FACE TO FACE
Our budget for Research & Development is already above the industry average and will increase further this year
site in Stříbro . This concept has now been transferred to several production sites worldwide .
We also inspire new customers with our high-end solutions . At the beginning of February , we welcomed a delegation of commercial vehicle manufacturers from Turkey to our headquarters in Haiger , Germany . Around 40 participants learned about product innovations and further developments at CLOOS with a focus on the automated welding of truck trailers . We were able to convince several manufacturers of our expertise and they have now already placed orders for robot welding systems with us .
ISMR : What are your views on the current global business climate for sheet-metal welding professionals ?
AV : Despite the generally difficult conditions in the machine-tool engineering sector , we can look back on very successful years . And we continue to grow further .
We have an exceptionally high order backlog and benefit from stable high demand . Nevertheless , the general level of demand is currently not as high as in the last two years . We are experiencing slight restraint in some markets .
ISMR : Which issues are of prime importance for your customers at the moment and how are you addressing these issues for them ?
AV : Delivery times are an important issue for our customers right now due to the generally tense procurement situation , both for investments ( such as large robot systems ) and for welding equipment . Therefore , we are currently expanding our procurement portfolio significantly .
Through global sourcing and more active procurement , we will continue offering strong economic solutions for our customers in the future . We also want to provide suitable solutions for our customers more quickly through standardisation .
The QINEO ArcBoT semi-automated welding solution .
ISMR : What is your focus / vision over the next few years ? Do you project any growth in turnover for this year ?
AV : Our focus remains on global growth . In the Group , we expect growth this year to at least match the previous year ’ s level . On the one hand , we are intensifying our activities in our core markets . On the other hand , we are opening new markets , both in terms of industries and countries . Already today , CLOOS has an export rate of more than 80 per cent .
Besides important markets in Germany and Europe , the number one growth market is still China . We are also currently experiencing high demand for automation solutions in North-
CLOOS welding robots at the KION Group .
America . Cooperation with our shareholder , Estun , offers even more opportunities for the growth of our company .
The CLOOS Group closed the 2022 financial year with good results . We were able to increase turnover orders by nearly 30 per cent ( to more than 200 million euros ) compared to the previous year .
ISMR : Which trends do you see developing in global welding markets ?
AV : The global potential for automated welding robot systems is enormous . Customers often want the easiest possible entry into automation . Semi-automation solutions , such as our QINEO ArcBoT , are now well established in the welding sector and help to compensate for the increasing shortage of skilled workers .
In addition , efficient automation solutions for the production of small batches are in demand . Due to component tolerances and a large variety of products , the programming effort for the automated welding of small batch sizes is often disproportionately high , for example in steel and metal construction . With QIROX RoboScan , users generate programs for automated welding in the shortest possible time . This means that automated welding of workpieces in batch size one is also now worthwhile .
Digitisation and networking are also playing an increasingly important role in the welding sector . With our C-Gate IoT Platform , users can access information from their welding production in real-time . With central data acquisition and processing , users can monitor their production processes down to the smallest detail and control them proactively from the manual welding power source to the fully automated production line .
ISMR September 2023 | ismr . net | 33