Founded in 1946, SICK currently employs more than 5,800 employees worldwide, and achieved sales of EUR 902.7 m in 2011. Naturally, those impressive figures aren’t generated through luck – they’re down to hard work, innovation, and by keeping a close eye on the market (especially in challenging times). We spoke to Stéphane Renaud-Betz, Strategic Industry Manager – Electronic & Solar.
PES: Welcome back to PES. When the company appeared in the magazine last year, you mentioned that the solar industry was an expanding area of your overall business. Is this still the case?
Stéphane Renaud-Betz: A year later the situation is very different. The solar industry has virtually stopped investing in new production capacity. Our sensors are primarily used on equipment for the production of solar wafers, cells and modules. Until the solar industry resume buying solar equipment the situation will remain difficult for our solar customers and for us.
We continue however to consider the solar industry a strategy area for SICK and we continue investing in research and development to meet the demand of our solar equipment customers.
Comparatively, our business with sensors for sun farm applications has been doing better. SICK sensors are used on PV and thermo-solar sun farms for sun tracking and premise security.
PES: The company surpassed itself again last year by exceeding its own record financial results – to what do you attribute this tremendous success?
SRB: SICK AG surpassed itself again last year and, for the second time in a row after the international financial crisis, exceeded its own record levels as a result of continued strong demand for intelligent sensors (particularly for plant and machine construction) as well as further development of the company’s organisation. This success is not without reason: these record results are a consequence of SICK anticipating technological trends and customer requirements, and implementing them in innovative products and solutions, complemented by the flexible adaptation of organisational structures.
As a result of its broad international strategic industry positioning and sensors are used in many industries besides solar. SICK is ideally prepared for future developments on the world’s markets and is able to offset the weakness of one market.
