• 2015 in a nutshell: Growth of 19 percent in sales and 23 percent in earnings
• Outlook 2016: Sales of more than 3 billion euros
• Course set for the future: Corporate Program ONE Webasto
In the fiscal year 2015, automotive supplier Webasto continued to forge ahead on its course of success.Sales of the Group saw an increase by 19 percent to 2.9 billion euros (2014: 2.5 billion euros). The positive business development is also apparent in its earnings, which amounted to 167 million euros (2014: 136 million euros). That corresponds to a rise of 23 percent and a return on sales of 5.7 percent. Accordingly, the conclusion of Dr. Holger Engelmann, Chairman of the Webasto SE Management Board, at the annual press meeting in Munich was: “2015 was another good business year for Webasto. It pays off that we continually enhance and extend our technological leadership in all business divisions and consistently pursue our strategy of being well-positioned in all key global markets.”
Sales were distributed across the three core fields of business: The largest business division by far is the Sunroofs & Components (sunroofs and panorama roofs) with a 73 percent share of sales. The Thermo & Comfort (heating and air-conditioning systems) and Convertibles (convertible roofs) divisions contribute to total sales with shares of 16 and 11 percent respectively.
At 5.4 percent, the investment ratio was above that of the previous year (5.1 percent). Over the past business year, Webasto invested a total of 160 million euros in maintaining and upgrading its performance capacity in the various regions. In the same time frame, expenditures for research and development rose by 10 percent to 205 million euros (2014: 187 million euros), achieving a new record in the history of the company.
The number of people employed by Webasto also continued to grow in 2015 and is now close to 12,000employees. Thus, Webasto was able to welcome around 1,500 new colleagues worldwide, the majority of whom are employed at the newly added plant in the Czech town of Liberec.
With a view to the solid financial foundation with an equity ratio of 44 percent and the positive business development in the first quarter of 2016, Dr. Engelmann maintains an optimistic perspective for the future. “Even faced with the headwinds of a challenging geopolitical and economic environment, we were able to carry the momentum from 2015 into the new year and increase both sales and Ebit once again.” Expressed in numbers, this translates to a sales increase of eight percent and an increase of the return on sales to six percent. “Based on this starting position, for the year 2016 overall, we seek to exceed the 3 billion euro sales threshold and achieve a six percent return on sales,” according to Engelmann. The order backlog is currently at 10.9 billion euros vs. 9.8 billion euros for the previous year.
Consistent regional growth and expansion of the product portfolio
At the largest business division of the Webasto Group, Sunroofs & Components, the focus is on reinforcing the global network, consistently continuing along the path to the ‘All Roof Company’ with the Multi Optional Roof (MOR) concept and pressing ahead with the modular strategy. In 2015, the new plant in the Czech town of Liberec was an important milestone for strengthening our presence in Eastern Europe, as was the expansion of the plant in Arad (Romania). The site in Hiroshima (Japan) that has been successful for many years was also enlarged. In 2015 the plant was the largest roof plant in the Webasto Group, with a production volume of over 1 million sunroofs and panorama roofs. With regard to the Multi Optional Roof concept, by now almost all development projects for roof elements that are installed from above are MOR-capable. What this means is that a variety of roof versions can be installed by using one standardized interface. An option that increasing numbers of customers intend to make use of in the coming years. With the modular strategy, the standardization of components is implemented across the various roof versions, without diminishing the individual character of the roofs for customers. Moreover, in line with the tradition of technological leadership, innovative new product solutions are introduced time and again. One of the most recent examples is the extensive lighting integrated into the roof element. This feature, the so-called ambient lighting, allows for creating an atmosphere in the vehicle interior by illuminating it in a variety of colors or patterns. This feature has been successfully used in the new BMW 7-series since 2015, where it creates a pattern modeled on a star-studded sky. “Ultimately, it is decisive for our long-term success that we take trends that have been identified early on and implement them in marketable, series-ready products, and that we keep doing this over and over again,” Dr. Engelmann explains. The now steadily growing sales share of the large-scale panorama roofs (plus 19 percent in 2015 as compared to the previous year) is just such a trend that Webasto had set as early as 1995.
Future growth in the Thermo & Comfort business division is to be secured by the High-Voltage Heater for hybrid and electric vehicles. Following the successful start of series production for customers such as Volvo, a total of 15 additional series starts is planned by the end of 2017. In order to achieve the ambitious growth targets, the next product generations are already in the pipeline. The focus here is on the expansion of the range of uses and functionality. The climate-control solutions for light commercial vehicles that Webasto supplies all over the world from its plant in Molinella, Italy, have been completely revised and updated. Moreover, this product portfolio will also be gradually extended. Here too, the clear objective is growth. Strengthening international business in key markets such as the US, Russia and China is closely associated with all this.
The business division for Convertible Roofs is pursuing new approaches with its module concept. The convertible roof is delivered to the customer as a complete, ready-to-install module. In the assembly facility, this module, including the drive, rollover system, cross bar and soft top compartment along with the deck lid painted in the color of the car is then installed in the vehicle.
Corporate Program ONE Webasto – setting the course for the future
For the first time, Dr. Holger Engelmann presented the core elements of the ONE Webasto Corporate Program developed in 2015: Vision, strategy and culture. “With ONE Webasto my management colleagues and I want to lead Webasto into a successful future.” In this respect, the vision “Our Inspiration Drives the World of Mobility”, provides all our employees with clear guidance for the future.
The strategy is based on two pillars: On the one hand, strengthening the three existing, successful and future-proof business divisions. On the other hand, entering into partnerships and undertaking acquisitions will enable Webasto to become active in business areas that match the company’s special capabilities and to provide solutions for megatrends in mobility.
With regard to the culture, Webasto has also developed and refined that which is proven. The objective was to create a culture with values and principles that characterize Webasto in its entirety in a very individual and distinctive manner. “I am convinced that a global operating company that manages global projects across diverse cultures, needs a specific corporate culture, primarily an overarching one. Values and principles shared by all employees and leaders create this common understanding of how we work together and they are also an important aspect of our long-term business success,” is how Engelmann summarizes the significance of the culture.
