In silent memory
The Pfeifer Group mourns the loss of its co-founder Oskar Pfeifer, who passed away on 18 June 2025 at the age of 91. With his passing, the European wood industry has lost an extraordinary entrepreneurial personality whose life's work is deeply rooted in the DNA of our company.
After joining his mother Barbara's sawmill in 1948, Oskar Pfeifer was a driving force behind the company's expansion, innovation and increased efficiency for over six decades. From the 1970s in particular, he set important entrepreneurial milestones: in 1971, he initiated the construction of a plant for three-layer concrete shuttering panels in Imst. In 1988, he started the production of glulam at the headquarters, thus laying the foundations for the successful development of the European market, particularly in Italy. As early as 1996, he made a visionary investment in pellet production - a business segment that characterises the Pfeifer Group today with plants in six countries. He is also largely responsible for the industrial utilisation of sidings for the production of pallet boards and numerous technical innovations in the sawmill sector. His pragmatic working style and his clear focus on profitability were groundbreaking for the entire organisation. His motto ‘The machines must run’ became a lived philosophy.
Until the takeover of the Heggenstaller Group in 2005, Oskar Pfeifer was heavily involved in the operational business. This acquisition marked the beginning of an internationally orientated expansion strategy, which was later consistently continued under the leadership of his son Michael Pfeifer with the integration of Holzindustrie Chanovice (Czech Republic, 2016) and the Finnish Pölkky Group (2023).
For all the greatness of his entrepreneurial endeavours, Oskar Pfeifer was characterised by a deep personal modesty and genuine down-to-earthness. He remained closely associated with the company into old age and followed developments at our sites with great interest - especially in workforce were an indispensable part of his everyday life. He met people at eye level - with interest, appreciation and a keen sense of what holds the company together at its core. His presence was not of a formal nature, but an expression of genuine solidarity with the company and the people who support it.
The Pfeifer Group will honour his memory and carry his vision into the future with energy.