Neways records higher turnover in third quarter

Order intake declined by 10.7 percent compared with Q3-18;. The order book stood at EUR 319.4 million at end-September, an increase of 7.3% compared with end-September 2018, largely due to the strong demand from the automotive sector for system solutions for electric cars. The book to bill-ratio stood at 0.76 in the third quarter. Neways expects to record a higher net turnover for the full year 2019 and the result in the second half of 2019 to come in at around the same level as in the first half year. In the third quarter of 2019, Neways recorded a fully organic year-on-year increase of 5.5% in net turnover, driven by continuing strong demand from the automotive sector, mainly in the market for e-mobility solutions. Turnover from the semiconductor and medical sectors remained stable, while Neways saw a slight increase in turnover from the industrial sector. CEO STATEMENT Huub van der Vrande, CEO: “In the third quarter our turnover increased driven by continued strong demand from the automotive sector. This growth was softened by a temporary dip in the demand from the semiconductor sector. The order book is still at a high level. While the order intake did decline, this was largely due to the fact that more accurate orders were submitted. Customers have noted an increase in our delivery performance over the past few months, which has improved the quality and solidity of our order book. We are working hard to restore the imbalance within the group that had arisen earlier this year and to improve the structure and standardisation of our internal processes, so we can respond more effectively to changes in demand. These adjustments will take time and have an impact on productivity in this phase of the process. In September, we started an accelerated reduction of our flexible workforce by a total of around 120 employees at those facilities in the group where deemed possible. As long as the macro-economic situation does not lead to more volatility and the expected year-end demand effect materialises we anticipate a higher turnover for 2019 and the result in the second half of 2019 to come in at around the same level as in the first half year.”