It would be impossible for the Hungarian economy to make headway without innovation, development and production of added value, therefore it is necessary for innovative ideas to materialize as enterprises and become an organic part of Hungary’s economy, Minister for National Economy Mihály Varga said at the ceremony for presenting the “Award for Successful Enterprises” in the month of September in Budapest.

Upon the Minister’s initiative, since August 2013 the awards are presented in each month in three categories – “Investor of the Month”, “SME of the Month” and “Start-up of the Month” – with the aim of honouring and encouraging small and medium-sized enterprises as well as start-ups operating in Hungary which contribute to economic growth and serve as role models for leading an enterprise to success.

In September, based on the jury’s decision, ZF Lenksysteme Hungary Ltd received the “Investor of the Month” award; Evopro Informatics and Automation Ltd was awarded the “SME of the Month” title, while in the category of “Start-up of the Month” Mihály Varga presented the award to the ImmunoGenes Ltd.

At the event, the Minister emphasised that through the awards the Government intends to draw attention to the fact enterprises can achieve success in Hungary.

As the Minister added, the Ministry for National Economy will establish a professional working group called Budapest HUB designed to assess options of how the central administration can assist innovative start-ups. It has to be evaluated, he said, how the Innovation Fund, the National Innovation Office or the tendering system might support these budding enterprises.

Mihály Varga also said that as of 1 January 2014 economic development tenders will be evaluated by the Ministry for National Economy, and in the next seven years the Government aims to spend 60 percent of EU funds on economic development. As he underlined, that is why the Budapest HUB will be precious.

CFO of ZF Lenksysteme Hungary Matthias Augenstein said that within the agglomerate the Hungarian subsidiary, which was founded ten years ago, in 2013 was entrusted with the task of producing and assembling the EPSapa electronic steering systems for top-category vehicles, and to this end the company will until the spring of 2014 implement a significant investment project in Maklár, not far from the Eger production site, and increase the number of employees by 150 while they retain the existing work force. The positive decision was also influenced by Hungary’s business-friendly and growth-focused economic policy, he added.

CEO of Evopro Informatics and Automation Ltd Balázs Bodnár stressed that the Hungarian-owned company has proven that it is possible to become a successful exporter on the basis of Hungarian engineers’ knowledge. The engineers of the enterprise have actively participated in constructing the assembly lines of Mercedes in Kecskemét and Bremen as well as of Audi and BMW, in addition to the installation of baggage transport and logistics systems at the Liszt Ferenc International Airport and the airports of Miami, London, Madrid, Munich, Dubai and Beijing.

CEO of ImmunoGenes Ltd Imre Kacskovics said that the company has worked out a ground-breaking technology in the field of immunology and gene technology research.  This technique enables the production of antibodies that are capable of successfully combating diseases which are not treatable by traditional pharmaceuticals. The company works with six experts, of whom four hold PhD degrees, and they are internationally acknowledged professionals. ImmunoGenes has been widely recognized as an innovative enterprise with a highly promising future.
Imre Kacskovics stressed that the award is inspiring the team to continue with their work.

(Ministry for National Economy)