Welding of Aluminium Castings in Automotive Manufacturing

According to the Bundesverband der Deutschen Gießerei-Industrie (German Foundry Association), the revenue of the German foundries plummeted by 30% in Q1 2024. The main reason is that the automotive industry is struggling to sell its new EVs. In their new podcast, they claim the best solution is to talk to your politicians about changing the surroundings so the foundry market can flourish again.

These meetings must be made, but waiting for the government to solve your problem? Is this your best solution to a downturn in the European automotive industry when ten thousand affordable EVs from China are on a ship each month heading for the EU?

I don’t think so!

It baffles me that talking to your local politician is the best solution a huge organization can devise. To me, this sounds like a waiting game, and you have a fall guy (the politicians). How can you stay in business when your costs remain around the same and you’re missing 30% of your revenue? Spoiler: You can’t wait for long!

The solution:

There is no easy way out of such a situation, and it requires a lot of work. But there is a way, and it’s called market development. This is the art of finding castings in a new market segment or establishing castings in new industries.

It starts with positioning. You have to answer the following questions: What are your foundry’s strengths, and which machine capacities do you need to fill? Then, you need to formulate that goal and make it a target where you need to improve.

The next thing is marketing. Show the world what you can do best and how that benefits your target customer! Present that to the eyes of your ideal customers, wherever they are, so you get in contact with the right people because there is no portal to download new business!

Then, it goes further and further. New industries have different requirements, lead times, order numbers, etc. You need to accommodate that. You also need to know how to mitigate risk in these endeavours. Check out Gold Nuggets 5 & 6 of the Goldcasting Podcast, if you want to learn these helpful skills!

Take action now!

If you need more guidance, Casting-Campus GmbH will support you in your market development activities and crystallize your foundry’s blue ocean scenario. Book a Free Consultation Call today, and we can find a way to get you out of the waiting game!