“We are feeling a significant decline in incoming orders,” said Michael Hehl at the press conference of the injection moulding machinery manufacturer Arburg (Lossburg / Germany; www.arburg.com), traditionally held on the eve of the “K 2019” fair in Düsseldorf / Germany. The company had already reported a slowdown in new orders in spring.

The current difficult economic situation is marked by the “far-reaching change” in the automotive industry, and according to Hehl, the effects of global trade disputes have become more noticeable since then. Accordingly, Arburg is unlikely in 2019 to achieve last year’s record turnover of EUR 754m.

The decline mainly affects the less complex machinery, while ambitious solutions and turnkey systems are still in high demand, added sales director Gerhard Böhm. He said it was proof of the global nature of the markets that “together, we are going up, and quite naturally, we are also going in the opposite direction together.”

Despite the current difficult environment, Hehl is looking forward with optimism. “We invest anti-cyclically in technology, infrastructure and personnel.” As an example, he referred to the two-digit million euro investments in the training centre that will be officially opened in spring 2020 and in the assembly hall for large injection moulding machinery and turnkey systems – both are currently under construction at the company’s headquarters. In addition, there are international investments such as the expansion of the company’s US headquarters, a doubling of space for the Italian branch and a new building expanding the French branch.

Arburg currently has around 3,200 employees worldwide, including 2,650 in Germany. A further 550 work in its sales and service companies at 34 locations in 26 countries.