The Supervisory Board of Heinzel Holding GmbH is pleased to announce the appointment of Karl Achleitner (MEng, MBA) as Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Heinzel Holding, effective September 2, 2024. Achleitner will join the top management team of HEINZEL GROUP, alongside CEO Sebastian Heinzel.
Karl Achleitner (born 1977) brings extensive industry experience to his new role. He began his career at the Laakirchen paper mill in Austria, training as a paper technician in the 1990s. He later served, amongst other roles, as assistant to the production manager on Laakirchen’s PM10 from 2002 to 2007. Achleitner's career then took him to the United Kingdom (Aylesford Newsprint Ltd. 2007-2011) and Australia (Orora Paper 2011-2018). Most recently (2018-2024), Achleitner held the position of Senior Vice President Operations Paper at Progroup Paper in Germany, being responsible for the company’s containerboard machines as a member of Progroup AG’s executive management team. Achleitner holds degrees in Paper Manufacturing and Business Administration.
Dr. Kurt Maier, HEINZEL GROUP’s current COO, has recently been elected President of the Styrian Industries, a chapter of the Federation of Austrian Industries, and is therefore stepping down from his operational role at Heinzel. Kurt Maier will continue to represent HEINZEL GROUP on advisory boards and in advocacy groups. He will also remain associated with Heinzel’s Pöls mill as a Supervisory Board member.
Heinzel Group’s CFO Barbara Potisk-Eibensteiner will step down from her role on December 31, 2024 to pursue a new opportunity outside the company. A search for a new CFO has been started with immediate effect to complete the new top management team of Heinzel Group.