Mayer & Cie (MCT) expects to see a rise in textile machinery sales this year with the leading trade fair ITMA to be held in June in Barcelona, Spain. The Albstadt-based circular knitting machine manufacturer generated sales of around €110 million in 2018. The company saw a slight increase in sales even though 2018 was a year of considerable challenges.
MCT was affected most by turbulence in Turkey, traditionally one of the company’s most important markets. At the beginning of 2018, the order intake was at a peak, only to collapse in the second half due to devaluation of the Turkish lira. In addition, the trade conflict between the United States and China unsettled the entire global economy. Repercussions on the textile trade took their toll. Business with Iran, for example, an interesting market for MCT as a potentially strong textile country, was made impossible by the re-imposition of US sanctions.Mayer & Cie (MCT) expects to see a rise in textile machinery sales this year with the leading trade fair ITMA to be held in June in Barcelona, Spain. The Albstadt-based circular knitting machine manufacturer generated sales of around €110 million in 2018. The company saw a slight increase in sales even though 2018 was a year of considerable challenges.#
Against this backdrop the integration of a successful line of business, the manufacture of braiding machines, should prove to be a good investment in the future. By establishing a second mainstay that is independent of the first, MCT is making itself less reliant on the state of the textile economy. Preparations required for the production of this special machinery were completed on schedule at the end of 2018 and series manufacture of braiding machines began punctually at the company’s Albstadt headquarters in January 2019, MCT said in a press release.
Unlike the currently declining market for circular knitting machines the sales outlook for braiding machines is excellent. The Albstadt team, consisting of 12 employees, is scheduled to make about 40 braiding machines in 2019. Until the year’s end, production will be supported by the firm’s US affiliate Mayer Industries because demand exceeds current German production capacity. MCT’s aim is to further develop what is already a very good market position in braiding machines. Production capacities are to be increased in Albstadt and an in-house research and development department is to be set up.
In the circular knitting machine sector the downturn in demand can be offset by in-house measures such as running down working time accounts. MCT is also looking at countries like Uzbekistan and Bangladesh, where developments are positive. Uzbekistan, a cotton producer, is becoming an increasingly interesting market for circular knitting machines due to intensive government promotion of domestic textile production, while Bangladesh has for years been one of the company’s most important markets. (GK)
Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India
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