We seamlessly maintained our growth trajectory in the first quarter,” remarked Dirk Engel, technotrans Chief Executive Officer. Following a slightly weaker final quarter of 2017, he pointed out the renewed momentum to the business performance in the new year. Particularly business for new machinery developed positively. Below the line, net income came to EUR 3.2 million (up 2.6 percent).

technotrans generated around EUR 32 million or 58.5 percent of consolidated revenue through non-print business. This included a pleasing entry by the company into the plastics processing industry. There was latterly also a rise in demand in laser business and in the semiconductor industry. The subsidiary termotek reported a new revenue record in the first quarter. “In the growth market of electric mobility, business involving our cooling systems for quick-charging stations is gathering pace. On top of that, we also have a few highly promising development projects in the pipeline,” stressed Engel. In the printing industry, revenue came to more than EUR 22 million and was therefore at the high prior-year level.

Strong growth in Technology
In the Technology segment, all technology markets showed an upward trend. Revenue climbed 4.0 percent to EUR 39.7 million. EBIT went up ten percent to EUR 2.2 million, and the corresponding margin improved to 5.7 percent (previous year: 5.2 percent). Demand also picked up compared with the final quarter of 2017: “We achieved a much stronger performance here with revenue rising by over EUR 4 million,” commented Engel, who is optimistic about the prospects for the remainder of the year. The bright outlook in the printing industry, specifically in packaging printing, promises a solid foundation for 2018. Notably the expansion of digital printing business is also unlocking extra revenue potential.

The Services segment started the financial year at a consistently high level. At EUR 14.4 million, revenue was slightly down year on year. The revenue share from print business did not quite reach the high prior-year figures. Technical Documentation, too, made a tentative start to 2018. EBIT remained on a par with the previous year at
EUR 2.3 million.

Forecast confirmed
“On the strength of our continuing healthy order situation and high capacity utilisation, we are confident about the prospects for the coming months,” commented Engel. Meanwhile the Board of Management reaffirms the forecast for the full year. The expectations are revenue of between EUR 212 and 220 million, and EBIT within the range of EUR 18 to 20 million.

The Board of Management and Supervisory Board will propose to the Annual General Meeting taking place on May 18, 2018 that a dividend of EUR 0.88 per no par value share be distributed for the 2017 financial year. The meeting will also vote on a change in the company’s legal form to a European stock corporation (SE/Societas Europaea).

The full 3-month report 2018 is available to download from Investor Relations/Financial Reports section of the company website:
https://www.technotrans.com/en/investor-relations/financial-reports.html