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Management

ECON appoints Friedrich Rechberger as Managing Director and consistently pursues its international growth strategy

1:26 min Management
Weisskirchen an der Traun, Austria

ECON GmbH, an Upper Austrian company and international specialist in pelletizing systems for plastics processing, has appointed Friedrich Rechberger, MBA, as Managing Director, effective June 3, 2026. With this decision, ECON is strengthening its international focus and creating the foundation for the next phase of global growth.

With more than 30 years of international experience in business development, sales, and customer care, Friedrich Rechberger brings extensive industry expertise to his new role. Throughout his career, he has held senior positions at renowned industrial companies and has built an outstanding reputation, particularly for building and developing international business structures.

“With Friedrich Rechberger, we have gained a highly experienced and internationally recognized expert for the management of ECON. I am convinced that this represents a decisive step in consistently advancing our international growth strategy for the benefit of our customers, suppliers, partners and employees,” emphasizes Gerhard Hehenberger, CEO & Founder of ECON GmbH.

Friedrich Rechberger had previously supported ECON as an external consultant and sparring partner in establishing ECON Inc. USA. With this addition to the management team, ECON is setting the course for its continued international development and strategically strengthening its customer-oriented core business areas.

“I am grateful for the trust placed in me. My goal is to consistently continue ECON’s international development together with our team and, primarily focusing on further increasing customer satisfaction. Sustainable growth, internationalization, and innovation are clearly our top priorities,” explains Friedrich Rechberger, Managing Director of ECON GmbH.

Despite a challenging global economic environment and geopolitical tensions, ECON looks back on a successful financial year: total revenue increased to over EUR 34 million (2025), up from EUR 28.3 million two years earlier (2023).

Another important step in internationalization is imminent: From August 2026, the new sales, service, and production facility ECON Brazil (Antônio Carlos, SC) will commence operations.

“With our new location in Brazil, we are strengthening our presence in a high-growth market and creating the foundation for even faster response times and optimal local support. Together with our locations in the United States, China, and India, we are consistently expanding our global network – with a strong technological development center in Austria,” says Gerhard Hehenberger.

With this combination of strategic development of management, international expansion, and technological specialization, ECON continues to position itself as a global partner for high-quality and sustainable solutions in plastics processing.

www.econ.eu 

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