ESAB Corp (ESAB) 2023 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good morning. My name is Krista, and I'll be your conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the ESAB Corporation Fourth Quarter 2023 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) Thank you. I will now turn the conference over to Mark Barbalato, Vice President of Investor Relations. Mark, you may begin your conference.

早安.我叫克里斯塔，今天我將擔任你們的會議接線生。此時此刻，我歡迎大家參加 ESAB 公司 2023 年第四季財報電話會議。 （操作員說明）謝謝。我現在將會議交給投資者關係副總裁馬克·巴巴拉托 (Mark Ba​​lbalato)。馬克，你可以開始你的會議了。

Thanks, operator. Welcome to ESAB's Fourth Quarter 2023 Earnings Call. This morning, I'm joined by our President and CEO, Shyam Kambeyanda; and CFO, Kevin Johnson.

謝謝，接線生。歡迎參加 ESAB 2023 年第四季財報電話會議。今天早上，我們的總裁兼執行長 Shyam Kambeyanda 也加入了我的行列。和首席財務官凱文·約翰遜。

Please keep in mind that some of the statements we are making are forward-looking and are subject to risks, including those set forth in our SEC filings and today's earnings release. Actual results may differ, and we do not assume any obligation or intend to update these forward-looking statements, except as required by law. With respect to any non-GAAP financial measures mentioned during the call today, the accompanying reconciliation information related to those measures can be found in our earnings press release and today's slide presentation.

請記住，我們所做的一些聲明是前瞻性的，並且存在風險，包括我們向 SEC 提交的文件和今天的收益報告中列出的風險。實際結果可能有所不同，我們不承擔任何義務或打算更新這些前瞻性陳述，除非法律要求。對於今天電話會議中提到的任何非公認會計準則財務措施，與這些措施相關的隨附調節資訊可以在我們的收益新聞稿和今天的幻燈片演示中找到。

With that, I'd like to turn the call over to our President and CEO, Shyam Kambeyanda.

說到這裡，我想將電話轉給我們的總裁兼執行長 Shyam Kambeyanda。

Thank you, Mark. Good morning, everyone, and thank you all for joining us this morning. ESAB has made excellent progress in 2023, and we finished the year and the fourth quarter on a high note. As always, let me take a moment to thank our dedicated associates for their hard work and commitment to our goals.

謝謝你，馬克。大家早安，感謝大家今天早上加入我們。伊薩在 2023 年取得了出色的進展，我們以優異的成績結束了這一年和第四季。一如既往，讓我花點時間感謝我們敬業的員工的辛勤工作和對我們目標的承諾。

Our 2023 performance demonstrates the power of EBX to drive growth, improve margins and generate strong free cash flow. During Investor Day this past December, we announced our strategic vision to become a focused premier industrial compounder and setting our 2028 targets to become a $4 billion in sales, 22% in EBITDA margin enterprise that generates 100% free cash flow conversion.

我們 2023 年的業績證明了 EBX 在推動成長、提高利潤率和產生強勁自由現金流方面的力量。在去年12 月的投資者日期間，我們宣布了成為專注的一流工業複合製造商的戰略願景，並設定了2028 年目標，成為銷售額40 億美元、EBITDA 利潤率為22%、產生100 % 自由現金流轉換的企業。

The event also showcased our innovative products and solutions within our FABTECH and Gas Equipment businesses, allowing us to highlight the power of our portfolio and workflow solutions that are helping our customers solve their most challenging needs.

活動也展示了我們的 FABTECH 和氣體設備業務中的創新產品和解決方案，使我們能夠突顯我們的產品組合和工作流程解決方案的力量，幫助我們的客戶解決最具挑戰性的需求。

Some of the other highlights from 2023 was the extraordinary progress we have made to enhance our equipment portfolio, both in FABTECH and Gas Control. We completed our light industrial lineup and introduced the game-changing Renegade Bolt. Our battery-powered welder, the first of its kind, was a hit in the marketplace.

2023 年的其他一些亮點是我們在增強 FABTECH 和氣體控制領域的設備組合方面取得的非凡進展。我們完善了輕工業產品陣容，並推出了改變遊戲規則的 Renegade Bolt。我們的電池供電焊接機是同類產品中的第一台，在市場上大受歡迎。

An interesting news item for you on this product, it is now featured in the March Edition of Popular Mechanics as the best tool for the trade.

