KAUTEX MASCHINENBAU
Sales growth of 11% annually over last three years / Order book remains healthy for 2008
Sales of extrusion blow moulding machine manufacturer Kautex Maschinenbau (Bonn / Germany; www.kautex-group.com) have risen by an average of 11% annually over the last three years. At a press conference given by the company at K 2007, managing director Olaf Weiland announced projected sales for 2007 of EUR 76m, adding that the volume of incoming orders for 2008 was also significantly higher than at this time last year.
Weiland puts the company's healthy situation down primarily to the positive market developments in China (which accounts for the largest share of machines sold), Russia, eastern Europe and the Middle East. Some 80% of Kautex sales come from exports. Sales in Latin America, which had been very weak in recent years, had started to pick up, he said, and Mexico had overtaken the United States. He pointed out that the US market in general was very weak and that Kautex was currently operating only in the service sector there.
In 2007, automotive applications will account for just under 70% of sales. Here, too, China tops the list of customer countries. Most of the remaining 30% goes into the packaging segment, which recently returned to the Kautex portfolio, a development the company highlighted at K 2007. Since mid-March 2007, Kautex has been run as an MBO together with the affiliated company Steadfast Capital (Frankfurt / Germany; www.steadfastcapital.de).
Kautex said that it believes that it has come significantly closer to its goal of offering the best service within the blow moulding industry and of demonstrating the strongest service presence worldwide. Local spare parts stores have been installed in Japan, China and Russia, and the number of service staff has been stepped up – there are now 24 Kautex service technicians around the world. For 2008, India will be the strategic target for further expansion.
Weiland puts the company's healthy situation down primarily to the positive market developments in China (which accounts for the largest share of machines sold), Russia, eastern Europe and the Middle East. Some 80% of Kautex sales come from exports. Sales in Latin America, which had been very weak in recent years, had started to pick up, he said, and Mexico had overtaken the United States. He pointed out that the US market in general was very weak and that Kautex was currently operating only in the service sector there.
In 2007, automotive applications will account for just under 70% of sales. Here, too, China tops the list of customer countries. Most of the remaining 30% goes into the packaging segment, which recently returned to the Kautex portfolio, a development the company highlighted at K 2007. Since mid-March 2007, Kautex has been run as an MBO together with the affiliated company Steadfast Capital (Frankfurt / Germany; www.steadfastcapital.de).
Kautex said that it believes that it has come significantly closer to its goal of offering the best service within the blow moulding industry and of demonstrating the strongest service presence worldwide. Local spare parts stores have been installed in Japan, China and Russia, and the number of service staff has been stepped up – there are now 24 Kautex service technicians around the world. For 2008, India will be the strategic target for further expansion.
08.11.2007 Plasteurope.com [209397]
Published on 08.11.2007