January the 8th, 2021 - With the ongoing coronavirus pandemic continuing to dominate the way in which things are done across the globe, one Croatian company has fully embrased the new work from home trend, aiming to make the idea as appealing and indeed as comfortable as possible with its Movo mobile office.

As Jozo Vrdoljak/Novac writes, Sobocan, a Croatian company from Medjimurje boasts the attractive Movo mobile office for working from home that provides professional working conditions, and is also an an appealing design element.

''The Movo mobile office takes up minimal space and provides the user with maximum comfort when performing their various work tasks. After finishing their work, it's very easy to close down, lock up if necessary and push it away. Each of the models is mobile, collapsible, fully equipped with an electrical box and storage and has the possibility of locking,'' said Dejan Sobocan, CEO of Sobocan, who encouraged the creation of these products.

The design team

The idea was developed by the design team of Anamarija Burazin as product designer as well as Croatian architects Mirna Jovic and Jakov Fatovic.

''It took only four months from the idea to the realisation and the finished product. During the first presentation at Zagreb Design Week alone we received a lot of positive reactions, which continued to arrive day by day. The Movo mobile office is basically a product that we designed, developed and produced with an emphasis on the European Union market. The fact that it is recognised by the profession at the European level is a confirmation that we've created a top quality product. The Movo mobile office is already present in Croatian and German households. The first was bought in Zagreb. We're currently in the negotiation phase with several large global corporations who see it as a product for their employees, as well as with several designer furniture chains. This is a great success because we're still only just beginning,'' explained Dejan Sobocan.

The most significant investments were made by the Sobocan company back in 2015, when a new plant and two canopies covering a total area of ​​3200 square metres were built, which enabled the optimisation of business processes and the optimisation of business, which resulted in a significant increase in the number of employees. Back in 2016, Sobocan opened its own Office for Design and Architecture in Zagreb, and today the company provides its clients with a complete service, starting from interior design to the production and installation of furniture and related equipment within the building. Their Zagreb office employs a professional multidisciplinary team with many years of experience on both the domestic and foreign markets.

It offers its customers individual solutions and the complete engineering process: the development of an innovative concept, prototyping, consulting, successful delivery and precise installation according to the "turnkey" system in Croatia and the world.

This company's projects have been implemented in numerous European countries, as well as Egypt, Algeria and the United Arab Emirates. Furthermore, in 2019, Sobocan opened the  new ''hall 4'', which houses a new logistics centre. In the newly built hall which covers 5100 square metres, the final assembly, quality control, packaging, storage and loading of goods take place. The total value of the project stands at a massive 17.3 million kuna, of which 4.5 million kuna is from the European Regional Development Fund.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

January the 8th, 2021 - The Croatian company Koncar is very well known here and indeed across the wider region for its high quality products and the general level of respect attached to its name. Koncar is now earning respect across the world for the products it boasts under its belt.

As Novac writes, today, the name Koncar is recognisable all over the world and has rightfully become synonymous with a high level of quality and reliability. Koncar's equipment and plants located more than 100 countries on all continents are proof of these properties and are permanent monuments of the Koncar Group's praiseworthy achievements. The estimated share of exports in total revenues throughout 2020 for Koncar stands at about 65 percent, of which two thirds relate to other European Union countries.

This is the best indicator of the competitiveness of the Koncar Group's wide range of products and solutions in the field of energy and transport. By country in 2020, Koncar achieved the most significant exports on the markets of Sweden, followed by Germany, Austria, Bulgaria, Finland and the United Arab Emirates, and generators and energy, distribution, special and measuring transformers were mostly delivered to those countries.

In 2020, Koncar also signed a new two-year contract for the supply of transformers of 100 to 630 kVA, voltage 10.5 and 21 kV for a German energy company. Although the cooperation with that company was significant before, in order to sign yet another new contract, the company needed to improve its technical design in accordance with the appropriate EU regulation. The contract was preceded by a demanding pre-qualification procedure, and state-of-the-art technical and technological solutions were used to meet the requirements of all corresponding and stringent EU regulations.

