Franz Czerweny of Arland
Franz Czerweny von Arland (born March 26, 1848 in Trautenau , † April 13, 1921 in Deutschlandsberg ) was an Austrian industrialist and entrepreneur. He played a key role in the merger of all important ignition goods factories in the monarchy to form SOLO-Zündwaren- und Wichsefabriken AG in 1903.
biography
childhood and education
Franz Czerweny von Arland, son of the watchmaker Anton Czerweny and his wife Magdalena born. Hürbe was the youngest of nine children. Although the father owned a reputable business, the boy grew up in modest circumstances.
At the age of 12, Czerweny had to leave his parents' house to do a business apprenticeship with his uncle who lives in Arnau . After a three-year apprenticeship, on the initiative of his brother Moritz, he switched to the Patzelt'sche Handelsschule in Vienna, where he completed his training. He then made his first experiences as a practical merchant with the materials dealer and druggist Weinwurm in Vienna.
Professional background
Thanks to the acquaintance of his brother Moritz with Karl Franz, the partner in Florian Pojatzi's ignition goods factory in Deutschlandsberg, Franz Czerweny was able to take up a position as commercial manager in the factory on March 1, 1866.
On October 8, 1873, he married the eldest daughter of his employer, Marianne Pojatzi, with whom he had two daughters and two sons. At that time, Czerweny was working as office manager and authorized signatory in the company. From 1879 he took over the commercial management of the Zündwarenfabrik together with his father-in-law Florian Pojatzi. After he withdrew from active management in 1892, the company management was transferred to Franz Czerweny.
Great economic difficulties, which resulted mainly from the establishment of numerous match factories in Europe and the resulting competition, made the transition to a "reduced operation" necessary at this time. In 1898 and 1899 he gave his sons Robert and Viktor extensive management skills. He had the company deleted from the commercial register in 1899 and instead registered the company as a sole proprietorship under the same name with him as the owner.
Through the merger of the largest match factories in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Czerweny founded the SOLO-Zündwaren- und Wichsefabriken AG in 1903, which he managed together with Bernhard Fürth as general director. The company employed 3,000 people. Annual sales rose from 7 million kroner (approx. 70 million euros) in 1903 to 15 million kroner (75 million euros) in 1913, with 6 million being exported.
Franz Czerweny and his sons Viktor and Robert achieved world fame with an automatic match machine, an innovation that was operated by three workers and produced 1,000,000 matches per hour worked. The machines, for which there was a world patent , were produced in large numbers and used worldwide.
His care for his employees was evident in various foundations such as the Czerweny Workers' Home Foundation. The listed Czerweny-Heim on Dr.-Karl-Renner-Weg belongs to this foundation. In 1913 Czerweny retired, most of which he spent in Vienna.
Social and political work
From 1895 to 1907 he was a councilor for the Deutschlandsberg community and was a member of the savings bank committee and the local school council, chairman of the district committee and a founding member of the tennis and beautification club. He also undertook the foundation of extensive grounds on the Wolfgangsberg.
death
In 1920 Franz Czerweny returned to Deutschlandsberg. He died there on April 13, 1921.
Awards
In 1906, Deutschlandsberg honored him by granting him honorary citizenship . Markt Stainz also made him an honorary citizen. Two years later the community erected a bronze plaque for him under the summit of the Wolfgang mountain.
For his services to the general welfare and the national economy, the state honored him with the title of commercial council . On February 10, 1911, the Officer's Cross of the Franz Josef Order was awarded. In 1918, Emperor Karl I was accepted into the hereditary nobility with the title "Noble von Arland" (ARLAND = Arnfels and Landsberg (= Deutschlandsberg)).
literature
- L. Reichenwallner: Chronicle of the Deutschlandsberg factory, the "SOLO" Zündwaren u. chem. Factories A.-G. Vienna. D. Landsberg 1930.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b L. Reichenwallner: Chronicle of the Deutschlandsberg factory. P. 15.
- ↑ Calculation according to table
- ↑ Family history on website
- ↑ L. Reichenwallner (1930): p. 17
- ↑ L. Reichenwallner (1930): p. 21
- ↑ L. Reichenwallner (1930): p. 22
- ↑ L. Reichenwallner (1930): p. 22
- ↑ L. Reichenwallner (1930): p. 17.
- ↑ L. Reichenwallner (1930): p. 22
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Czerweny von Arland, Franz |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Austrian industrialist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 26, 1848 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Trautenau |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 13, 1921 |
| Place of death | Deutschlandsberg |