Datwyler reports double-digit rise in sales, earnings 

Altdorf, Switzerland – Datwyler Group has reported strong results for the first half 2021, singalling a return to the pre-Covid levels of 2019.

During the first six months of the year, the Swiss group posted a 35% increase in earnings (EBITDA) to CHF131 million (€120 million), on 20.8% higher sales of CHF590.0 million. 

Helped by “good utilisation of capacity and strict cost management,” the group’s operating result (EBIT) rose 53.3% to CHF98.9 million, above the pre-pandemic level of 2019, Datwyler announced 11 Aug.

The healthcare solutions business area, which has been supporting leading vaccine manufacturers in the provision of Covid-19 vaccines, saw revenue increase nearly 19% to CHF239 million. 

Segment EBIT rose 60% to CHF57 million during the first half, helped by high utilisation rates and boosted by strong demand for vaccines and system-critical components for injectable medicines. 

Furthermore, the group said its newly launched NeoFlex components had helped attract new customers and medicine projects, which will lay the foundations for long-term revenue growth. 

Datwyler’s industrial solutions business area also experienced a “significant recovery” in demand in the first half of 2021. 

The business area posted a 21% increase in EBIT to CHF32 million, on 24% higher sales of CHF249 million.

While market conditions have ‘more or less normalised’ compared to first half of 2020, Datwyler warned that the general shortage of IT components in the automotive industry had a negative impact on global production activities and some of its operations.

As a result, sales within the group's mobility business unit remained 10% lower than the per-pandemic levels. 

To enhance the efficiency of the mobility business unit, Datwyler said it had transferred its liquid silicone production technology to production sites in Mexico and China.

The move, it said, will establish a global production base for complex multi-component parts, which are particularly used in electric vehicles. 

The company is also upgrading its Chinese automotive production site with next-generation injection moulding technology. 

Also during the period, Datwyler’s online distributor Reichelt benefited from the acceleration in the online shopping trend, which has picked up since the outbreak of Covid-19. 

Here, revenue increased by 17.2% to CHF105 million while EBIT rose 36.5% to CHF10 million. 

“Our strategic realignment with a focus on system-critical elastomer components for attractive global markets is paying off,” said Datwyler CEO Dirk Lambrecht. 

“With high demand and dynamic, profitable growth, our core business shows a promising potential for the future,” he added.