June the 4th, 2022 - The Croatian company Atos has been chosen as the more favourable bidder for a new Croatian Health Insurance Institute (HZZO) project worth a lot of money. The company will spend nineteen months on the project.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, the Croatian Health Insurance Institute (HZZO) has announced the start of the brand new eHZZO project, worth almost 115 million kuna, which aims to establish more efficient management and supervision within the healthcare system.

The construction of this brand new new system is being co-financed by the European Union (EU), and will enable easier communication with external users, as well as the high availability of data necessary for business process management and different forms of reporting.

"The Croatian Health Insurance Institute has one of the most important information systems in operation within the Republic of Croatia, so the eHZZO project will benefit all insurance policyholders through the better organisation and availability of the healthcare system," said Deputy Director of the Croatian Health Insurance Institute, Veronika Lausin.

The entire eHZZO project is worth a total of 114.7 million kuna, of which 85 percent is being financed with European Union money. The project will be worked on for the aforementioned period of nineteen months, and the strategic partner of the project, the Croatian company Atos, was selected as the most favourable bidder in the 2021 tender.

Three bidders, two consortia and one independent bidder appeared in the tender. The Croatian company Atos applied for the tender within a group consisting of a Czech company of the same name and a Macedonian enterprise called Nextsense, and their offer was the cheapest of all.

Ericsson Nikola Tesla and IN2 also competed together with CUSPIS. The third bidder was King ICT.

For more on Croatian companies, entrepreneurs and innovation, make sure to check out our dedicated business section.

May the 31st, 2022 - The Croatian tech company Gideon has presented its brand new innovation which will only contribute even further to placing Croatia on the tech map - Casey the robot.

As the trend of e-commerce continues to grow exponentially, with the global coronavirus pandemic which emerged back at the beginning of 2020, robotics is a field becoming not only more popular, but necessary in the face of increased demand.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Darko Bicak writes, the wildly successful and already very well known Croatian tech company Gideon, which has offices in Germany and across the pond in the USA, recently presented its new solution for automation and the optimisation of order preparation in distribution centres.

The company, which has alredy attracted the eyes and ears of the demanding technology works, deals with robotics and solutions based on artificial intelligence (AI).

Casey the robot is a solution developed for the preparation of orders for goods packed in boxes and works to improve the commissioning process through the optimisation and harmonisation of the tasks of both humans and robots with a payload of up to 1000 kg.

As they pointed out from the Croatian tech company Gideon, this brand new solution helps companies alleviate labour shortages and the challenges posed by strong e-commerce growth.

“The rise of e-commerce is a clear indication that the use of new automation technologies is the key to sustainable growth. Namely, e-commerce creates additional pressures on business because it is more labour-intensive and intensifies changes in customer expectations, for example, when it comes to delivery deadlines. Analysts' latest forecasts point to strong growth in e-commerce globally - by as much as 50 percent to 7.4 trillion US dollars by the year 2025,'' the technology company said.

Josip Cesic, Chief Technology Officer and co-founder of the Croatian tech company Gideon, pointed out that Casey eliminates the cost of damage to both products and equipment and reduces staff costs by up to 40 percent.

For more on Croatian companies, entrepreneurs, ideas and inventions, make sure to check out Made in Croatia.

May the 28th, 2022 - HBOR is set to facilitate favourable lending to investments through new HBOR loans from the Croatian recovery and resilience funds (Croatian: NPOO).

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, as part of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NPOO), HBOR has started implementing financial instruments that enable extremely favourable lending terms for investments of both private and public sector entities - with interest rates of 0.4 percent or interest rate subsidies of up to 75 percent.

Direct loans with an interest rate of as little as 0.4 percent

Direct loans from NPOO funds will be available to start-up companies (who have been in business for up to 3 years in total), young companies (up to 40 years), companies owned and/or managed by women, enterprises investing in special areas of the Republic of Croatia (assisted areas according to the development index, mountainous areas and islands) and enterprises investing in the commercialisation of research, development and innovation-based projects (RDI projects).

The interest rate for favourable HBOR loans to projects that are mostly focused on green or digital transition and the commercialisation of RDI projects will be a mere 0.4 percent per year, while the interest rate for other investments in competitiveness and resilience will be 0.8 percent per year. Loans will be approved without a fee for processing the request and without a fee for reserving the funds, with a a repayment period of up to 15 years, which includes the possibility of using a grace period of up to 3 years.

