Finalist Prix SVC Ostschweiz 2024: Huber Fenster AG
The Prix SVC Ostschweiz 2024 will be awarded on March 7, 2024. Five companies are in the final, one of which is Huber Fenster AG from Herisau. A brief portrait of the family business.
More than just "a window to the courtyard": this is how you could describe the company philosophy of Huber Fenster AG from Herisau. The 5th generation family business offers solutions that go beyond the standard. On the one hand, windows should be a high-quality part of the building envelope, but on the other hand they should also be an individual façade element.
Windows for "aesthetics with foresight"
A foray through the company's current projects shows: The clientele of Huber Fenster AG is diverse. From public buildings such as Zurich main station (south wing, which is currently undergoing a general refurbishment) or the new Amtshaus Walche building to a forest house in the Engadine or a multi-generation house on Lake Zurich - everywhere the windows do more than just let in light. They are part of a sophisticated architectural design. The aim is to combine the customer's aesthetic wishes with the technical specifications. Or in other words: Huber delivers "aesthetics with vision" and not just a window to the courtyard. And to protect against uninvited guests, the company offers a security window certified to level "RC 3", which also meets high design standards.
From glazier to modern production company
It all started very modestly in 1883 with the takeover of a glazier's shop in Herisau. Over generations, the company developed into a window manufacturer with its own production facilities. The company grew from a workshop in the village center to a factory that today stands prominently on St.Gallerstrasse, the main entrance to the capital of the canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden. A new production hall was not put into operation until 2021. Finally, in 2022, the company's image was redesigned.
The company, managed by Sebastian (CFO), Matthias (COO) and Pascal Huber (CEO), currently has around 75 employees. At Huber Fenster AG, too, the focus is on people. The training of young professionals is of great importance. With around seven apprentices at any one time, the company is one of the leading training companies in the industry.
And the customers? They can draw from the full range at Huber Fenster. The desired window solution can be configured on the website and displayed on the screen. Whether classic window or lift and slide door, reversible window or vertical slider: the plans are created automatically after entering the parameters and can be downloaded. And with the "Hubothek", a comprehensive product catalog is available.
Oaks from the Ukraine
A lot can be done for the energy efficiency of buildings by choosing the right windows. It goes without saying that sustainability is also an issue that Huber Fenster AG actively addresses. For example, in the procurement of the natural product wood: together with the partner company Divario AG, this is kept in a closed cycle. From the first seedling in the forest of Vinnytsia (Ukraine), through the harvested raw wood to the finished window, the company promises sustainable, ecological management. The manufacture of the oak products is powered by 100% solar power, and the waste wood in Herisau and Vinnytsia is used as a source of thermal energy for the company's own production halls, drying chambers and surrounding buildings. This keeps the wood in circulation. Despite the war in Ukraine, the supply relationships continue, "simply under more difficult conditions", as project manager Martin Huber explains when asked. Due to border blockades in Poland, detours via Hungary have to be accepted for transportation. However, customs clearance works perfectly. "When it comes to digitalization, Ukraine is miles ahead of us," enthuses Huber. He is also the one who Ukraine Aid Association has founded. It builds new homes in the form of prefabricated wooden houses for people made homeless by the war.
More information: www.huberfenster.ch / www.svc.swiss
Prix SVC Eastern Switzerland 2024 - the other finalists (alphabetical order):
