History

40 Years öti in the year 2007

The ÖTI was founded in 1967 as Austrian Carpet Reseearch Institute (Österreichisches Teppich-Forschungsinstitut) as an initiave of the at that time numerous Austrian carpet producers. Aim of the organsation was to run an authorsized test and research lab. The first location of the institute was the small city of Mödling near Vienna. The management was entrusted to to the teacher und co-worker of the "Versuchsanstalt" of the higher education textile school in Viennas fifth district, Prof. Dipl.Ing. Wilhelm Herzog.

Already 1970 a second remote flat had to be used for capacity reasons and planing for a new institutes building in Mödling was started. Meanwhile the diretor of the textile HTL and his authorities tried to establish a textile educational, research and testing center including the school, the "Versuchsanstalt, the Austrian Fibre Research institute and the ÖTI. A cooperation contract was drawn up resulting in the move of the ÖTI to the fifth district of Vienna in 1974. In the same year the fibre institute under Dr. Lebensaft moved.

1978 ÖTI took over this instute merging to the Austrian Textil Research Institute (Österreichischen Textil-Forschungsinstitut). Now the areas of responsibility were supporting the whole textile sector with R&D and test services.

In the following years ÖTI witnessed a steady growth in customers, turn over and employees and also an increase in international involvement. With a recline in numbers of producers in any segment the significance of multilateral research alse decreased giving more importance to testing and assesment. The institue also was known for developing new test methods and the respective test equipment, it also could produce and sell on request.

Around 1987 producers pro-acted to consumers sensibilisation for issues of textile ecology and health. With the ÖTN 100 - a test and certification sheme - an independent proof of health related properties of textiles could be provided. The focus on human ecology and chemical analytical testing enlarged the competence and the internationality of the ÖTI's activities on its twentieth anniversary. Accordingly 4 years later the International Association Öko-Tex was founded togehter with the Hohenstein Institutes, leading to 20-year of the Öko-Tex Standard 100.

Beginning of the Ninetees self-conception of the institute significantly changed. Quality of service always beeing an self-evident imperative, the institue decided to have its quality management system accredited as on of the first Austrian labs. Nowadays ÖTI is accredited to EN-ISO 17025 by the "Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Arbeit" and also bei the "Österreichisches Institut für Bautechnik" for testing and surveilance.

1995 Prof. Herzog handed over the management of the insitute institute to the head of his analytical lab Dr. Erich Zippel, who is managing director from then on.

During the ninetees ÖTI enlarged its competence area into many adjacent areas. It sucessfully covered toys and comforters and developed from mere carpetz testing to a center of competence for all question related to floor coverings. Thus ÖTI now is the instiute with the broadest spectrum of services rendered in its field with a modern full service orientation and a international approach.

The logo "ÖTI" 1998 was redified as the competence claim for Ökologie, Technik und Innovation (Ecology, Technology and Innovation). 2007 a rework of the legal basic structures resulted in that beeing also the name on the institution ÖTI – Institut für Ökologie, Technik und Innovation.

In this year an other essential step in extending the international involvement was made with the establishment of a branch office in Cairo, a central focus point and driving force of the Euro-Med region.

After a well-tried cooperation with the HTL and roughly 10 years of a warm-up phase sigificant steps could be taken into the refurbishment of the whole school location with the planing of a whole new lab-building also accomodating the ÖTI.

2009 the company name is changed to ÖTI - Institut für Ökologie, Technik und Innovation GmbH (Institute of Ecology, Technics and Innovation Ltd.)
2010 new branch offices were founded in Guatemala, Honduras, Morocco, the Philippines and the Arab Emirates.