The Agreement on Acquiring the Special Taxpayer Status was signed at the Tax Administration’s Central office in Zagreb, thus AD Plastik has become another company in Croatia to join this initiative.

„We are proud to sign the Agreement on Acquiring the Special Taxpayer Status among the first companies in the country. In this way, we would like to point out that the Tax Administration is our partner and AD Plastik has taken over obligations and responsibilities by signing the Agreement which will contribute to the greater transparency of business, which is one of our most important goals. This is just the final phase of the process that we have been preparing for a long time and which was preceded by many operational actions, and the agreement itself will ensure a timely reduction in the tax risks managed by Tax Administration and us,” said Sanja Biočić, Management Board Member for Finance, Accounting, Controlling and Informatics.

For the taxpayer, this means timely settlement of tax liabilities, timely submission of tax declarations and reports, provision of internal control systems and internal and external audits. At the same time, it enables the Tax Administration to have complete insight into all the relevant facts and circumstances from which tax liabilities or tax risks arise. The taxpayer submits its proposals and views on tax issues and their possible consequences.

 „By concluding the agreement, a better and higher-quality cooperation between taxpayers and the Tax Administration is established, based on mutual trust and understanding. In this way, the taxpayer, through the proper application of tax regulations, reduces its tax risks, making the business operations easier for the both sides,“ said the Director General of the Tax Administration Zdravko Zrinušić.

Tax Administration undertakes to provide advices and guidance, give opinions to taxpayers and advise them more often on important tax issues.

Interim Unaudited Report of AD Plastik Group for 2017 shows the best business results achieved over the past ten years. Group’s operating revenue in the reporting period grew by 16.15 percent and amounted to HRK 1,086.89 million.

Net profit increased by 37.3 percent compared to the previous year and amounted to HRK 68.24 million. Continuous improvement in the financial position and cost efficiency is also reflected in EBITDA amounting to HRK 157.38 million which represents an increase of 15.84 percent compared to the previous year. In 2017 the Group also reduced its credit indebtedness by HRK 54.11 million.

 „Achieved revenue growth shows that the realized investments, programs and technologies in the past year were a good strategic choice. Adequate cost management and business efficiency optimization resulted in an increase in margins and profits. At the same time, we have created the prerequisites for further capital investments and the realization of potential acquisitions,“ said President of the Management Board Marinko Došen.

ADPL-R-A share price in the previous year grew by 22.54 percent and on December 31, 2017 it amounted to HRK 169.10, while CROBEX in the same period dropped by 7.62 percent. In the same period, dividends were paid out in the amount of HRK 8.5 per share. The year will also be remembered for a significant number of new deals that have been sealed and whose expected revenue in the following years exceeds EUR 150 million.

 „The customer is the most important figure in planning our further activities, so in the past year we have expanded our production capacities in Zagreb, while our capacities in Solin are fully utilized. Continuous engagement also resulted in the record high sales we achieved in the last quarter of 2017. This is a good indicator of the trend of the year which has already begun. This is a very important project year for us and a very dynamic period lies ahead of our Group. We have set strong foundations for future growth and development and this gives us the assurance to look to the future with optimism,“ said Marinko Došen.

Thanks to the project Experience is worth more than gold 70 students completed their internship and more than 20 companies have participated in the project so far. The goal of the project is to expand the reach of a socially responsible project and to further sensitize the business community to student problems.

AD Plastik Group has been actively participating in the project Experience is worth more than gold for a few years and thanks to the project some of the students today are very high quality employees of the company. Senior year student of Russian and Portuguese Language and Literature at the Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb, Marija Lalić, is a person with disability who revealed to us that she often meets different social prejudices. She considers that the opportunities for employment of people with disabilities in our society are unfortunately still limited. “The internship in AD Plastik helps me a lot in terms of professionalism, because I translate and gain work experience in a large company,” said Marija Lalić.

„Through the internship and employment of young people with disabilities or lower socio-economic status, we want to enable them to gain experience and new knowledge. We point out the importance and benefit of such projects to other companies in the region. Acquiring initial work experience is extremely valuable for young people who are applying,” pointed out Kornelija Pavičić, Executive Director of Human Resources at AD Plastik.

Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Andrew Stuart Dalgleish visited AD Plastik’s plant in Solin together with colleague Sarin Kalebot from the British Consulate in Split.

Management Board of AD Plastik Group welcomed them and held a short presentation in which they presented the company and demonstrated its plants. As relations between Great Britain and Croatia have been intensifying in recent years in areas of politics, business, culture and tourism, Ambassador Dalgleish is very much interested in establishing even better and higher-quality economic cooperation between the two countries.

„Automotive industry in Great Britain feels the serious consequences of Brexit and faces great challenges. Nevertheless, Britain is a big and interesting market. Some British manufacturers have opened new capacities in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, which is a new opportunity for AD Plastik,” said Member of the Management Board Katija Klepo.

The conference of the Purchasing Academy held in Zagreb gathered the purchasing experts and leaders of the Croatian companies along with the attendees of the Academy.

Purchasing should serve the development of the company, all speakers attending this conference agreed. As recently, especially after the crisis, purchasing has been given a strategic function, the basic purchasing rules should be known to managers and owners of companies, not just people performing such functions in companies.

One of the participants of the conference was also the AD Plastik’s Operational Purchasing Manager, Denis Miletović, who said that purchasing should be a separate business function in order to achieve the purchasing goals for the benefit of the company. “When purchasing, you have to collaborate with all departments, so everyone involved in this process can equally argue in order to eventually choose the best quality supplier. It should be borne in mind that the suppliers are business partners. I saw this approach in one successful foreign company where all the important managers were involved in the purchasing process. Suppliers have to care about our success and we need to care about theirs,“ Denis Miletović pointed out.

Quality purchasing increases customer satisfaction, generates savings and increases profit. Company’s competitiveness depends on purchasing and the Purchasing Academy provides companies with professional knowledge through operational and strategic purchasing modules and opportunities to improve purchasing.

The start of production of the new Renault Clio model is expected in mid-2019, one of the best-selling models in this vehicle category. The production of most of the plastic parts has been agreed with AD Plastik, so front and rear bumpers with integral components, wheel arch liners, painted external stabilizers of the vehicle (spoilers), instrument panels and door panels will be produced in Zagreb and Solin for the Clio BJA.

The new Clio represents the future of the Revoz plant in Novo Mesto, and the predicted project duration is seven years. The value of the overall project is over EUR 72 million, and the new development activities that have been agreed need to be especially pointed out. The independent front and rear bumper tool making is a new step for the development team of the company.

„We simply have to keep track of trends in the automotive industry that put all suppliers into a fast-paced mode. It is necessary to keep up with the changes, new requirements and be constantly available. Renault is one of our most important customers, and our long-term cooperation and mutual trust are the result of our work and quality we offer, ” said Gordana Erceg Sindik, Sales Manager for the Renault Group.

Smartforfour will soon take on a different look, and the second phase of production of this vehicle will start in mid-2019. AD Plastik has sealed a deal for the new Smart vehicle, so most of the parts will be replaced with new ones. The total value of the project is somewhat above EUR 14 million in the four years period, which is its projected duration.

Changes to the new Smart will be visible on the front of the car. By modifying the front bumper with components, the front decorative grille has become considerably larger. There will also be a variety of options for colored grilles as earlier, and new colors will be introduced to give Smart a more beautiful appearance. Specific feature of Smart is the ability to personalize the vehicle due to the two-color body and the large choice of colors and materials in the interior of the vehicle.

AD Plastik is currently producing the complete exterior components for the front and rear part of the vehicle, which includes front and rear bumper with components, as well as the front engine cover and mudguards, painted in the color of the vehicle body.

AD Plastik Group has signed deals with several major car manufacturers, total value of which amounts to EUR 22.2 million.

AD Plastik Group will produce PHEV belt protectors for several vehicles from the PSA Group, and the beginning of production is expected in August 2019. Already at the end of 2017 the start of production of glass run channels, mobile and fixed grab handles for several vehicle models from the PSA Group is expected.

