Sales

In the reporting year, the Group was able to achieve slight increases in sales volumes while prices remained the same. Detailed information on these figures can be found in the "Profit situation" section.

In the area of outbound logistics, a significant reduction in transport costs for Germany was achieved in 2024. This was achieved through the successful conclusion and implementation of a tender for transportation throughout Germany initiated at the end of 2023. The guaranteed prices are valid until the end of 2025. As part of the tender, the number of carriers was also increased from two to three in order to expand transport capacities and ensure delivery performance despite the ongoing driver shortage. This will ensure that all consignments are delivered on time, even in the event of an economic upturn in 2025. The decline in transport volumes in 2024 mitigated the effects of the driver shortage. International tenders were also carried out in 2024 and the existing transport concepts were examined for optimization potential. This also enabled Uzin Utz to achieve savings at international level.

Procurement and production

In order to meet the requirements for capacity expansion and flexibility, central measures and optimizations were implemented at the Ulm site in the reporting year. New heating chambers were installed in Plant 1 to increase capacity and flexibility in the temperature control of raw materials for adhesive production. These heating chambers are based on a hybrid heating concept and have a significantly higher thermal insulation standard than the previous systems. As well as increasing capacity, this has also resulted in significant savings in energy consumption. In addition, a new mixing system for particularly high-viscosity products was put into operation at the end of the year. This planetary dissolver enables the efficient production of special tile adhesives, grouts and special adhesives in particular. In Plant 2, a new system for separating the returned flour into three fractions was put into operation. This enables a significant reduction in the proportion to be disposed of, whereby two of the three fractions are regularly processed internally. The release change of the process control system for the entire production plant carried out at the end of the previous year enabled further optimization measures to be identified and gradually implemented in the various process steps this year. This enabled the output of the two main mixing plants to be successively increased over the course of the year. The resulting capacity adjustments will take full effect in 2025.

The 2024 financial year was characterized by a very good supply situation for raw materials, packaging and merchandise. The markets were largely very calm and the goods ordered were delivered on time and without any problems. There were no supply bottlenecks and prices stabilized at a satisfactory level. In the past year, however, it was observed that various news services were increasingly reporting on the reduction or partial shutdown of production capacities for raw materials. These developments will be monitored very closely over the coming months.

In 2024, both Uzin Utz SE and Sifloor AG received DIN ISO 9001 and DIN ISO 14001 certifications as part of a certification audit. In addition, Uzin Utz Tools GmbH & Co. KG was certified in the same year in a surveillance audit in accordance with DIN ISO 9001:2015. The aim of this systematic quality management is the continuous improvement of the company's performance, which was comprehensively certified for the audited companies.

Sustainability also continues to play a key role for us in the area of waste disposal. Our own waste disposal department at Uzin Utz SE ensures that the demand for economic efficiency is combined with ecological and social responsibility. Our employees at the Ulm site are sensitized to the professional and sustainable handling of waste disposal in digital training courses. These standards are passed on to affiliated Group companies.

In the 2024 financial year, the Group produced at the production sites in Ulm, Würzburg, Ilsfeld, Mettmann, Buochs (Switzerland), Sursee (Switzerland), Haaksbergen (Netherlands), Dover (USA), Waco (USA), Legnica (Poland), Soissons (France), Shanghai (China), Ljubljana (Slovenia) and Jakarta (Indonesia). The overall capacity utilization of all Uzin Utz plants was around 80.9%, an increase of around 2.2 percentage points compared to the previous year (78.7). In line with the forecasts in the 2023 Annual Report, capacity utilization increased slightly compared to the previous year. This increase is due in particular to the moderate increase in capacity utilization in the area of dry adhesives. This increase offset the slight decline in capacity utilization in the dry mortar and wet adhesives segments, which is attributable to capacity increases.

Personnel

The average number of employees in the entire Group, excluding trainees, rose to 1,490 (1,480). Of these, 786 (781) worked in Germany and 704 (699) abroad. In addition, 44 (44) young people were given an apprenticeship. We were therefore once again able to maintain our high level of training opportunities and offer young people prospects for the future. At the same time, in-house training offers the opportunity to develop specialist staff ourselves and thus counteract the shortage of skilled workers.

The Executive Board at the Ulm site has set targets for the proportion of women in the first two management levels by June 30, 2027. At the first management level (division heads), a proportion of 11.1% (10.0%) was achieved, while the target quota was 15.0%. At the second level (head of department), a share of 27.1% (23.3%) was achieved, while the target quota was 25.0%. The available figures show an increase in both rates compared to the previous year. The target quota was therefore not achieved at the first management level. At the second level, the target was met thanks to the increase in the quota.

The target ratio for the Executive Board was set at 0% until June 30, 2027. The corporate governance statement can be found on the website www.uzin-utz.com (Investors - Corporate Governance - Corporate Governance Statement 2025).

The Supervisory Board has set a target for the proportion of women on the Supervisory Board of 16.7% by June 30, 2027. This target has been met and exceeded (33.3%) by the appointment of Amelie Klußmann and Michaela Aurenz Maldonado as members of the Supervisory Board.