SWISS BUSINESS NEWS
SUMMER 2005
Top of the News
Switzerland again came in 3rd among 62 countries on the 2005 Foreign Policy Magazine/A.
T. Kearny Globalization Index. In a second study, the country moved to 4th from 10th
place in the 2005 "E-Readiness" index developed by the Economist Intelligence Unit
and the IBM Institute for Business Value.
In other 2005 performance reports, Switzerland moved all the way up to 8th from 14th
place in the World Competitiveness Yearbook published by the Institute for Management
Development. It ranks 8th in the Global Competitiveness Report and 9th in the Global
IT report, both published by the World Economic Forum
Wins and Updates
New Jersey-based ReGen Biologics Inc, an orthopedic products company that develops,
manufactures, and markets innovative tissue growth and repair products for US and
international markets has launched a wholly owned subsidiary in Canton Appenzell.
ReGen Biologics AG, will build a proprietary brand in Europe by marketing and distributing
the patented ReGen(R) Collagen Meniscus Implant (CMI) and other products in Europe.
Delaware-based specialty chemicals company Hercules Incorporated will open its European
headquarters in Neuhausen , Canton Schaffhausen, later this October. The company
selected Neuhausen from among other Swiss cities and locations in Ireland and the
Netherlands, where it operates a factory. It will coordinate the purchase, production,
sales and marketing operations of its European business from the new headquarters.
Eight to ten jobs are expected by the end of 2005, increasing up to 50 by the end
of 2009.
Stryker Spine, a division of Kalamazoo-based Stryker Corporation, is building an
80,000 square foot manufacturing plant in Neuchatel that is expected to go operational
in October and create approximately 250 new jobs. The plant will produce and distribute
implants for spinal applications.
Seattle-based systems integrator Avanade has opened a branch in Zurich in response
to customer need for a stronger on-the-spot presence and to leverage the potential
of the Swiss market, where it numbers Coop and XL Insurance among its customers.
The joint venture between Accenture and Microsoft will create approximately 25 jobs
over the next 15 months and 100 in three years.
Optaros Inc., an open source software consulting and integration firm based in Cambridge,
MA, is entering the European market through a new office in Geneva, and appointed
a veteran of the consulting and systems integration business, Frederic Weill, to
run it. The entry into Europe comes a year after Optaros launched its American business,
which provides strategic advice and software development services that help major
enterprises dramatically reduce their software costs and build critical systems faster.
Eaton Corporation, the Ohio-based, diversified industrial manufacturer, will move
its international headquarters to Morges, creating around 65 jobs there by 2010.
Eaton Industries Manufacturing will act as Eaton's European headquarters and will
coordinate production worldwide from the facility. The company also operates a production
site with 35 employees in the Vaud region, and will appoint five new engineers in
the plant.
Also from Ohio, glassware group Owens-Illinois (recently renamed O-I) is moving its
European headquarters to the Lausanne suburb Bussigny, and will occupy the former
offices of logistics company Veillon. O-I plans to run its European research and
development, production, sales and marketing activities from there. It will also
establish a services center for its European businesses, providing mainly accounting
services. The company said it will over time create 200 jobs and that a total 90
percent of the recruited staff will be local.
IBM's new operating hub in Zurich commenced operations in July and covers Northern,
Middle and Eastern Europe. Staffing will reach 200 through transfers from other IBM
locations. The second operating hub in Europe will be in Madrid.
Cisco Systems, Inc., the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, will open
a new European office near Lausanne to handle shared services for the EMEA region.
An initial staff of 20 is expected to grow to 100 over a 10-year period.
PCG Asset Management, a unit of Pacific Corporate Group LLC (PCG), a California-based
investment management and advisory firm, has established a European office in Geneva.
Tax and commercial law firm Withers Bergman this fall will open an office in Geneva
to service the complex cross-border legal and wealth management needs of private
clients, families, businesses and institutions. Withers Worldwide Group is the biggest
tax, trust and estate planning practice in the world.
California-based Cutera, a provider of laser and other light-based aesthetic systems
to the professional aesthetic market, has opened its European headquarters in Zurich.
Internet security specialist VeriSign, in Geneva for a number of years, is establishing
a new operation in Fribourg that is expected to create 100 jobs over five years.
On the reverse investment front Geneva start-up WISeKey, a provider of identification
and cryptography solutions, will establish its first office in the Syracuse region
of New York State and bring in 500 new jobs over the next two years. The investment
was prompted by WISeKey being selected by DestiNY USA to implement its digital identification
backbone. The DestiNY USA R&D park will focus on renewable energy, technology and
security projects.
