EWR Technik GmbH plans sustainably with EPLAN
Plant engineering à la carte - from freestyle to compulsory
“Our plant engineering is broadly based, because we plan and document for small to large standard and special-order work,” states Alexander Krabacher, Regional Manager for Electrical Installation and Plant Engineering at EWR Technik GmbH in Reutte. “To do this, however, we need a powerful engineering tool with which wecan serve all our customers’ industrial, commercial and building systems as well as our parent company,Elektrizitätswerke Reutte AG, sustainably, quickly, flexibly and reliably.The EPLAN software tools and their digital range offer us this in a unique way - à la carte, from the freestyle to the compulsory!"
By Luzia Haunschmidt, freelance editor
1901 marked the birth of Elektrizitätswerke Reutte in Tyrol. Sustainable and environmentally conscious commitment to energy supply for the region was, and still is, its comprehensive mission in all its fields of activity. Today, the steadily growing Elektrizitätswerke Reutte AG group of companies has continuously expanded its range of services to include everything from energy services for house builders to industrial companies.
Over the years, this has also developed into the area of electrical system construction for industrial, commercial and building customers, which has been operating as an independently managed subsidiary under the name EWR Technik GmbH since 2018. With its six service areas of electrical installation, systems engineering, fiber optics, IT services, security technology and smart home, EWR Technik GmbH offers a product portfolio with over 100 years of experience in electrical engineering. More than 100 employees and over 30 apprentices are currently working for the company.
From left to right: Michael Friedle, Alexander Krabacher and Christoph Alber - all EWR Technik GmbH employees in plant construction
A powerful engineering tool for wide-ranging system technology
In the systems engineering division, EWR Technik GmbH takes care of electrical installations and safety technology in distribution board construction, automation technology and e-checks for system inspections.
“In distribution board construction, we plan and manufacture switchgear for industrial, commercial and private customers - whether for low-voltage systems, production facilities, smart homes or various distribution boards,” explains Alexander Krabacher, Regional Manager for Electrical Installations and Systems Engineering at EWR Technik GmbH and introduces his closest colleagues: “Christoph Alber and Michael Friedle have been working in this department since 2009. Since then, they have managed and implemented numerous projects with a high level of expertise and extensive know-how in planning and digitalization.”
It goes without saying that Mr Alber and Mr Friedle need a high-quality planning tool for their engineering tasks. This is how Alexander Krabacher describes the process of finding such powerful software that is also capable of facilitating cross-company collaboration with customers and partners: “In the past, we had already made various attempts to use simple or lean programs - but we didn't get very far with them. When we tried EPLAN’s software for the first time, we were very impressed by the sheer range of different EPLAN solutions for a wide variety of disciplines and industries, as well as the associated services - if not to say it felt a few sizes too big for us. However, this first impression quickly faded, as the EPLAN portfolio offered us the opportunity to constantly grow with our tasks. Other key reasons for us to work with EPLAN are the fast responses, the regular updates, the comprehensive services, and the system's openness.
EPLAN really has a unique selling point here. Accordingly, we use EPLAN exclusively for all our control and design planning in the installation area - and already on the latest version 2025. The EPLAN Data Portal, with its unbeatably comprehensive range of articles from well-known component suppliers, provides us with particular support. This makes it much easier to maintain the quality of the items we use in our system planning. And we don't even need to mention the time saved in the search for suitable components. EPLAN has now become the basis of our services, and we appreciate every dynamic further development of all programs and digital applications. You could even say that EPLAN has made a significant contribution to our high market position in plant project planning! “
EPLAN design of a PLC for a lifting system using EPLAN macro technology.
# EPLAN - in use from the first planning step ...
... Christoph Alber comments: “We mainly work with the EPLAN Electric P8 version. As the person primarily responsible for creating distribution diagrams and documentation for all our customer projects, I design the circuit diagrams. The EPLAN Data Portal helps me to find the right components for our customer requirements and to incorporate them directly into the circuit diagram creation. At the end of the day, the level of detail of the products and the macros or 3D data provided for a 3D structure save design effort and time. An essential part is then also the 3D design of the control cabinet. Here we document the complete system or the plant overview including the corresponding environment. This applies to 50 % industrial plants and 50 % building applications. No matter which standard or special orders we have to manage, with EPLAN everything always works perfectly and without complications!”
