Economic recovery in Europe? Maybe next year

Every downswing is followed by an upswing, said Michael Wittmann, president of Wittmann Technology GmbH: "That's how economic cycles work."

Wittmann's exceptionally high backlog going into 2023 cushioned the company against feeling the effects of the economic downturn this year in terms of sales revenue. In fact, the figure for this year is expected to show an increase of 9 percent over last year, both because of the order backlog but also because a number of supply issues have also been resolved.

As a result, deliveries have picked up significantly. The impact of the economic slowdown will not be felt by Vienna-based Wittmann until 2024.

"We will only notice the economic slowdown in our overall sales revenue with a delay, specifically next year in 2024," Wittmann said.

The downturn in economic activity has persisted since mid-2022, which is a relatively long period by historical standards, he noted.

"This may also be explained by the fact that the investment boom in 2021 and early 2022 was exuberant and resulted in investments being brought forward — and these now have to be compensated for," he said.

Although there are currently no indicators pointing to a significant economic recovery, he is optimistic that market activity will start to pick up next year.

"We'll be looking at an improvement in order bookings compared with 2023 and a temporary slowdown in revenue in 2024," Wittmann predicted.

He added that, generally speaking, the different regions in which the company operates have been affected to varying degrees by the economic crisis.

"Central Europe, Germany and Austria in particular, are suffering the most. In Western and Eastern Europe, we can already see slight signs of improvement. Asia will also recover more quickly, while North America continues to show pleasing market activity."

Wittmann has a much wider portfolio of plastics equipment and machinery than many other European machinery manufacturers, and this has proved to be an advantage in helping the company to better navigate through the current phase of economic weakness — in various ways.

As Michael Wittmann pointed out, particularly in times when investment activity is at low ebb, customers still purchase equipment that is priced below qualified investment thresholds while delaying investment in higher-priced products.

"A further distinction results from the individual sale of equipment and machinery to different industrial sectors," he added.

The turnkey options offered by Wittmann Technology provide additional advantages in that each component in the production cell originates from a single source.

"The benefit for our customers is that we match all components of the production cell with one another right from the start. This leads to better energy efficiency and often to higher product quality. In addition, the processor saves time in procurement, project planning and commissioning, as he does not have to coordinate several companies, but has only one central contact for the entire production cell," Wittmann explained.

Energy efficiency, he continued, is an area in which the company is positioning itself with its products at the leading edge of the market. In 2022, at the K show in Düsseldorf, Germany, it showed how far "off the beaten track" it was prepared to go, with an exhibit demonstrating how energy generated by photovoltaics could be directly used for industrial production.

Tapping into the increasing trend for corporations to install solar cells on their corporate roofs, the conceptual study shown in Düsseldorf illustrated that the continuous current generated by those solar cells could be used directly to power injection molding lines, "without loss by first passing through inverters, transformers and high-voltage power lines," he said.

Not only can this lower the costs of energy for plastics manufacturers, as the generated solar electricity is immediately used, but also direct current can be easily stored in conventional batteries, thus providing an excellent way to handle current peaks.

At Fakuma, the company is therefore pushing the innovation envelope even further.

"For the world premiere of Wittmann's DC technology, a solar power storage system based on the ecological salt battery technology from Innovenergy [AG of Meiringen, Switzerland] will be used. Together with our partner, we are actively driving forward the industrialization of our DC solution."

The technology featuring the solar energy storage system described above is being used at Fakuma 2023 to drive the new EcoPower B8X on show at the Wittmann booth. However, in line with the value attached by the company to the energy efficiency theme, it is presenting solutions for reducing energy consumption and lowering greenhouse gas emissions at nine stations, creating an energy efficiency path.

"Take the new EcoPower B8X. The toggle lever of this new all-electric injection molding machine has been kinematically optimized, reducing the force required for clamping force build-up by 15 percent. This decreases the stress on the electromechanical drive system, further reducing the energy consumption, while at the same time enabling a higher level of dynamism and better dry cycle times," Michael Wittmann said.

