Company

History of the Austrotherm group

Year by year, as published by Austrotherm.

Austrotherm is a pioneer in insulation materials. It was founded in 1953 by Oswald Nowotny, the first to make EPS. Since then the company has built its business on constant development and innovation. Today, after more than 60 years, the Austrotherm group operates in 11 European countries with a total of 20 production plants. It belongs to the SIH group (Schmid Industrie Holding), together with groups such as Baumit, Wopfinger and Murexin.

1953
Oswald Nowotny starts making EPS
It all began in 1953, when Oswald Nowotny, the first entrepreneur in Austria to do so, started making EPS in Vienna. At first he concentrated on decorative uses, such as mannequins and busts for shop windows. Expanded polystyrene (EPS) had been discovered a year earlier by the German chemical group BASF in Ludwigshafen.
1964
EPS plant in Purbach
The real market potential of EPS lay in its outstanding thermal insulation, which soon led Nowotny to build a plant for EPS boards. In 1964 another EPS board plant with an annual capacity of more than 30,000 m³ was built in Purbach on Lake Neusiedl, to meet the growing demand for EPS until the early 1980s.
1980
Friedrich Schmid takes over Nowotny
In 1980 Friedrich Schmid, managing co-owner of the quarry and lime works in Wopfing, Austria, bought the Nowotny company. The energy price shock of the time made saving energy the "law" of the day, especially in thermal insulation. Thanks to their outstanding properties, Nowotny's EPS boards were quickly accepted by the building trade as a high-value insulation, and only two years after the takeover production capacity had to be expanded.
1982
Takeover of the EPS plant in Pinkafeld
Nowotny achieved the necessary expansion practically at a stroke by taking over the EPS production of a competitor (Dipl. Ing. Wieser) in Pinkafeld. With both sites (Purbach and Pinkafeld), annual EPS capacity rose to 150,000 m³.
1990
Nowotny – the only XPS maker in Austria
To reach its ambitious goals, the company invested about EUR 4 million over two years and equipped the Pinkafeld site with a modern vacuum-based production line that allowed capacity to grow. In 1990 production of extruded polystyrene — XPS — began in Purbach. Until then XPS in Austria had mostly been sold by the German chemical group BASF, which dominated the market, and by Dow Chemical of the USA; the production technology was a closely guarded secret. Extensive research and changes to the Purbach line finally led to the goal — the pink XPS board! Nowotny thus became the only XPS maker in Austria.
1991
Insulation know-how for Hungary: Austrotherm Győr
In 1991 Austrotherm Győr, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nowotny, took over a plant in Győr, Hungary. Since then Austrotherm has made high-quality EPS boards for the Hungarian market from Western European raw materials. Annual capacity was about 100,000 m³ in 1991 and has grown constantly to today's 400,000 m³.
1993
Nowotny insulation receives the Burgenland coat of arms
For the company's 40th anniversary, the governor of Burgenland, Mr Stix, presents Nowotny with the provincial coat of arms.
1993
Poland: Austrotherm Oświęcim sets up a plant
In summer 1993 Austrotherm Oświęcim was founded in the town of Oświęcim in southern Poland, about 40 km from Katowice, as a joint venture with a Polish raw-material producer and a Polish trading house. With an investment of EUR 1.6 million a modern plant for Austrotherm EPS was built, with an annual capacity of 200,000 m³ — in a region of as many as 4 million inhabitants.
1994
Nowotny insulation becomes Austrotherm insulation
To present one face to the market across Europe, the Nowotny insulation company has been branded Austrotherm GmbH in Austria too since 1994.
1995
New XPS plant in Purbach, state coat of arms for Austrotherm
In early summer 1995 a new XPS line went into operation in the Purbach plant, with an annual capacity of about 130,000 m³, making Austrotherm an important economic factor for the structurally weak regions of Purbach and Pinkafeld. On 2 October 1995 Franz Kröpfl, president of the Burgenland chamber of commerce, awarded Austrotherm the state coat of arms of the Republic of Austria for outstanding product quality and services to the Austrian economy.
1997
EPS plant in Bratislava (Slovakia) starts production
In early November 1997 Austrotherm's third plant outside Austria went into operation: a state-of-the-art EPS plant on the northern edge of Bratislava with an annual capacity of 200,000 m³. The warehouse and offices on the same site were modernised at the same time.
