• Inaugural award made in the context of WestLB´s mid-cap initiative
• Jury headed by Professor Gertrud Höhler selects Achenbach Buschhütten GmbH as first prize winner
• Award presented at the traditional WestLB Corporate Day

Achenbach Buschhütten GmbH, a company based in the Siegerland, is the first prize winner of “The Glocal Enterprise Award” sponsored by WestLB. The new prize is awarded to companies which have close links with their local home region and at the same time have acquired a strong position in the global markets. In the opinion of the three-strong jury headed by Professor Gertrud Höhler, both factors apply to Achenbach Buschhütten GmbH. The winner may donate the € 15,000 prize to a social project of its choice.

Based in Kreuztal, Siegerland, for 555 years, Achenbach is a world leading manufacturer of rolling mills for metals such as aluminium, copper and zinc. It meanwhile has production facilities in some 60 countries worldwide. Founded in 1452, the independent family enterprise first smelted ore in the Siegerland. Today the company develops high-tech aluminium foil machines, state-of-the-art control engineering and innovative cutting machines. With a global workforce of roughly 300, the company has turnover in excess of € 80 million and a market share of approximately 75% in its respective segment.

In the presence of some 300 participants, the € 15,000 prize was presented to Axel E. Barten, Managing Partner of Achenbach Buschhütten GmbH, and Dr. Gabriele Barten, Head of Marketing and Communication, at the traditional Corporate Day sponsored by WestLB and law firm Linklaters in Düsseldorf. In her thank-you address, Gabriele Barten said: “We are delighted to be the winners of the inaugural Glocal Enterprise Award. We would like to donate the prize money to a project which will be launched in autumn of this year by the ZONTA Club Siegen Area, involving the extension of micro credits to women in Tanzania.”

Werner Taiber, member of the WestLB Managing Board, said: “Achenbach Buschhütten GmbH is a genuine ambassador of the concept “Made in Germany”. The fact that Germany is the world´s leading export nation is due not least to innovative and dynamic companies like Achenbach.” The Glocal Enterprise Award will be presented annually to an exemplary medium-sized company. The prize underscores the fact that mid-cap business is a key pillar of WestLB´s business model. With almost 30 branches around the globe, the Bank maintains a wide network to support the international activities of its German mid-cap customers.

The Glocal Enterprise Award

The term “Glocal” is derived from the words global and local and indicates that a prize winner has close links with his local home region and at the same time is active in the global markets. Chaired by Professor Gertrud Höhler, the jury, which also included Dr. Metin Colpan, one of the founders of the internationally successful company Qiagen GmbH, and Professor Dr. Peter Letmathe, head of the renowned Siegener Mittelstandsinstitut, selected the winner on the basis of the following criteria:

• The prize winner must be a medium-sized company domiciled in Germany.
• It must operate in several countries, also outside Europe, and have created a significant number of jobs there.
• The company must show a positive development over several years.
• The company must be clearly positioned in the area of corporate social responsibility.
• Its activities – particularly abroad – must be driven by sustainability aspects and a commitment to environmental protection. At the same time the company must undertake to comply with health and safety regulations in a European context (e.g. renunciation of child labour).
• It does not make use of corruption to assert its interests and markets ethically unquestionable products or services.

Quelle: WestLB AG