The ISS Group has expanded operations in high growth Central and Eastern Europe. Bosnia has now become the 49th country with an ISS operation.
ISS has entered Bosnia and Herzegovina with an industrial maintenance contract in Banja Luka. The company is set up as a subsidiary of ISS Slovakia following the cross-border request of one of its key customers - the paper mill SHP Harmanec, who also operates a factory in Bosnia.
Outstanding performance in the parent company in Harmanec, the Slovak Republic, in the field of Property Services and Technical Maintenance is the major reason for SHP management to expand co-operation with ISS both inside and outside the territory of Slovakia.
"It is very rewarding and interesting for ISS Slovakia to expand business to a new economy together with one of our major clients who trusts us to run the industrial maintenance services for Celex, their Bosnian subsidiary. We will share and transfer the knowledge from our home market to develop the business for ISS in Bosnia," said Honor Ilavsky, Country Manager for ISS in Slovakia.
Bosnia is placed at the heart of the Balkans and has made tremendous progress since 1995 following the end of the war in former Yugoslavia. Based on its impressive economic recovery and sustained social stability the country can be considered a post-conflict success story. The government is putting high focus on improving competitiveness by fostering sustainable private sector-led growth. Bosnia has around 4 Million inhabitants. Real GDP Growth in 2006 is estimated at around 5%.
The aim of the newly-established ISS company is to operate in Banja Luka, but also to expand its activities into other geographical areas including Sarajevo and Mostar, both in the form of organic growth and through acquisitions. The planned turnover for 2007 amounts to around €1 million.