Dear readers,
The only constant is change. That is also true for developments in the sugar market. Sugar prices had only just recovered in autumn 2017 – and now, a few months later, they are falling again. Analysts are expecting a record global harvest and considerable production surpluses for the 2017/2018 campaign. So the sugar market will continue to be full of surprises. Particularly where political influences are felt, such as with the removal of EU sugar quotas at the end of September 2017. As a result, the European Union could become a net exporter of sugar; that is certainly assumed by the EU agricultural outlook for the period 2017 to 2030 presented by the European Commission.
At times where markets are in constant flux, high flexibility and responsiveness are factors of success – as BMA has shown. Over the past 24 months, BMA has continued to gear its portfolio of products and services to changing requirements. Thanks to our well-established global sourcing, we are today flexible enough to respond to a wide range of customer needs. We can provide solutions offering our customers outstanding technical performance, whatever their budget. And we supply machinery and equipment that meet the highest requirements and will continue to set standards in terms of energy consumption, performance and efficiency. Once again, BMA’s Engineering Network has reviewed many factories in detail, to analyse and calculate how an upgrade of process components can reduce operating costs in the short, medium and long term; you can find the details in this issue of BMA Info. A number of recommendations from these reviews have gone straight to the implementation stage, so the beneficial effects can be felt as quickly as possible. Plant automation and factory process control systems from BMA offer plenty of opportunities for improving the factory infrastructure. In this, other industries are increasingly sources of inspiration for us.
In line with our vision Passion for Progress, much has also happened in R&D. In the middle of this year, BMA will be launching a new series of massecuite pumps, to be expanded in due course. You can read a first report about that in this issue of BMA Info. But it’s not just major innovations that count. We work with equal Passion for Progress on improving small details on other BMA machinery and equipment. And when we have some passion left – we use it, for instance, to help a gold rush in the United States. Read about it, on page 21.
This year’s BMA Info once again brings you many interesting articles on topics ranging from extraction to sugar drying. If you would like to find out more about any of them, talk to us or come and meet us face to face at a sugar industry event.
In the meantime, we hope you enjoy reading this latest issue of BMA Info.
BMA Board of Directors