Financial year 2009/2010 was successful overall. With the rapid implementation of our restructuring programme, we have created a basis for further growth: the improved cost base enabled us to significantly lower the break-even point in the Industrial Cranes and Port Technology segments. For more information, please see the notes on the segments below.

In operating business, we benefited from the positive economic trend: our Group order intake increased by 8.2 percent year on year to EUR 910.6 million, with all segments contributing. The late cyclical nature of our business means that there is a delay before the positive order situation is reflected in revenue. Hence, Group revenue decreased by 11.1 percent compared with the previous year to EUR 931.3 million. Nevertheless, we even slightly exceeded our revenue target of some EUR 900 million, specified in detail in the report for the third quarter. The Group’s operating EBIT amounted to EUR 54.2 million, down 19.8 percent on the prior year. Our forecast had been EUR 45 million to EUR 50 million, so the actual figure also exceeded our expectations and was in line with the estimates of a number of analysts.

The Industrial Cranes segment reported revenue of EUR 440.8 million (2008/2009: EUR 545.8 million) and operating EBIT of EUR 4.8 million (2008/2009: EUR 29.7 million). We have further reduced the cost base by successfully implementing measures from the restructuring programme and succeeded in lowering the break-even point well below the initially planned EUR 470 million.

As the economy has begun to recover, our customers have also expanded their capacities. Due to rising demand for Demag Cranes lifting equipment and cranes, we increased our installed base in the financial year to more than 660,000 cranes and hoists. Since the third quarter, the number of enquiries for Process Cranes and Standard Cranes has begun to rise again, and some of them have already resulted in orders. Because of the late cyclical nature of this product line, there will be a delay of six to twelve months before increased order intake is reflected in the revenue of the Industrial Cranes segment.

We also intensified our focus on emerging markets in the past financial year. In July 2010, for example, we opened a new plant in Chakan, India, thereby increasing our production capacities on the subcontinent almost fivefold, by around 8,000 square metres to more than 10,400 square metres. In addition to Standard Cranes and crane components, the production portfolio includes the technically more complex Process Cranes. With the new product range, we are focusing specifically on the requirements of the Indian market and thus implementing the key element of our strategy, placing customer needs at the heart of our activities. The overall investment will exceed EUR 8 million, underlining our strategic commitment to the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India and China). We have already designed and locally produced a Process Crane in an international team of Indian and German engineers. This success provides further evidence that we are on the right path with the integration of the Group. For the Chinese market, we developed a new rope and chain hoist product range in the financial year, which specifically aims to meet the needs of the medium price segment. These products are currently in the test phase.

We also significantly reduced the cost base in the Port Technology segment thanks to the successful implementation of our restructuring programme. As a result, we lowered the break-even point below our original target of EUR 200 million. Contract manufacturing, which we carried out during the crisis for external companies at our factory in Düsseldorf-Benrath, also helped to optimise costs. Measures like this improved capacity utilisation at our factory.

Order volume in the Port Technology segment improved steadily throughout the financial year; we generated the most orders in the fourth quarter. Demand for our versatile Mobile Harbour Cranes in particular increased substantially. There was also renewed demand from customers for our services in the financial year. We re-entered talks on major automated terminal projects with several port and terminal operators; however, no concrete orders have been received to date in this area.

In the Services segment, spare parts business in particular began to pick up again – the result of our customers increasing their utilisation of crane systems. Correspondingly, demand for spare parts rose steadily, although our customers hardly engaged in any inventory building. Strong revenue in the fourth quarter was particularly due to refurbishment of crane systems.

At the beginning of the financial year, there were still 613 employees on a short work-week across the Group. Thanks to the improvement in the economic situation and resulting positive business performance, we reduced this figure to 26 by the end of the financial year.

By rigorously focusing on efficient cash and working capital management, we repaid net debt in full in financial year 2009/2010 and even achieved a net cash position of EUR 7.2 million. Free cash flow before financing and restructuring payments amounted to EUR 25.0 million.