Sites in China and Poland

The total number of permanent employees in the Group increased from 2466 at the end of 2003 by almost 100 to 2558. Labour-intensive activities were mainly increased at the Group’s low-cost manufacturing sites in China (+48 employees), Poland (+84) and Brazil (+19). The number of employees in Switzerland remained all but constant at 1568 in the first six months. This figure takes into account the sale of the Industrial Rollers and PU Mouldings units. An additional 150 temporary employees helped to cope with peaks in demand.

The emphasis for investment is on the automation of coaxial connector assembly, on capacity increases in the speciality cable area and on further expansion of information technology.