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«Show» case taken literally
The show lighting with light effects is optional, so to speak. Otherwise, the new A-Series electric forklifts, which Hyster is now launching for indoor and outdoor applications and loads up to 3.5 t, offer high performance and are environmentally friendly.
Welding work in Salt Lake City
Stadler is now producing aluminum railcar chassis in Salt Lake City. The facility is part of the expansion of its existing US plant there, which manufactures passenger trains for the US market . With the new 4,600-square-meter hall, Stadler is also creating 20 new jobs.
Car wash with accelerator
Conveyor technology provider Frei is celebrating the modernization and expansion of the container conveyor system at the Migros Cooperative in Lucerne – with a focus on performance, automation, and future-proofing. The new conveyor lines can handle up to 2,400 containers per hour.
Exyz in the high-bay warehouse
Zambelli, a provider of solutions for building envelopes, shelving, industrial metalworking, and heating technology, is also one of the leading manufacturers of roof drainage systems. Here alone, the product range includes 17,500 items. A clear case for SSI Schäfer in the new logistics center in Grafenau.
Again powerful in a double pack
which was held jointly with the packaging trade fair "Empack" in Zurich in early 2025 will reopen its doors in Bern on January 28 and 29, 2026. Last January, over 4,000 visitors attended.
Efficient handling
Under the Kion umbrella, Baoli stands for solid and robust industrial trucks at competitive prices. The new KBP 14H, a low-lift pallet truck with a lithium-ion battery, also makes in-house material handling simple and straightforward.
Transport world at Bernexpo
Only a few weeks remain until transport.ch 2025. From November 5 to 8, the most important Swiss event for light and heavy commercial vehicles, mechanical and body workshops once again be present with 240 exhibitors and over 800 brands on almost 40,000 m² of space in ten halls.
Review for thought leaders
The 350 participants of the Fraunhofer IML Future Congress in Dortmund received prominent input on topics ranging from simplifying material flows using AI to ideas for space logistics. Among them was Gilgen Logistics, where innovation is a declared driver of business activities.
Google Street View in the warehouse
"We already have a wide range of assistance systems, cameras, and sensors in use," explained Rolf Huber at forklift manufacturer Still's Innovation Day in front of an audience of experts, customers, and visitors in Otelfingen. Now, an AI is perfecting the whole thing. With new LiDAR scanners and preferably in real time.
The clever fox at Dachser
Stefan Hohm, Head of Development at Dachser, was " Logistics Leader of the Year 2025 " politics, and academia . He was honored primarily for the @ILO project, a highly efficient digital twin for packages, assets, and processes in general cargo warehouses.
Fewer exports in storage technology
Fewer exports in storage technology
Image: Swissmem
The situation in the Swiss tech industry remains tense. So far this year, sales have declined by 4.2 percent and goods exports by 3.6 percent. According to Swissmem, this is due to the weak economic situation in the EU, and especially in Germany. Exports of conveyor and storage technology fell by 6.3 percent.
Compared to the same period last year, sales in the Swiss mechanical, electrical, and metal industries fell by 2.4 percent. Over the entire nine months of this year, the sales decline amounts to 4.2 percent. Incoming orders rose by 6.7 percent in the third quarter of 2024 compared to the same quarter of the previous year. At first glance, one might suspect a trend reversal, but this is not the case. The increase merely conceals a baseline effect, as the previous year's quarter was extremely poor. In fact, incoming orders in the first nine months fell by a total of 0.3 percent compared to the previous year. Capacity utilization also continued to weaken in the third quarter of 2024. It was still 82.9 percent, well below the long-term average (86.2%).
Swissmem Director S.Brupbacher
Compared to the same quarter of the previous year, exports of goods by the tech industry fell by 2.5 percent in the third quarter. Across all three quarters of this year, exports fell by 3.6 percent year-on-year to CHF 50.8 billion. Germany is a major cause for concern. Exports to the Swiss tech industry's largest sales market fell by 8.4 percent in the first nine months. Exports to Italy (-7.2%), Austria (-5.0%), and France (-1.1%) also declined.
India remains the most dynamic sales market. Export volume there increased by 11.0 percent from January to September 2024, with the positive trend accelerating further in the third quarter (+22.4%). However, these increases cannot compensate for the weakness in the other markets. Looking at the individual product groups, only electrical engineering/electronics products recorded export growth of 1.0 percent in the first nine months. Exports of all other product groups declined (metals: -6.4%, mechanical engineering: -4.6%, precision instruments -1.9%).
Tech industry exports January to September 2024
Domestic demand is also weak. The difficult situation threatens to increasingly impact employment in the tech industry. "Our consultations regarding job cuts and short-time work have increased significantly in recent weeks," says Swissmem Director Stefan Brupbacher. "So far, only a few companies have reduced their workforce because they want to retain their skilled workers. However, I fear that short-time work and layoffs will now become more common."
The latest survey of Swissmem member companies shows that the proportion of companies expecting a decline in orders from abroad in the next twelve months has increased from 25 to 33 percent. Only 28 percent of companies expect an increase in orders. 39 percent of respondents anticipate orders to remain unchanged.
Swissmem President M.Hirzel
"In the best case scenario, we can expect stabilization next year," says Stefan Brupbacher. "Should a 'trade war' break out between the US, China, and the EU, this would further drag down the Swiss tech industry, which exports 80 percent of its products." Should the new US president implement his announced tariff policy (tariffs of 60% against China, 10% to 20% against the rest of the world), this would have the potential to trigger dramatic consequences for the global economy.
"The free trade agreement with India must be ratified as quickly as possible," demands Swissmem President Martin Hirzel. "It opens up new, substantial market opportunities, particularly for SMEs, in the dynamic growth market of India. Negotiations for a free trade agreement with the Mercosur states must now be concluded, and talks with the US must be resumed." Last but not least, he hopes for a favorable conclusion to the negotiations on Bilateral Agreements III.
Image: Swissmem
Next weekend, the public will also vote on the expansion of national highways, a project that Swissmem strongly supports. Hirzel: "We need an efficient national highway network adapted to today's needs. The highways carry 43% of traffic volume with only 3% of the road surface. But thousands of employees in delivery vans and trucks, tens of thousands of workers in cars on their way to work, are stuck in traffic jams for hours every day, across Switzerland. (...) 48,000 hours of traffic jams (...) are colossally uneconomical."
Saying no to adjusting the capacity of national roads will not achieve anything for the climate: "Companies will still have to deliver their goods – it will simply take longer and be more expensive."
Download the latest key figures for the Swiss tech industry in the third quarter
klk./ Swissmem
