Pepyn Dinandt, CEO of Mannesmann Plastics Machinery (MPM, D-80997 München; www.mpm-group.com), is happy with all of the companies in the group. Provisional figures show that sales in the 2003/2004 fiscal year (30 September) rose 10% to EUR 1.25 bn. Injection moulding, at 75%, accounted for the lion´s share, followed by extrusion technology at 15% and PU reaction technology at 7%. Automotive engineering was the key consumer sector, representing 33% of sales. Incoming orders rose by 13% to EUR 1.27 bn. In total, MPM recorded a 25% increase in its EBITDA, and all three units achieved net profits.

Costs are to be cut still further, however, and at the holding´s K 2004 press conference, Dinandt confirmed that MPM will look further into the possibility of purchasing components in China and eastern Europe. He denied rumours that technical developments in the individual group companies would now be reined in, following the appointment of Otto Urbanek as managing director.

With sales of EUR 539m, Krauss-Maffei Kunststofftechnik (KM, D-80997 München; www.krauss-maffei.de) generated the biggest sales increase among the MPM companies for the 2003/2004 fiscal year. Setting a new record, revenue rose by almost 15%. This was due primarily to the large-scale order received from Chinese profile manufacturer, Dalian Shide, although Dinandt noted that this was not the sole reason for the favourable outcome. Exports accounted for just under 68%, while employee numbers remained virtually constant at 2,449.

Bernhard Merki, CEO of injection moulding machinery producer Netstal (CH-8752 Näfels; www.netstal.com), pointed to a 7% increase in fiscal year sales. He did not give precise figures – these will be published in January 2005 together with the figures for the other MPM companies. Taking the previous year´s sales of CHF 321.8m (EUR 209.9m) as a basis, this should yield overall turnover of just above CHF 340m. Incoming orders displayed a more or less similar increase. Merki attributes this positive trend to the success of the “E-Jet” machines and the renewed strength of the PET sector.

Demag Plastics Group (D-90563 Schwaig; www.dpg.com) has also reported an increase in sales, of EUR 343.5m. This was 10% higher, compared with the previous year, at some. All the group´s production sites contributed to the good result, Demag said. Incoming orders rose 14.6% to around EUR 349.5m or 2,596 machines. These figures also include sales at subsidiary Demag Plastics Group Corp (Strongsville, Ohio / USA) – formerly Van Dorn – and at the two joint ventures in India and China.

Berstorff (D-30625 Hannover; www.berstorff.de) also considerably lifted its sales. Following EUR 113m in 2002/ 2003, the provisional figure was EUR 126m in 2003/2004. New orders totalled some EUR 130m. Revenue at Billion (F-01100 Bellignat; www.billion.fr), smallest of the MPM group companies, stood at around EUR 39m, some 10% above the previous year, an MPM spokesperson told PIE.