ETTEPLAN Q1 2020 published: After a good start the year continues under exceptional circumstances

Etteplan News Release May 5, 2020 

Etteplan’s Interim Report for January-March 2020 has been published. You can find the Report and the related presentation materials at https://www.etteplan.com/investors/reports-presentations.

Join our webcast today May 5, 2020 at 2.30 P.M. EEST. More information can be found here: https://www.inderes.fi/fi/videot/etteplan-q120-ti-55-kello-1430

A recording of the webcast can be found through the same link after the live event.

President and CEO Juha Näkki:

“The first quarter of 2020 got off to a slow start in Europe. In Finland, turbulence in the labor market affected demand, while elsewhere in Europe, there were delays in the starting of projects. Toward the end of January, demand clearly picked up across Europe and remained at a good level nearly throughout the first quarter in spite of the uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. As the pandemic spread to Europe, the impact on demand and our business started to be visible in Europe in late March.

In China, the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant effect on demand in the first quarter and on our business. Due to the additional holidays, quarantines and other measures imposed by the authorities, our business was nearly at a standstill after Chinese New Year and throughout February. In March, however, our employees were able to gradually return to work, demand quickly returned to a good level and our business was nearly back to normal by the end of March.

We achieved a good result in spite of the unusual circumstances. Our revenue grew, boosted by acquisitions, but our organic growth turned to a decrease, particularly due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in China. We were also cautious in recruitments due to the uncertainty brought about by the pandemic. Our operating profit in all of our service areas was at a good level considering the circumstances thanks to good operational efficiency. We were particularly satisfied with the development of the Technical Documentation Solutions service area where, after some weaker quarters, profitability returned to a good level, exceeding our target of 10 per cent.

Nevertheless, following a good first quarter in the current market environment, we now face an entirely new situation. The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic immediately affected the market situation and demand as our customers implemented various adaptation measures, and we have also had to adapt our business to the prevailing situation in all of our operating countries. Our first priority at the present time is the health of our employees, and we are doing everything we can to ensure safe working conditions for our personnel. Etteplan’s strategy is largely based on service solutions that can be flexibly produced anywhere in the world. To implement this strategy we have made extensive investments in our information systems and tools. These investments now enabled a very quick transition to remote work, which is the safest and most efficient way of working for the time being. Approximately 85 per cent of our employees are currently working remotely, and I want to thank our employees for their flexibility and good fighting spirit in this difficult situation.

The financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our company is impossible to estimate, which is why we withdrew our financial guidance at the end of March. It is clear that the prolongation of the pandemic and the various restrictive measures will have significant effects on our customers’ business and, consequently, on our business. However, we have already agreed on loan arrangements that ensure the financing of the Company under any circumstances and we are confident that Etteplan will emerge from this difficult situation as an even stronger company.“

Additional information:
Juha Näkki, President and CEO, tel. +358 10 307 2077
Outi Torniainen, SVP, Marketing and Communications, tel. +358 10 307 3302