As in the previous year, Béla Hetzmann, Chairman and CEO of Rába Járműipari Holding Nyrt. and Éva Lang-Péli, Deputy General Manager held a CEO briefing for the employees of the Group's member companies at the beginning of December.
The briefing was held at the Technology Centre at the headquarters of Rába Plc., and focused on the Group's position, the year 2023 and future strategy.
In addition to the colleagues from Győr, the employees from sárvár, mór and esztergom were also invited to the event, and they were also given the opportunity to participate online due to the distance.
The CEO briefing started with a presentation of the Rába Group. The group's activities include forging and machining (mainly chassis components), chassis assembly (small series), metal structure manufacturing and TIER2 OEM supply. 61 % of the total turnover of the Rába Group is mainly accounted for by the sale of chassis and chassis main parts. Strategic measures to stabilise the capacities and optimise the efficiency of existing competences have been defined and partially implemented in the period 2022-2025.
Under financial performance, external environment, the impact of the exchange rate, the economic environment and politics on the company's operations were described. The strengthening of the forint exchange rate had a negative impact on operating profitability through net exports. The economic environment was characterised by a high inflationary environment, which also led to a significant increase in the cost of financing. The protracted Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the taxation of energy imports from the East also had an impact. High demand activity and marked cost pressures dominated the business environment in Q3 2023 compared to Q3 2022, as shown in the Q3 2023 summary.
The Rába Modernisation Programme 2025 was also presented, which includes active investment activities leading to infrastructure and technological renewal. The realisation of the backlog of investments of the past decades is inevitable, a necessity for the survival of Rába. The sources include profitable operations (EBITDA), bank financing, tender funds (e.g. the Factory Rescue Programme) and the sale of unused real estate. Machines purchased this year include: a Gleason Phoenix 600 G tooth grinder, a machining centre with an Okuma MA 12500 palletising system, a DMG MORI NLX 2500 hard turning centre and a robotic welding cell for tooling.
Among the priority projects of the Rába Modernisation Programme 2025 is the construction of a solar park in Győr and Sárvár, which is currently under construction. The realisation of a significant part of these developments is dependent on the sale of the real estate in the city centre. Also planned are the renovation of the 67,000 hall and the installation of solar panels on the roof of the hall, the renovation of the energy plant in Sárvár and the construction of a workers' hostel.
The Nurol-Rába cooperation was presented at the briefing. With the involvement of the Nurol Makina company, the aim is to develop the Hungarian production capability for the 4×4 Ejder Yalcin (Gidrán) armoured fighting vehicle. The syndicate contract will be signed between Rába Jármű Kft. and Nurol Makina Hungary Kft.
The project to implement the Infor ERP system was also mentioned, detailing the tasks ahead with a timetable.
The event ended with a presentation on community and social engagement. The relationship between the Rába Group and the city of Győr was also discussed, as well as the joint charity of the company and its employees.
