GERMANY - The Homag Group, the world's leading manufacturer of machinery and systems for the woodworking industry, recorded strong demand for its products and solutions in the first half of 2017 as incoming orders increased by 33 percent to € 734 million (6M-2016: € 552 million). 

Sales in the period were up 13 percent to € 597 million (6M-2016: € 527 million) while operating EBIT rose by 47 percent to € 46.9 million (6M-2016: € 31.9 million). As at June 30, 2017, the Homag Group had 6,149 employees (previous year: 5,983 employees).

"Our encouraging start to 2017 continued in the second quarter, which means we had an excellent first half", highlights CEO Pekka Paasivaara. "We recorded strong growth in all regions. In China we increased our incoming orders by over 100 percent." CFO Franz Peter Matheis added, "The disproportionately high rise in our earnings also shows that our numerous measures for enhancing efficiency and for standardizing our processes and systems are paying off."

Paasivaara is also pleased with the outcome of the Ligna trade fair, which took place in Hanover at the end of May: "It was clear that our customers are increasingly tending toward digitization and automation, where we can already offer end-to-end solutions from a single source. And thanks to ‘tapio’, the open digital industry platform that we presented at Ligna, we are all set to lead the entire woodworking industry securely into the digital future. In addition, customers have already confirmed that our concept to ensure digital data continuity from point of sale through the entire production process, based on our comprehensive software suite, is unique in this industry." With this in mind, the Homag Group is optimistic about the future and expects 2017 to be a successful year as a whole.

Homag Group - Durr Woodworking Machinery and Systems Results

January-June. Million EUR