Up to 75 percent lower interest rate on existing HBOR programmes

HBOR loans will enable a significant reduction in interest rates for businesses of all sizes in both the Croatian private and public sectors within its existing investment financing programmes: Private Sector Investments, Public Sector Investments and Youth Entrepreneurship, Women and Beginners.

For investments in green or digital transition projects, the interest rate for the borrower can be reduced by up to 75 percent; for investments in special areas of the Republic of Croatia, including public sector investments in earthquake recovery, and investments in RDI projects up to 65 percent, and for other investments that increase competitiveness and resilience - up to 50 percent.

For example, the interest rate for a user of a direct HBOR loan who invests in the green transition project of his manufacturing company under the Private Sector Investment Programme would be 0.375 percent, instead of the current 1.5 percent. This interest rate can be further reduced depending on the area of ​​investment (thanks to subsidies from individual LRUs) and if the company employs a person under 30 years of age.

When HBOR loans are approved by a commercial bank or leasing company, the interest rate it sets for each project is reduced in the same way, thus providing enterprises with a significant reduction in interest rates. Loans from commercial banks and placements of leasing companies with a subsidy from NPOO funds will be available after concluding an appropriate agreement between HBOR and commercial banks, ie leasing companies, and until then, interested parties can apply for loans directly to HBOR.

The total value of these financial instruments, the implementation of which HBOR started, amounts to a massive 1.1 billion kuna. The goal of the financial instruments that HBOR will implement is to encourage the strengthening of investment activity, but also to enable a successful transition to green and digital technologies as the basis for the future sustainability and competitiveness of the Croatian economy as a whole.

Any project that uses NPOO funds through HBOR loans must meet the principles of non-significant damage to environmental objectives (Do No Significant Harm) in terms of excluding ineligible activities, sustainability testing and comply with relevant EU legislation. More details as well as the questionnaire that must be filled out when applying for a loan can be found on HBOR's website.

For more, check out our business section.

May the 19th, 2022 - The IBM iX agency has announced the opening of its Osijek office, which will be another positive economic move for this particular Eastern Croatian city in a part of the country known for migration and demographic issues.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the digital agency IBM iX Croatia recently announced the opening of an up and coming Osijek office, which will be the company's third office in the Republic of Croatia, after the ones located in Zagreb and Varazdin.

The company's CEO, Mario Horvat, said at a press conference that Osijek has grown into one of the largest IT hubs in Croatia over more recent years, with large capacities, quality faculties and highly educated young people, so he believes the company will find a suitable number of experts to work there.

He pointed out that IBM iX is a broad-based digital agency that uses agile software development methods, so it will need classic developers, integration engineers, business consultants and user interface designers, as well as various other professionals.

He expects the Osijek office to open by the end of this year and added that seven employees are currently working in the City of Osijek. He also believes that in the next two to three years, that number will reach 100 to 120, which is a growth that the company can handle. Here in Croatia, IBM iX currently has 202 employees.

The director of digital platforms of the company, Daniel Strmecki, stated that the main reason for heading further east and opening an Osijek office is the existence of established technical faculties, which is important for a company that is looking for highly educated IT staff.

Osijek Mayor Ivan Radic is more than pleased that the company has recognised Osijek as a centre of positive economic trends, adding that the city has had the highest employment and enjoyed record low unemployment in the last ten years.

He pointed out that more than a billion kuna is being invested in the city, 609 plots have been sold in Osijek's IT park, and a public procurement is underway for the construction of a central IT park building, mostly co-financed by European Union (EU) funds.

He believes that the project will soon be successfully completed, which will be an additional motive for companies to come to Osijek.

For more, check out our dedicated business section.

May the 13th, 2022 - The Croatian company Valamar, which is huge and very well known in the tourism sector, is turning more and more towards solar power to provide electricity to its hotels by the year 2025.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Darko Bicak writes, the development of tourism in Croatia must be sustainable and be guided by the principles of the benefit of everyone and the environment, not pure profitability. This and more could be heard at the presentation of the cooperation between the Croatian company Valamar and E.ON recently in Porec.

It was emphasised that energy efficiency and renewable energy sources are one of the most important focuses of this principle.

SaIvana Budin Arhanic, a member of Valamar's Management Board, explained that they have been investing in renewable energy sources for years now, and currently they produce about about six percent of their own electricity. Over the past four years, Valamar has invested a total of 400 million kuna in energy efficiency projects.

