The company GS from Travnik at the world's largest exhibition of the automotive industry in Germany – IZB2022
The FBiH Chamber of Commerce with the help of the European Union and the German Government supported BiH. companies participating in this prestigious fair
The Chamber of Commerce of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina was one of the exhibitors at this year’s IZB fair in Wolfsburg, Germany, which Volkswagen AG organizes every two years for its suppliers, as well as companies that want to obtain that status.
Bh. companies were among 940 exhibitors from 37 countries and this was an excellent opportunity to network and exchange information on the latest achievements and innovations in the automotive industry, as well as an opportunity for direct meetings with companies from Europe. In a special area intended for B2B (business-to-business) meetings, there were representatives of eminent European associations, and the FBiH Chamber of Commerce gave all its members a free office in the development headquarters of Volkswagen AG in Wolfsburg.
Thanks to the support through the “Help Desk – Business Information Hub” project, which is implemented within the wider EU4BusinessRecovery project co-financed by the European Union and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany, four BiH companies presented themselves at the fair. companies from the metal sector, specializing in the automotive industry: CORE d.o.o. Sarajevo, GS TM Travnik, TMD Group d.o.o. Gradačac and Wagner Automotiv Gradačac.
In the auto industry, production has been reduced in the past period, mostly due to the pandemic. Supply chains were broken and the price of raw materials rose significantly. Therefore, it is not surprising why the sustainability of the supply chain was the focus of this year’s fair.
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the automotive industry employs about 11,000 workers and participates in exports with more than 900 million KM, so the appearance of BH. company at the fair was very significant.
In the modern auto industry today, changes and modernization have taken root, and applications of new technologies and achievements are everyday. It is necessary to improve existing production, optimize it and reduce costs.
Strong visionary leaders must look to the future. Only such companies will survive.
This year’s IZB2022 fair in Wolfsburg was also attended by GS Tvornica mašina from Travnik (www.gs-tmt.com), which was another indicator of the quality and success of this company.
GS-TMT using the most modern machines for metal processing produces parts of highly sophisticated equipment for European and especially for German manufacturers. They provide all kinds of metal processing services, starting from cutting, machining, welding, heat treatment and painting. In the sister company of this company – Ruff cycles SEE d.o.o. Travnik, which produces luxury bicycles and bicycle parts for partners in Germany, has also been producing Ruffian electric bicycles for several years.
The company evaluated the fair as impressive, and the goal of the appearance was promotion, new contacts with customers and additional networking. However, as the most important goal, they still emphasized the promotion of positive Bosnia and Herzegovina, and BH. industry at the most important place where it can be done, the IZB fair in Germany.
The executive director for technology and projects at GS TMT, Nermin Beganović, emphasizes the efficiency and usefulness of participating in the fair: “There we could see all the current trends that will be relevant in the next few years and all the current most current moves and directions of action of this industry in which we find ourselves . It is important to follow the trends, in which direction it will all go, so that we can adapt ourselves and our production, and in order to convey a positive image to our colleagues, our business, all with the aim of being safer and more reliable in the future on the market.”
As a significant contact they made at the fair, Beganović singled out the one with the company “Toyota Boshoku Europe”: “This is not a classic fair and the contacts are not numerous. Mostly the suppliers exhibited. It is interesting to see the technical level at which competing companies are.
I highlight the contact with Toyota Boshoku Europe, who have plans for us to have an interesting cooperation on the European market, with whom they made a framework agreement for continued communication. There are also contacts with the representatives of the company Automotive Support Agency at Wolfsburg AG, who are also a link with the big Volkswagen”, Beganović points out.
When asked how they managed to mitigate the consequences caused by the pandemic and get back on track with full force, Nermin recalls the challenging period. At the most critical time, instead of firing workers and with workers’ solidarity, everyone shared in the burden of reduced income for several months, thus avoiding dismissal on that basis. Incomes were significantly reduced, which was the biggest burden for them, but all that was compensated and now they are back to work at full speed.
When asked whether GS-TMT, but also other BiH. companies from this sector in BiH can keep up with changes in the market and follow new technologies and trends, Beganović says: “GS-TMT makes great efforts to keep up with the times. We are directly developing our E-Mobility project with which Bosnia and Herzegovina will the public to be familiar with After our world-famous bikes, we will do our best to ensure that this project is also needed by the market in the full sense. Both in terms of functionality and design. Industry 4.0 is the daily task of our course, as well as energy sustainability and C02 neutrality.” He points out that strong visionary leaders must see how and what the company will do tomorrow, and only such companies will survive. Nermin believes that a greater orientation of small and medium-sized B&H is needed. company to trends that are currently in the world.
Having a good team is the best business driver. The Chamber of Commerce of the Federation of BiH strongly supports BiH. companies from the automotive industry, as well as all others, and the realization of the “Help Desk – Business Information Hub” project, within which companies from Bosnia and Herzegovina presented themselves at the IZB fair, is proof. By the way, the “Help Desk” was implemented within the wider EU4BusinessRecovery project, which is jointly co-financed by the European Union and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany.
Members like the company GS-TMT know how to recognize this and use full support, in order to be more present and competitive on the market. Nermin Beganović emphasizes how good and necessary the support of the FBiH Chamber of Commerce was, without which GS-TMT would not have been present at the IZB this year.
“Their connections are really great. The management of Volkswagen and the organizers of the IZB visited only Bosnia and Herzegovina. stand next to a hundred other representatives in the area of our Hall 4, and provided direct support to Bosnia and Herzegovina and its industry. To me, this is an indication that the Chamber did their job at the highest level,” emphasizes Beganović.
GS Tvornica mašina from Travnik is another success story from Bosnia and Herzegovina, which contributes daily to the development of Bosnia and Herzegovina. economy and building a better and better quality society as a whole. Therefore, it is extremely important to support such companies, in order to achieve even better and more valuable successes in the world and represent Bosnia and Herzegovina as a positive environment for business cooperation.
The EU4BusinessRecovery project supports micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in Bosnia and Herzegovina to continue doing business and preserve jobs, and will especially support female entrepreneurs, young people and other vulnerable groups in establishing their own businesses and in overcoming the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic by creating a more resilient business environment. The total value of the project is 13.7 million euros, and it is jointly financed by the European Union (13 million euros) and the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany (0.7 million euros). EU4BusinessRecovery is jointly implemented by GIZ, ILO and UNDP, from 2021 to 2023. For more information, visit www.eu4business.ba.
For more information about the “Help Desk” project, please contact:
Armin Hodžić, Team Leader
email: a.hodzic@kfbih.com
phone: 033 566 308
Anela Karahasan, Project Manager
email: a.karahasan@kfbih.com
phone: 033 566 333