Embodying regional respon­si­bility

ebm-papst Land­shut shows great commit­ment. The company’s involve­ment has anchored it into the region.

“As one of the major employers in the area, regional respon­si­bility is very impor­tant to us,” stresses Stefan Brandl, Managing Director of ebm-papst land­shut. That wasn’t always the case. Even though the regional roots have been cher­ished at its home base in Mulfingen ever since the company was founded, a series of changes prevented a similar devel­op­ment in Land­shut. In 1997, “Elek­trobau Mulfingen” (ebm) acquired the Alcatel factory and renamed it “Motoren Venti­la­toren Land­shut” (mvl). Six years later, the group was reformed and mvl became ebm-papst land­shut. Bernd Truntschka, an ice hockey legend who was born in Land­shut, says aloud what many people at the time thought: “After these changes, nobody really knew what ebm-papst really stood for in land­shut.” not least because the prede­cessor compa­nies showed less interest in the surrounding area. A lot has changed since then.

More than money

Since 2003, the company has stopped giving customers gifts at Christmas. Instead it makes a dona­tion to the Friends of St. Marien Paedi­atric Hospital. The local ice hockey team has been spon­sored since 2005. Ice hockey – in part thanks to Truntschka – is some­thing of a tradi­tion in Land­shut. The “Canni­bals”, the profes­sional team of the EV land­shut ice hockey club, play in the German second divi­sion. The company’s commit­ment is expressed not only in paid shirt and perimeter adver­tising. Over the years, a valu­able coop­er­a­tion has devel­oped, a coop­er­a­tion that also bene­fits employees. When ebm-papst in land­shut was forced to intro­duce short-time working during the economic crisis, the work­force supported the deci­sion. As thanks, the company invited every member of staff to a Canni­bals match. The team was delighted with the interest. “ebm-papst is now a perma­nent fixture in Land­shut,” says Bernd Truntschka, who is now manager of EV Land­shut.

For sustain­able training

Paral­lels between the company and the club can be seen when it comes to promoting youth talent. Both are committed to sustain­able training. One perfect example is Tobias rieder. The 17-year-old shooting star of the Canni­bals pressed ahead with his training as an indus­trial clerk at ebm-papst at the same time as he pursued his ice hockey career. He has now moved on and plays for one of the top teams in Canada. The fact that he some­times needed time off for ice hockey training? “That was worth it for us,” says Brandl. The people of land­shut have now learnt to appre­ciate the company. That could be seen from the esteem that Brandl enjoyed at the ebm-papst-initi­ated Junior Cup, which was held in September together with the foot­ball section of the land­shut-Berg sports club. The crowd applauded both the junior kickers and him: as stadium announcer.