關於該產品的一條有趣的新聞，它現在在《大眾機械》三月版中被列為行業最佳工具。

We also made significant progress on our heavy industrial line of products. With the launch of our new Warrior Edge. This product specifically addresses the robotics and automation market. The Warrior Edge, combined with our digital solutions, has created a competitive edge for ESAB as we focus on growing our equipment sales. In addition, we developed and introduced the first AI algorithm enabled fully autonomous adaptive welding solution with the renewable industry.

我們的重工業產品線也取得了重大進展。隨著我們新的 Warrior Edge 的推出。該產品專門針對機器人和自動化市場。 Warrior Edge 與我們的數位解決方案相結合，為伊薩創造了競爭優勢，因為我們專注於增加設備銷售。此外，我們也為再生能源產業開發並推出了第一個支援人工智慧演算法的完全自主自適應焊接解決方案。

And within our Gas Control business, the innovation machine continues to deliver. The Vitality Index in our Gas Control business is a strong 33%. The team has introduced new valves for Industrial, Specialty and Medical Gas focused on the North American and Middle Eastern markets.

在我們的氣體控制業務中，創新機器不斷發揮作用。我們氣體控制業務的活力指數高達 33%。該團隊推出了針對工業、特殊和醫用氣體的新型閥門，重點關注北美和中東市場。

Additionally, our Gas Control team successfully integrated 2 bolt-on acquisitions, positioning us for continued growth in the coming years. ESAB is also benefiting from macro tailwinds related to onshoring, infrastructure upgrades, energy transition, agricultural investments and medical and lab infrastructure improvements.

此外，我們的氣體控制團隊成功整合了兩次補強收購，為我們在未來幾年的持續成長奠定了基礎。伊薩也受惠於與在岸外包、基礎設施升級、能源轉型、農業投資以及醫療和實驗室基礎設施改善相關的宏觀順風。

And that's not all. We have added to our EBX toolkit. We initiated a few targeted AI-driven activities focused on improving our operations and are encouraged by the initial results. As we enter 2024, we just wrapped up our leadership meeting and rallied our team around growth, bolt-on acquisitions and taking EBX up another notch. We have a proven and simple formula at ESAB: use EBX to drive growth, expand margins and improve our cash flow within our base business, add accretive bolt-on acquisitions and then use EBX to make them stronger.

這還不是全部。我們已將其新增至 EBX 工具包。我們發起了一些有針對性的人工智慧驅動活動，重點是改善我們的運營，並對初步結果感到鼓舞。進入 2024 年，我們剛剛結束了領導層會議，並圍繞成長、補強收購和將 EBX 提升到一個新的高度，召集了我們的團隊。在 ESAB，我們有一個行之有效的簡單公式：使用 EBX 來推動成長、擴大利潤並改善基礎業務內的現金流，增加增值性補強收購，然後使用 EBX 使其變得更強大。

As a result, we're shaping ESAB into a less cyclical, faster-growing and higher-margin enterprise. To talk specifically about the fourth quarter, let's turn to Slide 3. Another strong quarter and another step forward in the direction of our 2028 goals.

因此，我們正在將伊薩打造成一個週期性較小、成長較快且利潤率較高的企業。為了具體討論第四季度，讓我們轉向幻燈片 3。又一個強勁的季度，朝著我們 2028 年目標的方向又向前邁出了一步。

As mentioned earlier, we delivered record fourth quarter results. Total sales grew by 600 basis points, adjusted EBITDA margins expanded to a record 19.4%, and our end markets continue to be resilient with particular strength in India and the Middle East.

如前所述，我們第四季業績創下歷史新高。總銷售額成長了 600 個基點，調整後 EBITDA 利潤率擴大至創紀錄的 19.4%，我們的終端市場持續保持彈性，尤其是印度和中東市場。

We continue to be encouraged by the growth performance of our Cobot's and Gas Control business. Our Cobot business experienced close to triple-digit growth in the quarter, and our Gas Control business grew low double digits.

