Within the framework of "Austria's Best Managed Companies" Award, participants were evaluated according to four focus categories, with an independent jury of experts ultimately recognising the 18 top performers. The award ceremony took place at a gala event.

"Small and medium-sized businesses are the economic and employment backbone of Austria, and the driving force behind innovations", says Friedrich Wiesmüllner, Partner at Deloitte Austria.

The programme is now established in over 50 countries and draws on benchmarks from more than 2,000 Best Managed Companies around the world. Following the successful start last year, the event was held for the second time in Austria this year.

"The Best Managed Companies are role models in all currently important areas of the economy", emphasises Reinhard Karl, Deputy General Manager and Board Member for Corporate Customers at Raiffeisenlandesbank Niederösterreich-Wien.

"This award is a reward for all our employees who do an outstanding job, day in day out. In challenging times more than ever, you need partners who you can fully rely on," enthuses Christian Prangl.

Many children and young people have been forced to flee because they have lost their homes, their right to safety and, in some cases, their families. As a family business, Prangl considers itself responsible for helping children and families in need, and is therefore naturally concerned with the well-being of refugee children and keen to bring some joy back into their hearts. It was in this spirit that a summer party was organised on 12 August 2022, in collaboration with the Caritas homes for mother & child in Vienna.

A variety of activity stalls were set up, to create a light-hearted and cheerful afternoon for the children during this difficult time. In addition to crane driving and aerial work platform jumping, our young guests had the opportunity to watch a magician perform his magic tricks and visit a children's face painting and craft stall. The young guests were also treated to healthy burgers at the event, while there was a selection of ice creams on offer for dessert.

Many volunteers and some of their relatives helped with a great deal of warmth and dedication to make this successful party possible. We would like to thank all those who contributed and supported the event!

According to the trade publication ”International Cranes” the family business from Austria is among the best crane rental companies in the world. Coming in at 25, we are the only representative from Austria inside the top 25. The annual evaluation from the magazine ”Kran & Bühne” shows a similar picture. In the German-speaking regions, Prangl is ranked 7th among the top 10 crane rental corporations.

When it comes to the aerial work platform sector, the situation is equally pleasing. According to ”Kran & Bühne”, which awarded Prangl 10th place, Prangl is also top in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Prangl was also included in the "Access International" magazine's evaluation. Every year, the world's largest aerial work platform rental companies are rated here. Coming in at 50th, we are the only representative from Austria in the International comparison

For many years now, we have been committed to staying at the cutting edge in the disciplines of health, safety, environment and quality. To be able to document this appropriately, we are certified according to ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001 and SSC^P. Standard-compliant implementation of these regulations also includes regular auditing by outside experts.

This time the audit covered our locations in Buch/Tirol, St. Pölten and Vienna along with our subsidiaries in Hoče (Slovenia) and Zagreb (Croatia). This year saw us win praise and acknowledgement from the external auditor yet again. The entire group of companies received an unrestricted certification according to all the aforementioned standards and for all our locations at home and abroad. Through this continuous improvement process, the Prangl team has made a major contribution to further advancing our IMS maturity level.

Bee colonies are currently going through tough times: Bees and insects are becoming weaker and more susceptible to diseases and parasitic infestations due to the effects of pesticides and climate change. However, bees and other insects are responsible for most of our food - without their role as pollinators we would not only lose over 70% of our food supply, but also have to fight major losses in biodiversity. We therefore need to act.

In addition to its long-standing ISO 14001 certification and its internal efforts to reduce the environmental impact of its operations, the long-established international company also wishes to take further steps towards achieving greater biodiversity, the protection of our climate and environment, and other essential sustainability aspects. And so the decision was made to take the next step - in accordance with the group-wide sustainability strategy. "We are proud to report that in addition to our hard-working employees, 350,000 bees have now settled in five hives at our headquarters in Vienna where they are allowed to go about their valuable work," explains Christian Prangl.

But diligence and the pursuit of top quality are not the only traits that the company shares with the new residents: Bees cover between 25,000 and 500,000 kilometres on the wing to produce a 500 gram jar of honey. This equates to circumnavigating the earth 2.5 times over. Similarly, Prangl covers thousands of kilometres every year in realising its many successful projects - with a focus on mastering every challenge with tailored solutions in an optimum and (above all) safe way. A competent and experienced partner supports Prangl in keeping and caring for the bees appropriately, and helps to create the perfect home and environment for them.

All of the entrants are assessed using a specially developed system of key performance indicators by the press, PwC Austria and creditor protection association KSV1870. This results in a ranking seen as the “Oscars of Austrian industry”.

Prangl has been represented since the competition began. The company came 20th in the 2021 Vienna ranking, and stood just outside the top 100 nationwide in Austria once again - occupying spot 105. A total of about 300 companies accepted the ALC challenge.

The vehicles will now undergo thorough suitability testing at the locations in Vienna and Premstätten. If they prove their worth in daily operation, the vehicle pools at other depots will be receiving similar additions. “We think this will give us a solid alternative to our existing fleet of vehicles,” explains Christian Prangl. With parking in inner-city areas at a premium, the new additions are expected to make things easier thanks to improved mobility.

The electric scooters are powered by 12 HP and have an estimated range of roughly 130 km, while the 44 HP electric cars can achieve an expected range of 230 km when operated in a combined WLTP cycle, and 305 km in a WLTP urban cycle.

We welcome these sustainable additions to the fleet and look forward to the field reports in the weeks and months to come.

Since April 2022, we have been using an app to hone our English skills. This is giving almost 50 members of staff the opportunity to further develop and improve their knowledge of English, which in turn should simplify and enhance communication, in particular on international construction sites. Because our customary high service standards should also be fully available to our global partners and customers on an international level.

Our employees are very satisfied with the app and have already experienced initial success in improving their skills. Sentiments like "it’s a pleasure to learn with the app!" can be heard frequently. The app is also doing well when it comes to user friendliness: "The app layout is excellent and everything is easy to understand!" And its practicality has also been confirmed: "The app works perfectly and I've been practising every day!"

We are delighted to have succeeded in making a valuable contribution to the qualification and further training of the Prangl team.

Wherever our special equipment and our experts are in use, new things are created or change happens. We have therefore set ourselves the goal of anchoring the topic of safety even more firmly in our pyramid of values. It is important to avoid every occupational accident and every case of damage.

With a large-scale information and training initiative for all our employees, which will last several years, we are charting the course for the future. "Safely!" is not only the HSE campaign, but above all the objective that it makes clear.

With certification according to recognised standards (ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001 and SCCP), we have been demonstrating our value-conscious attitude for years. With the new safety initiative, we want to show what is important to us far beyond the legal requirements: Communication at all levels, classroom training, e-learning modules, info videos and much more. The entire Prangl team is demonstrating that safety is a top priority.

The environment is close to our hearts. Gaining the Green Building certificate was an important first step in this direction, and it was followed by the next significant milestone - ISO 14001 certification. In 2022, we will also be introducing completely new electric telehandlers that will run under the "ECO" series.

In addition to all these measures, we will also be taking a further big step this year: All of our Austrian sites will be receiving their electricity from 100% renewable energy sources with immediate effect. This is also verified by an official certificate.

In this way, we wish to set an example in this area and make a small contribution to improving the global environmental situation.