Wittmann reports steady sales in 2022, makes progress on building expansions

Expansion inside Wittmann’s U.S. subsidiary in Torrington, Conn. Photo Credit: Wittmann Group

Processing machinery and auxiliary equipment maker Wittmann Group is reporting a better-than-expected 2022.

The Kottingbrunn, Austria-based company says it saw a high order intake — “well above average, especially during the first half of the year,” it said in a news release – but also experienced what it calls “a tight situation” regarding the supply of purchased parts, particularly electronic components, which prevented an increase in sales over the previous year.

The company reported 376 million euros (US$397 million) in sales for 2022, which was roughly on par with the figure for 2021.

For the current fiscal year, company president Michael Wittmann is expecting a return to growth. From today’s standpoint, a 10 per cent increase over last year is a realistic estimate, he said, based on the fact that the company started into the year 2023 not only with a high order backlog, but also with the market beginning to show signs of improvement in the supply situation.

On the construction front, Wittmann Group reported considerable progress on its numerous investment and building projects. Not only did Wittmann invest in new machining centers at three of its production plants in 2022, but the group also completed the expansion work at Wittmann Battenfeld in Kottingbrunn, Austria and Wittmann Robottechnikai Kft. in Mosonmagyarovar, Hungary.

“The additional areas of production floor space now available will primarily serve to increase the production capacity for injection molding machines,” the release said. “The extension of the Hungarian facility has also enabled an increase in the production of Tempro temperature controllers and robots of the new series equipped with R9 control systems.”

Also in Hungary, a completely new building is currently under construction in Törökbálint, near Budapest, which will house Wittmann Battenfeld Kft, the Hungarian sales and service organization. Completion is planned for the end of the second quarter of 2023.

Wittmann also opened a production facility in Dilovası, Turkey, where the main focus is on sheet metal and metal processing and complete products from the company’s range of auxiliaries. Series production of the first auxiliaries began on Jan. 1. “The advantage of the new Turkish location is the presence of a growing labor market, which will not be subject to demographic change in the next few years, but instead continue to provide a reservoir of skilled industrial workers,” the release said.

And in North America, Wittmann is also in the midst of an expansion project at its U.S. subsidiary in Torrington, Conn., which is expected to be completed on schedule within the next two months. Here, more space is being created for automation solutions and complete injection molding cells.

Wittmann is represented in Canada by its Wittmann Battenfeld Canada Inc. subsidiary, headquartered in Vaughan, Ont.