Annual report 2017
An innovative, high-tech approach has brought Marel to the forefront of the food processing equipment industry. As a leader in the field, we provide advanced equipment and systems to the fish, meat and poultry industries around the world. Our business model is to maintain a good balance across our industry segments and geographies.
Our customers are predominantly companies using advanced and high-end equipment; we serve producers looking to increase the automation of their production processes.
We give them full control over their production with Innova, our advanced, overarching food production software. As our lines are high-tech, software is an integral part of optimizing production.
Seamless flow and integration between different applications result in higher overall efficiency and production capacity.
We have a dedicated team of 5,400 employees working in subsidiaries and offices in over 30 countries around the world. We also enhance our local presence with a network of over 100 agents and distributors.
Our customer base includes most of the world’s blue-chip food processors. Our partnerships are strong, built on co-operation and teamwork across industries and geographies.
Marel’s playing field is gradually expanding to cover the entire production process from farm to fork and from catch to consumer.
AT MAREL, WE INNOVATE, WE CREATE AND WE IMPLEMENT. WE DO IT TO INCREASE YIELD, THROUGHPUT AND QUALITY FOR OUR CUSTOMERS, ON EVERY LEVEL OF FOOD PROCESSING.
We are a company defined by our dedication to innovation, reflected in our extensive R&D investment. Marel began as an idea at the University of Iceland in 1977 and innovation is and has always been at its heart. We invest around 6% of revenues in research and development annually, which translated into EUR 58 million in 2017.
Our approach to innovation is not limited to mechanical engineering to optimize the performance of each application, but also encompasses integrated technologies and connectivity. Data analytics and software control are becoming increasingly important. From the start, we have bundled software and equipment together. Today, Marel is the center point of information gathering for one of the most important value chains in the world.
Marel is also known for applying its technology across industries. In 2017, we continued to leverage our strong innovation investments in one field to successfully develop solutions for other protein product groups, across processes and geographies.
At Marel we focus our efforts on our three main industries of operation; poultry, meat and fish. Our teams analyze trends and anticipate processing challenges, enabling us to stay on top of market conditions and changes in the industries we serve.
Marel Poultry, Marel Meat and Marel Fish are constantly working on new ways to improve existing processes, increase automation and streamline product processing.
Marel Poultry offers the most complete product range and has the largest installed base worldwide. We provide in-line poultry processing solutions for all process steps and all processing capacities for broilers, turkeys and ducks.
Marel Meat supplies advanced equipment and systems to the red meat industry. We focus on slaughtering, deboning and trimming, case ready and food service solutions. Our aim is to be a full-line supplier from farm gate to finished pack.
Marel Fish is the leading global supplier of advanced stand-alone equipment and integrated systems to the fish industry. We provide innovative equipment, systems and software for processing whitefish and salmon, both farmed and wild, onboard and ashore.
Our strong and long lasting relationships with our customers form the bedrock of our business model. We’re here to partner with our customers. Together we innovate and create products that set new benchmarks in the industry and achieve continuous improvements in line with our customer needs.
We expect automation in food processing to increase steadily, especially in emerging markets. This means higher growth in advanced and high-end segments of the food processing equipment industry. Our expertise in this segment focuses on helping customers become more efficient, more sustainable, more profitable and get more from their businesses. This shared success creates higher margins and better value, both for our customers and for Marel.
Marel’s extensive sales and service network, spread out across more than 30 countries on all continents, is a key competitive edge. The network is Marel’s first line of contact for customers at the local level. It brings first-rate service, consistency and continuity to our partnership with our clients.
We serve a diverse customer base around the world. Our professional team of field service engineers ensures the uptime and reliability of our large installed base. Service level agreements, a dedicated service commitment and our track record have translated to strong customer loyalty and repeat business.
As a high-tech provider at the forefront of the industry, we have built strong customer relationships based on collaboration and partnership. Our cooperation with customers in terms of innovation, new projects and process improvements further supports our ability to transform the industry and increase customer value in the advanced and high-end segments.
This example of a ten-year relationship with a customer in the meat industry is a good indicator of how we do business. It is also a good reflection of our revenue mix, where greenfields, maintenance and service and spare parts account for around a third each.
Our customers’ access to raw material and their requirements for optimal yield are some of the key factors influencing our production. We are constantly pushing technological boundaries to meet their needs.
Marel’s presence in multiple protein segments serves as a countercyclical buffer. It gives us flexibility and the opportunity to transfer technical know-how, solutions and expertise across borders, both industrial and geographical. We strive to capitalize on the technological advances made in one sector by implementing them in another.
Our main revenue stream drivers are both turnkey projects, encompassing brownfields, greenfields, modernization and maintenance, and the production of modular, standard equipment and processing lines. The stand-alone, modular portfolio is the building block for larger projects and the entry point for new customers.
Our installed base is large and growing, effectively driving our resilient service and parts revenues.