igus Drives Growth with 227 New Products and Automation Push

Home
Articles
igus Drives Growth with 227 New Products and Automation Push

igus Drives Growth with 227 New Products and Automation Push

Articles
May 08,26

igus grew 4.4 per cent in 2025 to €1.155 billion, unveiling 227 new products while investing in automation, local production and sustainability to drive future growth.

igus Drives Growth with 227 New Products and Automation Push

Despite global conflicts and economic uncertainty slowing many industries, innovation remains critical for growth and competitiveness. With 227 new motion plastics products, igus demonstrates that innovation can thrive even in difficult conditions. To support further growth, the company has invested heavily in new infrastructure and automation, improving delivery speeds. It is also expanding global operations through new and existing subsidiaries to strengthen customer proximity via local production.

Despite global challenges, igus increased its 2025 turnover to €1.155 billion, up 4.4 per cent from the previous year. Its three largest sales markets are China, Germany and the USA, together accounting for around 60 per cent of sales. igus employs 5,423 people worldwide, 185 more than in 2024, including 2,044 in Germany alone.

To reduce dependence on the external labour market by 2027, the company has established its own Training Factory at its headquarters in Cologne at a cost of €600,000. In 2025, igus invested €42.2 million in the innovation centre in Cologne, €11.5 million in shareholdings, and €70.7 million in global subsidiaries. These funds have been allocated to new land, buildings and modern tools to improve supply reliability and delivery speed.

“Product quality and price are no longer the only differentiating factors,” says Artur Peplinski, CEO and Spokesman of the Management Board, igus. “Our customers increasingly need suppliers who can deliver quickly and, above all, reliably without having to compromise on product quality.”

One major lever for speed is automation. At the new Phase 8 building in Cologne, a fully automated small-parts warehouse is being developed, capable of up to 1,800 storage and retrieval operations per hour. Additional automation systems that relieve employees of routine tasks, such as unloading injection-moulding machines, are also accelerating production. The company’s 857 injection-moulding machines in Cologne produce more than one billion components annually. In areas such as crimping and soldering, new automation solutions have improved throughput times by 10 to 30 times compared with manual processes.

To maintain quality standards, the industry’s largest test laboratory has expanded to 5,500 sq m. “Adding 1,500 square metres to our test areas in the new building exclusively for our dry-tech products creates the basis for more capacity and new products, such as PTFE-free and bisphenol-free materials,” says Peplinski. ‘The number of test rigs alone has increased by around 20 per cent and with it the number of tests: from the current 11,000 to a total of around 17,000 tests per year.’

Part of the investment has also gone into new online tools that allow design engineers to configure products automatically, making processes faster and easier without exchanging design drawings with the igus sales team.

igus still manufactures around 95 per cent of its components in Germany, but the trend towards local production is increasing globally. To better meet local market needs and improve its eco-balance, the company expanded plants in China, the USA, Poland, Turkey and Japan in 2025. Many sites now feature larger storage and assembly facilities.

“By expanding local production capacities in China and the USA alone, we lowered transport weight by around 1.2 million kg in 2025 – a significant contribution to CO? reduction,” emphasises Peplinski.

The company has also established new subsidiaries in Australia, Morocco, the Ivory Coast and Latvia.

Sustainability remains central to corporate strategy. Since 2025, igus production at its Cologne headquarters has been climate-neutral in accordance with Scopes 1 and 2. Its recycling platform chainge is also growing, with 235 tonnes of disused energy chains taken back so far.

“One important step forward is the new ISO-certified validation, which allows us to demonstrate the CO2 savings of our energy chain recycling to customers in a transparent way,” explains Peplinski.

The company’s 227 new products are also expected to support international growth and entry into new markets. At Hannover Messe 2026, igus will present 227 new motion plastics products. These include the first drylin C roller guide, 3D printing materials for the food and beverage industry, and the e-spin energy supply system, a new cleanroom solution for long travels with ISO Class 1 certification from Fraunhofer IPA.

This year, igus will also introduce new e-mobility solutions with e-tract AC and DC. The company sees low-cost robotics as a major growth driver.

“It is our goal to democratise automation,” says Peplinski. ‘Small and medium-sized companies with limited budgets and little previous experience should also benefit from the benefits automation offers.’

To support this vision, igus is expanding the RBTX online platform into a service hub for complete automation solutions. In future, RBTX will not only combine components from more than 260 robotics manufacturers, but also connect users with suitable integration partners quickly, transparently and independently of manufacturer preference. Around 100 humanoid robot models from 35 manufacturers are already available.

Peplinski concludes “We want to show that sustainable growth and technological innovation are possible even in challenging times. With a consistent focus on speed of delivery, local presence and automation solutions, we are setting the course for growth – for us and our customers.”