Ladies and Gentlemen,
Welcome to the virtual Bosch Power Tools Pro Media Day 2021! Today, it’s all about ‘Hard work made easier ‒ with Bosch Professional’. Before we talk about the future, let’s have a short look at the past: We achieved record sales of 5.1 billion euros in more than 190 countries in the year 2020. This growth corresponds to nine percent adjusted for currency effects compared to the previous year. The reasons for the overall very successful year in a very dynamic environment are manyfold, but one key factor is the trust which users placed in our company when buying tools. This has recently been confirmed by a representative consumer survey conducted by GfK. Based on this, Bosch Power Tools won the prestigious Best Brands Award 2021 in the overarching category ‘Best Brand Overall’. We are very proud of this and it motivates us to further focus consistently on our users’ needs and to offer them added value: We support the self-fulfillment and the feeling of ‘Home made by you’ of our DIY users and make hard work easier for professionals.
Let’s take a closer look at the world of our Professional users! Hard work, long hours, extreme conditions: Our professional users aren’t in it for fun, they’re in it for a living. It’s not easy to build the world we live in. But you know what? Our tools make it easier. That’s what drives us at Bosch Power Tools: We make hard work easier.
So, what do we do to live up to our promise? It’s very simple: Good tools take care of the job, but great tools take care of their users. And that’s what it’s all about: We want professionals to feel well taken care of every day, even while taking on the hardest jobs.
We strongly believe that cordless leadership, easy documentation of construction projects, and clear user guidance for the most suitable accessories are three key factors to achieve best results faster and easier.
A growing number of professionals today rely on cordless tools. Cordless tools offer high mobility on construction sites without long setup times – tradespeople can start working immediately. They are fast and flexible which leads to higher productivity.
Many tools, many brands, one battery system: The Professional 18V System
Last year, we took a major step forward to drive the cordless construction site of the future: We opened our 18 V cordless platform for professional partners. Brennenstuhl, Klauke, Ledlenser, Lena Lighting, Sonlux, Sulzer and Wagner ‒ our common goal drives and unites us: to offer professional users the best 18 V system across many brands and countries ‒ and thus giving them a further boost in efficiency. We have taken on a lot: We have promised that we will be constantly expanding the Professional 18V System to offer an even wider application range and even more flexibility. So, what’s next? Let’s have a look at it together! Roll it!
We are more than happy to welcome our new partners Fein and Heraeus to the Professional 18V System! They will expand the existing portfolio and further increase the flexibility of the system. We are excited to be jointly setting this milestone today and look forward to welcoming further partners! Together, we are creating a battery system that professionals can easily build on. Many tools, many brands, one battery system ‒ that’s how we make hard work easier!
And of course, we are continuously expanding our cordless range ‒ in the next two years we will launch more cordless tools on the market than ever before: our large-scale product offensive includes a staggering 100 new tools! Our Biturbo tools play a crucial role in this and are real game changers. Getting the toughest jobs done in the easiest way ‒ that’s what our Biturbo tools stand for. Let’s take a look at it together: Roll film!
Since their introduction, our Biturbo tools have constantly set new standards ‒ while staying fully compatible with our existing range. The most powerful cordless SDS plus hammer on the market, the strongest 18 V cordless drill drivers in the world, a circular saw that is faster and lighter than its corded counterpart ‒ Biturbo is all this and much more! And our Biturbo series continues to grow, of course. Today, I’m pleased to introduce you to our latest innovations. I will focus on the most important features ‒ but, of course, our tools offer professional users many more advantages!
Outstanding Biturbo innovations in the Professional 18V System
Our new Biturbo hand-held circular saw GKS 18V-70 L Professional offers users cordless flexibility with corded power: It is fully equal to a corded circular saw with 1,800 W. The tool is our first cordless hand-held circular saw with a saw blade on the left and is thus particularly suitable for craftsmen who prefer sawing on the left as well as left-handers. What’s more? At 70 mm, it offers the best cutting depth in its class and thus a wider range of applications than conventional cordless circular saws with 190-mm blades. The front features a bow handle rather than a knob, making it easier and safer to move ‒ even in a beveled position. This gives craftsmen outstanding control for perfect results, no matter what they are sawing.
Another first with major benefits is our new GTS 18V-216 Professional. It is the first cordless table saw in our range and offers the best cutting capacity in its class: 70 mm cutting height and 635 mm cutting width with a saw blade diameter of 216 mm. It is especially suitable for cutting board materials and reliably cuts squared timber and baseboards to length. But that’s not all: Our table saw was designed for easy and safe transport to offer our users maximum flexibility. Powerful, mobile, compact ‒ that’s how we make hard work easier!
