“In view of the continuing weak market and immense price pressure in the home and commercial sectors, we must expand our ongoing restructuring and transformation program, particularly in the Home & Business Solutions division,” said SMA CEO Jürgen Reinert.
Last year’s performance was already poor. This year, Germany has seen a further decline of 40 percent. “We are maintaining our market share, but the market itself is shrinking, so we have to tighten our belts once again.”
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Only the segment offering solutions for large-scale plants has developed positively in recent times. SMA currently generates 80 percent of its revenue from ground-mounted systems. This business unit is currently subsidising products for residential and commercial customers. “That is not a sustainable situation in the long term,” Reinert added.
The inverter manufacturer has been pursuing a rigorous cost-saving programme for over a year. In November, the company announced plans to cut 1,100 full-time positions worldwide by the end of this year—700 of which are in Niestetal. These measures are intended to save up to €200 million. At present, SMA employs a total of 3,800 people, with 2,800 based in Niestetal.
Restore competitiveness
A month ago SMA announced further savings, targeting an additional €100 million per year. At that time, it was still unclear how many jobs might be affected. Now, a further 300 positions are set to be cut at the Niestetal site, along with another 50 worldwide.
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“We will restore our competitiveness by focusing even more strongly on our core competencies in the future,” Reinert said.
“This includes our technical expertise in the field of cybersecurity and quality and our ability to develop comprehensive solutions in accordance with the highest international and national standards, which also increasingly meet the changing needs of our customers. At the same time, we will increasingly leverage our international presence in the future to optimize our value creation in the area of production,” Reinert underlined. (hcn)