我們的協作機器人和氣體控制業務的成長表現繼續令我們感到鼓舞。我們的協作機器人業務在本季度實現了接近三位數的成長，而我們的氣體控制業務則實現了低兩位數的成長。

All our regions continue to benefit from infrastructure investment and energy transition projects. General fabrication activity remained solid. This was partially offset by softness in retail. Our teams are making positive strides towards a more profitable product mix. The impact of our EBX growth tools and product line simplification is reflected in the adjusted EBITDA margins improving 200 basis points and free cash flow improving by 39% year-over-year.

我們所有地區繼續受益於基礎設施投資和能源轉型項目。整體製造活動保持穩健。這被零售業疲軟部分抵消。我們的團隊正在朝著更有利可圖的產品組合邁出積極的步伐。我們的 EBX 成長工具和產品線簡化的影響體現在調整後的 EBITDA 利潤率提高了 200 個基點，自由現金流同比提高了 39%。

Moving to Slide 4 and reflecting on the full year and sharing a bit more on our financial metrics. Sales reached a record $2.62 billion, and our core revenue rose by 800 basis points, with standout performances in India and the Middle East regions.

前往投影片 4，回顧全年並分享更多有關我們的財務指標的資訊。銷售額達到創紀錄的26.2億美元，核心收入成長800個基點，其中印度和中東地區表現突出。

Adjusted EBITDA improved by 160 basis points to a record $483 million for the full year. And most importantly, we exceeded sales, adjusted EBITDA and EPS guidance, demonstrating our ability to consistently deliver on our commitments.

全年調整後 EBITDA 提高 160 個基點，達到創紀錄的 4.83 億美元。最重要的是，我們超越了銷售額，調整了 EBITDA 和 EPS 指引，證明了我們始終如一地兌現承諾的能力。

Our full year free cash flow reached $305 million with a record free cash flow performance in the fourth quarter. This again underscores ESAB's commitment to financial discipline and continuous improvement.

我們的全年自由現金流達到 3.05 億美元，第四季的自由現金流表現創歷史新高。這再次強調了 ESAB 對財務紀律和持續改進的承諾。

Moving to Slide 5 to discuss our fourth quarter performance in more detail. Quarterly sales hit a record $650 million. Adjusted EBITDA was a record $126 million expanding 200 basis points year-over-year to reach an all-time high of 19.4%. As expected, we saw our Americas business return to positive volume and our EMEA and Asia PAC business continue its positive momentum.

請轉到投影片 5，更詳細地討論我們第四季的業績。季度銷售額達到創紀錄的 6.5 億美元。調整後 EBITDA 達到創紀錄的 1.26 億美元，年增 200 個基點，達到 19.4% 的歷史新高。正如預期的那樣，我們的美洲業務恢復了正銷量，歐洲、中東和非洲和亞太地區業務繼續保持積極勢頭。

In the quarter, we did benefit from FX favorability of about $2 million and about $1 million in promotional activities that shifted out to the first quarter in 2024.

在本季度，我們確實受益於約 200 萬美元的外匯優惠，以及轉移至 2024 年第一季的約 100 萬美元的促銷活動。

Turning to Slide 6. In the Americas, organic sales grew by 900 basis points, strong price performance of 800 basis points, volume adding 100 basis points of growth and acquisitions adding another 100 basis points.

轉向幻燈片 6。在美洲，有機銷售額增長了 900 個基點，強勁的價格表現增長了 800 個基點，銷量增長了 100 個基點，收購又增長了 100 個基點。

We did have a small FX headwind in the quarter. Our investments in new products and solutions, especially our light industrial line, focused on distribution, along with our Cobots focused on automation and robotics are fueling significant growth opportunities.

本季我們確實遇到了小的外匯阻力。我們對新產品和解決方案的投資，尤其是專注於分銷的輕工業產品線，以及專注於自動化和機器人技術的協作機器人，正在推動巨大的成長機會。

I had a chance to interact with a few of our distributors in December and their reaction to our product line was remarkable. Several complements on our Renegade Bolt and our new (inaudible) engine-driven welder. The distributors are thrilled with the new ESAB products. Additionally, our Gas Control business continues to perform well in the region.

12 月我有機會與我們的一些經銷商互動，他們對我們產品線的反應非常出色。我們的 Renegade Bolt 和新型（聽不清楚）引擎驅動焊接機的一些補充。經銷商對伊薩的新產品感到非常興奮。此外，我們的氣體控制業務在該地區繼續表現良好。

Both FABTECH and Gas Control contributed to an overall 200 basis points improvement in adjusted EBITDA margin.

