Koenig & Bauer is expecting to turn in revenue between €900-€950 million for the Covid-19-hit full year, well below initial forecasts and with a trading loss for the year.
However, the company has not suffered as badly as many. Orders in the sheetfed division for Q3 of its financial year were €128.6 million, not far behind the €132.0 million of sheetfed press orders received at the same stage in 2019.
While it has noted a decline in orders for medium format (B1) and half sheet presses, orders for large format litho machines and for folder gluers have compensated for the drop in orders from commercial printers.
Orders after nine months were €416.6 million (€462.6 million) in sheetfed. However, revenue from the division, as reported, was a bigger step lower at €81.6 million (€151.1 million) for Q3, but this is the result of recognising a sale once the installation has been signed off rather than in stages as previously. Year to date sales are €287.1 million (€410 million), a fall of 30%.
The web offset and digital division suffered with a lack of business in web offset and flexo presses, but Q3 orders increased thanks to the RotaJet and for the 2.8m wide inkjet press from HP that it sells as the HP1100S.
Likewise, orders for mates decorating machines countered a big drop in currency projects. The result is at the three quarters point, orders for the year are at €712.8 million (€843.0 million) and revenue is €602.6 million (€798.2 million).
The order book has suffered as projects across all sectors have been delayed because of the uncertainty provided by the continuing, and in many cases worsening, pandemic and lockdowns the company says.
The pandemic is, in some cases, making it difficult to visit customers, particularly in packaging markets where the security of supply chains makes unnecessary visitors unwelcome. There is, however, a good level of interest that the company can offer, soon to be bolstered by inkjet printing in post print corrugated and for carton printing.
This provides the confidence that Koenig & Bauer is on the right track. It has accelerated its Performance 2024 reorganisation which will lead to €100 million in savings a year and the loss of 700-900 jobs in the course of the next few years.
CEO Claus Bolza-Schünemann says that with modest growth expected, turnover at the end of the four years will be €1.3 billion, setting aside €57.6 million in the current year for reorganisation.
