Bosch Rexroth reports 2009 numbers; predicts stronger growth in Q3 and Q4
2009 sales slid 30 percent from 2008, to $5.7 billion; 2010 orders already exceed all of 2009's.
Bosch Rexroth AG, parent company of Bosch Rexroth Corporation in the Americas, expects a noticeable recovery in sales for the second half of 2010 after the number of incoming orders surpassed the previous year's figures in the first months of the current fiscal year.
Despite a substantial worldwide decline in business volume during the 2009 crisis, the company was able to achieve double-digit growth rates in China and India. With innovations and an organizational structure aligned with markets and industries, the supplier for industrial applications, mobile machinery and renewable energies, is preparing for a return to the long-term growth trend. A return to pre-crisis levels, however, will take several years.
"We are looking ahead and Bosch Rexroth will grow again in 2010," affirmed Dr. Albert Hieronimus, Chairman of the Executive Board at Bosch Rexroth AG, while presenting the company figures for the 2009 fiscal year in Frankfurt, Germany.
In the first months of the new fiscal year, the number of incoming orders exceeded the preceding year's figures, but did not yet reach the high level of 2008. The company anticipates a noticeable recovery starting in the second half of the year and is focusing on growth markets, especially in Asia, and a high degree of innovative strength.
Double-digit growth in China and India
In 2009, the global economic crisis had a substantial impact on Bosch Rexroth AG with an approximate 30 percent decline in sales to $5.7 billion (4.1 billion Euro). The company had previously achieved organic growth of more than 50 percent in the eight years since being acquired by Bosch until the onset of the crisis. Despite the trend, Bosch Rexroth earned double-digit growth rates in both China and India in 2009 and has sustained its sales in Brazil at pre-crisis levels.
"The crisis rapidly accelerated Asia's importance for our company," said the Chairman of the Executive Board. According to company estimates, this will be a continuing trend. In 2009, Bosch Rexroth generated a fourth of its sales in Asia, a considerable increase as compared to a figure of around 16 percent in the previous years. Bosch Rexroth is well represented in both countries, as well as in the high-growth country of Brazil, with manufacturing and development capacities and will continue to expand its presence over the coming years.
By contrast, in Europe and America, Bosch Rexroth experienced particularly substantial downturns in the areas of mobile machinery and factory automation equipment.
Core team retained – substantial investments in innovation
The subsidiary of the Bosch Group is heavily relying on its employees' expertise and dedication to once again return to course for growth. "In 2009, Bosch Rexroth was especially careful about retaining its core team across the corporation," explained Dr. Albert Hieronimus. "We have taken advantage of all available measures for flexible working hours and reduced work schedules." The number of employees worldwide fell by only around 3 percent to 34,200 during the crisis year.
At the same time, Bosch Rexroth made substantial investments in the development of new products in 2009 and dedicated around $364 million (260 million Euro) to research and development, as in the year before.
Market shifts shape the future
"The global economic crisis considerably accelerated previously anticipated market shifts, especially in the capital goods sector," stressed the Chairman of the Executive Board. The growth prospects for numerous machine engineering industries have changed due to the crisis, and some of them have developed very differently. An increasing number of machine and plant manufacturers are turning to one-source, multi-technology solutions, just as the manufacturer of all drive and control technology has been providing for years.
Bosch Rexroth is capitalizing on these market shifts with a new structure that focuses on markets and industries. As of July 1, 2010, Bosch Rexroth will concentrate all of its activities into the business units Mobile Applications, Industrial Applications, and Renewable Energies, in order to enhance its competitive position in the long term.
Corporate management estimates that it will take several years for the machine and plant engineering to once again achieve the record high achieved in 2007, but remained cautiously optimistic: "Starting in 2010, Bosch Rexroth will return to the growth trend of the first eight years and we anticipate that we will considerably surpass the order volume and turnover from 2009," forecasted Dr. Albert Hieronimus with regard to business development at Bosch Rexroth AG.
Bosch Rexroth AG is one of the world's leading specialists in the field of drive and control technologies. Under the brand name of Rexroth the company supplies more than 500,000 customers with tailored solutions for driving, controlling and moving. Bosch Rexroth is a partner for industrial applications and factory automation, mobile applications and renewable energy.
As The Drive & Control Company, Bosch Rexroth develops, produces and sells components and systems in more than 80 countries. In 2009 Bosch Rexroth, part of the Bosch Group, achieved sales of around $5.7 billion (4.1 billion Euro) with 34,200 employees.
For more information please visit www.boschrexroth-us.com.
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