Fixing specialist stands its ground in the crisis – 2008 a record year
fischer relying on screw fixingsWaldachtal, 29 July 2009 – In spite of the economic downswing, the fischer group of companies will close the 2009 financial year with a plus. By the end of the year, fischer aims to reduce the cyclical drop in sales earlier this year even further. In 2008 the company recorded growth. The fixing specialists expect new impulses for growth from its new range of screws which is currently being launched.
After the cyclical downturn in the first six months period, fischer is set to make use of the market opportunities by the end of the year, with the fixing specialists setting high hopes in the range of screws with a total of 2,700 articles which will be launched in the first markets in July, also in Germany. The unique and extremely economical premium “fischer Power-Fast” screw, offering fast and more effortless installation, less splitting of the wood and ultimate handling convenience, is expected to convince the markets. “We now have a product developed by us for specialist trades and small trades which is on a par with the best screws on the market. And the customers get the usual fischer safety and quality from a single supplier”, says Professor E.h. Klaus Fischer, owner and CEO of the fischer group of companies: “We firmly believe we can take a substantial share of the market within a short time. With our powers of innovation, we will develop the range of screws further and make it into an important growth factor in our line of business”.
In spite of the economic challenges, fischer sees itself excellently equipped and positioned to come out of the current crisis stronger than before. Relying on the fischer ProcessSystem (fPS), the company’s philosophy of continuous improvement, each and every one of fischer’s processes has been steadily improved since 2001. fischer is meanwhile positioned lean and flexible and capable of responding with utmost speed to changes in market and customer needs and requirements. This has also allowed the company to maintain the whole of its workforce. A number of temporary adjustments in wages and salaries and in working hours were necessary, the number of loan workers at fischer automotive was reduced, and fixed-term contracts were not renewed. But fischer will take over the whole 2009 graduation year of trainees. “The crisis is also an opportunity for us. We want to have highly motivated and qualified people to be prepared for the future once the economy is back in full swing again”, says CEO Klaus Fischer. In 2008 fischer received two important awards for its process optimisation: the “Factory of the Year – German GEO Award” for “continuous processes” at the plant for chemical products in Denzlingen and the “Automotive Lean Production Award” – as best factory in the category National Small and Medium-Sized Businesses – for the Horb-based automotive plant.
Review 2008
The year 2008 was another record year for fischer, with gross sales rising from the previous year to almost three percent to 560m Euro (2007: 545m Euro). Growth booster was once again the fixings segment which accounted for around 80 percent of the total turnover. Towards the autumn downswing, the division grew by over five percent in total right into the final quarter, although growth began to slow down during the last months of the year.
The fischer automotive systems division also initially recorded a positive development in the first months of 2009, with the slump in the automobile sector beginning to show its effects in the second six months period. Seen over the whole of the year, the division marked up a moderate drop in sales.
The total headcount of the group of companies increased moderately towards the end of the year to around 3,850 employees (2008: 3,800), with the domestic sites and locations also benefiting from this rise (approx. 2,000 employees). Internationalisation also continued successfully. With three new companies, the number of national companies was increased to 33 in 30 countries – with more to follow. The extension to the production site in the Czech Republic was inaugurated in the autumn of 2008. 14.41 patents for every 1,000 employees came from the staff and workforce, which meant that fischer once more demonstrated its power of innovation and now ranking in third place among Germany’s top patent applicants. “For us, innovation means a lot more than the sum of all our patents”, stresses Klaus Fischer.
2009 financial year
The 2009 financial year, on the other hand, began somewhat slower, with the global economic and financial crisis now beginning to affect the fixings segment. The unusually long, frosty and snowy winter weather meant that many building projects in the most important central European markets were put on hold or delayed. The reticence of the trade when it came to ordering new goods and supplies, shifts in exchange rates and credit bottlenecks among the customers, and the slump in some markets such as Spain, were all factors which slowed down growth.
In response to the drastic changes in the general economic conditions, fischer initiated actions towards the end of 2008 which were designed to safeguard satisfactory business results in the year 2009, too.
Developments in the course of the last months have shown that the initiated steps are going in the right direction. After the slump in sales in the first quarter of the year, the revenues in the corporate divisions have in the subsequent months come closer and closer to the previous year’s level. In July, sales in the fixings segments exceeded the previous year’s figures for the first time. In total, fischer expects a stronger second half year period.
At present, the various business divisions and international markets develop at vastly differing speeds. In the fixings segment, the drop in sales was compensated more and more in the course of the last months. Some markets even increased their sales, mainly in Asia, Australia and Latin America. On the product side, it was mainly the chemical anchor sector which showed a highly positive development. This is also a segment which has strongly grown in importance over the last years.
The situation in the automobile segment is somewhat more strained. Considering that fischer automotive solely supplies car manufacturers and systems suppliers – German premium customers, above all – this specialist interior division depends heavily on the OEMs. And it is precisely the OEMs which have heavily cut their production levels in order to run down stocks. As a result, fischer automotive’s sales dropped substantially compared with the year before. However, the past few weeks have shown the first signs of a moderate recovery.
The headcount dropped insignificantly, with fischer currently employing about 3,750 people (minus three percent). The reduction is owed mainly to the lower number of loan workers, fixed-term contracts not being renewed and vacancies not being filled. The drop in sales forced the German sites and locations to adjust the working hours and the salaries and wages. The automotive division, in particular, had to rely on short-time working, with new rules and regulations from one month to the next. The fixings segment, on the other hand, continued virtually without any short-time working during the past few months. Instead, the option offered by the collective agreement for securing jobs in the Baden-Württemberg metal and electrical industry was used, which allows temporary cuts in working hours and remunerations. Since July, the whole of the workforce in the fixings segment has gone back to fischer’s normal working hours and remunerations.
fischer will also take over the trainees who will complete their training this year.The contracts with the trainees, accepted in fixed-term employment last year, have been renewed until the end of the year. Later this year, another 40 or so young people will begin their training at fischer. Beginning in late 2008, fischer has also begun to train twelve staff members in an international promotion pool for young executives. “Investing in further and advanced training is an investment for the future. If we were to make savings in this field, we’d be sawing off the branch we are sitting”, says CEO Klaus Fischer, explaining this commitment. This is also the reason why fischer intensifies its support for external educational projects – for instance KiTec and Kiewi (“Kinder entdecken Technik bzw. Wirtschaft”; children discovering engineering / business). Since earlier this year, fischer also supports seven nurseries with the story-telling workshop project for helping children to develop their language and their personalities. “Improving education in Germany means making an early start. Pre-school and elementary school children are particularly receptive and keen to learn. They must be challenged and helped. This is exactly what we are doing with this projects”, says Klaus Fischer.
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