Companies are relocating to Rontal in increasing numbers, and existing businesses are expanding. The upbeat mood of change that is afoot in the valley is finding some tangible entrepreneurial expression. One major plus-point for Future Valley Lucerne as an economic centre is its location: Rontal is only around 60 minutes away from Zürich Airport by road or rail. As a link between Greater Lucerne and the Zürich-Zug conurbation, it is part of the Zürich metropolitan area. Travel to Rontal in the heart of central Switzerland will become faster still when the gap in the A4 motorway is closed in 2010. Reserves of available, good-value land are a further plus.
Knowledge-intensive, innovative technologies and services are strongly on the ascendant. The D4 Business Center Lucerne and Technopark®Lucerne are two particularly impressive and representative developments for the valley as a whole. In four years of operation, the state-of-the-art business centre has steadily expanded its premises and at present provides an attractive domicile for 80 companies. A prominent seed tenant is Technopark®Lucerne. It provides support for start-up companies and promotes technology transfer at national and international level. Both Technopark and the D4 Business Center embody creative networking in a stimulating environment, high-class contemporary architecture, and a comprehensive range of services. Next to this fresh impetus, the valley has long been able to count on strong businesses like the Schindler Group, Migros and Perlen Papier AG. With 12,316 jobs, industry accounts for 41% of employment in Rontal.
