Sumitomo (SHI) Demag’s global sales increased by 13% in 2018

Sumitomo (SHI) Demag Group with headquarters in Schwaig andproduction sites in Schwaig, Wiehe (Germany) and Ningbo (China) has posted all-positive results for the fiscal year of 2018.

Global sales increased by 13% to € 294.9 million with incoming orders risingby 6% to € 314.2 million. The demand for IntElect all-electric injection moulding machines and El-Exis packaging machines was the main contributor to this major sales increase.

Thanks to its recently modernised production processes, the company is now in a good position to cope with the increase in orders, management confirms. Half of the company’s machining systems were replaced.

“Our platen machining capacities were stepped up by almost 50%, and our production processes have become more efficient. In 2019, we are aiming for a 10% increase of our production output,” said Gerd Liebig, CEO of Sumitomo (SHI) Demag Plastics Machinery GmbH.

“Unexpected additional tariffs, the looming spectre of a no-deal Brexit and the automotive industry’s waning propensity to invest has presented us with some challenges. But we are willing to explore this slack in the market to reduce both our backlog and our delivery times,” Liebig continued.

This year, the Wiehe production site will see further investment. Wiehe is almost exclusively dedicate to the production of the all-electric IntElect series. The objectives are to maximise efficiency of cyclic operation, which translates into significantly lower throughput times.