Brandenburg is Productive
The independent polling institute Info Berlin conducted a survey among companies that operate in Brandenburg and at other locations: two thirds of the businesses polled consider that productivity is higher in Brandenburg than at other locations or even at the company headquarters. The main reasons for the increased productivity are the state-of-the-art technology solutions and production facilities (44%), the optimization of in-house processes, and the availability of skilled workforce (17%).
Productivity higher in Brandenburg than at the company headquarters
The productivity in Eastern Germany amounts to 78.6% of the average in Western Germany. Closer analysis, however, reveals that this average figure paints a distorted picture. For example, the productivity in Brandenburg’s manufacturing industry (except building trade) lies at 86.3% of the average value in Western Germany.
Productivity on the Fast Lane
Several important industries (Measurement/Control technology, Chemical industry, Wood industry) even boast productivity rates above the West German level (Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung Halle, IWH). Moreover, productivity in the East German processing industry differs considerably subject to the property relations: “Productivity in the subsidiaries of West German companies [lies] 12% above the West German average [...], and in the subsidiaries of foreign companies the figure is even as high as 40%.”
Brandenburg is the champion for productivity in Eastern Germany since several years and achieves far better results than the new EU member states in Central and Eastern Europe (ZAB business location survey).
Structural Differences
The productivity lag between Eastern and Western Germany mainly results from different company scales. The Halle-based IWH institute accordingly states: “At least in the processing industry, the scale of the companies can explain the productivity lag almost entirely.”
Favorable Atmosphere
According to the study by Info Berlin, two thirds of the companies polled are extremely satisfied with the productivity of their business in Brandenburg.
Sources: Info GmbH Berlin, 2006; BMWi; Statistische Ämter der Länder; Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung Halle, 2005; Ministerium für Arbeit, Soziales, Gesundheit und Familie, Brandenburg, MASGF, 2007; IAB, 2007.