- Sales forecast met at € 213 million
- Positive EBIT before restructuring charges achieved
- Order intake and order backlog 2008 above prior-year levels
Kahl am Main, February 10, 2009 - According to preliminary results the SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES Group (SINGULUS) achieved sales amounting to € 213 million for the 2008 business year and thus met its own forecast
(€ 210 million to € 230 million).
Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT), excluding restructuring charges, were positive in 2008.
At € 226.4 million the order intake for the full year 2008 was 11 % higher than the level of € 203.8 million achieved in 2007. The order backlog of € 69.0 million also exceeded the prior-year total (€ 55.8 million) by 24 %.
In the fourth quarter of 2008 the order intake of € 29.0 million was weak as expected. The order intake for Blu-ray machines in the first two quarters of 2008 was significantly higher than estimated. The capacities required for Blu-ray in 2008 had largely been ordered by the end of June. Stefan A. Baustert, CEO of SINGULUS: “We had an unexpectedly high order intake for Blu-ray machines in the first half year. The sales of machines for CD and DVD production declined significantly in the second half of 2008. We expect Blu-ray to win further recognition internationally in 2009 and to gain in importance in subsequent years.�
A clearly improved order intake was realized in the solar segment in comparison to the prior year. In the fourth quarter, merely, SINGULUS experienced a slowdown because of the financial and economic crisis.
Stefan A. Baustert concludes: “We think the solar sector will regain momentum in the medium term following a quiet start to 2009. Less expensive solar modules will result in an increase in demand. The state subsidies available in many countries all around the world will underpin and strengthen this trend. SINGULUS will thus be able to prove its core competence and to produce machines for the solar market which exhibit the best cost of ownership and therefore contribute substantially towards cost reductions in the area of renewable energy.�
SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES AG will publish the full report for the 2008 business year in Frankfurt on March 27, 2009.
Short profile of SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES
SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES AG will focus on the segments Optical Disc and Solar in the future. In the Optical Disc segment the spotlight will be on global market leadership for Blu-ray production equipment as well as the market launch of the new inline mastering system for Blu-ray.
With STANGL continuing to experience very strong growth rates, SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES has taken the decision to rapidly expand the Solar segment. SINGULUS TECHNOLOGIES developed a new solar coating machine named SINGULAR in 2008. The new machine is based on the know-how gained in the Optical Disc core area.