"The amount of total electricity produced from RES corresponds to consumption on the island of Sv. Nikola in Porec and the tourist resources located here are completely covered from that source. However, the Croatian company Valamar, as a corporation, exclusively buys green energy, which in turn allows us to maintain the highest environmental EU standards,'' said Budin Arhanic. Alen Benkovic, Valamar's senior vice president for technology, pointed out that the 2nd and 3rd phases of the RES development project in Valamar are already being prepared.

"The plan is that by the year 2025, 20 percent of our consumption will come from our own sources. It's clear that there are many administrative and technical obstacles, but the goal is ambitious and we really do hope we manage to achieve it. It's more and more about respecting the environment and about ecology, but also security of supply and the price itself,'' said Benkovic.

Vedran Belamaric, Director of Energy Solutions at E.ON Croatia, pointed out that the project with the large Croatian company Valamar launched 2.5 years ago was very logistically demanding.

"This is a very innovative business model that includes a kind of ESCO, or BOT (Build Operate Transfer) model, so that at first the power plant is ours, until the sale of energy pays off, and then becomes the property of Valamar. It's a technically very demanding project that includes 26 locations with 68 facilities, installed capacities of 3.5 MW, which means about 5 GWh of electricity produced per year,'' explained Belamaric.

He added that they have significant problems, both in Istria and in the rest of Croatia, with bureaucracy and there are a number of solar power plants that have been built, but due to "paperwork" still can not be put into operation. Some of them have been waiting to be put into full function for more than a year now. The situation is almost the same with investments made by companies as with power plants installed by people themselves.

E.ON has implemented or is implementing about 50 projects across the Republic of Croatia for business users with a total installed capacity of 40 MW solar power plants, and they also have a large number of households in their impressive portfolio. Andreas Rorig, President of the Management Board of E.ON Croatia, pointed out at the aforementioned recent event in Porec that solar energy has the most significant growth potential in the coming years in Croatia.

"Istria and Dalmatia have 40 percent more insolation compared to, for example, Munich, creating the same percentage of earlier return on investment. By installing home solar power plants, we've helped our customers achieve energy efficiency and independence, and we're continuing to develop smart and diverse energy solutions tailored to the needs of modern households. Together with our business customers such as Valamar Riviera, Pliva, Zito Group, Bauhaus, Gavrilovic, Atlantic and other industry leaders and sustainability leaders, we're working hard in order to realise the solar potential of the Croatian market and shape that market together.

Throughout 2022, we're going to invest at least 12.5 million euros through BOT models with energy purchase agreements (PPAs) with our customers. In addition, we expect more than 25 million euros to invest in other solar projects that we're currently working on,'' concluded Rorig.

For more, check out our business section.

May the 12th, 2022 - The very successful Croatian company AKD is succeeding more internationally, having offered its solution to the neighbouring Slovenian Finance Ministry and been readily accepted for the job.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, for five years now, the Public Payments Administration of the Ministry of Finance has selected the Croatian company AKD and ED Solutions as the issuer of unique identification marks for unit and aggregate packaging of tobacco products as an integral part of the European Union's overall traceability system.

This is a continuation of successful cooperation because the system was first established back in May 2019, and neighbouring Slovenia then implemented the appropriate regulation (EU) 2018/574 on technical standards for the establishment and operation of traceability systems for tobacco products.

The greatest value of this system is in the information it makes available to bodies working to combat the operations of the black market, but the benefits are also reflected in the healthcare system - ensuring the easy verification of product origin, which allows for the swift removal of non-compliant products from the market.

It's worth noting that the Croatian company AKD was a leader in development processes in the European Union as a Croatian issuer, thanks to which the Republic of Croatia was the first member state to publish the official version of the system back in April 2019 and start registering business entities.

In addition, this Croatian company has established a traceability system for customs seals, alcoholic beverages, and will incorporate its knowledge and expertise and positive practices gained through successful projects to establish a traceability system for the production and distribution chain into new services in various sectors.

In the near future, the European Commission envisages the introduction of digital product passports, which will enable product labeling, identification and linking to various sources of information relevant to the circular economy and sustainability. According to CEO Jure Sertic, AKD is ready for new European Commission requirements regarding EU digital product passports which will enable end-users and customers to make better-informed decisions, increase transparency and assist national authorities in quality control and supervision.

For more, check out our business section.

May the 11th, 2022 - The global giant OYO Rooms has taken over the Croatian Direct Booker which has its origins in Dubrovnik and is eyeing further European expansion.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Marija Crnjak writes, with the aim of further expansion across Europe, the global online platform for tourist accommodation, OYO Rooms, has taken over the Croatian Direct Booker, an online agency founded in Dubrovnik which specialises in the management of units for tourist accommodation and technology development.

