• Turnover in 2023 increases by 5.8 per cent to 11.3 billion euros
• Order intake stagnates at a high level in 2023
• Investments in climate-neutral shipping ensure good capacity utilisation

EU bureaucracy hinders productionMaritime suppliers in Germany are satisfied with the 2023 financial year. “We expect business to develop well again this year. Last year’s stagnating order intake was probably just a short breather after the very strong previous years. Shipowners are now not only continuing to invest in newbuilding but above all in the modernisation and retrofitting of the existing fleet. The IMO requirement for climate neutrality is certainly a strong driver here, especially in the global after sales service business,” said Martin Johannsmann, Chairman of the Executive Board of VDMA Marine Equipment and Systems (MES) and Managing Director of SKF Marine GmbH, at the annual press conference of the VDMA MES section. “As an industry, we have developed the necessary technological solutions in a forward-looking and timely manner. However, we also realise that the enormous number of necessary retrofits could not only reach capacity limits but also monetary limits for operators,” he added.

Sustainability goals in the shipping industry

The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has set the strategic goal of achieving climate neutrality in shipping by 2050. Important interim targets include a 30 to 40 per cent reduction in greenhouse gases by 2030 and a 70 to 80 per cent reduction by 2040. “We fully support these targets,” said Martin Johannsmann. “All companies in our industry have recognised the issue of sustainability in the development of their products as an absolutely necessary step into the future and are implementing this. However, it is important to have a stable political environment that sets the right course promptly and reliably so that, for example, sufficient alternative fuels can be produced for the global merchant fleet in the foreseeable future.”

Producing sustainable products

Maritime shipping is already the most environmentally friendly mode of transport. Due to the large volumes transported, it emits 2 to 3 per cent of global CO2 emissions. “As a shipbuilding supplier industry, we have a great responsibility in the development of environmentally friendly products. Often in cooperation with other companies, we develop and design efficient, interlinked systems that enable the most effective overall reduction in greenhouse gases,” explained Dr Lars Greitsch, Member of the Board of VDMA Marine Equipment and Systems and Managing Director of Mecklenburger Metallguss GmbH. “Furthermore, it is important for us to produce in a climate-friendly way, especially at our domestic location, but also in Europe. As a maritime supplier, we are pioneers in many areas and have achieved good results in climate-friendly production. However, what is difficult to implement in a medium-sized production company is the ever-increasing effort involved in processing the growing EU regulations, such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) or the German Supply Chain Sustainability Act (LkSG). The necessary processing and reporting require more and more personnel capacity. At the same time, employees must become more and more productive in order to survive in international competition,” criticised Greitsch.

Recruiting young talent Employment in the shipbuilding and offshore supply industry in Germany rose to a good 64,500 highly qualified employees last year. Recruiting young talent is seen as the key issue for the future of the industry. “We can only continue our current growth with sufficient young talent. We want to reach young people by showing them that shipping in particular is making an important contribution to making our world greener and achieving climate targets,” says Lars Greitsch. “This includes as much creative freedom as possible and as few bureaucratic, non-value-adding requirements as necessary.”

Key figures for the ship and offshore supply industry in Germany

• 64,500 employees
• 11.3 billion euros turnover
• Export ratio: 79 per cent

Incoming orders are stagnating: An average decline of 1.0 per cent for 2023

Markets: The German shipbuilding and offshore market directly purchase around 20 per cent of products Other European countries confirmed their stable role as an important export market for German suppliers (35 per cent of exports). Overall, the industry supplies Germany and Europe with almost half of its products. North America has grown significantly as a market. China and Korea continue to play an important role as sales markets.

The VDMA represents 3600 German and European mechanical and plant engineering companies. The industry stands for innovation, export-orientation and medium-sized companies. The companies employ a total of around 3 million people in the EU-27, more than 1.2 million of them in Germany alone. This makes mechanical and plant engineering the largest employer among the capital goods industries, both in the EU-27 and in Germany. It accounts for an estimated turnover of around 910 billion euros in the European Union. Around 80 per cent of the machines sold in the EU come from a production facility in the single market. VDMA Marine Equipment and Systems represents the export-strong maritime industry, which supplies the global markets of shipping, shipbuilding and the offshore oil & gas industry.