Alpine Technology Hubs opened in Wattens
LH Platter: “Technologies with international appeal strengthen Tyrol as a business location”. Lebensraum Tirol Holding with Standortagentur Tirol, Werkstätte Wattens and I.E.C.T. – Hermann Hauser set a signal for the further profile of Tyrol as a centre for alpine technologies. The new Alpine Tech Innovation Hub will start in mid-October.
The Lebensraum Tirol Holding has defined the promotion and networking of alpine technologies as a priority for the coming years. In the Werkstätte Wattens, an Alpine Tech Innovation Hub is founded in cooperation between the Lebensraum Tirol Holding, the Standortagentur Tirol and the I.E.C.T. – Hermann Hauser. International top start-ups and companies in the field of alpine technologies will settle in the new premises and programmes created for this purpose in the future and make use of the existing infrastructure and the entire know-how there with immediate effect. The milestones for the first hub location have already been set. Next year, an innovation laboratory for alpine equipment and mountain sports will be established at the Alpine Tech Innovation Hub.
Tyrol as a brand gains further competence through alpine technologies
“Tyrol is known worldwide as a leading region for innovations in the alpine region and can refer to top performances and internationally renowned companies in this field. However, the potential has not yet been exhausted. Our task here is to take measures to further expand this field of strength and promote entrepreneurial ideas. With every national and international proof of performance in the field of alpine technologies, the brand is charging itself and gaining in competence and radiance. The entire location benefits from this,” says Günther Platter, Governor of Tyrol.
Deputy Governor Ingrid Felipe emphasizes: “Alpine technologies are indispensable in Tyrol, whether in sports, medicine, construction, energy supply, safety or even mobility”. The latter is particularly close to the heart of the State Councilor for Mobility. “It is important that Tyrol works even more intensively on sustainable and clean mobility concepts in the future. All the more reason for me to be pleased to see topics relating to this focus on the agenda at tomorrow’s official opening of the hub. Alpine’s transport expertise must go beyond traditional transport models and take into account region-specific aspects and topographical peculiarities. Clean Alpine technologies paired with an active transport policy are focal points, as is the Brenner Base Tunnel as a comprehensive Alpine technology”.
Josef Margreiter, Managing Director of Lebensraum Tirol Holding, also highlights the importance of Tyrol as a centre for alpine technologies: “With our great strength in alpine technologies, we create trust and preference for our high-quality products and services. Companies that rely on alpine technologies in conjunction with the Tyrol brand benefit from greater attention and an already existing positive image. The opening of the Alpine Tech Innovation Hub is an important step to advance the concentrated development of alpine technologies and to bring together local competencies and international pioneers in this field in Tyrol. Tyrol is ‘by nature’ predestined to become a leader in the development of sustainable products and services in the field of alpine technologies, while at the same time always taking a responsible approach to the environment into account. Therefore, it is also the focus of Lebensraum Tirol Holding to promote measures in this area and to increase the visibility of the location”. The milestones for the first hub location have already been set, says Margreiter: “Next year we will establish an innovation laboratory for alpine equipment and mountain sports at the Alpine Tech Innovation Hub. Tyrol is to become a hotspot in this segment”.
“It’s good to see how the Werkstätte Wattens has been able to develop as a creative centre for new ideas in recent years. And I am delighted that this path is now continuing with the focus on the alpine technology sector in cooperation with the state of Tyrol and the I.E.C.T. – Hermann Hauser,” emphasises Markus Langes-Swarovski, Supervisory Board member of Lebensraum Tirol Holding and company spokesman and member of the Swarovski Executive Board. The Alpine Tech Innovation Hub will be launched with an Innovation Sprint, which will be organised from 17 to 19 October in Wattens and in which the Tirol Tourist Board, Ötztal Tourism, Zillertal Tourism, Kitzbühel Tourism and AREA 47 will participate. The focus will be on new challenges for the tourism industry as well as sustainable, resource-conserving management in and with Alpine nature.
Specialisation as a success factor
Marie-Helene Ametsreiter is convinced that the creation of this new infrastructure and the concentration on fields of strength, for which Tyrol is internationally known, is an important step for the state. The internationally renowned top manager is a partner of Speedinvest, one of Europe’s largest venture capitalists. In this function, she also oversees the international development of the Tyrolean start-up Gronda in Wattens. “In the fierce competition for the establishment of start-ups with major players such as Silicon Valley, Tyrol has to rely on its advantages. The Alpine country has great potential to assert itself in special fields. The way is to create perfect conditions for start-ups and companies that are active in fields of strength for which Tyrol is already perceived worldwide.”
Support for start-ups and “grown-ups
The submission process for a newly launched accelerator project has already started around the hub in Wattens. Already established companies – i.e. ‘Grownups’ – from the field of alpine technologies who would like to develop their future challenges and business models together with start-ups can apply. With professional support, they will then work together for three to six months on solving the problem. “The Accelerator is a win-win strategy: Startups receive input for their business model development as well as assistance with market entry. Grown companies gain access to the innovation dynamics of the start-up scene and to the latest technologies,” says Josef Hauser, CEO and Co-Founder I.E.C.T. – Hermann Hauser.
“Through year-round networking activities directly in the hub, the innovation and competitiveness of all participants and the entire region is to be sustainably strengthened,” explains Matthias Neeff, Managing Director of Destination Wattens. “We are currently in the first expansion phase of the hub. Startups and companies in the field of alpine technologies can already benefit from the excellent infrastructure of the Wattens workshop. Further offices and production areas are being planned for the future, specially tailored to their needs,” Neeff continues.
