EuroBusiness Media (EBM): Plastic Omnium, a world leader in automotive body modules, fuel tanks and waste containers reports results for the first half of 2015. Laurent Burelle welcome, you are the Chairman and CEO of Plastic Omnium. To begin, what are your comments on your first half results?
Laurent Burelle: The first half of 2015 has been excellent; we have beaten our record in turnover - almost €3 billion - in operating margin and in net profit we have posted a group net profit of €142 million euros, which is a record for us.
EBM: You mentioned a record operating margin which reached 9.6 % of your top line. Is there still room for improvement with such a high operating margin?
Laurent Burelle: Oh yes! I’ve been chairing this company for 15 years and thanks to globalisation, innovation, investment, new customers, new countries, new projects, new ideas, there is always room for growth and improvement, thankfully.
EBM: You announced that you would reach a €7 billion sales revenue target one year ahead of plan - in 2017 instead of 2018. How does Plastic Omnium manage that?
Laurent Burelle: The sales and marketing team have done a great job. They have accelerated their order intake with a high valued, high ranking premium German car company, French, Japanese and American car companies, so our book to order has increased so fast that we were able to report one year earlier the €7 billion line, more than 95% of which is already booked.
EBM: Let’s turn to the Chinese automotive market in particular; what is your opinion of the Chinese market?
Laurent Burelle: China has been a growth market for the last 10 years. Plastic Omnium has enjoyed since 2007 a huge growth from 1 plant to 25 plants at the end of 2015. For the future we forecast a slower growth, but we have a huge network of brand new state-of-the art plants and we can deliver to the Chinese OEMs and the foreign OEMs in China the type of innovation and quality they are expecting from us, top-notch productivity and reliability. So the 5-6% growth of the automotive Chinese market today is quite nice for us and we do expect to have a nice years ahead of us to come.
EBM: We have been talking about the automotive business, but you also have an environment division, which is not as important in volume. What’s the future for that division?
Laurent Burelle: It is a historical, preferred, sound activity which is profitable, which is free cash flow, which is leading in Western Europe, which is easy to run without any trouble, so we like to have it. Is it strategic for the future of the group today? No. But it is a profitable, nice-to-have company.
EBM: Your financial situation, we mentioned this, is very sound. Now, in the automotive business there are a lot of mergers taking place. Are we to expect acquisitions?
Laurent Burelle: First of all, we are accelerating our investments. We passed 6.5% of our turnover in investment. We have planned investments of €1.7 billion on a four-year basis, maybe more. We have ideas for more investments in innovation, for more new customers, so we don’t need any acceleration in that respect.
EBM: What are today the main challenges you are facing?
Laurent Burelle: Innovation, innovation, innovation! Bringing new products, ideas, quality, performance for the customer satisfaction.
EBM: Laurent Burelle, CEO of Plastic Omnium, thank you very much.
Laurent Burelle: Thank you.
