IKA Werke wins Medium-Sized Companies Award
IKA Werke was named a winner in the “Medium-Sized Companies Award 2013” conducted by the Oskar Patzelt Foundation, making it one of the top medium-sized companies in Germany. The Staufen-based, family-owned business was awarded first place in the industry category in the Baden-Wurttemberg region of the competition
The nine judges assessed the company’s overall development, such as dedication to modernization and innovation commitment to the region, as well as service, proximity to the customer and marketing.
Since it was first presented in 1995, the “Medium-Sized Companies Award” has become Germany’s most prestigious business award. A total of 4,035 small and medium-sized companies from across the country, as well as banks and local authorities, were nominated for the award. Companies must be nominated for the award by a third party, they cannot enter themselves. Only one company in a thousand in Germany is nominated. IKA was nominated by the Baden Industrial Enterprises Association/(wvib) and the town of Staufen. The company had already been a finalist in last year’s competition.
“The region’s medium-sized businesses are a guarantee of not only our economic success but also of our social well-being,” said Dr. Nils Schmid, Deputy First Minister and Minister of Finance and the Economy for the State of Baden-Wurttemberg.
When IKA was founded in 1910, China was not yet the People’s Republic and the term globalization had yet to be invented. Today, the family-run company, which has its headquarters in Staufen im Breisgau, has almost 900 employees in eight locations on four continents. A world leader in laboratory, analysis and process technology, it is the only company able to supply both laboratory equipment and industrial-scale systems, where sample processing ranges from 0.5 mg up to 50,000 liters.
In addition to numerous awards for design and innovation, in 2013 the company has also received the medium-sized companies award for corporate social responsibility for their “HANDS for Children” charity.