Dieffenbacher has reported to earn €400 million in sales in 2021 due to high demand for new wood-based panel production plants, diversification of its forming business, growing customer interest in sustainable solutions and the introduction of a smart plant concept that gives manufacturers more insight into their production and processes.
“Despite many restrictions related to COVID-19, it was an excellent year for Dieffenbacher. We served our customers just as well as in the times before the pandemic, and that makes me very proud of our team,” said Christian Dieffenbacher, CEO of Dieffenbacher. “Each of our three business units — Wood, Forming and Recycling — performed well and received significant new orders from customers.”
The Wood business unit recorded high demand for new plants on nearly every continent. In Europe, the manufacturer received an increasing number of orders for plants that produce special products such as wood-fibre insulation boards and plants that deploy advanced environmental technology solutions for greater sustainability.
Christian also reported that Dieffenbacher’s customers are increasingly opting for complete plants from a single supplier. They cited Homanit Group as an example, who ordered for a new plant in Pagirai, Lithuania, that combines environmental technology solutions with the fibre dryer and a 50-megawatt energy plant to ensure minimal emissions. Dieffenbacher also received four orders for plants to produce wood-fibre insulation boards used for ecologically smart and climate-friendly insulation in house construction.
Dieffenbacher also reported that the Recycling business unit attracted customers with sustainable solutions in the areas of wood recycling, alternative fuels and “Waste2Product”. The business unit designs and supplies plants that process recycled wood for particleboard production — using sorting technology to achieve purity levels of up to 99.5% — and plants that produce pallets from 100% recycled plastic materials. Another highlight was an order for an innovative plant concept for producing insulating boards from polyurethane waste.
As part of its new CEBRO smart plant concept, Dieffenbacher introduced in September the digital platform called EVORIS. EVORIS gives manufacturers more insight into their production and processes. AI-supported analysis of live data is just one way that EVORIS helps plant operators better understand and control their plants and make important decisions faster. Along with EVORIS, CEBRO supports advanced plant engineering solutions, operational excellence and sustainability initiatives. First developed for the Wood business unit, CEBRO and EVORIS will successively be available to Dieffenbacher Forming and Recycling customers in 2022.
“Sustainability and digitalisation will remain our primary focus,” explained Christian. “The trend toward climate-friendly construction with wood and wood-based panels and their recyclability is very much to our liking, as is the general upswing in the construction industry.”
Dieffenbacher expects to close 2021 with sales of nearly €400m, with plans to expand it to €500 over the next few years, as Christian concluded: “We can accomplish this by continuing to offer innovative and compelling products, supported by qualified and committed employees. A double-digit million euro investment at our headquarters in Eppingen will help us achieve these growth targets.
“Our innovative products give us a global presence in all relevant markets, and we have further sharpened our profile as a complete plant supplier. As a result, I’m optimistic that we’ll be able to achieve a sales volume of around €450m in 2022.”