In additon to Europe, Koncar completed some complex projects on other continents in 2020, too. In 2020, This well known company made yet another bold new step forward in its product range and delivered nine transformers to an American customer for 525 kV and 250 kVA substations. These are also the largest transformers that the company has produced so far and are among the largest in the world of this type, in terms of voltage level and power.

The buyer of those transformers is one of the strategically most important power companies on American soil, given that it supplies electricity to customers such as the Pentagon, which further emphasises the importance of Koncar's realised projects. In Africa, the third unit at the Kambouro hydroelectric power plant in Kenya was put into operation as part of the second phase of its revitalisation. This is the second phase of the revitalisation of HPP Kamburu, and Koncar completed the first back in 2014 by replacing the excitation, protection and control system of motor drives.

A low-floor electric tram was also added to the list of Koncar's export products in 2020. After the reliability and quality were confirmed in daily operations in the City of Zagreb, which operates 142 trams, in November 2020, Koncar delivered the first of twelve trams intended for public transport in the city of Liepaja in Latvia. This cooperation began back in November 2018, when a contract was signed for the delivery of six low-floor trams, with the possibility of delivering additional vehicles when the funds for such a move were secured.

At the end of August 2020, Liepajas Tramvajs provided the funds needed for six more such trams, and again entrusted the production and delivery work to Koncar. Koncar's solutions for important subsystems, such as the main electric motor drive, auxiliary power supply, microprocessor control and communications, boxes and turntables, are all installed in those trams.

In 2020, Koncar contracted even more work here at home on the domestic market, and one of the most important projects it was engaged in was the completion of the Vis solar power plant which was put into operation by HEP back in September. In addition to "green" products in the field of energy, Koncar continues to successfully do well in the field of transport in Croatia. In response to the growing demand for passenger transport by rail, which is the most economic and environmentally friendly form of transport, Koncar has developed and manufactured electric and diesel electric trains. There are currently 27 of them in HZ Passenger transport/Putnicki prijevoz's fleet, and according to the obligations from the contract concluded back in 2014 and the addendum to the contract concluded in April 2020, Koncar will deliver another twelve such electric trains.

In addition, a new contract was signed with the same buyer in November this year - for the purchase and sale of 21 electric trains, eleven for suburban and ten for regional traffic. The Koncar Group also sees great potential in renewable energy sources and additional reduction of harmful impact on the environment, but also a step forward in the digitalisation of existing products and services, and in the coming years it plans to intensify activities in these areas through all of its business processes. A step in that direction was seen with the recent signing of a contract with the Croatian Transmission System Operator (HOPS).

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

Read the Croatian Travel Update in your language - now available in 24 languages

Join the Total Croatia Travel INFO Viber community.

ZAGREB, 7 January 2021 - The requirements for the temporary accommodation of people from earthquake-hit areas are expected to be met in the next few weeks, Economy Minister Tomislav Coric said on Thursday after meeting with domestic container home manufacturers.

The idea is to meet all the requirements with domestic containers, some imported, and to procure mobile homes, he told the press, adding that between 1,000 and 1,500 temporary accommodation units were necessary.

Since the construction of lasting buildings can begin only when weather conditions allow and the whole process will take time, the state would rather buy than rent container homes, which will be owned by the state, Coric said.

Efforts are being made to expedite the delivery of temporary accommodation units as none are available in the wake of the Zagreb earthquake in March, last week's tremor in the Banovina region and the pandemic, he said.

Larger deliveries are expected as of the middle of next week, when production will reach its peak, he added.

The government insists that temporary accommodation units be as equipped as possible, Coric said, adding that modular houses with maximum earthquake resistance were one of the solutions.