From The Foreign Desk
Danish company NNE, a provider of consulting, engineering, construction and validation
services focused on life science, has opened an office in Geneva to serve the biotechnology
and pharmaceutical industries in Switzerland and neighboring countries. Can Habib,
General Manager of NNE's Switzerland branch, said: "Switzerland's sophisticated scientific
environment, pro-business climate and highly skilled and quality-conscious workforce
continue to stimulate and attract investments in life science."
Austrian call center management company Competence Call Center has established a
branch in Zurich, with plans for 100 employees. The firm has branches in Vienna,
Linz and Berlin.
TradeDoubler, a Swedish provider of online marketing and sales solutions, has opened
a new office in Zurich after entering the Swiss market a year ago. Starting with
four employees, the new subsidiary of the Swedish TradeDoubler AB will now directly
serve its Swiss customers.
Japan-based Eisai has established a pharmaceuticals marketing subsidiary in Zurich
through its European operation subsidiary Eisai Europe. Eisai Pharma AG sells pharmaceuticals
mainly in the neurology area. The company will also be responsible for submitting
applications for anti-epileptic drugs Zonegran and Inovelon in Switzerland in the
future.
German business software firm InVision Software AG is establishing a new Swiss office
in Zurich, replacing a distribution partner in Switzerland, in order to intensify
its market presence. InVision was established in 1995 to market staff planning systems
for the financial services, energy supply, telecommunications and commercial sectors.
Other News
In 2003 Switzerland was the second-largest recipient after Canada of US manufacturing
FDI at $5.087 billion, according to a new report from Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. Among
the top 10 destinations, Switzerland was not on the charts in 2000 and 2002, and
ranked 6th in 2001. For 2004, the report said U.S. manufacturers boosted their foreign
direct investments by 90 per cent to an estimated $54 billion vs. $28.37 billion
in 2003, setting a record and underscoring their increasing reliance on international
markets for continued growth.
Branford CT-based 454 Life Sciences, a majority-owned subsidiary of CuraGen Corporation
and Roche, announced they have entered into an exclusive 5-year world-wide agreement
for the promotion, sale, and distribution of 454 Life Sciences' nanotechnology-based
Genome Sequencing Systems, including proprietary kits and reagents. The technology
used in the 454 Genome Sequencing System enables researchers to sequence up to 100
times faster than current commercial platforms.
Switzerland is home to 13 companies on the 2005 Financial Times' Global 500 based
on market value, starting with Novartis at 23 and ending with Synthes at 500.
The 2005 Fortune Global 500 ranks by revenues and lists 11 Swiss firms starting with
Nestle at 43 and ending with Migros at 367
The Forbes Global 2000 ranks on a composite of sales, profits, assets and market
value. It lists 36 Swiss firms starting with UBS at 11 an ending with BCGE Group
at 1971.
The Swiss Federal Tax Authority on July 15, 2005, released Guidance and a Circular
Letter regarding intra-group dividend payments. The guidance was issued in light
of the Savings Agreement between Switzerland and the European Union that entered
into force on July 1, 2005. Article 15 of the Savings Agreement provides for regulations
to serve as the equivalent of (1) the EU Directive on the common taxation of dividends
paid by subsidiaries to parent companies resident in different EU Member States and
(2) the EU Directive on the common taxation of interest and royalty payments in the
EU Member States. In general, the Savings Agreement's measures provide that neither
intra-group dividends nor intra-group interest and royalty payments made between
public limited companies that are residents in an EU Member State and in Switzerland
are subject to taxation in the source state. For further information, please email
Andreas Mueller KPMG LLP, International Corporate Services, Head of the Swiss Center
of Excellence amueller1@kpmg.com
Publicity and Promotion
Releases distributed since the last newsletter:
May 2 - NanoTech 2005 release to the Nanotour Journalist
May 3 - Isolagen, Inc., Acquires Corporate Center in Switzerland
May 17 - Switzerland in Top Ten of Five Performance Rankings
June 8 - Switzerland at BIO 2005 - media advisory and participation invitation
June 14 - Owens Illinois Establishes European Headquarters in Switzerland
July 5 - ReGen Biologics Launches European Operations from Switzerland
July 12 - Hercules Establishes European Headquarters in Switzerland
July 25 - NOVA Chemicals Bases Joint Venture with BP plc in Switzerland
News from Location Promotion Switzerland
