Order intake for StarragHeckert AG, the Swiss-based manufacturer of milling equipment, productivity-enhancing software and engineering solutions, and a wide range of special tools, increased to 328 million Swiss francs (about €208 million) in 2007, up 59% from the prior year. Sales revenue amounted to CHF 244 million (about €155 million), up 29% from 2006. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) more than doubled to 22.8 million Swiss francs (about €14.4 million) in 2007 (109%), corresponding to an operating margin of 9.3% on sales revenue. And the company’s bottom line increased 140%, from 7.5 million Swiss francs in 2007 to 18.0 million (about €11.4 million) in 2007. Last year was the best in StarragHeckert’s history.
All markets and regions served by the company contributed to the positive order intake development in the friendly economic climate of 2007. New products introduced in 2006 and 2007 significantly accelerated the pure organic growth, according to the firm. The energy, precision machinery, and transport markets were the main growth engines in 2007. Significant orders also were received from leading European and US aerospace companies.
The year-end order backlog of 165 million Swiss francs (about €105 million) in 2007 doubled the year-end figure for 2006. This growth in bookings significantly exceeded StarragHeckert’s budgeted expectations. Consequently, actions to increase manufacturing capacity were swiftly implemented last year. The plant expansions, plus increases in permanent and temporary staff, allow for further sales growth in 2008.
As a result of the high order backlog, all plant capacities will be heavily used far into the current year. StarragHeckert therefore expects further positive sales and profitability developments for the 2008 financial year. The EBIT margin is forecast to be in the double-digit range for that year.
Link to this article：StarragHeckert Soaring after Great Year
Reprint Statement: If there are no special instructions, all articles on this site are original. Please indicate the source for reprinting:Mold Wiki，Thanks！^^