And now I am excited to introduce you to these two special powerhouses: Our GDS 18V-1000 C Professional and GDS 18V-1050 HC Professional impact wrenches which stand for high torque in the 18 V class. They offer a maximum tightening torque of 1,000 and 1,050 Nm which gives you the power to perform demanding serial bolting with maximum screw diameters of up to M24. But what we are particularly proud of are the new connectivity features and the added value we can provide professional users with them. These tools make assembly and disassembly easier than ever before, as you can adjust the screw modes via App. The functions included will stop the tools when tightening or loosening screws and nuts at just the right moment, so that you will not over-tighten screws, so that you will not damage any surfaces, so that you will not lose any nuts. Even better, you can further customize all predefined functions via app and save them for later applications. This saves fitters time during repetitive serial bolting and allows them to always adapt the tool optimally to their application. Of course, this also applies to the speed setting for excellent control throughout the entire workflow.
We are convinced that these innovations will give our professional users a further boost in efficiency. This is exactly where our measuring tools come in: They not only facilitate detecting, measuring, and levelling, they also make the documentation of construction projects easier.
Easy documentation with innovative measuring tools from Bosch
We are systematically enhancing the wall-scanner segment. The latest tool, which we have optimized based on users’ feedback, is our D-tect 200 C Professional. Here are some of the advantages I would like to share with you today ‒ but of course our wall-scanner can do much, much more! It offers even more precise and deeper detection thanks to advanced radar technology with a new antenna system and a new Bosch radar chip. In addition, it displays objects with precise depth indication and a color code, for example yellow for live wires, dark blue for ferrous metals and turquoise for non-ferrous metals. This is what sets it apart from the competition. Users can also flexibly choose between four different ‘so-called’ views. This allows the user to understand and interpret the results in the best possible way.
Our wall-scanner is also the first radar detector on the market that allows you to record measurements by screenshot and then process them on a PC via USB-C® cable or SD card. This makes documentation easier than ever, for example of rebar in reinforced concrete or to track live cables. We are solving a problem that many users have described to us ‒ thus making them faster and better!
Our precise and robust GTC 600 C Professional thermal camera also saves time. Each stored thermal image contains almost 50.000 pixels corresponding exactly to one measuring point. The result is a very detailed and precise thermal image. The tool identifies weak spots such as defective radiators and underfloor heating systems as well as thermal bridges just as reliably as overheating of structural components, for example in switch cabinets or in the automotive sector. Quickly analyzing the current situation, clarifying the requirements for preparing an offer, and checking and documenting work results – our thermal camera makes it easier to perform both these and many more tasks. For example, you can now add a spoken voice comment lasting for up to 30 seconds ‒ a function that was previously only offered by devices in a much higher product class. You simply and conveniently record the voice comment via the integrated microphone, and it is stored in the gallery together with the real and thermal image. This means the user knows exactly which images fit together thus avoiding assignment errors. The data can also be processed via an app or on a PC, making documentation and sharing with customers, colleagues, or other trades even easier. And of course, our thermal camera is ideally fitted for use on construction sites: It can even withstand being dropped on concrete from a height of two meters and is also dust- and splashproof.
Our new laser measure GLM 50-27 CG Professional also combines high robustness with fast, convenient measuring as well as simple documentation and processing of data. Its housing is made of particularly robust plastic with stabilizing ribs and has a shock-absorbing rubber casing. The display is particularly break-proof, and the silicone keypad just as tear-resistant. This means that our laser measure can even withstand drops from a height of 1.5 m onto concrete. And thanks to its all-round rubber seal, it is both jet-water protected as well as dustproof. Its green laser diode ensures excellent visibility ‒ especially in bright areas found for example during installation work in front of large window areas in concrete or steel frame construction. And that’s not all. Our tool not only replaces the folding ruler or tape measure but also makes a note-pad redundant: You can transfer your results to the new MeasureOn App via Bluetooth and conveniently process them digitally using your smartphone. Let’s have a look at further advantages in the following video!
The data is simply transferred to digital workspaces via the app, putting an end to paperwork. You can imagine these workspaces as a huge sheet of paper: You can combine sketches of individual rooms, measured values, photos, and notes in the app and thus easily record and manage your projects. And thanks to the cloud-based project access, this can now be done anywhere and on all devices. With this digital solution, we make it easy for professional users to synchronize and organize their workflow!
