The nominations for the 2021 3D Printing Industry Awards are now open. Who do you think should make the shortlists for this year’s show? Have your say now.
Groupe Gorgé (GOE), the French engineering firm and parent company of 3D printer manufacturer and service provider Prodways Group, has revealed that its revenue soared by 44% in the course of a 3D printing activity-packed Q2 2021.
During the quarter, the company generated €72 million in revenue, constituting an impressive €22 million rise on the €50 million reported in Q2 2020, but a 5% decline on the pre-COVID period of Q2 2019. Groupe Gorgé’s rapid recovery over the last 12 months has largely been driven by its 3D printing subsidiary, as Prodways’ income rose 54% between Q2 2020 and Q2 2021, from €11 million to €18 million.
The firm’s recent progress also sees it build on what was an encouraging start to the year, in which it managed to return to revenue growth, and investors appear to have recognized this too, driving its share price up 5% since the results came out.
Groupe Gorgé’s Q2 2021
Since last year, Groupe Gorgé has begun reporting its revenue slightly differently, and it now broadly divides its income into three categories: Drones and Systems, Engineering and Protection Systems and 3D printing. The latter, constituting any revenue generated by Prodways, rose by €6.1 million from Q2 2020 to Q2 2021, with the subsidiary’s Systems sub-category being its fastest-growing.
Over this period, Systems, which includes any revenue generated by the firm’s 3D software and 3D printers, as well as its related materials and services, grew by 59%, generating €11 million. Prodways’ Products income also increased between Q2 2020 and Q2 2021, jumping 52% from €4.2 million to €6.4 million, while its overall revenue fell just 3% short of the €18 million reported in the pre-pandemic Q2 2019.
According to Prodways, its Systems sales for H1 2021 are now the highest in its history, while its decision to increase its production capacity last year had a similar effect on its material business. Likwise, the company considers its move to add Dassault Systèmes’ 3DExperience platform to its offering, as vital in positioning it as a “leader in 3D modelling software integration,” and driving its income during Q2.
| Prodways’ Financials (€) | Q2 2020 | Q2 2021 | Difference (%) | Q2 2019 | Q2 2021 | Difference (%) |
| Systems | 7m | 11.1m | +59 | 10.8m | 11.1m | +3 |
| Products | 4.2m | 6.4m | +52 | 7.2m | 6.4m | -11 |
| Consolidated Revenue | 11.4m | 17.5m | +54 | 18m | 17.5m | -3 |
3D printing aside, Groupe Gorgé’s Drones and Systems revenue also grew significantly during Q2 2021, generating €32 million, 56% more than it managed in Q2 2020. The firm has hailed the success of its drones and underwater vehicle business for the rise in its Drones and Systems income, given that their sales grew 60% over the period, receiving orders from the Latvian, Belgian and Dutch navies.
Rounding-off what was a clean-sweep of annual growth for the company, its Engineering and Protection Systems division grew by 31% from Q2 2020 to Q2 2021 as well. Interestingly, it was Groupe Gorgé’s only segment to show improvement compared to Q2 2019, something the firm has put down to a 91% rise in demand for its engineering consultancy services.
| Groupe Gorgé Financials (€) | Q2 2020 | Q2 2021 | Difference (%) | Q2 2019 | Q2 2021 | Difference (%) |
| Drones and Systems | 20.5m | 32m | +56 | 36m | 32m | -12 |
| 3D Printing | 11.4m | 17.5m | +54 | 18m | 17.5m | -2 |
| Engineering and Protection Systems | 17.8m | 23.3m | +31 | 22.9m | 23.3m | +2 |
| Consolidated Revenue | 50m | 72m | +44 | 76m | 72m | -5 |
Prodways’ bold AM ambition
When it comes to its 3D printing division, Groupe Gorgé says that its Q2 success was partly down to an “acceleration of the [COVID-19] recovery,” with markets responding well to the lifting of restrictions. In particular, the firm highlights the rise of Prodways’ audiology business which saw its revenue increase by over 100% between Q2 2020 and Q2 2021, thanks in-part to a French social security refund.
For its part, Prodways has attributed its strong Q2 sales performance to a deal struck with the Straumann Group, which has seen it become a supplier of 3D printing resins for medical applications. The firm says that “an intensification of this activity,” plus other “commercial successes,” have effectively doubled its material sales over the last three years.
Moving forwards, Prodways also sees the recurring nature of its income sources, digitization within the medical sector and its rising install base as a “solid revenue base that will continue to grow,” while it believes that demand from its industrial manufacturing clientele is accelerating, but their recovery will stretch into 2022.
More broadly, Groupe Gorgé’s acquisition of 3D printing bureau Creabis will now see the capacity of its additive manufacturing division expand up to 50 machines, and its access to the German market improve. According to Prodways, the move will allow it to “take full advantage of the undergoing economic recovery,” and position itself as “a leading player in 3D printing” especially among plastics specialists.
A stacked H2 2021 outlook
Groupe Gorgé’ hasn’t provided a financial outlook per se, but has emphasized that its order backlog is flat compared to the same period last year, and now stands at around €600 million. As a result, the firm says that it has a “good level of visibility for the future,” making it well-placed to “strengthen its growth drivers and develop new ones” during H2 2021.
The company also expects to receive a substantial contract from the Royal Australian Navy in Q4 2021, an agency with a budget for future mine countermeasure and hydrographic vessels of €2.1 to €3.2 billion, thus the potential deal represents a lucrative opportunity for it to build on the organizations’ partnership, and boost its orders for the year ahead.
“[Our] performance in Q2 and H1 2021 confirms Groupe Gorgé’s positioning and development ambitions in the short and medium term,” reported Groupe Gorgé within its financials. “In each of its divisions, Groupe Gorgé can rely on deep and well-oriented markets, a solid revenue base and growth opportunities. In H2 2021, revenue growth should remain strong.”
“The high-tech activities in which the group has strengthened its position in recent years are driving revenue growth, such as robotics, 3D printing and consulting.”
The nominations for the 2021 3D Printing Industry Awards are now open. Who do you think should make the shortlists for this year’s show? Have your say now.
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Featured image shows a collection of Prodways-3D printed dental aligners. Image via Prodways.
