Drägerwerk: Turnaround program already saved around EUR 45 million in 2009

19-Mar-2010 - Germany

Drägerwerk AG & Co. KGaA took important steps towards increasing efficiency, lowering costs and boosting net sales in fiscal year 2009 with the help of its turnaround program. Order intake in 2009 went up by 2.9 percent (net of currency effects) to EUR 1,978.3 million and orders on hand increased by 9.2 percent (net of currency effects) to a record EUR 440.1 million. Net sales amounted to EUR 1,911.1 million, almost the same level as in the prior year (net of currency effects: -0.2 percent). Group EBIT totaled EUR 80.1 million (2008: EUR 105.8 million) and net profit EUR 32.5 million (2008: EUR 49.4 million).

"2009 was a pivotal year for Dräger, a year of change. Change which was urgently needed," comments Stefan Dräger, Chairman of the Executive Board of Drägerwerk Verwaltungs AG.

Savings from the turnaround program totaled about EUR 64 million in 2009, significantly higher than originally planned. Once implementation costs of EUR 18.5 million had been deducted, savings came to around EUR 45 million, about EUR 20 million more than predicted in the last forecast in the third quarter of 2009. A sustained cost reduction was achieved mainly in procurement (lower costs of production materials and services), travel and communications, marketing and sales and logistics. Service and development processes were also structured in a more efficient manner. In 2010, Dräger is aiming to increase savings by around EUR 80 million (measured against the net sales and cost structure as well as exchange rates in 2008) and is anticipating implementation costs of approximately EUR 10 million. As of 2011, the group is aiming to achieve a positive effect of EUR 100 million per year compared to 2008.

Medical division

In fiscal year 2009, global order intake in the medical division amounted to EUR 1,339.6 million: 5.4 percent (net of currency effects) higher than in the prior year. As a result of large numbers of incoming orders at the end of the year, orders on hand went up to a record EUR 300.5 million (December 31, 2008: EUR 219.8 million). It was not possible to deliver many of the orders before the end of 2009. For this reason, net sales (net of currency effects) increased by only 2.0 percent to EUR 1,261.5 million (2008: EUR 1,243.8 million). EBIT rose by 1.6 percent to EUR 76.7 million and return on capital employed (ROCE) went up to 14.1 percent (2008: 11.8 percent).

Safety division

Order intake in the safety division was down 1.7 percent (net of currency effects) to EUR 665.9 million, while orders on hand fell by 23.7 percent to EUR 140.7 million. Global net sales (net of currency effects) amounted to EUR 676.9 million, 4.0 percent less than in the prior year. An impairment loss on deep sea diving systems of EUR 30 million reduced EBIT by 50.5 percent to EUR 30.2 million and ROCE to 15.9 percent (2008: 27.3 percent).

Financial position and net assets

Dräger Group's net assets in 2009 were impacted by the turnaround program and the buyback of Siemens' shares in Dräger Medical AG & Co. KG. With the help of the turnaround program, capital employed had decreased by 25.9 percent to EUR 709.1 million as of December 31, 2009 (2008: EUR 956.8 million) as a result of a drop in trade receivables, inventories and other assets. Correspondingly, cash flow from operating activities developed positively in 2009 and amounted to EUR 193.5 million (2008: EUR 104.7 million). Due to the recognition of the share buyback from Siemens in 2009, intangible assets went up, while at the same time equity went down to EUR 393.8 million (2008: EUR 553.8 million) and the equity ratio dropped to 20.9 percent (2008: 33.5). When the time and structure of the group is right, Dräger will carry out a capital increase aimed at strengthening its equity base. The family shareholders have already agreed to take part in such a measure.

https://www.chemeurope.com/en/news/115123/draegerwerk-turnaround-program-already-saved-around-eur-45-million-in-2009.html