News

2022 goes down in CEDES history as a difficult year, but also as one of the most important years. Depending on their positioning in the market, most companies faced five or more superimposed problems during the last year. Not all of them have survived. For CEDES, the 2nd semester, especially the 4th quarter, has also posed major challenges. The CEDES Team has once again proven its resilience. We have not only mastered the numerous challenges, but also created new opportunities for the future. Through the acquisition of VITECTOR, CEDES became a global leader in the industrial door market. Our newest subsidiary in Japan has achieved excellent results. Last but not least, the consolidation and introduction of new products is the foundation for future growth. 

Organically, CEDES was not quite able to top the results of the previous year - the negative impact of external factors was too great, and the abovementioned positive developments were not enough to compensate for losses. However, the result is still presentable, given the situation.

Especially the collapsing construction industry in China has impacted the modest development of CEDES. The decline in turnover in China could be partially compensated by strong development in other Asian countries. The balanced distribution of revenue on the continents has helped to avoid stronger swings. The GDP development in the USA and in China is a good illustration of the problem.   

We have seen a very strong GDP development in the USA, given the influencing factors. Regardless of the applied scenario, the US economy will grow also in the coming years. The creativity of the free world translates into the ability to quickly adapt to new situations and to manage crises.

China’s development, on the contrary, suffers as a result of many erroneous decisions. The reduced GDP figures - the highest ones showing a growth of 3% - are hardly credible. Numerous economic sectors, especially the real estate market, are in decline. The volumes of multinationals went back to about a half of the volumes in the previous year. A sustainable recovery is not yet in sight. Will it come in 2024?

Thanks to the successful acquisition of VITECTOR in the middle of last year, the CEDES Group’s revenue has increased. More importantly still, so did its strategic importance - CEDES is now a full-liner in sensors for industrial doors, and a global leader in this market. The volumes are increasing continuously and are expected to grow further in the coming years. Our customers have put their trust in us with new projects, for which we are very grateful.

Our newest subsidiary CEDES Japan in Tokyo has experienced outstanding growth. Our highly qualified team of engineers and sales professionals has not only contributed to the massive increase in revenue, but also created the foundation for our future growth.

New products are doing very well. Especially the CabSafe product group has met expectations. CabSafe is the only light curtain system with proper 3D functionality (providing lobby monitoring) fully compliant with the US A17.1 standard. This 3D sensor system is a forerunner of a currently developed CEDES 3D sensor that will replace light curtains in the future. Further products are about to be introduced - you can read more about them in the next Pioneer newsletter.

A big thank you to our employees, who have shown great resilience in the face of multidimensional challenges and have overcome major difficulties.  

Christian-Erik Thöny
CEO CEDES Group