1998
ISO 9001 certificate in record time
On 27 May 1998 Austrotherm received the coveted ISO 9001 certificate from ÖQS (the Austrian quality association) — one of the first insulation makers in Austria to do so, fully in line with its quality philosophy. All the requirements of ÖQS were met in a very short time. Customers can fully trust Austrotherm products and a quality and service system that meets the standards of a forward-looking company.
1999
Austrotherm breaks through with CO2-blown XPS boards
Thanks to the excellence of Austrotherm's engineers, a new generation of insulation boards came onto the market in August 1999. With air as the cell gas, the new "AUSTROTHERM XPS TOP" meets all environmental requirements. Much of the investment went into research, development and environmental performance — and it paid off: the TOP generation offers excellent thermal properties, maximum load capacity and insensitivity to moisture and, with air as the main cell content, fully meets the environmental standards of the Austrian "Climate Alliance".
1999
Pioneering project in Romania: EPS plant in Bucharest starts production
In 1999 Austrotherm entered the Romanian market. In September a newly built EPS plant went into operation in Bucharest, opening up a promising market of 23 million people with great growth potential. The plant stands on a 12,000 m² industrial site on the northern edge of Bucharest and has an annual capacity of as much as 400,000 m³ of insulation!
1999
Peter Schmid becomes second managing director
Peter Schmid, with the company since 1993 and authorised signatory since 1996, was appointed to the board of directors on 1 September 1999. He became responsible for IT, organisation, product development and the Austrian plants in Purbach and Pinkafeld. Ferdinand Kühbacher, managing director of Austrotherm GmbH since 1990, remained responsible for exports, development strategy, sales and the plants abroad in Poland, Hungary and Slovakia.
1999
Second EPS plant in Poland
In July 1999 the second Polish EPS plant went into operation in Skierniewice, between Warsaw and Łódź, making Austrotherm one of the three largest insulation makers in Poland.
2001
Expansion in Hungary: second EPS plant
In April the Austrotherm group's second Hungarian EPS plant went into operation in Gyöngyös, about 80 km north-east of Budapest. Built on a 26,000 m² site, it became the most modern plant of the whole group, with an impressive annual capacity of 600,000 m³ of EPS. With this plant and the one in Győr, Austrotherm now has a total annual capacity of as much as 1,000,000 m³ of EPS in Hungary!
2003
EPS plant in Serbia
In August 2003 a new, very modern EPS plant opened in Valjevo, 80 km south-west of Belgrade. Built in the industrial zone on 12,000 m² and equipped with the latest "Made in Austria" technology, it was designed for an annual capacity of 400,000 m³ and, when complete, to employ 40 people.
2003
Honour for a pioneer of insulation
On the 50th anniversary of Austrotherm, its owner Friedrich Schmid received the decoration of honour of the province of Burgenland.
2004
EPS plant in Bulgaria goes into operation
In 2004 construction of a plant for expanded polystyrene insulation began in Sofia, also equipped with "Made in Austria" technology and designed for an annual capacity of 400,000 m³.
2005
Further expansion in Serbia
Having reached the leading position on the Serbian market, Austrotherm takes over the former competitors' plants in Niš (XPS and EPS) and Srbobran (EPS). With them the Serbian Austrotherm d.o.o. becomes the absolute leader in insulation materials in the country and the only XPS maker in Serbia.
2006
Second EPS plant in Romania, and an XPS line from 2008
In June 2006 the second Romanian EPS plant opened in Horia in the north-east of the country, very well placed for exports to Ukraine and Moldova. Two years later an XPS line opened on the same site.
2007
Expansion in Bosnia and Herzegovina
In Bihać, in the north-west of the country, Austrotherm BH d.o.o. was founded, at first importing Austrotherm insulation from Austria and Serbia. An EPS plant was then built in Bihać and went into operation in April 2008 — an investment of EUR 5 million; Bihać's location makes exports to Croatia and Slovenia easy.
2008
First Austrotherm plant in Asia, new plants in Bulgaria and Hungary
A very busy autumn 2008: Austrotherm first opened an EPS plant in the suburbs of Istanbul, Turkey — an investment of EUR 5 million in a large market, with 15 million people in Istanbul alone. At the same time its second Bulgarian EPS plant opened in Aitos on the Black Sea. And in October 2008 the third Hungarian EPS plant opened in Szekszárd, also an investment of EUR 5 million, with an annual capacity of 400,000 m³.
