Our clients trust us. Read how Augusta Buntmetalle renewed and extended its long-term policy alongside Coface in Austria.
Augusta Buntmetalle, a highly specialized company
Founded in Austria in 1951 as a tin and lead processing company, Augusta Buntmetalle GmbH is today an highly specialized company with around 40 staff active in the disassembly of cables and electronic waste.
Concretely, they turn obsolete and disused cables, scrap metal and electronic waste into reusable material cycle. The company focus on:
- Cable recycling to produce valuable raw materials.
- Electronic waste to give them a second lease of life.
- Disassembly: full dismantling and optimum recycling
Augusta Buntmetalle is part of the Augusta Group, owned by Ing. Anton Pucher which provide a wide range of services such as demolition, recycling, waste management… In 2022, Augusta Buntmetalle reported an annual turnover of €40.5 million, representing an evolution of 22% year-on-year!
TradeLiner, a comprehensive solution designed for SMEs
Before trusting Coface, Augusta Buntmetalle operated without a credit insurance program. In 2019, Augusta asked its broker Greco to investigate credit insurance solutions so it could seize opportunities to grow with limited financial risks. They needed a credit insurer that follow them at a local level and meet their main need: develop their business with complete peace of mind and protect the company from any unpaid bills from its customers.
For our company, it was a very important step to have this protection against payments default in place.
- Harald PALUCH, Accountant at Augusta Buntmetalle
The broker Greco recommended Coface as it is a leader in trade credit insurance with a capacity to insure trade in over 200 countries and support Augusta growing operations. Coface’s international reach meant that Augusta was able to expand its business and win new orders, without worrying about bad debt. “In fact, we tried to find a credit insurance company for this purpose and finally we decided to sign with Coface”, underlines Harald Paluch. For Augusta, Coface’s credit insurance was the most cost-effective way to limit its exposure to client insolvency.
Renewed confidence and policies extended
Augusta selected TradeLiner, Coface’s solution designed for SMEs. The policy covers domestic and export trade and includes the use of CofaNet, Coface’s online policy management tool, where policyholders can manage their contract efficiently, essentially by requesting limits and submitting claims information.
In 2022, Augusta Buntmetalle renewed its confidence in Coface and added new policies to the portfolio. This renewal was also an opportunity to improve the underwriting ratio. An important criterion for this customer! “It was a very important decision to have a Coface trade credit insurance… Simply to be able to sleep peacefully! And the best thing? When you do not to have to use the trade credit insurance!”, says Harald Paluch.
Tips to take away
- Quality of service: a continuous responsive and solution-oriented approach.
- Expertise: efficient solutions on contract-relevant topics (clauses) and the capability of Coface to understand a specialized business and its challenges.
- Collaboration: quality broker experience & excellent alignment between Account Management and Underwriting (Risk & Commercial).
