In the Land of the Union of Northern Rhineland (NRW), from which Alfred Krupp (1812 – 1877) originates, a German industrialist and inventor. He built the Krupp steel mill founded by his father Friedrich Krupp, which was later merged into Thyssen-Krupp AG, the largest industrial company in Europe at the time) since the outbreak of the conflict, Russia-Ukraine has flourished.
Even before the merger of the GDR and the West Germany, North Rhine was a land of milk and honey flowing. Here were the exiled Slavers, the Pomerania of German descent, and before that, after planet War I, Mazuri. It was thanks to the work of these people and the growth of the Ruhr industry. With the expansion of Americanization, the beginning of the labour marketplace for workers from the east of Europe and the beginning of the Netherlands to these workers to the NRW, poorness began to grow, immense income differences in individual districts, rising unemployment, falling factories (vide Opel in Bochum in 2014).
Central control of the economy of the full country was transferred to Frankfurt am Main (German fresh York), where the financier and the banks speculate on food prices on the stock exchange.
Rheinmetall in Düsseldorf can counter unemployment in the region
Among the 5 largest German arms manufacturers are 2 of the NRW: Rheinmetall in Düsseldorf and Thyssen-Krupp in Essen. Rheinmetall, along with the Munich company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, is active in producing Leopard 2 and Puma tanks. Thyssen-Krupp builds ships for Navy and export. Submarine vessels are peculiarly popular: Greece and Turkey ordered six class 214 ships, South Korea – nine. erstwhile it comes to infantry weapons, it's Heckler & Koch belongs to the top 5 in the planet and met with criticism. The rifles of the German maker appear erstwhile and for all in the crisis regions. Recently, the G36 came into the hands of the Libyan Army Muammar Gaddafiand German rifles in the hands of Afghan Taliban.
Tens of thousands study to a defence company
For the company, which last year turned “only” 5.66 billion euro worth of goods for suppliers in the defence and automotive industry, this means full utilisation of production capacity for many years. And orders that warrant very fast growth. Armin Papperger wants to employment up to 3,000 additional employees worldwide, half of which in Germany. Most, as Papperger explains, are to join the Rheinmetall factories by the end of the year. So it is good that tens of thousands of young people are now actually seeing their future in the arms industry. In Germany, Rheinmetall has already received 64,000 applications from 2021.
The large legacy of the Cold War besides helps: Rheinmetall has many unused plants in Germany, Europe and North America for a long time, besides large plants from 1970 and 1980.
Often tanks, weapons transporters, military trucks and ammunition are produced in a single shift system. Additional personnel could rapidly increase production to 3 changes. If – and this now seems the biggest brake for the defence manufacture – adequate steel, titanium, ceramics, electronic parts and another natural materials were available.
How many people work in the arms industry?
According to a study by the WifOR economical investigation Institute of Darmstadt, in 2011, about 98,000 people were employed straight in the safety and defence industry. Indirectly, the arms sector would depend on 220,000 jobs, for example in transport companies. The survey was commissioned by the national Association of the German safety and Defence Industry.
Rheinmetall expects evidence orders from all over the planet and needs thousands of fresh employees. The modernisation of the Bundeswehr will take 10 years.
Many of the images and messages that go to salons and minds present were unimaginable a period ago. Armin Papperger does not forget to item this before the head of the Rheinmetall arms company presents a evidence profit for 2021, which will shortly become a waste paper. due to the fact that the largest German arms company since Russia's invasion of Ukraine has been swamped with ammunition orders, tanks and another military vehicles. The biggest problem for the company from Düsseldorf is now fulfilling the wishes of the Bundeswehr and the army from around the planet before this decade ends.
Rheinmetall plans to importantly increase production by 2025
A Rheinmetall weapon maker from Düsseldorf has set higher financial targets in the average word due to the refurbishment in many NATO countries. In 2025, the company from Düsseldorf wants to accomplish sales of EUR 10-11 billion, as it reported on Wednesday at an investor event in Vienna. The operating profit margin, according to which Rheinmetall measures its profitability, is expected to increase to about 13%.
For the current year quoted on the MDax stock exchange, the company has set itself a mark of about a 15% increase in organic sales compared to last year's sales of €5.66 billion, with a margin of over 11%. During the period of the capital market's bottom in February 2021 – before the outbreak of the war in Ukraine – Rheinmetall forecast sales of around €8.5 billion by 2025 with a 10% or more margin.