Tourism Minister Nikolina Brnjac said she would meet with hoteliers on Friday to see how much accommodation was still available, adding that to date the sector had donated 114 mobile homes.

Josip Mihalic, owner of Jedinstvo, which makes container homes, said his company would deliver 350 for the quake victims within 40 days, including 250 ordered by the government, and that 500 could be made in two months.

He said Jedinstvo already sent 250 container homes to the earthquake-hit Banija region which had been intended for export to Switzerland and Austria.

ZAGREB,  7 January 2021 - The Luksic Group, which participates in the tourism industry of Croatia, has donated 15  state-of-the-art ventilators and 15 vital signs monitors to the Croatian Health Ministry, as the group's contribution to Croatia's struggle against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The donation, worth HRK 3.7 million (€500,000), will be distributed to intensive care wards within the country's hospital system, the group said in a press release.

The group's director, Davor Luksic, was quoted as thanking Croatia's medical professionals who are on the frontline of the battle against the coronavirus infection.

The group also donated HRK 750,000 (€100,000) as a relief to victims of the devastating earthquakes in central Croatia.

 Health Minister Vili Beros said that the donated equipment would be delivered to the COVID-19 Dubrava hospital in Zagreb.

ZAGREB, 7 January 2021 - Croatia can be satisfied with its tourism results in 2020 as they prove the sector's adapting to the pandemic and new circumstances, the tourism minister said on Thursday, confident that this experience, the vaccine and compliance with COVID measures can help to achieve the desired effects in 2021.

"54 million overnights show that the tourism sector has adapted quickly and successfully to the new circumstances. It is important to emphasize that Croatia was recognised as a safe destination due to good epidemiological conditions, and we must continue to work on this in 2021, on extending the peak season and ensuring the resilience of the tourism sector," Nikolina Brnjac said in a National Tourist Board press release.  

According to the eVisitor system, which records tourist traffic in commercial and non-commercial facilities, there were 7.8 million arrivals in Croatia in 2020 (37% compared to 2019) and 54.4 million overnights (50% compared to 2019).

Foreign tourists accounted for 43.1 million overnights (45% of 2019's results), while domestic tourists accounted for 11.3 million (82% of 2019's results), all of which is a consequence of travel restrictions, border closures and other COVID-19 measures.

2021: Further increase in quality, new products and responsible management

According to Brnjac, "this year one of the main motives or pre-conditions for travel is safety, so our focus is on high-quality and targeted information campaigns, which will provide us with visibility in our key international markets."

She said that this year "we must continue to work... extending the peak season and ensuring the resilience of the tourism sector. We need a further increase in quality, development of new value-added tourism products and responsible and sustainable management of tourist destinations and infrastructure."

ZAGREB, 7 January 2021 - Deputy Prime Minister Tomo Medved, speaking in his capacity as head of the task force dealing with the aftermath of the 29 December earthquake in Sisak-Moslavina County, said on Thursday that 155 container homes and 19 tents had been set up in the area to accommodate quake victims.

Since the formation of the task force, our response teams have carried out a number of activities on the ground. The Civil Protection Directorate has set up 155 container homes and 19 tents, supplied the emergency services with 32,000 litres of fuel, visited 95 communities and delivered humanitarian aid," Medved reported at a cabinet meeting.

He said that a series of meetings had been held with local government officials to analyse the situation, determine priorities and provide further aid in repairing the damage. About 600 firefighters and 200 firefighting vehicles have been deployed to the area to help with the search and rescue efforts, remove damaged chimneys, repair roofs, and secure devastated buildings, he added.

Medved said that the task force had set up a centre of operations covering the Civil Protection Directorate, the fire service, the Croatian Mountain Rescue Service (HGSS), the Croatian Red Cross (HCR), the military and the police, adding it was operating 24 hours a day.

A total of 262 HGSS personnel are at the scene with 61 vehicles, providing food, water, medicines, heaters and other necessities to remote villages and households, while the HCR is taking care of 725 people at eight locations, Medved said.