The founders of Direct Booker, Nino Dubretic and Nikola Grubelic, as well as IT expert Ivan Bogoje, remain within the company's management, and with this acquisition they have gained a strong global partner that will enable further growth and expansion in Europe.

The news of the takeover was announced by Grubisic & Partners, which was the exclusive financial advisor to the management and shareholders of the Croatian Direct Booker company throughout this process.

According to the announcement, Direct Booker is a top holiday rental agency based in Dubrovnik, specialising in holoday rental management and IT solutions. In addition to managing 3,250 accommodation units throughout the Republic of Croatia, the company also offers Booker Tools, an internally developed software system for real estate and channel management. The merger with OYO Rooms opens up new opportunities for the Croatian Direct Booker company to further grow and expand their IT solutions worldwide.

Headquartered in Guargaon, India, OYO Rooms is one of the world’s largest online travel and hospitality platforms with a presence in more than 80 countries around the world. Direct Booker has been added to its European subsidiary OYO Vacation Homes, which manages more than 140,000 holiday homes in 70 countries. OYO founded Ritesh Agarwal back in 2012, and initially their focus was on smaller hotels.

In less than a decade, the start-up has expanded rapidly and globally, with thousands of hotels and holiday homes and millions of rooms in its portfolio. Such rapid expansion has been achieved through the use of a technology-driven franchise model. With more than 5,000 employees, OYO Rooms generated revenues of 550 million US dollars in 2021 alone.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated business section.

May the 11th, 2022 - The Croatian company Sobocan's innovative product has seen the company take home bronze at the A’Design Award & Competition, placing Croatian products firmly at the forefront once again.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, following a series of international awards, the mobile office made by the Croatian company Sobocan won a bronze medal at the A’Design Award & Competition, which is known as the leading international design competition. According to the expert jury, bronze was awarded to the company for their movo model THE FREE SPIRIT.

The movo is available in seven different models, all of which are characterised by modern, innovative and functional design because they take up minimal space, and are very simple and easy to fold for work and mobility. Each of the models is entirely mobile, foldable, equipped with an electrical box and storage and has the possibility of being locked. The award-winning THE FREE SPIRIT model has delighted the profession with its elegance and simplicity.

THE FREE SPIRIT arose from Sobocan's idea that the work element is easily moved from one room to another. It therefore features oversized wheels and a handle that makes it very easy to move. When the worktop itself is closed, all the working material becomes invisible and the product becomes a closed element. In addition to the worktop, in the closed part of the product, there are two drawers, compartments for A3 and A4 paper sizes and a laptop, space for binders and a built-in box with power and USB inputs. The aesthetics of this compact product are very simple and as such can be adapted to an array of interiors, and veneered plywood and plastic-coated steel pipes follow modern trends in industrial design.

“Movo is one of the few Croatian brands that can boast of the prestigious A’Design Award and it is a great recognition for Croatian design. We at Sobocan are especially proud because movo is the first product of our own, which we conceptually developed and produced under the roof of our company. We're glad that movo models are recognised on the market as the right solution for the needs of functionality and flexibility of the workplace, as well as a top design solution,'' said Anamaria Burazin Eskinja, product designer and head of the Sobocan design studio.

The aforementioned competition which saw Sobocan's product take home bronze is otherwise the leading international design competition held each year, and awards are given in a variety of creative areas to highlight the best design solutions. The best works are selected in several categories according to the criteria of innovation, technical characteristics and the ability to solve complex design problems. The competition promotes the highest standards in design, advocating for a better understanding and importance of design in all aspects of life.

In addition to winning bronze at the A’Design Award & Competition, which is now the fourth world award in a row, movo has won the following prestigious international awards for design and innovation; German Innovation Award 2021, Iconic Awards - Innovative Interior 2021 and BIGSEE Wood design award 2021.

For more, check out Made in Croatia.

May the 8th, 2022 - The Croatian IT company Q has come together with the German startup Streamways and developed a mobile and web app for German driving school students to pass part of their driving tests.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the Croatian IT company Q, in cooperation with the German startup Streamways, has developed a mobile and web application that will help the younger generations and students of German driving schools to more easily master their driving theory exams. The solution was launched back in early February and is currently being used by over 30 driving schools in Germany.

