D o i n g B u s i n e s s i n t h e C ze c h R e p u bl ic I I. C ze c h In du s tr y
CURRENT TRENDS IN CZECH MECHANICAL ENGINEERING Analysis of the economic situation in the machinery and engineering sector in 2016 anticipates noticeable growth of around 2.7 per cent. In engineering, automakers are currently the driving force of the Czech economy, bringing about many exciting innovations, as are tooling machine manufacturers. Czech engineering has always been export-oriented and in the future this will be the same. Engineering production has historically been an inseparable part of the Czech Republic and boasts many successes which are not easy to build on today. The demand and situation of the market are dynamically changing and therefore it is absolutely necessary to offer a lot of flexibility, to deal with small production batches, and with the requirements for precise and comprehensive production. It is necessary to invest into modern technology, to have productive machines and an attractive production programme based on the company’s final products. Engineering must continue to grow and consider its future. The Czech Republic has a traditional advantage in the sufficient number of outstanding technical universities able to educate technicians capable of maintaining, expanding and modernising our existing engineering capacity. It is no wonder that we find three major technical universities and several vocational schools among the members of the cluster. The trend is therefore to support technical education. Czech engineering companies are facing and gradually will face increasing competition from companies previously unknown and coming from more distant destinations. For us, this means not only a continual re-evaluation of overall costs, but also the imperative of maintaining the technological edge that distinguishes us from our competitors.
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CZECH MECHANICAL ENGINEERING WILL GROW IN 2016 Predictions of the development of Czech engineering are similar across individual segments. Directors of large companies expect that this year, average growth should reach 2.2 %; growth has been predicted by the majority of companies in the given segment (81 %). Small/medium-sized companies are slightly more optimistic in their predictions, expecting a growth in the output of engineering in 2016 by 2.9 % (confirmed by 81 % of directors). Czech engineering should be able to maintain a positive trend also in 2017 (confirmed by 83 % of companies). Company directors predict that growth in 2017 should on average reach 2.5 % (compared to 2016). A look at individual segments indicates no large differences in the predictions of these segments.
In the area of sales of engineering companies, there is also an apparent anticipation of growth, which companies are linking to the improving state of the economy not only in the Czech Republic, but also in countries where their products are exported. This development should, logically, have a positive influence on sales. In total, 83 % of company directors agree that sales of engineering companies in 2016 should grow by 5.0 %. There are some apparent differences between the sales development plans of individual companies. The larger variety of the responses reflected primarily specific problems some of the companies are currently dealing with (one of the impor-
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