ABSTRACT
Lek is one of two pharmaceutical firms in Slovenia responsible for the country's large share of high technology exports. Lek was established in 1946 to locally produce certain drugs and chemical products. Lek is one of the largest companies in Slovenia and, together with the other main pharmaceutical producer Krka from Novo mesto, plus Bayer Pharma, it accounts for somewhat less than 40 per cent of Slovenian drug sales. Lek has traditionally been an export-oriented company. In order to support its development, first inward internationalization started with Bayer which, in 1972, was expanded by establishing a joint venture Bayer Pharma in which Lek has a 51 per cent share. Lek is a very environmentally conscious firm that follows the ISO 14001 international standard for environmental management. In 1999 it was awarded a licence to carry out waste elimination at its own incineration plant.