Clear user guidance with accessories from Bosch
Power tools and power tool accessories in perfect combination and from a single source, conjointly developed and optimized ‒ this is what sets us apart from many competitors. You will achieve the best results by matching innovative tools and innovative accessories. However, many professional users are still not aware of how much they can influence and increase their productivity through the accessories they choose. Clear user guidance at every touch point is therefore a key factor in making craftsmen faster and more efficient and making their work easier.
‘The best your tool can get’ ‒ at Bosch, we have always strived for perfection. We offer the best accessories for any need and any demand. And we will guide our professional users at all touch points in the future so that they will know right from the start, what the respective accessories from Bosch can do for them and which ones offer the performance that best meets their needs. We are therefore dividing our complete accessory range into 3 lines: the Bosch Expert line in Blue, the Bosch Pro line in Grey/Blue and the Bosch line in White. ‘The best your tool can get’ ‒ is then exactly what the first new line in the range stands for, the high-performance class Bosch Expert in Blue. The Bosch Pro and Bosch lines will follow successively.
Our distinctive new packaging shows the user at a glance what advantages the respective Expert product offers him and how much faster, better and more efficiently he can work with it. In the future, the key technologies that make Bosch Expert accessories so powerful will also be visible directly on the packaging: an outstanding lifetime thanks to carbide and diamond technology and significantly faster material removal rate when using metal grinding discs with Prisma technology. Our key technologies thus become a hallmark of quality.
Our Expert accessories come in whenever conventional accessories reach their limits, and they make certain applications possible in the first place. These accessories include the new ‘Expert HEX-9 HardCeramic’ tile drill bits for construction trade, the ‘Expert Thick Tough Metal’ reciprocating saw blades for the metal and demolition trades and the ‘Expert Hardwood fast’ jigsaw blades for the woodworking trade.
We have developed the ‘Expert HEX-9 HardCeramic’ specially for drilling in hard tiles, primarily porcelain stoneware. It offers a lifetime that is up to 10 times longer than current carbide-tipped tile drill bits on the market. This is based on our special production know-how and the unique design of our tile drill bit: The carbide tip is asymmetric, thereby forming teeth that work through the hard material more efficiently than flat cutting edges. Its active centering tip allows a precise drilling start without slipping on the tile. The integrated open stock between the steel body and the carbide cutting edges ensures stable drilling progress over the entire lifetime. The result: Much easier and more precise drilling with a longer lifetime of the product.
With our ‘Expert Thick Tough Metal’ reciprocating saw blade we allow professional users to work in areas, which are not covered by conventional bi-metal saw blades. These areas include, for example, cutting of cast iron pipes or processing of high-strength and high-alloy steels in car dismantling, ship dismantling and plant deconstruction. This saw blade is one of three premium products with carbide technology that have received our new coating: Each of the individually welded carbide teeth is PVD-coated, which doubles the lifetime of this already very robust product. It lasts up to 100 times longer than a conventional bi-metal blade. As you can see: We also continuously evolve our top technologies!
And just to be complete, I would also like to mention our high-performance blade for woodworking: the jigsaw blade ‘Expert Hardwood fast’, which is very popular with our users. It offers you up to 50 times longer lifetime than standard bi-metal saw blades in tough carpentry applications.
With our Expert range, we target all major trades and cover the most demanding applications. It comprises over 1,000 products which are far superior to standard accessories. No matter if construction, metalworking, or woodworking trade: With our Expert accessories, professional users work significantly faster, more precisely and with maximum efficiency.
The users are always in the focus of our strategy. We will be there to guide them across all channels and touch points, online and offline. We will help them to save money and time by choosing the right accessories for their specific needs. We will answer their questions and solve their problems ‒ this is our promise, by which we want to be measured.
Hard work made easier ‒ with Bosch Professional
As we draw to a close, let me sum up the most important points once again:
- We want to offer professional users the best 18 V system across many brands and countries ‒ we are consistently pushing this goal with existing and new partners in the Professional 18V System. And, of course, we are also contributing to the expansion of the system with numerous innovations. Our Biturbo series plays a crucial role in it ‒ we will continue to set new standards for cordless power tools.
- With our innovative measuring tools, we do not only facilitate detecting, measuring, and levelling, but we also make the documentation of construction projects much easier ‒ thus giving professionals a boost in speed, performance, and efficiency.
- We offer power tools and power tool accessories from a single source and make it easy for craftsmen to choose the suitable accessory. Through our key technologies, we offer them products that are far superior to standard accessories available in the market.
- We have set ourselves high goals. And we are prepared to be measured by them. The user is in the center of everything we do ‒ we make his hard work easier.
Thank you for your attention.
