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businesses to go further faster in their efforts to be more sustainable Multidisciplinary professional services organization Every one of us has looked through a microscope at one time or another driven by the curiosity to see something that is invisible to the naked eye Scan from Preddvor pri Kranju has been selling and repairing electron microscopes and other laboratory equipment in the former Yugoslav region for 31 years They sell and represent world-renowned manufacturers of electron microscopes The family company currently employs nine people and earns around €1.7 million in revenue The equipment they sell is used by research institutes and companies in different industries who have their own R&D and control labs They also offer comprehensive training and servicing support to the customers who buy their state-of-the-art instruments Scan was founded in 1990 by Slavko Žižek and today the second generation of the family is actively involved in the company responsibility and honesty and their ambitions for the future are to remain a leading company with service staff trained in electron microscopy Slavko got a job at the Institute of Electronics and Vacuum Technology “They were looking for someone who could work with the well-known Japanese company since they recognized his potential,” recalls his wife Mojca Slavko began his career by servicing the Japanese equipment across all regions of Yugoslavia driven by the flourishing computing industry several engineers began leaving the Institute Jeol wanted to continue working with him and with their encouragement he opened his own company The first year was hard; they had almost no sales and business came largely from repair and maintenance work Scan worked with two strong brands – Jeol and Oxford Instruments – but the market was very unpredictable at the time and a year later it completely collapsed due to the Balkan wars.Despite the difficult times Slavko continued repairing electron microscopes: “I was the only one repairing and maintaining electron microscopes in the former Yugoslav region There was a lot of demand for these microscopes which are needed in several industries to inspect sample surfaces viruses and bacteria.” They established strong relationships with clients and maintained close ties but there was no money because of the war,” explains Mojca who still worked as a high-school IT teacher at the time Slavko and Mojca believed in their entrepreneurial venture They were backed by excellent business partners and had a competitive advantage as the first company offering such services in the former Yugoslavian market In time they found another strong partner in the field of vacuum technology plus their excellent repair and maintenance services ensured continuous development of the company and Slavko received increasing orders When he could no longer manage the business on his own Mojca joined him in 1993 and later they employed another repair specialist and a business assistant which meant that I was already kind of involved who quickly found her place in the company though she sometimes still misses teaching We had to increase sales in our vacuum program Jernej’s guiding philosophy is that the best foundation for good sales is a good maintenance and repair service and excellent technical knowledge of the product: “You have to be confident in what you sell.” although he admits that he did not want to work for the family company at first “I always wanted to travel and gain experience abroad but when I finished studying my parents needed help and because I like to help I changed my career plans,” explains Martin Maintenance and repair work is very diverse and today he enjoys it very much: “I like that the work is very varied There is no such thing as too much knowledge Their third child was born with cerebral palsy which is why Mojca has put her heart into volunteering in this field for years “I’ve been the President of the Regional Association for Cerebral Palsy and I’ve been helping with various projects for more than 15 years We help families with children with cerebral palsy by organizing lectures for the parents as well as therapies and vacation camps for children,” explains Mojca who finds personal satisfaction in helping others All family members volunteer for the association The specialized nature of work in Scan means that every new employee needs additional training “It takes a while before they can work independently The most important characteristics are persistence We are building the best customer support team for the best equipment in the world,” explains Slavko “Our former employees sometimes thank us for all the knowledge they gained while working with us We appreciate people who can think for themselves and organize their own work but who are also team-oriented and like to keep learning,” says Slavko of the characteristics of their employees “In our field you work with the latest technologies I started repairing electron microscopes when they still had electron tubes then there were transistors and microprocessors The next thing is development of AI,” explains Slavko Martin adds: “We are working with state-of-the-art equipment Being able to repair equipment most people don’t even know exists is a special challenge.” The Žižeks say that they do need new people but also point out how difficult it is to find good technical talent these days “The most important thing is that they are eager for challenges but it depends on their individual working habits and how much they are prepared to sacrifice,” says Jernej who made well-being in the family company his priority Interpersonal relationships and communication skills are highly valued in the company They have a