Monday, May 24, 2021
IMA Schelling held its Open House 2021, which focused on the topics of digitisation, technical innovations and individual solutions. The planned hybrid event became a purely online event due to the high incidence rates. But this did not detract from the success: More than 250 different IMA Schelling customers from all over the world used the five days to obtain detailed information about the new products of the IMA Schelling Group in lectures, virtual company tours, expert rounds and personal discussions.
After a more than positive start to 2020 with very good incoming orders, April 2020 also changed everything for IMA Schelling: Home office, short-time work, a slump in incoming orders and, above all, an onerous uncertainty about what the future would bring. But the tide quickly turned and from September the incoming orders increased again, as people during the crisis increasingly invested in their homes and the furniture industry thus benefited from them. Nevertheless, IMA Schelling recorded a total turnover of 252 million euros in 2020, a 15 percent drop in turnover compared to the previous year (299 million euros).
The company with its 1,620 employees around the world used the time of the crisis to restructure its business areas. At the same time, IMA Schelling invested in IT and digitization tools as well as new processing machines for its own production, opened new sales and service branches in Sweden and Lithuania and pushed ahead with the further development of the product portfolio.
The results of these product developments were presented at the Open House 2021. Expert panels on the future level of automation in furniture production and guest contributions from cooperation partners rounded off the offer. The live sessions dealing with technical innovations were clearly the most popular with the participants, who mainly came from IMA Schelling’s European core markets. But despite the time difference, numerous customers from Asia and America also switched on.
The participants, each of whom attended at least three sessions, were more than impressed by the event. And not only from the innovations presented, but also from the professional implementation of the entire event. “We were absolutely impressed by the event and the“ Neighbor Wood ”! It was a really exciting and very educational event. IMA Schelling has done something really great, ”confirms Patrik Riedi, head of the machine shop at JUTZLER AG from Switzerland.
“The online nature of the Open House enabled many international professionals to take part in the event. Otherwise that would certainly not have been possible to this extent, ”says Andreas Bischoff, CSO at IMA Schelling. Wolfgang Rohner, CEO of the IMA Schelling Group, adds: “We are more than satisfied with the process and the result. Although it was a purely digital event, the professional exchange was very high in intensity and level. But of course we look forward to sitting at the same table with our customers again. “
Tags: IMA Schelling Group, Neighborwood, Open House 2021, woodworking and manufaturing, woodworking industry
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