… for small to large projects
“All of our customers also include major projects that we manage on an ongoing basis,” adds Michael Friedle, providing examples: „For example, we have been planning the safety technology for the building management system of a well-known industrial customer since 2011 - from the signaling of sophisticated sensor technology to dynamic network connections. We have been able to bring this project to a very dynamic level over the years using EPLAN together and exclusively with EPLAN professionals. This team has a high level of expertise and responsibility - especially when it comes to sensitive analyses. Such extensive projects can hardly be realized with any other engineering software than EPLAN. This is because EPLAN has a structure that can link and document everything from production areas down to axis layouts, a wide variety of control systems from different suppliers and fiber optic connections and networks. There are no problems with system breaks or incompatibility with interfaces. All of this is underpinned by seamless, secure collaboration between all project partners across all trades and companies. “
… up to compliance with ÖVE/ÖNORM
“EPLAN even supports us with e-checks to ensure compliance with the statutory ÖVE/ÖNORM test intervals in the production of switchgear. This enables us to guarantee our customers that their electrical systems are functioning properly,” says Alexander Krabacher, explaining one of the many other EPLAN software functions in more detail: „To this end, we support our customers in the private and commercial sectors from visual inspection, measurement, testing and reporting through to the installation log. For this purpose, we receive the design plans from our clients, usually created in EPLAN - often as prototypes - and build the corresponding switchgear. As planning errors occur again and again in the very dynamic construction plans, we sometimes intervene directly in the respective design by means of the EPLAN multifunctional tool API (Application Programming Interface) to correct the planning. Over the years, we have been able to build up another very stable pillar of our business by providing our customers with such competent plant documentation.“
... even when it comes to infrastructure planning
Due to its EWR origins, one would assume that another obvious field of activity for EWR Technik GmbH would be power plant construction. However, as all of their power plants naturally last for tens of years, EWR Technik GmbH only takes on the overhaul of old plants or individual parts of them in isolated cases.
“However, around three years ago, we planned the wastewater network and flood protection for the town of Reutte and its neighboring communities and continue to manage both projects,” reports Alexander Krabacher about an infrastructure contract that originated from EWR. And Michael Friedle adds: “Here, too, we use EPLAN software solutions to create circuit diagrams for spring water and pumping station systems for the water supply of municipalities and mountain huts. However, in infrastructure planning - such as for hydropower plants - all our various contacts are still using different software systems. This undoubtedly complicates co-operation with us for our external planning partners. However, they can see how we benefit from EPLAN in our work, which is why an increasing number of our infrastructure partners are also considering using EPLAN.“
Control cabinet for the pumping station of the flood protection system for the town of Reutte and its neighboring communities - planned, built and maintained by the employees of EWR Technik GmbH on behalf of EWR AG.
Visualization of the Siemens SIMATIC control system via HMI touch panel of the pumping station for flood protection.
What's coming up soon?
“We therefore hope that EPLAN will establish itself as the software standard used in our environment over the next few years,” says Alexander Krabacher, completing his colleague's train of thought, “because this would bring enormous advantages for all project engineers, especially in the hydropower and electricity industries in their project areas of maintenance, condition monitoring and predictive maintenance, but also security of supply for the energy suppliers themselves and their customers.”
Following these considerations, Mathias Kapeller, Sales Manager Industrial Energy at EPLAN, adds informatively: “There is a lot going on in the energy technology sector in particular - regardless of whether it is generation or distribution. Our EPLAN Data Portal is constantly being expanded with well-known suppliers and their components. But there are also constant upgrades on the software side. For example, energy-specific IEC symbols have been included in the libraries with the 2025 platform. The various software versions of the EPLAN platform also offer unlimited engineering benefits for the entire energy sector, which many customers in the energy sector have long appreciated. For example, they traditionally use EPLAN Electric P8 for creating circuit diagrams and macros, EPLAN Pro Panel for the 3D design of an enclosure and the digital twin or preplanning to access existing information or structures in the pre-planning phase, incorporate them into their planning and thus be able to start with efficient engineering. And these are just a few examples of the versatility of the best solutions that EPLAN offers in engineering!”
“If that's not a good outlook - then what is?” is the common final chord of the discussion group mentioned here, which moves its chairs in order to hastily set off for new engineering shores ...
Matthias Kapeller, EPLAN Sales Manager Industrial Energy
