看好3D打印產(chǎn)業(yè)的未來前景，惠普(HP)宣布將在明年中推出一系列3D打印機，以期刺激該公司的成長?；萜展镜哪繕耸抢闷溆诖蛴C業(yè)務(wù)的長久經(jīng)驗與龐大資源，在2014年發(fā)表一系列針對消費應(yīng)用與工業(yè)級的3D打印機。
惠普首席執(zhí)行官惠特曼(Meg Whitman)在日前的財務(wù)會議上首度提到跨入3D打印領(lǐng)域的計劃。但她也坦承，對于目前仍持續(xù)掙扎中的惠普公司來說，過去造成的沖擊還將持續(xù)一段時間。
不過，3D打印目前還處于萌芽期，并不會很快地發(fā)展成為大規(guī)模的業(yè)務(wù)，預(yù)計還要3-5年左右的時間才可能帶來爆發(fā)性成長，因此，這對于HP來說也是個很好的機會。
惠特曼說，這將為2014年與2015年帶來成長基礎(chǔ)，以及良好的長期發(fā)展?jié)摿?，透過“以大部份消費者與企業(yè)覺得可接受的方式進行打印，新的 3D 打印業(yè)務(wù)型態(tài)存在許多可能的應(yīng)用，”同時，3D打印將采用一些與惠普打印機事業(yè)部門相同的技術(shù)。
盡 管惠普的打印機與PC銷售僅微幅下滑，但惠普聲稱表現(xiàn)已優(yōu)于整體產(chǎn)業(yè)的下滑幅度。截至10月31日，惠普在2013財政年度的營收約1,122億美元，下 滑7%。但相較于2012年大幅虧損126億美元，今年仍可勉強取得51億美元的利潤。此外，惠普第4季營收291億美元，扣除部分費用后的每股獲利約 1.01美元，但該公司預(yù)計未來一年每股獲利可望微幅提高到2.85～3.05美元左右。
惠特曼曾經(jīng)說，惠普的營運情況改善并不只是線性維持的結(jié)果，而是取得了巨大的進展，特別是在減少債務(wù)以及增加現(xiàn)金流方面。然而，惠普的核心業(yè)務(wù)預(yù)期將持續(xù)面對各種挑戰(zhàn)。過去三個月來，整個PC出貨量下滑了9.5%，而DRAM價格持續(xù)上漲。惠普首席財務(wù)官Cathy Lesjack表示，隨著內(nèi)存價格持續(xù)增加的影響，這一季的營收將會更急劇下滑。
根 據(jù)市場研究公司Canalys的報告指出，2014平板電腦將占全球PC市場的50%。為了追求更大的市場動能，惠普也開始推出屏幕和鍵盤可分離或折迭變 形成為平板電腦的二合一筆記本電腦?！澳壳坝懻撨@種二合一筆電需求如何發(fā)展仍為時過早，但我們已推出許多創(chuàng)新外形設(shè)計的產(chǎn)品，因此，等到圣誕旺季過后就可以了解更多了。”
惠普自去年刪減20億美元的人事成本(包括 Unix服務(wù)器的大筆研發(fā)支出)后，已經(jīng)有多達24,600人離開惠普了。此外，由于惠普計劃精簡另11億美元的支出，預(yù)計還有33,000人或更多也將在 2014年離去。盡管如此，惠普仍在去年持續(xù)增加其整體工程研發(fā)團隊。在2014年，惠普計劃持續(xù)提高整體研發(fā)支出。
在銷售衰退的2013年，網(wǎng)絡(luò)設(shè)備與服務(wù)器可說是唯一的亮點，但盡管如此，銷售成長也十分微薄，營收僅較去年成長了2%。
本文授權(quán)編譯自EE Times，版權(quán)所有，謝絕轉(zhuǎn)載
參考英文原文：3D Printers 'an Acorn' for Struggling HP，by Rick Merritt
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3D Printers 'an Acorn' for Ailing HP
Rick Merritt
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Hewlett-Packard will launch a line of 3D printers next year to spark growth. Word of the plan came at the end of a call with financial analysts to discuss marginally upbeat results for the quarter and year.
The computer and printer company aims to release consumer and industrial-grade 3D printers in 2014, leveraging its massive paper printing business. But chief executive Meg Whitman, who first discussed the plan late last month, said on the call that the impact on the still-struggling corporation's bottom line will be modest for some time.
"This is an acorn in 2014 and 2015 with very good long potential," Whitman said. "There's a lot of potential to print in ways most consumers and companies would find acceptable," and 3D printers use "some of the same technologies" as HP's paper printer group.
Printer and PC sales were dropped marginally, though HP claimed its results outperformed declines in the overall industry. For the fiscal year that ended Oct. 31, HP's revenue fell 7% to $112.2 billion. The company eked out a $5.1 billion profit following a $12.6 billion loss in 2012. It expects earnings per share in the coming fiscal year to rise slightly to a range of $2.85 to $3.05.
HP's "turnaround was not linear," but the company is making "great progress," especially in reducing debt and improving cashflow, Whitman said. Nevertheless, continued challenges are expected in its core businesses. Industrywide shipments of traditional PCs fell 9.5% in the last three months amid rising DRAM prices. And Cathy Lesjack, HP's chief financial officer, said revenue declines could be even steeper this quarter as a result of continued high memory prices.
A Canalys report says tablets could make up half the PC market in 2014. Seeking traction in that market, HP is shipping convertible notebooks with screens and keyboards that can detach or fold to create tablets. "It's too early to tell how demand for convertibles is going," Whitman said. "We have a lot of innovative form factors, and we'll know more after this Christmas season."
As many as 24,600 people left HP last year as it cut about $2 billion in labor costs, including a significant part of its R&D in Unix servers. Another 33,000 or more will leave in 2014 as HP tries to trim another $1.1 billion. That said, HP added to its overall engineering ranks in its last fiscal year. In 2014, it aims to increase its overall R&D spending, which slumped in the last 12 months.
Networking gear and servers were the only bright spots in otherwise depressed sales for the year. Even in those sectors, sales growth was razor thin. HP reported these fiscal 2013 results.
? Networking and server revenue rose 2% from the previous year with a 14.5% operating margin.
? Printing revenue fell 1% with a 17.7% operating margin.
? Personal systems revenue fell 2% with a 3% operating margin.
? Software revenue fell 9% with a 30.8% operating margin.
? Enterprise services revenue declined 9% with a 4.4% operating margin.
