Jürgen Rautert — The View from ‘Hei’ Above

PI: Can you comment on the assistance (loan) Heidelberg recently received from the German government.

Rautert: My short answer is that the financing for Heidelberg is warranted—even in this critical phase of the financial crisis. This will secure the future, the innovative strength and technology leadership of Heidelberg as a force in the printing industry.

Now let’s take a look at the details: The German government initiated a 120 billion euro support program to assist companies through the economic downturn based on the financial crisis. Any company can participate in this program if certain prerequisite criteria are met. The government loan and state guarantee is only granted to companies that can show that their business strategy is compelling and, consequently, their ongoing business is sustainable. To ensure that the criteria are met the government assigned public accountants—like PwC —to take a close look at each enrollee's request.