ifm again reports sales increase for 2023
While the current economic development is beginning to cast its shadow, ifm can once again look back on an increase in sales for the financial year 2023. What is more, the number of employees exceeded the 9,000 mark for the first time.
- Over 1.4 billion euros in sales according to preliminary consolidated financial statement
- Over 9,000 employees worldwide for the first time
- Cautious outlook for 2024
“Customers can buy our products practically anywhere in the world to drive forward their automation,” says Christoph von Rosenberg, CFO of the ifm group, at the presentation of the 2023 balance sheet figures: "We are present in over 150 countries, either with our own companies or through trade partners." A total of 160,000 customers purchased products from ifm in the past financial year. This represents a further increase of 4%. With sales of over 1.4 billion euros and growth of 3%, the preliminary consolidated financial statement once again shows a new sales record. “Even though significant negative exchange rate effects halved the growth, the increase combined with the growth in the customer base shows us that we can offer the right solutions for our customers worldwide," says Christoph von Rosenberg. Regional growth was concentrated in the United States and Southwest Europe. The operating result (EBIT) totalled 5.8% (previous year: 7.6%).
The total number of employees also reached a new high in 2023. Worldwide, the group employees over 9,000 people, more than 1,500 of whom work in research and development departments – and not only at the five locations in the Lake Constance region, but also increasingly at the foreign technical companies. This contributes significantly to the innovative strength of the ifm group - over 1,210 active patents and over 100 new patent applications are impressive proof of this. ifm also takes care of future specialists. Across Germany, there are currently more than 140 apprentices at the various locations in Essen, Siegen and Lake Constance.
The business outlook for the current financial year is not quite as positive, as Christoph von Rosenberg points out: “The various global conflicts and crises are leading to a general slowdown in the global mechanical engineering industry. In addition, the central banks’ anti-inflationary measures continue to curb demand. We are not immune to this and have to plan accordingly. However, we expect growth to pick up in the second half of the year in particular, so we are currently anticipating slight growth in 2024.”
