The Board of Directors of CAREL Industries approves the consolidated results as at 31 December 2019 Consolidated revenues of € 327.4 million, growth of 16.8% compared to 2018. All geographical areas and all segments (HVAC and Refrigeration) contributed to this performance. The strategy of diversifying the target markets, the strong push for cross-selling and consolidation of the customer portfolio and the continuous updating of the solutions proposed have therefore proved effective even in a context of general market uncertainty.
Francesco Nalini, Chief Executive Officer of the Group, said: "In 2019 Carel reported a solid revenue growth of 16.8% and an EBITDA Margin of 19.3%. These results are even more significant in light of an unfavourable macroeconomic scenario, characterized by a slowdown in the European economy and trade tensions between the United States and China. Even in a non optimal situation, therefore, the performances recorded are particularly positive and reflect the continuous implementation of our multi-year strategic guidelines, which in 2019 mainly consisted in: completing the plan to expand the Group's production capacity, with a two-year investment of approximately 20 million Euros; the process of integrating the two companies acquired in 2018, Hygromatik and Recuperator, which allowed them to achieve a cumulative growth in revenues of around 10% compared to the previous year; and the signing of the first multi-year contracts for the supply of digital services to important international supermarket chains.
In addition, innovation was a focal point, with investments in Research and Development of approximately 18 million (+12.6% compared to 2018) and the constant commitment to search for increasingly sustainable solutions from an environmental point of view. The same enthusiasm that guided us in 2019 will be fundamental to overcome the challenges that 2020 presents us, in particular the recent spread of Coronavirus/COVID-19, which we will face by exploiting the resilience of our recently expanded production footprint.”