Wittmann's IMAGOxt energy management software is being used to make the machine's low energy consumption visible, he added. IMAGOxt, a software module to visualize and monitor the energy consumption, enables inefficiencies to be detected and measures to be taken to improve efficiency, uncover potential savings and reduce CO2 emissions.

The module has been optimized to interact with Wittmann's MES operating software solution, TEMI, and can be connected to auxiliary equipment to collect data and analyze factors such as temperature, pressure, humidity, gas consumption and water consumption — assisting customers on the road to implementing the European Union Green Deal and the transition to a more circular economy for plastics.

It is not the only way Wittmann is supporting the circular economy. As a supplier of products, technologies and turnkey solutions for injection molding processing, it has also focused on the need to ensure these are able to produce equally high-quality products from materials other than fossil-based virgin polymers.

"All Wittmann injection molding machines can be used to process both recycled materials and bioplastics," Michael Wittmann said. A key factor in processing alternative materials is the plasticizing unit. The company has the know-how to provide the right screw for every application, even the most demanding, which, in combination with its smart assistance systems that compensate in line for fluctuations in the raw material, ensures consistently high product quality.

Wittmann even produces the granulators needed to shred sprues and rejects directly at the machine, enabling these to be returned to the injection molding process, should the application so permit.

However, while the plastics industry is working very hard to close material cycles, there is still a very long way to go before we can really talk about a circular economy, he noted.

"This is a challenge for everyone — industry, consumers and politicians. We need uniform systems for collecting and processing plastic waste in order to secure a reliable supply with high-quality raw material, and we need even more information for consumers in order to enable them making responsible decisions as early as the point of purchase.

"These are just two of many urgent tasks which only can be solved if society as a whole pulls together. The plastics industry is a strong driver here," he said.

Next to energy efficiency, one development that continues to play a major role is the ongoing digitalization process. According to Michael Wittmann, the company is at the forefront of this transformation, "both with our HiQ assistance systems for supporting the injection process and with the networking of entire work cells via Wittmann 4.0," he said.

The advantages of fully networked work cells, made possible with Wittmann 4.0, are legion, ranging from a singular point of control and entry for all connected equipment, to a common and centrally managed mold data set.

"In general, this boils down to an easier operation of the machinery and equipment for the user achieving more efficiency and a higher quality at the same time. This aspect is all the more important as it becomes more and more difficult to find qualified specialists," Wittmann said.

At the same time, the company is dealing with what he referred to as "the mega topic of AI," or artificial intelligence, in injection molding processes and attendant activities. In his view, AI opens up great opportunities and new possibilities, which will be exploited together with their customers. A key area of development in this context is data security.

Asked about the future of the plastics machinery industry for a company like the Wittmann Group — family-owned and Europe-based — Michael Wittmann was both candid and direct.

"The high inflation in Central Europe and the green transformation with accompanying and announced measures of the EU for CO2 pricing of raw and primary materials present us with huge tasks," he said.

"These require decisions that must be approached very thoughtfully and will have long-term effects. A European plastics machinery company with a high export quota to non-European markets looks increasingly unrealistic from today's perspective. We are positioning ourselves accordingly, further strengthening the decentralization of our production sites.

"In the long term, plastics is a growth industry. Polymer materials play a crucial role in solving many of our challenges for a sustainable healthy future," he said.

He is optimistic about what Fakuma will bring.

"It's a first-class trade show for the plastics industry with a very successful overall concept and an optimal location at the intersection of the D-A-CH [Germany, Austria, Switzerland] region. This enables the exhibitors to make a targeted selection of exhibits and focus on topics that are geared to the needs of processors in Central Europe, the main area of attraction for visitors. Despite the unfavorable economic situation, we are assuming that there will be a large number of visitors to Fakuma 2023. If this happens, we will call it a successful fair," he said.