we have spent the year fighting – with ourselves, the coronavirus, supply problems, the war in Ukraine and all of the consequences thereof. Thanks to some quick decisions and a lot of flexibility, we have managed to keep moving forward, but we have also set ourselves some challenging goals in all areas these past few years. Too challenging, in fact, in some cases. Still, the goal we have set ourselves strategically is the right way to go. At the same time, we have to find the right balance between producing efficiently and meeting external requirements (e.g., TISAX).

In Europe and in the USA, we are now going to focus our attention on the area where we make our money: production. We all know that the stress caused by external conditions and our own projects has been immense. Now, by maintaining a clear focus on a limited number of important projects, we are going to restore the balance mentioned before.

This will be supported by a new generation of leaders that have already been completed in all of our European plants. The longstanding colleagues, Carlos Mena, Manfred Weidner and Vladimir Kosicek will all be doing something new – while one begins his well-deserved retirement, the others will be doing stints in affiliated companies or leveraging their many years of experience to support the newcomers. Tomáš Hájek is taking over the position of Managing Director Operations in Turnov. José Garcia and Pedro Sáez have been in charge of Museros since October. The next generation has also taken the helm in Germany with the appointment of Wilko Hinrichs-Stark and Dennis Winter. You will find out about the next generation of leaders in this issue of our magazine.

In spite of a few difficulties, including on account of the pandemic, there is also a lot of good news from China. Our second plant in Jintan is currently entering operation. This marks the start of a new chapter for KAMAX. Great work from everyone involved!

And a few days from now, there will be something else worth celebrating: Christmas is almost upon us, and we do not want to miss this opportunity to take a look at some of the holiday traditions in the KAMAX universe – traditions regarding how we celebrate, and traditions regarding the foods with which we mark the occasion. Perhaps you will even discover something that you would like to integrate into your own plans for the holiday season.

Now, as we look ahead to next year, I would like to offer you a few words of encouragement on behalf of the entire management. We are confident that, in spite of the many difficulties we currently face, together we will be able to make the KAMAX Group successful again.