Flexibility and Innovation
Interview with Stefanie Gutleder, Managing Director and Peter Reisinger Managing Director of EPS Electric Power Systems GmbH
EPS Electric Power Systems GmbH is a prime example of the success of a family business that is run with vision and passion. Since 1998, the Austrian company has been developing sustainable and energy-efficient solutions for data centers. In a conversation with Stefanie Gutleder, second generation managing director, and managing director Peter Reisinger, the company provides insights into its history, important milestones, and its challenges and visions.
Wirtschaftsforum: Mrs. Gutleder, Mr. Reisinger, EPS has developed significantly since its foundation in 1998. Can you tell us more about this development?
Stefanie Gutleder: My father Josef Frühwirth founded the company as a one-person operation. A major milestone was the opening of our business building in Groß Gerungs in 2010, with a clear focus on energy efficiency. At that time, we became a climate alliance company and were nominated for the Helios Energy Efficiency Award. In 2012, we expanded to Germany with the establishment of our company in Straubing, Bavaria. Most recently, in 2023, we opened a new office and storage building in Dietmanns - another step towards sustainability.
Peter Reisinger: The development of the company has been impressive. I have been involved for almost 19 years and have witnessed how a small operation became a company with 60 employees and multiple locations. Particularly exciting is our transformation into a comprehensive solution provider for data centers.
Wirtschaftsforum: What challenges are you currently facing?
Stefanie Gutleder: We are in the exciting, but also demanding, phase of growing from a small to a medium-sized company. This requires optimizing our processes and procedures, training employees, and better documenting our knowledge.
Peter Reisinger: At the same time, we notice some hesitation in investments in data centers, even though the need due to digitalization continues to grow. Therefore, we have adapted our structure and created so-called Business Units that enable us to also serve other industries such as the pharmaceutical or wood industries.
Wirtschaftsforum: What makes EPS particularly special from your perspective?
Stefanie Gutleder: Our flexibility is a big advantage. We can quickly adapt to market conditions and develop individual solutions for our customers.
Peter Reisinger: Another unique selling point is our Selling Center. Here, sales, service, and project management work closely together to implement projects efficiently and flexibly. In addition, sustainability is a focus for us, especially in the development of new products. In 2025, we plan to relaunch our data center containers. These will be even more energy-efficient, for example by using free-cooling in combination with our proven EPS RCS server racks, which direct cold air specifically to the server.
Wirtschaftsforum: What role does digitalization play in your company?
Peter Reisinger: A very big one. We rely on automation and AI. In service, we are testing the use of AI glasses to give real-time instructions to employees on-site. We are also working on paperless processes and use tablets to capture documentation directly on-site digitally.
Wirtschaftsforum: What are the next steps for EPS?
Stefanie Gutleder: We want to further expand our know-how, among other things through our own academy for training and further education. At the same time, we aim for organic growth and focus on offering energy-efficient data center solutions with the highest availability in the Central European market.