Contract Manufacturing Gathers Pace at Heidelberg

• More than 20 companies already rely on Heidelberg as a technology supplier
• Energy industry and mechanical engineering sector are biggest customers
• Customers impressed by expertise in electronic drive technology and the manufacture of castings
• Building-up of long-term customer and supplier relationships intended
• Further significant increase in sales planned for the future

Just one year after launching the new Heidelberg System Manufacturing unit for contract manufacturing, Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) has already achieved notable success. In the current financial year 2010/2011, more than 20 external companies - primarily from the energy industry and mechanical engineering sector - have already commissioned Heidelberg with projects of various sizes. The largest single order is from a company in the power electronics industry to whom Heidelberg supplies a variety of electronics boards.

Heidelberg produces mainly castings for the mechanical engineering sector, particularly for manufacturers of construction machinery and the field of medical technology. These are manufactured at the company's foundry in Amstetten, which this year celebrated its 25th anniversary.

Above all, customers value the company's expertise in the field of electronic drive control. Having accumulated decades of specialist know-how in this area, Heidelberg can now offer its customers a complete product portfolio to fulfill the most diverse requirements relating to electronic drive technology.

"Contract manufacturing at Heidelberg is picking up to such an extent that we have already exceeded our own planning. A large number of companies - most of them representing growth industries - are now ordering components and parts from us. In particular, they value our comprehensive know-how, the quality and precision we deliver in manufacturing electronics, mechanical parts, and castings, and our competitive prices," explains Stephan Plenz, Member of the Management Board responsible for Heidelberg Equipment. Heribert Wille, Head of Heidelberg System Manufacturing continues: "When it comes to contract manufacturing, too, we are interested in building up long-term partnerships with our customers and are confident that we can increase sales in this sector considerably."

Heidelberg is looking to increase the sales generated by System Manufacturing to EUR 100 million by 2014.

Figure 1:
Electronic drive controls manufactured by Heidelberg, such as the ones shown here, are generating particularly strong interest from companies in a range of sectors.

Figure 2:
Electronic modules are being produced at the assembly line of Heidelberg's electronics production at the Wiesloch-Walldorf plant - also by order of external customers.


Further information for journalists:
Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG
Corporate Public Relations
Matthias Hartung
Phone: +49 6221 92 5077
Fax: +49 6221 92 995077
E-mail: matthias.hartung@heidelberg.com