Wincor Nixdorf continues focus on international expansion

In fiscal 2003/2004, sales increased 9% to €1,576 million (previous year: €1,440 million). At the same time, costs rose only 8%, resulting in an operating profit (EBITA) increase of 12% to €116 million from €104 million. Profit after taxes rose to €44 million (previous year: €14 million). Contributing to this development was the disappearance of scheduled goodwill amortization, which arose as a result of the Companys demerger (carve-out) from the Siemens Group in 1999. Operating cash flow grew 13% to €122 million (€108 million). The company reduced its net debt by €28 million to €234 million (€262 million) as of September 30, 2004. The Supervisory Board and Board of Directors have recommended a dividend of €1.21 per share, amounting to around €20 million. Growth abroad The growth driver is – and remains — internationalization. Business in Germany was down 5% to €515 million (€542 million). Germany accounted for 33% (38%) of total sales. In European markets outside Germany, sales rose 18% to €764 million (€648 million). In the Americas, sales were up 45% to €113 million (€78 million). This strong growth is largely the result of a project that Wincor Nixdorf won from the United States Postal Service through its partner IBM. The project called for equipping more than 2,500 branch offices across the U.S. with self-service terminals, which enable customers to purchase sheets of stamps, weigh letters and parcels and post them. In the Asia-Pacific region, Wincor Nixdorf continued to grow, generating sales of €184 million (€172 million), up 7% on the previous year. Based on U.S. dollars, sales were up 63% in the U.S. and 19% in the Asia-Pacific region. Service business expanded Wincor Nixdorf has further expanded its services and software solutions. In the fiscal year, product sales were €950 million, or 60% (61%) of total sales. Sales of services and software solutions accounted for €626 million, or 40% (39%), of total product sales. In both core retail and banking sectors, key areas of focus were the further development of open solutions and the improved international availability of software solutions. In the banking market, these efforts were particularly supported by the launch of regional Solution Centers within regional subsidiaries. These centers ensure a swift, customized integration of software into customers’ IT environments. The service portfolio for retailers was also tailored to meet the needs of retail groups that are expanding internationally and require help in standardizing their IT branch operations and tailoring software solutions to meet specific country requirements. The service business benefited, in particular, from its new focus and continued expansion of its worldwide service network. The goal of these efforts is to increase the efficiency of providing service through the company’s own resources or through partners and to offer customers a maximum on IT services through its own infrastructure. Local customer care centers and larger centers in Paderborn, Austin and Singapore ensure 24-hour service worldwide. Retail banks: Offering total solutions Sales to banking customers rose 11% to €930 million (€838 million). The operating profit (EBITA) for this customer segment was up 8% to €92 million, benefiting in large part from business expansion and ongoing efforts to reduce costs in sales and administration. Key competitive advantages of Wincor Nixdorf were, in particular, high