechnology, and sustainable energy-efficient materials. "Chemistry has always been a sector whose innovations have helped other industries launch new and better products on the market," said Sittenthaler. "In this role, we need not only highly qualified and motivated employees, but also efficient innovation management. Without it, we wouldn´t be able to detect trends in good time and design innovative, market-oriented products when they are needed."
Over 100 companies participated in this year´s Best Innovator competition. The winners were chosen in a two-phase selection process that included both quantitative and qualitative performance criteria. Alongside Wacker Chemie AG (Chemicals category), the following companies received awards: 3M Deutschland (corporate venturing and consumer goods), Bosch (automotive supplier), Audi (automotive OEM), Endress+Hausser Conducta (metrology), GEA (mechanical engineering), Infineon Technologies (high-tech) and SMA Solar Technology (renewables). The American pharmaceuticals and diagnostics company QIAGEN was the overall winner and received the award Best Innovator 2010/2011.
About WACKER WACKER (www.wacker.com) is a globally active chemical company headquartered in Munich, Germany. With a wide range of state-of-the-art specialty products, WACKER is a leader in numerous industrial sectors. Its products are required in countless high-growth end-user sectors, such as photovoltaics, electronics, pharmaceuticals and household/personal-care products.
In 2010, the Group generated sales of some EUR4.75 billion (2009: EUR3.72 billion) - of which Germany accounted for 19 percent, Europe (excluding Germany) 25 percent, North and South America just under 17 percent, Asia-Pacific 36 percent and ROW 3 percent. WACKER had roughly 16,300 employees on December 31, 2010. The Executive Board comprises Dr. Rudolf Staudigl (president & CEO), Dr. Joachim Rauhut, Dr. Wilhelm Sittenthaler and Auguste (Guido) Willems.
WACKER´s operations are divided among the following business divisions: Siltronic, WACKER SILICONES, WACKER POLYMERS, WACKER POLYSILICON and WACKER BIOSOLUTIONS. Founded in 1914, the Group operates 26 production sites worldwide, supplying over 3,500 products to more than 3,500 customers in over 100 countries. The company maintains subsidiaries and sales offices in over 29 countries across Europe, the Americas and Asia - including a strong foothold in China.
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company: Wacker Chemie AG
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Christof Bachmair
Media Relations & Information
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E-Mail: christof.bachmair@wacker.com
Branche: Chemicals
ISIN: DE000WCH8881
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