The founders of Streamways - Christian Karstoft and Magnus Werner - came up with the idea while taking their own driving tests, when they noticed that the driving test system in Germany was very much outdated. Students of driving schools had to solve exactly 1,300 questions prescribed by the German state, as well as successfully pass the simulation of the exam five times in order to even get the right to take the theory exam.

This pair of young founders saw the space and opportunity to build a more modern application which would be more youth-friendly, and as such, they turned to the Croatian IT company Q. Q, in collaboration with Streamways, has created a platform that makes driving exams much easier and more fun. With it, the whole process doesn't look like learning, but instead a game, and each student can choose the pace at which they want to learn. An additional advantage is that through it, driving instructors can monitor the progress of their students.

“When creating this application, the main challenge was to increase the motivation and interest of students in learning, but also to find a way to engage them to master driving in a more interesting way. Therefore, the focus of our project was to empower young people to feel freer while gaining knowledge through the best digital educational experience,'' said Q CEO Filip Ljubic.

Streamways is available to German driving schools, and this new web and mobile edition is also available to students. Each lesson has its own three-minute video in which it explains to the participants the theory part of traffic regulations and rules, often referred to as the highway code. Streamways has optimised the application to motivate users to continuous learning, which is why they solve a quiz related to the material after each lesson. The Croatian IT company Q worked on the design and branding of the platform, patenting the desktop and mobile version of the app for students, as well as the desktop version for driving schools and administrators.

“The applications that were previously available to users weren't developed for young people who have grown up with digital technologies. In Germany, over a million people take their driving tests every year, and mastering the material through the application is mandatory. That's why we decided to develop a solution that would help end users find it easier to master the theory part of the test,'' added Christian Karstoft Madsen, co-founder and CEO of Streamways.

The Croatian IT company Q is otherwise continuing to grow its business across a variety of key markets, after the company was selected as one of the five finalists in this year’s EY Entrepreneur of the Year award. In addition to startups such as the German Streamways, the company also collaborates with already established brands such as Novartis, The Times, Manpower Group and many others.

For more, check out Made in Croatia.

May the 5th, 2022 - The Zagreb company CircuitMess is busy helping people in Nigeria further develop their technical skills thanks to a decision to team up with the Nigerian Shiny Gloves Club, which was made a couple of years ago.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Darko Bicak writes, the Zagreb company CircuitMess and the Nigerian Shiny Gloves Club have been collaborating for two years now, and last year, CircuitMess donated part of the proceeds from the sale of their DJ counter to their association to give as many Nigerian children as possible the opportunity to participate in their programme and develop their skills.

In one of their classrooms sits gifted and willing student Blessing Yohanna. She is a very bright young girl with a great interest and talent for electronics and making things. Unfortunately, she's in danger of becoming a part of some rather pessimistic statistics. According to a UNICEF survey, more than half of girls in northern Nigeria don't attend classes or have regular schooling. Although Blessing desperately wanted to continue her education and enroll in electrical engineering college, her parents dissuaded her from doing so because they could not afford to continue her education and didn't see any prospects in it as she is a female.

“When we heard that Blessing Yohanna was no longer attending classes and why, we wanted to do something about it. We contacted her family and asked them if we could send her some more of our kits directly to her home address, to encourage her to continue learning and developing her talent for electronics, at least from home,'' said Albert Gajsak, the CEO of the Zagreb company CircuitMess.

A visit by a Shiny Gloves Club employee to her family home bore fruit - when they saw how much Blessing was looking forward to these kits, they decided to give education another chance and allowed her to re-attend the workshops she loves so much.

"It's not that her family was vehemently opposed to her education, but just that they simply can't afford it. I don't think they wanted to give her false hope, because it's impossible for them to imagine that we could raise enough money for Blessing to go to the college she wants to attend so much,'' explained Albert.

That’s why  Shiny Gloves Club first launched the Go Fund Me campaign to raise funds to enable Blessing to continue to study electrical engineering.

“This campaign wasn't launched by us, but by our partners from the Shiny Gloves Club, but we want to do as much as we can to spread the word and help raise the necessary funds. The standard of living in Croatia is much higher than it is in Nigeria, and in most cases we can enroll in college for free. In order to be able to enroll in college, she needs to raise 10,000 US dollars. It seems like a lot, but I believe there are a lot of people who are willing to give up one coffee in a coffee shop or some other little things, and every kuna raised means a lot to make this a beautiful story with a happy ending. Thank you to everyone who donates and shares this news,'' concluded Albert Gajsak of the Zagreb company CircuitMess.

For more, check out Made in Croatia.