Maritime supply industry sees stable growth and positive prospects

At its press conference on 9 July in Hamburg, the maritime supply industry looked back on a successful financial year. The presentation by Martin Johannsmann, Managing Director of SKF Marine GmbH and Chairman of the Executive Board of AG Marine Equipment and Systems, was also very positive. Sales growth of 5.5 per cent is forecast for 2024. The export ratio this year is 81 per cent. This is also in line with the export share of the entire mechanical and plant engineering industry in Germany, which is organised in the VDMA. The after-sales business also remains at a consistently high level, accounting for 27 per cent of turnover.

With 65,000 employees (as of June 2025), the sector recorded a slight increase of 1.2 per cent compared to the same time last year. Although the percentage increase is therefore lower than the growth in turnover, it shows a clearly positive trend and also reflects the increase in productivity. Growth in incoming orders too: an increase of 4.6 per cent was achieved in 2024. Less than 20 per cent of companies expect a decrease in incoming orders. Almost two thirds of VDMA member companies also expect the market to develop positively in the medium term.

The following Strategic priorities were formulated:

The supplier industry emphasises the importance of reliable cooperation in the shipbuilding industry in Europeas around 36 per cent of sales are generated with European customers and partners.

The recently published China position of the VDMA is in favour of fair competitive conditions and appeals to the German government to work towards better framework conditions in Germany and thus strengthen the competitiveness of European companies.

With the Omnibus Regulation, positive signs have been set at European level in order to bureaucratic hurdles to be reduced. The industry expressly welcomes this development and sees it as an important step towards greater competitiveness and flexibility in the international arena.

The rapidly growing demand in the shipping industry for sustainable and efficient technologies is a key growth driver. Maritime supply companies are developing New drive solutionsintelligent system integration and digital services that not only increase efficiency, but also significantly reduce the industry's ecological footprint.

The Special assets for infrastructure acts as an important stimulus for maritime logistics. Frequently overdue investments in roads, railways and waterways play a major role in the competitiveness of the export-strong industry, especially for the many member companies that rely on heavy goods transport to the ports.

The VDMA represents 3600 German and European companies in the mechanical and plant engineering sector and employs a total of around 3 million people in the EU. It represents a sales volume of around 870 billion euros in the EU.