One step ahead of the counterfeiters
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HUECK FOLIEN specializes in sophisticated coating solutions for banknote security features, tamperproof seals, self-adhesive labels as well as high-quality films for design applications. The medium-sized family enterprise operates in three different market segments: security, labeling and design.
While addressing rather different target groups, all three have one thing in common: they all provide the products of the company’s customers with a unique identity. HUECK FOLIEN was founded in 1970 and originally focused on refining films for flexible packaging applications.
Since then, it has developed into a global coating specialist with more than 270 employees, revenues of 53 million EUR and customers in over 60 countries all over the world. Headquartered in Baumgartenberg in northern Austria, HUECK FOLIEN has sales subsidiaries in Weiden, Germany, and Hong Kong.
“The company started as a manufacturer of packaging for the ‘Manner Schnitten’, the world-famous waffles from Vienna,” explains CEO Dr. Martin Bergsmann who has been with HUECK FOLIEN since 2000. Before joining the Austrian coating specialist, Dr. Bergsmann had been working as a university researcher.
“In the 1980s, we began producing vacuum-metallized films,” Dr. Bergsmann says, describing a milestone in the history of the company. “We have constantly increased our expertise in metallization technology since then.”
Another significant event in the development of HUECK FOLIEN is marked by the year 1987 when the dynamically evolving company took up the production of security threads for banknotes – a sector where constant innovation is an absolute must to stay ahead of the forgers.
“We have just introduced a completely new security feature,” states Dr. Bergsmann. “We now have the possibility to display portraits in the threads, which further enhances security.” In 2008, HUECK FOLIEN decided to discontinue the manufacture of packaging and to concentrate on the markets for high-security features for banknotes and other documents requiring protection from forgery and coating solutions for high-quality labels and functional surface films.
The main focus of HUECK FOLIEN is security products: security threads, stripes and laminates for all kinds of forgery-proof documents. “High-security features are our core competence,” says Dr. Bergsmann. “We have many years of technological expertise and have pioneered several product innovations in the area. And we are constantly developing new, customer- specific solutions, in close cooperation with central banks, security paper mills and security printers. With our products, we are at an early stage in the value chain. We supply the security features which are then integrated into banknotes, identity papers or other tamper-proof documents.”
One of the new brands in the comprehensive security portfolio of HUECK FOLIEN is MULTIFLY®, an advanced high-security feature with images such as rotating stars that move when the banknote is tilted. “Our goal is to always be one step ahead of the money counterfeiters,” Dr. Bergsmann notes, describing the philosophy of the company.
HUECK FOLIEN also provides customized solutions with perfect printability for all kinds of self-adhesive labels. The company has just presented its latest product innovation in the sector: SilSkin®, a printable, metallized polyethylene film which offers an ideal base material for high-quality product labels, especially for consumer goods.
The wide product assortment is rounded off by highly scratch-resistant design films Viscora ® premium-quality lamination films which can be applied to a wide variety of materials and products, from household appliances to exhibition stands.
The strength of HUECK FOLIEN is its unrivalled flexibility in meeting individual customer demands. “We listen to our customers and find the optimum solution,” states Dr. Bergsmann. “This goes for all our business areas, from high-security threads for banknotes to labels for consumer products through to quality films for interior design applications. In addition, we are an internationally well-positioned, medium-sized family enterprise with a clear strategy and high-grade products that are much in demand all over the world.”
Accordingly, HUECK FOLIEN ships 98% of its products abroad, to customers outside Austria. “Germany is still an important market for us but not the largest growth market,” says Dr. Bergsmann. “The most promising and fastest-evolving markets are Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia and South America.”
HUECK FOLIEN wants to further strengthen its position as a leading European and global provider of highly engineered coating solutions for security applications. “Particularly in the security and labeling segments, we are one of the largest players and among the technology leaders worldwide,” concludes Dr. Bergsmann.
