UZIN UTZ Group with Axia Best Managed Companies Award 2019 honoured

Ulm, Mai 2019 – The UZIN UTZ Group, a global full-range supplier of floor systems, received the Axia Best Mana-ged Companies Award on 9 May at the Capitol Theater in Düsseldorf. The award recognizes the listed family-owned company for its strategic vision, innovative strength and sustainable management culture. With this award and quality seal, the auditing and consulting firm Deloitte, the business magazine WirtschaftsWoche and the Federation of German Industries (BDI) are honouring excellently managed medium-sized companies - excellent family businesses that have grown sustainably across generations, and hidden champions that have advanced to become world market leaders in lucrative niches.

"With a high level of technological competence, we see ourselves in the flooring sector as a driving force for innovation - especially in terms of sustainability and healthy living, but also in innovative product developments such as an intelligent putty that indicates when the floor covering can be laid," explains Julian Utz, CEO of the UZIN UTZ Group. "Being among the winners of the Axia Best Managed Companies Award in 2019 shows us that we are on the right track with our corporate strategy and that the course has been set for the future. We are very pleased about this," says Heinz Leibundgut, member of the Management Board. With seven brands, the UZIN UTZ Group is further developing its successful "Gold" corporate strategy for the years 2020 to 2025. "Since continuity and a strong corporate culture are important to us, our fixed corporate values form the basis of our actions, the main goal being customer success," emphasizes CEO Philipp Utz. Since 2018, he has headed the traditional construction chemicals company together with his brother Julian Utz and Heinz Leibundgut. The two brothers have been part of UZIN UTZ's management team since 2011, and their father, Dr. H. Werner Utz, is Chairman of the Supervisory Board. As grandson of the company's founder, he took over the management of the company in 1980 and was CEO until 1 January 2016.

Innovation culture at UZIN UTZ

Visionen und Innovationen sind seit jeher die Triebfeder für die Positionierung und den Erfolg von UZIN UTZ. „Neue Produkte allein genügen heute nicht mehr, sie müssen einen Mehrwert haben, Innovationen sind außerdem bei Prozessen und Dienstleistungen gefragt“, sagt Philipp Utz. Er legt daher großen Wert auf Innovationsmanagement, kontinuierliche Verbesserung und Weiterentwicklung. So gibt es eine hauseigene Abteilung für Unternehmensentwicklung, einen internen Ideenwettbewerb „Käpsele gesucht“, ein Programm für Frauen in Führung und diverse Fortbildungsmöglichkeiten im In- und Ausland. „Natürlich haben wir auch die Digitalisierung und die Internationalisierung fest im Blick“, ergänzt Philipp Utz.

Die Teilnehmer des BMC-Award 2019 mussten eine erfolgreiche wirtschaftliche Entwicklung in den vergangenen Jahren aufweisen, umfassende Unternehmensdaten in den vier Kernbereichen Strategie, Produktivität & Innovation, Kultur & Commitment, Governance & Finanzen zur Auswertung einreichen und persönliche Interviews führen. Daraus definierte der Expertenrat des Awards eine Shortlist – im Anschluss wurden die Preisträger von einer Jury aus renommierten Vertretern der Wirtschaft, Wissenschaft und der Medien ausgewählt.

„Wie sämtliche Preisträger zeichnet sich auch UZIN UTZ durch ein vorbildliches Management aus, das strategischen Weitblick mit Innovationskraft, einer nachhaltigen Führungskultur und guter Unternehmensführung auf einzigartige Weise verbindet. Damit tragen sie dazu bei, die wirtschaftliche Zukunft des Standorts Deutschland zu sichern, und sind gleichzeitig Leitbilder für andere Unternehmen“, betont Lutz Meyer, Partner und Leiter des Mittelstandsprogramms von Deloitte.

UZIN UTZ continues tradition as a successful family business

Since 2007, the Axia Award has honoured outstanding medium-sized companies in Germany - including UZIN UTZ three times. The Axia Award 2014 was presented to the then CEO of Uzin Utz AG, Dr. H. Werner Utz, under the motto "Think sustainably, steer successfully". The Axia Award 2016 honoured the family company with its more than 100-year company history, which maintains its visionary and sustainable corporate management through generations, with "Preserving and Continuing Tradition". In 2019, the prize for entrepreneurial excellence awarded by Deloitte, WirtschaftsWoche and BDI was replaced by a new concept and became part of the international Best Managed Companies Award (BMC).

The award for sustainably successful medium-sized companies has already been presented in several countries, now also in Germany. Since 2016, the Federal Association of German Industry has acted as a cooperation partner for the programme.

About the UZIN UTZ Group

With around 1,300 employees and a consolidated turnover of EUR 345.7 million (2018), the UZIN UTZ Group, Ulm, is a leader in the development and manufacture of products and machines for floor laying. The construction chemical product systems for the laying of all kinds of floor coverings, including surface finishing and machines for tillage, are all developed and manufactured by the Group companies themselves and marketed worldwide under the internationally successful brands Uzin, Wolff, Pallmann, Arturo, codex, RZ and Pajarito. As a system partner of the skilled trades, planners, architects and builders, UZIN UTZ has been dedicated for 100 years to providing professional support to end customers and installers in all areas of floor laying. More press releases on www.uzin-utz.com