The current discussion about the future of motorized mobility makes it clear once again: technologies are constantly changing. One replaces the other. This is called "disruptive technologies" in the rather lofty language of science and politics. What is meant is what we all experience in regular cycles in our everyday lives: One technology is replaced by another completely new one. This has been going on for centuries. For example, when the invention of the combustion engine banished the stagecoach to the museum. When CAD replaced the technical draughtsman at the drawing board. Or when the much-loved vinyl record had to make way for the more handy CD before it was overtaken by the MP3 format. What is meant here is not simply successive stages of development, but complete processes of replacement of previous technologies, which also led to far-reaching changes in production technology.

Rethinking metalworking
And today? Now it could be that not only a perfectly understandable ecological trend will put an end to the combustion engine mentioned above - if not immediately, then all the more intensively over time. For many companies, especially automotive suppliers, this will mean a technological rethink and even the complete loss of entire components and systems that will simply become superfluous in e-mobility. Where nothing burns anymore, you no longer need so many parts manufactured using CNC technologies. This could mean conversion. So: What can I produce on my machines that is different or for others? Can I convert my production, will new markets open up elsewhere? Can I serve other fields with my capabilities and existing technical infrastructure?

Don't be afraid of e-mobility!
At the same time, the exact opposite scenario is currently taking place. While e-mobility should definitely be on the radar as a radical market change, conventional vehicle production is currently running at unprecedented high speeds - diesel discussion, e-mobility or free local transport or not. This makes decisions about the future increasingly tricky. On the one hand, companies must follow the market and possibly even accommodate the current boom by increasing capacity and performance with conventional technology - not least to ensure capacity utilization and sales.

On the other hand, there are already those lurking in the wings who are focusing on completely different mobility products and intend to quickly bid farewell to the good and highly proven technologies in the age of combustion engines, which is likely to come to an end in the foreseeable future. So the question is: should we continue to invest in "old" technologies in order to meet current demand, including in terms of capacity and delivery capability, or should we bear in mind that things will change disruptively and that a rapid response will then be vital for survival?

Acting flexibly in the market
These sensitive issues - always accompanied by the topics of digitalization, Industry 4.0 and the shortage of skilled workers - automatically lead to considerations regarding the type and structure of optimal financing for those operational investments that enable a company to react flexibly to foreseeable changes in requirements. This is where specialized banks such as akf bank come into play. Banks that know the markets, the technologies, the manufacturers and users as well as the innovation chains, cycles and scenarios of further development. Beyond mere discussions about leasing rates, interest rates and other standards of financing, akf bank has precise insights into technical processes and is aware of the great need for the most flexible financial leeway possible in view of volatile, i.e. uncertain, future prospects.

Various options allow the financing companies new leeway, such as exchanging a system in the event of a change in capacity utilization - even if this is unexpectedly unfavorable. Here in particular, akf bank has developed a series of very effective models that are tailored to individual needs and address precisely the point that is decisive for every entrepreneur: minimizing risk while at the same time maximizing operational flexibility and efficiency.

Jürgen Janz, Head of Industrial Finance at akf bank, says: "Anyone who talks to us quickly learns that we can completely and competently put ourselves in the shoes of a company with its production and supply chains and the technology required to find the optimal financing solution. Not off the shelf, but very precisely based on the sum of all relevant factors of the entrepreneurial reality. This is the basis of our success in an environment that is also technically very complex."