Annual Report 2009 - Rieter

14 Rieter-Konzern Rieter Group . Annual . Geschäftsbericht Report 2009 2009 . Rieter . Abschnitt Automotive Systems
Divisional chief executive
Wolfgang Drees
Sales
1 424.3 (2 022.1)
million CHF
Operating result before
interest an taxes
– 105.1 (– 251.0)
million CHF
Number of employees
at year-end
8 600 (9 878)
Capital expenditure of
tangible fixed assets
56.2 (85.3) million CHF
Products
• Systems and components
for vehicle
acoustics and thermal
management (including
carpet and trunk
systems, engine
bay and underbody
systems)
• Services in the fields
of acoustics and
thermal management
(Previous year’s figures are in
brackets)
Rieter Automotive Systems:
Higher sales in the second half of the year
The automotive industry in Rieter Automotive Systems’
main markets, Europe and North America, has
been experiencing a severe slump in vehicle output
since autumn 2008. This trend continued to define
the division’s business performance in the year under
review. Sales revenues were 30% lower than in
2008 (26% lower in local currencies). The decline
was especially pronounced in the first half of 2009;
slightly improved market conditions had a positive
impact on the trend of business at Rieter in the second
six months. The actions that were initiated in
2008 and continued to be implemented in 2009 to
adjust structures to the changes in the market environment
and the additional cost cutting enabled
Automotive Systems in the second half of the year
to significantly reduce losses at the operating level.
In 2009 the division secured important orders from
vehicle manufacturers, primarily for underbody
modules and acoustic systems for the passenger
compartment. Automotive Systems is therefore well
placed to maintain and selectively expand its strong
market position in future.
Market developments and the trend of business
Automobile production worldwide was 13% lower
in 2009, declining from 67.4 to 58.6 million vehicles.
Production shrank drastically again in 2009 as a
whole, primarily in the traditional main markets. An
absolute low point was registered in North America
in the first half of the year, but output increased
substantially in the second six months. This was due
on the one hand to the scrappage premiums introduced
to stimulate vehicle sales, and on the other to
In 2009 the division secured important orders from
vehicle manufacturers, primarily for underbody modules
and acoustic systems for the passenger compartment.
manufacturers reducing excess inventories in the
first six months of the year. Automobile output in
North America was 32% lower in 2009 as a whole,
after already suffering a decline of 16% in the previous
year. Government economic stimulus programs
in Europe also had a positive impact on some markets,
mainly in the small car segment. Overall auto-
mobile output in Europe was 20% lower, following
a 10% decline in the previous year. The downturn
was even more dramatic in the commercial vehicle
sector, where output plunged by more than 50%.
The trend in vehicle output in large emerging economies
was significantly better. China’s automobile
production grew by some 50% and India’s by some
17%. Output in Brazil was maintained at almost the
high level of previous years.
Automotive Systems succeeded in maintaining its
strong position and expanding it in major markets in
this difficult business environment. The division
achieved this with a product range that ideally met
customers’ demands for enhanced comfort, lower
weight and reduced CO 2 emissions through innovative
thermo-acoustic systems. Automotive Systems
was also able systematically to exploit the weakness
of some competitors and secure additional orders.
In 2008 Automotive Systems had launched a program
aimed at the sustainable improvement of its
product cost and the division continued to implement
this in the year under review. This includes
improved utilization of material, strict purchasing
management and enhanced productivity. Rieter
is also reducing manufacturing capacity and the
number of plants operated in Western Europe and
North America in a multi-year restructuring program,
and transferring production to countries
where costs are lower. This will enable Rieter to
achieve an overall increase in its cost position, and
also follow its customers in establishing new markets.
This program is largely complete in the USA
and had the positive impact expected in 2009.
Innovations for the long-term development
of the business
Within the confines of its financial resources Rieter
Automotive Systems focused very closely on product
and process innovations under the heading of “cost
down – value up”. With its combination of know-how
in acoustics and thermal management, Rieter Automotive
Systems has unique expertise for the automotive
industry at its disposal. Rieter can therefore
make a major contribution toward overcoming the