AD Plastik will collaborate with Ford over the next five years on production of wheel arch liners for the redesigned Ford Mondeo that will be produced in Solin. Signing a new deal for Ford Mondeo is interesting because this car is manufactured in Valencia, one of the most distant locations with which AD Plastik collaborates. Serial production is planned for the beginning of 2019.

New deals were also signed for several car models in the Russian subsidiaries of AD Plastik Group. Thus, AD Plastik Togliatti will produce injection-moulded chassis protectors for Renault Logan, Sandero, and VAZ X-ray vehicles, serial production of which is scheduled for the end of 2018.

New deals for production of injection-moulded interior parts for the Ford Kuga vehicle, serial production of which is scheduled for 2020, were also signed. “This deal confirms that AD Plastik Group is the FordSollers’ choice when it comes to injection-moulded interior parts,” said project manager Dragan Buljubašić.

Kaluga has also sealed new deals for the production of injection-moulded cooling fan motor brackets for VW Polo and Škoda Rapid vehicles. The start of serial production is planned in the last quarter of 2019, and the estimated duration of the project is five years.

“This is the largest individual deal signed with Volkswagen in Russia and it shows that we have strengthened our position on the list of their suppliers for injection moulded parts. This is also an excellent opportunity to increase our development competencies,” said Drago Marković, project manager.

Positive business trends of AD Plastik Group have successfully continued in the third quarter. Operating revenue grew by 5.9 percent and in the first nine months of 2017 they amounted to HRK 779.5 million. The net profit in the amount of HRK 41.7 million was by 33.7 percent higher than in the same period last year.

The final recovery of the Russian market contributed greatly to total revenue growth, and operating revenue in that market grew by even 21 percent, while overall vehicle sales growth in Russia in the same period amounted to 10.6 percent. In the markets of the European Union and Serbia, AD Plastik has a stable market position which has been strengthened through the new deals sealed in 2017.

„Continuous work on optimizing business efficiency and cost management is manifested primarily through increased margins and profitability. EBITDA margin in the reporting period amounted to a very high 15.1 percent and EBITDA amounted to HRK 117.5 million, showing a growth of 18.2 percent compared to the same period of the previous year,” said Marinko Došen, President of the Management Board.

The financial position of AD Plastik Group strengthened in the first nine months of 2017, so as compared to the end of last year, the credit indebtedness decreased by HRK 31.2 million.

„In the observed period, we have been working intensively on signing new deals for existing customers which have reached the final phase of the negotiations and we are hoping for the upcoming nominations. In the third quarter, a dividend of HRK 8.5 per share was paid and we started investing in ‘Pilot painting line for industrial research, development and innovation’,” said Marinko Došen.

A total of 34 Croatian companies and organizations have signed the Diversity Charter at the Esplanada Hotel, aim of which is to foster diversity, non-discrimination, inclusiveness and equal opportunities at the workplace. AD Plastik Group is among the first companies in Croatia to sign a Charter developed under the joint project of the Croatian Business Council for Sustainable Development (HR BCSD) with partners from Slovenia and Romania. The signatories of the Charter undertake to implement a policy of diversity and non-discrimination in their working environments and business environment.

Croatia is the 19th country in the European Union to sign the Charter and the initiative is strongly encouraged by the European Commission. The signatories of the Diversity Charter have joined a community that gathers more than 7100 signatories from 18 European countries. In this way, they opened up new channels and potential for their organization, employees and community in which they want to conduct business responsibly. Diversity is one of the fundamental values of a modern society and although we know intuitively how important it is, it becomes increasingly clear that it is an important factor in the business sense.

The Diversity Charter in Croatia continues to implement successful models from other European countries and it is based on a set of principles voluntarily accepted by the signatories in order to promote diversity, non-discrimination, inclusiveness and equal opportunities at the workplace.

Knowledge, competence, ability and motivation are the only values that the business sector wants and can value. Accepting diversity is a matter of business ethics and AD Plastik Group promotes diversity, non-discrimination and inclusion in the workplace in its Code.