Salzburg Crafts Prize: Flachgau entrepreneur sails to victory
A sailing yacht, a church tower, a motorcycle and a grain silo are just a few of the main players in this year’s Salzburg Crafts Prize.
The Sunbeam 32.1 is a complete success. That was certain for Andreas Schöchl from Sunbeam Yachts in Mattsee, even before he found out that he WILL take first place in the company of the Salzburg Chamber of Commerce with the completely new sailing yacht. “We sold 30 pieces in the first seven weeks.” Production will be busy for the next two years.
Peter Lienbacher from Lienbacher Holzbauwerk in Kuchl is happy about second place. The silo tower of the Lerchenmühle Wieser in Golling was rebuilt with the wooden grain box. Not a classic silo tower, but a structure made of steel and wood that is supposed to represent an ear of grain. The use of pre-grayed wooden boards is reminiscent of “Troad boxes”, the panes on the south and west facades are provided with photovoltaic modules. “The big challenges for us were statics and building physics”, says company boss Peter Lienbacher.
An order from a motorcycle freak brought Herbert Lanner from Radstadt and his company Ace Motorcycles third prize. A Harley-Davidson FLSTF was converted to the main frame in 720 working hours. The drive was also redesigned and the displacement increased from 1450 to 2084 ccm. “Then the customer wanted a compressor as well.” That was more than tricky. But it pays off. The motorcycle caused a sensation and it was featured in specialist magazines in France and Canada. The costs for the conversion are in the six-digit euro range.
Ronald Patsch and Andreas Wanger have dedicated themselves to the ancient craft of lime plastering. They founded Kalkputzer OG in Stuhlfelden in 2021 and immediately pulled up a challenging project with the renovation of the church tower in Piesendorf. For this, the jury of the handicraft prize awarded one of two recognition prizes. Incorrect renovation had caused major damage to the tower. “We then dismantled it down to the basic substance and plastered it again using old craftsmanship.” For this purpose, building sand was shoveled out of the Salzach by hand. “Because you don’t get it like that in any gravel works”, says Patsch, he is pleased that old craft is being honored.
Despite all the festive mood about the achievements of the craftsmen, Josef Mikl, chairman of the trade and crafts division, points out a blatant shortage of apprentices in the companies. “They are looking for young talent.” 1,400 open apprenticeships are compared to 400 prospective apprentices. According to Mikl, a survey by the Chamber of Commerce shows that the image of teaching is increasing, especially in western Austria.
Salzburg Crafts Prize: 1st place for Sunbeam Yachts
Nice to imagine in July, the Sunbeam 32.1 from Sunbeam Yachts caused a sensation in Mattsee. Now she has won first place at the 31st Salzburg Crafts Prize. Followed by the Wooden Corn Box construction project by Lienbacher Holzbauwerk and the motorcycle conversion project by Herbert Lanner from Radstadt. The recognition prizes go to the photographer Ralf Weichselbaumer with the project “Implementation of the Image Ideas” and to Kalkputzer OG in Stuhlfelden for the renovation of the church tower in Piesendorf. You will be honored on October 16 at the “Festival of Crafts”.