Liebherr forecasts 15% rise for 2006

An increase of more than € 800 million is forecast for Liebherr Group turnover in 2006. This 15% rise will take the total to a record of more than €6 billion. “It is possible that final figures will actually exceed this forecast,” said Henning Rapp, member of the Liebherr executive board and general manager of Liebherr-International Deutschland. “Liebherr finds itself enjoying a further period of stable growth. In the first nine months [of 2006] our Group increased total worldwide sales by 774 million euros, or 20%, to €4,619 million in comparison with the same period last year.”

Double-digit growth rates were reported in all product segments and the construction cranes and mixing technology division “achieved the strongest relative growth, followed by mobile cranes and earthmoving machinery. In absolute terms, the earthmoving and mining division still remains the strongest, ahead of mobile cranes, construction cranes and mixing technology,” Rapp explained.

Efforts to meet the strong demand and reduce delivery times include, Rapp explained “significant investments this year. The total amount invested in the 2006 business year in our production sites and international sales and service network will come to €400 million. This represents a considerable increase on last year’s figure which, at €290 million, was high in itself. The combination of the construction projects already underway and the ones we shall shortly be undertaking will give us an additional effective area of approximately 150,000 m².

“Hand in hand with the growth of the Group comes a steady increase in the size of the workforce. The Liebherr Group now includes a total of more than 100 companies on all continents and employs a workforce of over 25,000”.