Former managing director Wolfgang Schischek stepped down, after nearly 30 years on the management board, at a jubilee event in Vienna attended by around 400 guests, including Austria's federal minister, on 20 March.

He will be replaced by Leopold Achatz, who was described by KBA as "well qualified to guide the company through the turmoil of the current economic and financial crisis".

Schischek said: "This company has survived global economic crises, two world wars and Soviet occupation. The current recession, which has not left KBA unscathed, poses a further challenge, which we'll address by mobilising all our resources."

When Schischek was appointed to the management board in 1980, KBA-Mödling had a turnover of around €18m and employed around 350 staff. Today, the company boasts a workforce of over 700 and revenues of €175m.