Since then, with the outbreak of the war in February 2022, the safety situation in NATO countries has changed significantly: Rheinmetall, for example, hopes that a peculiar fund for better equipment of the Bundeswehr, amounting to EUR 100 billion, will supply a large share of the contracts carried out. The company manufactures tanks and another military vehicles, weapons and ammunition, as well as supplying electronics for weapons equipment. The company's stock rate went up with the outbreak of war in Europe.
Are transactions criticized?
Controversy is triggered by the planned contract for the transportation of 270 Leopard 2 tanks to Saudi Arabia. By Jana van Aken, MP of the Left organization in Bundestag, his modernized version of A7+ is suitable for usage in asymmetric conflicts – that is, besides in suppression of uprisings. It has enhanced protection against traps and is designed with a shrapnel shield for usage in urban areas. During the arabian Spring, Saudi tanks entered Bahrain to suppress the uprisings there.
In 2012, it was revealed that Thyssen-Krupp Marine Systems would supply Algeria with 2 frigates worth €400 million. There is besides active Rheinmetall who wants to build 1,200 Fuchs transport tanks there. The Society for Threatened Peoples accuses the German government of "saturation of the arms race in North Africa"After the arabian Spring. Especially since there's a civilian war going on in neighboring Mali and tanks could fall into the incorrect hands.
The agreement with Israel for submarines was besides critically assessed. The Germans delivered 3 Dolphin class boats. 3 more from Thyssen-Krupp are to be formed by 2027. The cost of 1 boat is around EUR 225 million for the first 3 and up to 600 million for the others. They can carry and launch atomic weapons. In the face of a dispute with Iran, critics fear that German weapons can contribute to escalation in the region.
Rheinmetall sees “executive risk” for defence contracts
Papperger speaks in this context of “executive risk”. The head of Rheinmetall, however, does not hide that he is happy to take it. A peculiar fund of EUR 100 billion, created by Olaf Scholz (SPD) under the accelerated modernisation procedure of the Bundeswehr, he calls "wise decision of the national Chancellor". The national military is the largest client of the company from Düsseldorf, but since the beginning of the war fresh inquiries have been received all day from another EU countries, especially from east Europe.
Military orders already placed are worth almost EUR 14 billion, and the announced orders cannot yet be quantified. However, they are promising something gigantic: If the German government is serious and invests at least 2% of GDP, which NATO has been demanding for many years, then the defence budget would gotta emergence from the current 47 to 70-80 billion euros a year. all 4th euro of this will flow over the Rhine – expects MDax from Düsseldorf.
Ten-year plan for the Bundeswehr
One thing is certain: Bundeswehry cannot be upgraded overnight. Rheinmetall developed a kind of ten-year plan to be able to deliver the ammunition needed, trucks and tanks. The fresh Puma tank will take 2 years, armored vehicles carrying weapons from 1 to a year and a half. To be able to build the expected amount, Rheinmetall estimates that it takes six to 7 years for each of the structures. The recently ordered ammunition will arrive at the earliest after six months, or autumn of this year. That's how much time it takes to ripen the powder for fresh bullets and explosives. According to the forecast, expected ammunition orders will supply Rheinmetall for 10 years. due to the fact that both Bundeswehr stores and Rheinmetall warehouses are rather empty.
The board emphasizes that the company does not request fresh factories for this. The calculations have already taken into account a fresh tank mill in Hungary to be opened soon. There's gonna be a fresh Lynx combat infantry car. Australia itself wants to order 400 pieces and spend 4 billion euros on them, Slovakia wants to buy Lynx tanks for EUR 1.5 billion, the decisions are to be made this year. Papperger emphasizes that presently only 10 of the 29 NATO countries meet the goal of 2 percent. In addition to Germany, France, Poland, Romania, Italy and Latvia have announced that they will now invest more in their armies. This could make another "executive risk" for Rheinmetall and its more than 25,000 employees worldwide.
Although most fresh orders cannot yet be completed this year, Rheinmetall doubled its sales growth forecast from 10 to up to 20% – only due to fresh orders from the Bundeswehr. After a evidence operating profit of EUR 594 million, which was revealed 3 weeks ago, the company is expecting new, yet unspecified growth this year.
Matthäus Golla
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