By Ron Shinn
The worldwide slowdown in plastics processing machinery sales is causing Sumitomo (SHI) Demag to cut production jobs and make other changes at its German locations. The company said demand is down 50 percent.
“After four years of market crisis and the disappearance of important markets such as Russia, our strong increase in market share and our positioning as market leader for fully electric machines are no longer sufficient to compensate for this market crisis,” CSO Anatol Sattel said.
Sumitomo’s key markets include the automotive, electronics and construction sectors. Sattel said the company does not see recovery either this year or next in these sectors.
Sumitomo builds injection molding machines in Japan, China and Germany.
The Oct. 14 announcement did not give specifics on layoffs or closings in Germany. But it said synergy between the company’s Japanese headquarters and production in China should reduce the time it takes to build machines and improve worldwide availability of Sumitomo equipment.
The announcement also said the company would focus on engineering and automation expertise in Germany and reduce simple production tasks. It has German production plants in Wiehe and Schwaig.
Sumitomo (SHI) Demag is a unit of Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ltd., which is based in Tokyo.
The German mechanical engineering industry association, VDMA, which closely tracks machinery markets, predicted last week that plastics and rubber processing machinery sales would be down 10 to 15 percent this year compared with last year.
Ron Shinn | Editor
Editor Ron Shinn is a co-founder of Plastics Machinery & Manufacturing and has been covering the plastics industry for more than 35 years. He leads the editorial team, directs coverage and sets the editorial calendar. He also writes features, including the Talking Points column and On the Factory Floor, and covers recycling and sustainability for PMM and Plastics Recycling.
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