We Aim to Win – How Innovation is Managed at Voestalpine

A successful innovation starts with an idea and ends up as a product on the market. That sounds simple but turns out to be very complex when implemented. A few important principles are basic for the innovation process of voestalpine. We keep to our strategy. Company management stands fully behind R&D. We have a clear plan, road maps, where all R&D-topics are recorded and monitored. We have a stage-gate-process for innovation, beginning in the preliminary area, which is rather fuzzy, and then becoming more and more precise towards market implementation. Especially in the preliminary research phase, we put an emphasis on creativity. New ideas need enough time and space to grow, requiring a company culture of team spirit and openness. With our decentralized R&D and with strong interactions with our own processes and products, selected customers and long-term cooperation with scientific partners, we recognize new possibilities and developments bottom-up at an early stage. Success occurs when all relevant business functions are considered and integrated in the innovation process.