fischer starting 2010 with strong growthWaldachtal, April 2010 – The fischer group of companies (Waldachtal) has started the year 2010 with powerful growth, increasing sales in the first three months by 9.3 percent over the previous year. In 2009, fischer stood its ground well in an extremely difficult business climate. “Compared with many of our competitors, we have weathered the crisis very well”, said Professor E.h. Senator mult. E.h. Dipl.-Ing. (FH) Klaus Fischer, President, CEO and Owner.
Fixing engineering, fischer’s biggest division, grew by 5.6 percent in the first quarter of 2010 – although the long and hard winter has held the major markets in Europe in an iron grip in January and February. By March, the company recorded two-digit growth figures, with the positive trend continuing in April. With an increase in sales of over 27 percent during the first three months, fischer’s second biggest division automotive systems (kinematic components for car interiors) marked up the biggest rise – also by taking over orders from distressed competitors. Both of the smaller corporate divisions fischertechnik (construction toys) and fischer Consulting (process consulting) managed to increase their sales volumes.
In the two closing months of 2009, fischer had already made the turnaround to growth. With gross sales of 521 million Euros, the revenues of the group during the total year were 6.9 percent below the previous year (560 million Euros). With a decline of six percent, the drop was less drastic in the fixing engineering division. After a hefty slump in the first six months, fischer automotive systems recorded a two-figure minus in sales, but the two smaller corporate divisions fischertechnik and fischer Consulting increased sales.
CEO and owner Klaus Fischer is pleased with the way net earnings have developed. The first signs of the heaviest slump since the 1929 global economic crisis had begun to appear in the autumn of 2008. fischer had responded in good time and adjusted its cost structures. Measures to safeguard net earnings and jobs were implemented successfully. Stocks and inventories were reduced drastically, throughput times were cut and prices were adjusted to match market requirements – actions contributing to a positive result.
Last year, the fischer group of companies also continued on its path of continuously improving all its corporate processes which the group initiated nine years ago. The all-encompassing philosophy of the fischer ProcessSystems (fPS) proved to be the key to coping successfully with the negative business developments. Thanks to the readiness and willingness of the employees to accept and go along with changes, the company’s competitiveness increased in the face of the crisis. “We are all set to continue on this path in 2010”, says CEO Klaus Fischer.
As some time-limited jobs were not renewed and some vacancies were left unfilled, the headcount of the group fell moderately to 3750 – 2000 of these in Germany. Redundancies among key employees were so avoided altogether. In 2009, fischer has kept up its efforts in in-house training. In spite of the slump in business, all trainees in the final year of training were given jobs. The sponsorship pool with twelve international young executives was set up by fischer at the end of 2008 with the aim of raising the percentage of “home-grown” executives to seventy percent in the medium term. Outside the company, fischer last year further intensified its educational commitment and carried out numerous projects in schools and nurseries.
The company’s power of innovation remains at a very high level. There are 14.29 employee patent applications for every 1,000 employees, placing fischer in second place behind Continental among Germany’s ten most active patent applicants. According to the “ifo Metric” the average in the German business community is 0.56 patent applications for every 1,000 employees. Over 35 percent of the patents applied for are implemented in highly practical new products and processes, with the average in the German business community being only ten percent.
In view of the uncertain business forecasts, fischer moves ahead this year with a revised and more cautious budget. As a number of business stimulus packages, mainly for the building industry, come to an end this year, CEO Klaus Fischer expects another difficult year ahead. Growth is fischer’s key word in all sectors and divisions. Splitting up and realigning operations in different regions (Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Asia/Pacific/America) is designed to facilitate and speed up the foundation of new national companies. fischer currently operates in 30 countries with 33 companies. There are plans for more sales companies abroad by the end of 2010.
The fischer group of companies, headquartered in Waldachtal, Freudenstadt District, generated sales of 521 million Euros in 2009 with 3750 employees worldwide. The family-owned business, currently operating in 30 countries with its own subsidiaries and exporting to over 100 countries, has been run for 30 years by Klaus Fischer, president, CEO and owner of the company. The fischer group of companies has four business divisions: fischer fixing systems (plugs, anchors and building supplies), fischer automotive systems (multi-functional components for car interiors including ashtrays, cup holders, cellphone holders), fischertechnik (construction toys) and fischer Process Consulting. Strongest performer by far is the fischer fixing systems division. Adopting the concept of Japan’s Kaizen, the fischer group of companies has developed the fischer ProcessSystem (fPS), an all-encompassing philosophy for continuous improvement. Its aim is a lean and flexible, waste-free enterprise whose processes are driven by the customers.
For more information go to www.fischer.de
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