At the beginning of the year, Dr. Peter Selders took over as CEO of the group of companies. He was previously Managing Director of the Product Center for level and pressure measurement technology. Matthias Altendorf moved to the Board of Directors as Chairman. "Our common goal is to position Endress+Hauser well for future generations," emphasized Matthias Altendorf. Peter Selders explained that he would continue to develop the family business with a "long-term approach to thinking and acting".

Endress+Hauser started 2023 with a record-high order backlog. Economic momentum slowed noticeably in the second half of the year. Nevertheless, business developed better than expected. "Our organic growth was so strong that neither the negative currency effects nor the loss of our Russian business slowed us down too much," reported Matthias Altendorf.

Growth in all regions and sectors

The Group's net sales rose by 11.0% to 3.719 billion euros in 2023. "Exchange rate effects cost us 3.9% growth," explained CFO Dr. Luc Schultheiss. All sectors and regions contributed to the positive development. Business in Europe and America grew at an above-average rate. The greatest momentum was seen in the Middle East. The USA replaced China as the market with the highest turnover, followed - at some distance - by Germany.

All core sectors recorded good growth. Only the chemical industry in Europe performed weakly against the backdrop of high energy prices. Endress+Hauser delivered more than 2.9 million sensors and systems worldwide in 2023. While the process measurement technology business developed strongly, laboratory measurement technology continued to suffer from the end of the pandemic-related surge in demand. The sensor business, which also includes cyclical sectors such as building technology, also declined.

Improved economic efficiency

As the cost of materials and personnel expenses grew more slowly than turnover, the operating result increased by 20.3% to 573.0 million euros. The return on sales improved by 0.6% to 14.4% despite higher costs for interest and foreign currency hedging. Profit after tax rose by 14.5% to 408.7 million euros. This was due to a slightly higher tax rate.

For the first time, Endress+Hauser's business figures exclude the influence of the family-owned company's strategic financial resources. Depending on the performance of the capital markets, these have always had a strong influence on the result. "We are now focusing entirely on the development of our operating business," explained Luc Schultheiss. The change will be visible, among other things, in a lower equity ratio (2023: 55.1%). "This reflects the financing of the operating group of companies via the parent company," emphasized the CFO.

Investments and innovations

Last year, the Group invested 260.6 million euros in buildings and facilities, an increase of 8.4%. In five years, 1.131 billion euros have been invested in better infrastructure and high-performance networks from its own funds. Projects worth 570 million euros are currently planned. The largest projects relate to the sites in Maulburg (Germany), Suzhou (China), Jena (Germany), Shanghai (China), Greenwood (Indiana/USA) and Waldheim (Germany).

Innovation in all areas is a driver of growth for Endress+Hauser. Over 1,300 people work directly on the development of new products. The Group spent 267.6 million euros, around 7.2 percent of turnover, on research and development, 10.4 percent more than in 2022. Around 8,900 patents and patent applications protect intellectual property. 257 first-time applications to patent offices around the world testify to the inventive spirit of our employees.

Key role in the sustainable transformation of the industry

At the end of 2023, the Group had 16,532 employees, 715 more than a year ago. New jobs were added, particularly in production. In the EcoVadis sustainability rating, Endress+Hauser scored 71 out of 100 points and achieved Gold status - a ranking in the top five percent of the peer group. The company joined the Science Based Targets initiative last year and will reduce its net greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050.

CEO Peter Selders described digitalization and sustainability as key topics. "They are drivers of our business. And they are closely linked, because we can only achieve sustainability at competitive costs through digitalization." Measurement and analysis technology offers great leverage for making industrial processes more sustainable. This became clear at the Endress+Hauser Global Forum 2023. Over 800 customers from all over the world addressed the question of how the process industry can be transformed sustainably.

Strategic partnership on the right track

The planned strategic partnership with sensor manufacturer SICK in the field of process automation should also be seen against this backdrop. "Together, we want to support our customers even better in future topics such as climate and environmental protection, the energy transition and the hydrogen economy," explained Peter Selders. The aim of the partnership is to make SICK's gas flow meters and analyzers part of the Endress+Hauser product range.

To this end, the SICK sales teams of the Process Automation division are to be integrated into the Endress+Hauser Sales Centers; the production of SICK process technology is to be taken over by a joint venture. "We have made good progress in the talks," said the CEO. The contract should be signed by mid-2024, with the partnership taking effect at the turn of the year 2024/25.

Company confident for 2024

The CEO was cautiously optimistic about the current year. Endress+Hauser intends to support customers even better with over 70 new products. "Incoming orders and net sales have developed more positively than expected in the first three months. But the growth is not yet broad-based," reported Peter Selders. After years of double-digit growth rates, the company boss expects a single-digit increase. The company plans to create 300 jobs worldwide. "We will do everything we can to develop well in 2024 - as we have done for over 70 years."