professional relationship with all employees and do not pay attention to family ties “Slavko encourages everyone to attend training related not only to the technical part of our work but also to relationships within the company such as workshops on communication and values,” explains Mojca “Repair and maintenance services require more than just good work both with customers and within the company,” confirms Martin They act respectfully and responsibly to everyone they encounter as part their work: customers “It means a lot to us that people feel responsible for their work One thing that bothers me is when people try to shift their responsibility to someone else You have to stand behind your work and take responsibility for it,” points out Mojca a good working environment and conditions and mutual respect – the first step of which is respect for yourself – are their priorities The Žižeks are aware that the field of electron microscopy offers many opportunities for further development which is why their aims are healthy growth and gradual expansion of their activities “We also have some ideas for our own products but we always have so many things going on that we simply do not have time for product development,” says Martin “We want to expand our maintenance and repair network and put our own representative in every country of the former Yugoslav region But this requires a certain capacity of instruments and it must be financially viable,” says Slavko Jernej sees further potential in offering comprehensive solutions adding: “To reach a breakthrough and make a step forward we must either have our own products or expand even further.” the sons will take over the reins and continue writing the family success story “We have no doubt that the boys will successfully take the company forward It will be easier for them than it was for us in the beginning when we sometimes made mistakes,” explain the parents happily of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited The FIVB is the governing body responsible for all forms of Volleyball on a global level Working closely with national federations and private enterprises to develop Volleyball as a popular media and entertainment sport FIVB Fédération Internationale de Volleyball Château Les Tourelles Edouard-Sandoz 2-4 1006 Lausanne Switzerland Phone: +41 213 453 535 Fax: +41 213 453 545 Learn how to describe the purpose of the image (opens in a new tab) Leave empty if the image is purely decorative Strong winds and heavy rain trigger 230 weather-related events across the country Slovenia was hit by heavy rain and strong winds on Friday as a series of storms brought an abrupt end to a prolonged hot and dry spell More than 230 weather-related events including flooding and landslides have been reported across the country The worst-hit regions were in the Gorenjska municipality of Preddvor which experienced similarly devastating floods last August a bridge was swept away by a swollen stream while residents from three houses were evacuated after being engulfed by a landslide Scouts and hikers were affected by the treacherous conditions and firefighters moved 47 Belgian scouts to a hotel after their camp was swept away Five German scouts were rescued from a ridge above Lake Bohinj The floods struck after 58mm (2.3in) of rain fell on the nearby city of Ljubljana on Friday evening with more likely to have fallen over the northern mountains in Koroska The wet conditions follow an extended period of hot weather across the country which has been 3-7C above average since 8 July with daily highs in the low-30s celsius East of the Philippines a tropical depression developed into Tropical Storm Gaemi on Saturday The storm, which has mean wind speeds of 51mph (82km/h) and gusts up to 67mph, is expected to strengthen as it passes over the warm seas south and east of Taiwan the third tropical storm of the typhoon season in the Pacific is projected to develop into a typhoon early this week hitting the island by Wednesday or Thursday it is forecast to have a radius of 220km and approach waters east of Taiwan Free weekly newsletterThe planet's most important stories Get all the week's environment news - the good Ferry services between Taitung county and the Orchid and Green islands will be suspended from Tuesday to Thursday The ministers Tonin and Banožić started the talks by discussing the situation in Ukraine and the assistance to Ukrainians provided by both countries They talked about the experience of their respective countries in the transportation of equipment and the possibility of cooperating with other allies in this field The ministers also noted the escalation of tensions in the Western Balkans and the need for the presence of an international mission in the region They assessed the cooperation between the Republic of Slovenia and the Republic of Croatia in the field of defence and military as very good Minister Tonin also thanked his Croatian counterpart for the help in the efforts to put out a fire at Preddvor which involved a Croatian Canadair water bomber The countries also cooperate in the field of military training and the Croatian Armed Forces will take part in this year's Leap exercise which will take place in Slovenia in autumn the ministers also discussed the possibility of using Croatian training grounds The chiefs of the general staff of both armed forces discussed military education and agreed to further exchange best practices in this field Did you find the information you were looking for Do you want to receive a response from the responsible institution Clicking on the link will open your default e-mail program and automatically draft a message that you can send to the institution responsible for the content of this website ask for a reply