2009
Wholly owned subsidiary in Slovakia
Austrotherm strengthened its business in Slovakia by taking full ownership of its subsidiary in Bratislava.
2010
Extension of the Austrian plants (EPS in Pinkafeld, XPS in Purbach), innovation award in Austria, subsidiary in Croatia
In 2010 EUR 7.7 million were invested in new products and production at both Austrian plants: sales of Austrotherm EPS AF PLUS (EPS with graphite) grew by 23% in Austria, which led to a EUR 3.2 million investment in a line for grey Austrotherm EPS boards in Pinkafeld; at the same time EUR 4.5 million went into expanding capacity in Purbach, mainly for the growing demand for Austrotherm XPS 50 and XPS 70 (boards for extremely high loads). The same year our Austrian "mother" company won the Burgenland innovation award (large companies) for the "Klebe Anker Duplex", a special anchor for fixing facade insulation boards in ETICS on external walls. Finally, a company was founded in Zagreb (Croatia) the same year to import and sell Austrotherm products from the plants in Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia on the Croatian market.
2011
Gerald Prinzhorn new managing director of Austrotherm GmbH
Dipl. Ing. Gerald Prinzhorn became a new managing director of Austrotherm GmbH, responsible for internationalisation and sales, alongside managing director Peter Schmid.
2012
Second EPS plant in Bosnia and Herzegovina & EUR 8 million for the Austrian plants
In the first half of 2012 Austrotherm took over an EPS plant in Šamac in north-eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina, opening up exports to eastern Croatia, above all Slavonia. The same year as much as EUR 8 million were invested in energy-efficient optimisation of production at the Austrian plants in Pinkafeld and Purbach.
2013
XPS plant in Germany / 60 years of Austrotherm GmbH / second EPS plant in Turkey
A new Austrotherm XPS plant was built in Wittenberge in northern Germany, roughly between Berlin and Hamburg. In June the same year, in Austria, managing director Peter Schmid received a special decoration from the governor of Burgenland, Hans Niessl, on the company's 60th anniversary, which was celebrated in style at the castle in Wiener Neustadt. The same year the second Turkish EPS plant opened in Turgutlu near Izmir (western Turkey).
2014
First climate alliance of industrial plants in Burgenland
Austrotherm signs the certificate issued to the EPS plant in Pinkafeld
2015
ISO 14001 & ISO 50001 / joining IG Passivhaus Deutschland
Austrotherm introduced ISO 14001 (environmental management) and ISO 50001 (energy management) and joined IG Passivhaus Deutschland (the German association for promoting passive houses).
2016
Gerald Prinzhorn sole managing director of Austrotherm GmbH and the whole group
On 1 January 2016 Gerald Prinzhorn became sole managing director of Austrotherm GmbH and so of the Austrotherm group. Peter Schmid, co-owner of the SIH group and until then also managing director of the group, took up a new role in a newly formed advisory body of the group. In Germany, Alexander Ziener and Lars Peter became joint managing directors of Austrotherm Dämmstoffe GmbH.
2017
More capacity in Germany, third EPS plant in Romania
In Wittenberge, Germany, EUR 7 million were invested to increase output and capacity at the XPS plant, creating 10 new jobs. In November the same year Austrotherm opened its third EPS plant in Romania.
2018
Third EPS plant in Turkey
In early April our third EPS plant in Turkey opened in the western part of the capital, Ankara.
2019
Climate-protection campaign, more XPS production in Germany
With a new image campaign on climate protection, Austrotherm stresses that the right, environmentally friendly insulation makes a good and conscious life possible, and lets weather and climate expert Andreas Jäger, a well-known Austrian TV face, speak on the subject. In Wittenberge our German sister company expanded its XPS plant so that it can also make XPS boards by thermo-bonding (bonding thinner boards thermally under vacuum into one thicker board).