He said that preparations were being made for the receipt of 100 container homes from Turkey which were expected to arrive later today.

ZAGREB, 7 January 2021 - Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic said on Thursday rapid antigen tests had been ensured for camps in Petrinja, Glina, Sisak and Topusko with people evacuated after last week's earthquake and that voluntary vaccination was under way in that area to keep the coronavirus situation under control.

Speaking at a cabinet meeting, Bozinovic said that as of 2 January the most vulnerable population was being vaccinated in Sisak-Moslavina County, as were members of the civil protection, the police, firefighters, emergency medical staff, and the army deployed there.

The national COVID-19 response team appeals to citizens to comply with epidemiological measures to prevent the virus from spreading in the quake area, he said, adding that 230,000 rapid antigen tests would be given to hospitals and care homes.

Bozinovic said the ban on public gatherings of more than 25 people in Sisak-Moslavina County had been lifted, as had restrictions on private gatherings, but underlined the obligation to wear masks both indoors and outdoors.

He said additional protective equipment was expected to be delivered by sea in the next few days.

January 7, 2021 – From the Bay of Bakar through the beaches of Rijeka to the opulence of Opatija and up, all the way to the border with Slovenia, Kvarner residents and visitors will be able to travel with just one ticket across the whole of the Rijeka integrated rail and bus network

An existing co-operation between rail and bus operators in Kvarner was today extended, allowing the Rijeka Integrated Rail and Bus network to continue for at least another year. This holds exciting implications for travel in the region for years to come.

Planned changes to the infrastructure of the coastal part of the north Kvarner Bay mean that within the Rijeka integrated rail and bus scheme, you will soon be able to travel from the Bay of Bakar, stop off at a series of Rijeka beaches, hop back on public transport to go to Opatija and even travel beyond the coast, all the way to the border with Slovenia, using just one ticket. Passengers will not be limited in their choice to travel by either aril or bus.


An Autotrolej bus, longtime providers of local bus services in Rijeka © Grad Rijeka

The Rijeka integrated rail and bus scheme, organised through Kvarner County, Rijeka, Matulji and Bakar Town Halls, rail and local bus operators is an eco-friendly drive that seeks to encourage people to leave their cars at home and instead choose public transport. However, access to the Rijeka integrated rail and bus network is not limited to commuting workers and travelling students. Although the scheme is most cost-effective using a monthly ticket, day tickets are available for the network which may be of huge appeal to visitors wishing to explore a wider portion of Kvarner's northern coast.


The train station of Opatija Matulji © Damir Covic 1939 / Matulji Tourist Board

Rijeka integrated rail and bus: International

What makes the extension of the Rijeka integrated rail and bus scheme even more welcome is the planned overhaul of infrastructure that will accompany it.

Fifteen extra stations will be added (or reactivated) on the route between Kantrida in the west of Rijeka, along the Rijeka seafront and on to the outskirts of Bakar. Furthermore, the entire train line from Bakar to Šapjane will be brought into the Rijeka integrated rail and bus scheme with the completion of a second train track along the route.

Trains along the line at Šapjane. Next stop Slovenia! © DiningCar_

Šapjane, in the municipality of Matulji, lies 20 kilometres inland, north of Opatija. It sits right on the border with Slovenia. The train line extends across this border, through the Slovenian town of Ilirska Bistrica, and then on to Postojna and Ljubljana, Italy or Austria. This means the Rijeka integrated rail and bus scheme will be directly linked to another green, international travel network.

These routes will all be linked to the incoming, double-tracked Pan-European fast train network, which, as TCN highlighted last year, will connect this part of Kvarner with France, Spain and Portugal in the west all the way to eastern Hungary via Zagreb and Budapest. Needless to say, it will require more than a single day ticket (cvikalica) from the Rijeka integrated rail and bus network to make such a journey!