The lifting specialist breaks ground in Ormož, 33 years after its first factory outside Austria opened in nearby Maribor
Palfinger’s first manufacturing site outside Austria opened in Maribor, Slovenia, in 1993. More than three decades later, the country is getting a second one.
The Austrian lifting solutions group has held the groundbreaking ceremony for a new production facility in Ormož. It is investing up to €70 million, and production is due to start in the first quarter of 2028.
What will be built
The plant is going up in the Glinokop industrial zone on a site of more than 18.5 hectares, and construction is already underway. Once complete, it will include an assembly hall, a coating facility, a logistics hub designed to optimise supply chains, and a training centre for apprentices, employees and service technicians.
Ormož will expand Palfinger’s manufacturing capacity for components used across several product lines in its crane and lifting business.
“Sustainable growth requires continuous and smart investments in a high-performing global production and logistics network. The new site in Ormož marks an important step in further developing our manufacturing footprint, improving operational efficiency, and creating additional value for our customers.”
Said Alexander Susanek, COO of Palfinger.
Part of Strategy 2030+
Under its Strategy 2030+, Palfinger is reshaping its production footprint around efficiency, customer proximity and investment in growth markets. Ormož will join Maribor and the other European plants, including Lengau in Austria and Niš in Serbia, as part of the group’s European manufacturing network.
For body builders and truck equipment dealers, more component capacity in Central and South-Eastern Europe should mean shorter supply chains for cranes and lifting equipment built for the European market. The integrated coating line and logistics hub also point to Palfinger keeping more of the value chain in-house.
The investment has political backing. Katja Koren, State Secretary at the Slovenian Ministry of the Economy, Labour and Sport, and Zdravko Počivalšek, State Secretary in the Prime Minister’s Cabinet, attended the ceremony and described it as a sign of trust in Slovenia’s export-oriented economy. Ormož mayor Danijel Vrbnjak said the municipality had helped prepare the infrastructure and will keep investing in the area.
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