2020
Management reorganisation in the group, more production in Austria and Serbia
From 1 January 2020 Mag. Klaus Haberfellner heads the Austrotherm International group. Dr Heimo Pascher becomes the group's technical director, and Mag. Robert Novak, until then sales director, becomes commercial director of Austrotherm GmbH in Austria. The Serbian company Austrotherm d.o.o. puts a new production line into operation at its XPS plant in Niš. Despite the coronavirus that gripped Europe and the world at the start of the year, EUR 10 million are invested in further modernisation in Purbach (XPS) and Pinkafeld (EPS) in Austria, where new warehouses for finished goods and new offices were also built in Purbach.
2021
XPS recycling service, third EPS plant in Poland, takeover of DCD IDEAL in the Czech Republic, "Plus Energie" office building at the Pinkafeld EPS plant
At our EPS plant in Pinkafeld, Austria, the "Plus Energie" office building was completed — a building that produces more energy than it uses, thanks to the best insulation and PV systems. In Austria Austrotherm GmbH started a climate-neutral service collecting XPS insulation waste from building sites, which after processing becomes XPS insulation again. Austrotherm Poland opened its third, very modern EPS plant in Grodków, an investment of about EUR 5.5 million. The Czech EPS maker DCD IDEAL spol. s r.o., until then one of the leading Czech EPS producers with plants in Slavětín and Dynín, was taken over by Austrotherm Czech Republic.
2022
Takeover of the "Zentyss" brand and third EPS plant in Romania
The Austrotherm group took over the Romanian XPS maker "Zentyss" (100%). At the same time we opened a third EPS plant in Romania, in Călan, Transylvania.
2023
New production hall at the XPS plant in Purbach, Austria
In Purbach, Austria, a production hall 160 m long and 21 m wide was built, housing a line with the latest extrusion technology (for XPS boards).
2023
Austrotherm management reorganisation
Since October 2023 Dr Heimo Pascher has been CEO of the Austrotherm group; he had been technical director at Austrotherm since 2019.
2023
Austrotherm invests and expands in Croatia
Austrotherm built its first EPS insulation plant in Croatia, in Zabok near Zagreb, with an investment of about EUR 12 million. It started work in the first half of 2024 and created 30 jobs, improving service for customers in Croatia and Slovenia and strengthening the company's position in the region.
2023
Austrotherm UNIPLATTE
Our German sister company Austrotherm Dämmstoffe GmbH (Wittenberge) received a test certificate from the competent authority for its Austrotherm UNIPLATTE building board for wet rooms.
2024
Austrotherm takes over Brucha's EPS production
Austrotherm took over Brucha's EPS insulation business — including all 20 employees — and continued production in Michelhausen, strengthening its production and logistics network in Austria and improving delivery and service for its customers. Brucha has since concentrated on panels, cold-store construction and installation, and the jobs in Michelhausen were kept.
2024
Austrotherm enters the Greek market
Austrotherm took over the EPS maker Monosi of Chalkida near Athens, keeping all 30 jobs and the existing management team. The acquisition extended its production network in south-eastern Europe and strengthened its presence in Greece; the range was also extended with XPS insulation, creating new business opportunities in the Greek market.
2024
Solar power for Austrotherm XPS
At our German sister company Austrotherm Dämmstoffe GmbH (Wittenberge) a photovoltaic system was installed on a site the size of six football pitches; it will cover more than 20% — and in summer up to 100% — of the energy needs of the XPS plant, making the production of this environmentally friendly insulation even more sustainable.
2025
Austrotherm expands into Italy
Austrotherm took over the Italian EPS maker Gruppo Poron, gaining access to the Italian market. The acquisition brought an established production and distribution network of eight sites and about 170 employees, strengthened Austrotherm's position in Europe and deepened existing cooperation in the distribution of XPS insulation.
2026
New technology in XPS production in Serbia
At its XPS plant in Niš, the Serbian Austrotherm d.o.o. started making XPS boards by thermo-bonding, i.e. joining two boards under vacuum into one monolithic board. This extends the range with new standard thicknesses of 140, 150, 160, 180, 200 and 240 mm. This year such boards are made only in the classes TOP 30 and TOP P, and only with stepped (rebated) edges; boards with straight edges are planned next. The boards have already been tested externally at OFI (Austria) and FIW (Germany) and fully meet the criteria required by the standards for their technical, physical and mechanical properties. Austrotherm d.o.o. also plans thermo-bonded XPS boards in the classes TOP 50 and TOP 70.