13.10.2014

Josef Prangl 1927 – 2014

We have received the belated news that Josef Prangl, founder of Austrian based crane and access rental company Prangl, died on September 27th. He was 87.
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Josef Prangl

Prangl was born in March 1927 in the small village of Gabersdorf, near Leibnitz- south of Graz in Austria. His parents owned and operated a general store. After leaving secondary school he studied at the Teacher Training Institute in Graz, after graduating in 1948 he became a primary school teacher in Leibnitz, moving on to secondary schools in Strasbourg and Leutschach.

In 1951 he took a year away from teaching and opened a used motorcycle business. He then returned to teaching at a secondary school in Straden Radkersburg and taught until 1954.

In 1955 he moved to Vienna and had another go at running his own business founding a panel-beating company called Ferroplast which also sold road signs.

Five years later he founded a truck and trailer dealership – ‘Josef Prangl Truck Centre’ and in 1965 he established his final company Prangl – specialising in crane rental and heavy transport.

Growth was rapid and in 1967 the young company acquired a 6,000 square metre site in Simmering. In 1974 he set up a depot in Graz and by 1980 had outgrown the original Simmering facility and moved to a 10,000 square metre site in Brunn am Gebirge. Today it covers over 26,000 square metres. A large operation in Vienna followed five years later. He built the business consistently over the years into a strong national player and then began to expand into other parts of Europe. It currently employs 650 with revenues in 2012 of over €90 million.

His son Christian joined the company in 2000 and took over the day to day management of the business in 2003, although Prangl senior remained closely involved with the business until the end

A memorial service is planned for Saturday, October 18th at 10 clock will be held at the Vienna cemetery Mauer.