Data Respons enters Germany

Martin Ganninger has been appointed as managing director of Data Respons GmbH. Germany is the largest market in Europe for embedded solutions. “The German market is central in realizing our vision of becoming the leading Embedded Solutions company in Europe by 2010. We have during the last year evaluated various possibilities for establishing operations in Germany,” says Kenneth Ragnvaldsen, CEO at Data Respons ASA. The company has opted for the same type of model that has successfully provided organic growth in Denmark. Martin Ganninger, who will lead the new subsidiary, comes from a position as sales director at one of our key partners. Data Respons has worked with Martin Ganninger for a number of years. “We have strong partners in Germany, who also have great faith in our concept for establishing operations in new markets. The key has been to appoint a manager who knows the market and who has a broad network of contacts. In addition to being well-acquainted with the market and having a comprehensive network, Ganninger also has a thorough understanding of our concept. I am delighted he is joining us at such an important stage in the company’s development,” says Kenneth Ragnvaldsen. Data Respons GmbH will be operative from January 1, 2005, and Martin Ganninger will start with focus on sales and marketing, and one of his first tasks will be building up a sales team. The aim is rapid growth and good profitability. Deliveries in the start-up phase will be supported by the other companies in the group. Thereafter, the company will gradually grow in line with sales and results. The German market has been dominated by an “in-house philosophy”, where the major industrial players have had in-house research departments for embedded solutions. However we can now see some companies adopting the Nordic model with its high level of outsourcing and focus on developing solutions ahead of components (for example Nokia and Ericsson). A small number of players in the German market use a concept similar to Data Respons’, but the market is at an early stage of development. None of the players has assumed a dominating position as solutions, products and services supplier of embedded solutions. “The structure of the German supplier market is still fragmented with numerous small and medium size companies lacking a clear profile. In my assessment, Data Respons’ concept is universal and market-oriented, and we will establish a good position now when demand increases in the right direction,” says Martin Ganninger.