Strong growth in equipment orders from industrial customers
Beneq’s financial figures from 2016 show growth, encouraging signs of transformation, positive development in industrial ALD solutions and a strong commitment to future growth and development.
Beneq corporation turnover grew to 22,2 million euros in 2016, and Beneq is still a truly global company: 98% of the company turnover in 2016 came from outside Finland. Asia was the biggest market in 2016 with a 38% share, followed by the Americas and Europe and rest of the world with 32% and 30% shares respectively.
Successful company transformation
The year 2016 was a transformation year for Beneq in many ways. In Thin Film Solutions, there was a shift from traditional ALD research equipment towards large-scale industrial ALD equipment and thin film services – a trend which has continued during 2017. The equipment business order flow in the first quarter of 2017 was 70% higher than during Q1/2016 with several new industrial ALD customers and repeat orders from customers who are expanding ALD-based industrial production.
In Lumineq displays, customized displays and transparent displays continue to increase their share compared to the traditional TFEL displays. Future growth is expected in transparent Lumineq displays that can be laminated in windshields. In-glass laminated displays add value to windows and improve the safety, ergonomics and situational awareness in cockpits, vehicle cabins, naval bridges and driver environments.
Investing in the future
Beneq continues to invest in the future of both Thin Film Solutions and Lumineq displays. The total of R&D spending in 2016 was 12% of turnover and the amount of R&D investments 5%.
The R&D investments in the display business unit during 2016 concentrated especially on developing the transparent display products further and bringing the total offering for functional glazing to the market together with partners and customers.
For the Thin Film Solutions business unit, major development areas are industrial ALD equipment and continuous large-area ALD processes based on Beneq’s pioneering Spatial ALD technology, which allows fast low-cost processing of materials in industries that require extremely precise coatings and high capacity, such as OLED and flexible electronics markets.
The number of employees at the end of 2016 was 124, and there is a continuous effort to recruit new talent to enable future growth.