FABTECH 和 Gas Control 都為調整後 EBITDA 利潤率整體提高了 200 個基點做出了貢獻。

Turning to Slide 7. Our EMEA and APAC regions continue to perform as expected, with total sales growing by 400 basis points. Volume grew 200 basis points. Acquisitions contributed 100 basis points of growth. Our team in Europe, India and the Middle East continue to execute well in the market.

轉向幻燈片 7。我們的 EMEA 和 APAC 地區的表現繼續符合預期，總銷售額增長了 400 個基點。成交量成長 200 個基點。收購貢獻了 100 個基點的成長。我們在歐洲、印度和中東的團隊繼續在市場上表現出色。

Our Gas Control team continues to win key projects in lab and hospital expansion projects. The region has made great strides in selling our equipment line and our fully autonomous adaptive welding solution. To add, the effective utilization of product line simplification and EBX are driving the region's adjusted EBITDA margins up 200 basis points to a record 19.3, underscoring our ability to drive growth and expand margins.

我們的氣體控制團隊繼續贏得實驗室和醫院擴建項目的關鍵項目。該地區在銷售我們的設備系列和全自動自適應焊接解決方案方面取得了長足進步。此外，產品線簡化和 EBX 的有效利用正在推動該地區調整後 EBITDA 利潤率上升 200 個基點，達到創紀錄的 19.3，突顯了我們推動成長和擴大利潤率的能力。

On that positive note, let me hand it over to Kevin for Slide 8.

就這一正面而言，讓我將投影片 8 的工作交給 Kevin。

Thanks, Shyam. We delivered another strong quarter of free cash flow, up 39% versus 2023 to a record $305 million. Key to our improved performance was a 0.3 turn improvement in working capital as we continue to successfully deploy our EBX business system. This strong performance enabled us to delever better than expected, and we ended the year with net leverage of less than 1.9 turns.

謝謝，夏姆。我們的自由現金流又一個強勁的季度，比 2023 年成長 39%，達到創紀錄的 3.05 億美元。隨著我們繼續成功部署 EBX 業務系統，我們績效提高的關鍵是營運資金提高了 0.3 倍。這一強勁的表現使我們能夠比預期更好地去槓桿化，年底我們的淨槓桿率低於 1.9 倍。

In 2024, we continue to see opportunities to use EBX and leverage AI to drive even stronger cash flow to support our compounding journey.

2024 年，我們將繼續看到使用 EBX 和人工智慧來推動更強勁的現金流來支持我們的複利之旅的機會。

Turning to Slide 9. We provide our 2024 guidance. Total sales growth of 1.5% to 3.5%, which includes a point of FX headwind on organic growth of 2.5% to 4.5%. We have also provided our 2024 seasonality by quarter on the slide. We expect year-on-year incrementals to be in the low 30s with an adjusted EBITDA guidance of $495 million to $515 million.

轉向幻燈片 9。我們提供 2024 年指引。總銷售額成長 1.5% 至 3.5%，其中包括匯率逆風導致的有機成長 2.5% 至 4.5%。我們還在幻燈片上按季度提供了 2024 年季節性數據。我們預計年增率將在 30 多歲左右，調整後的 EBITDA 指引為 4.95 億至 5.15 億美元。

This guidance includes $10 million of restructuring benefits and $15 million of additional investments in our business to support the commercialization of our innovative new equipment portfolio. Interest expense is guided to $74 million to $77 million, adjusted tax rate between 23% to 24% and (inaudible) around $62 million. Overall, unadjusted EPS guidance of $4.65 to $4.85.

該指導包括 1000 萬美元的重組收益和 1500 萬美元的業務額外投資，以支持我們創新的新設備組合的商業化。利息支出預計為 7,400 萬至 7,700 萬美元，調整後稅率為 23% 至 24%，（聽不清楚）約為 6,200 萬美元。整體而言，未經調整的每股盈餘指引為 4.65 至 4.85 美元。

Finally, our cash flow conversion guide is greater than 95%, which includes 2 onetime capital investments of around $10 million we're making to support future growth. To assist with modeling, we have included a more detailed guidance slide in the appendix.

最後，我們的現金流量轉換率超過 95%，其中包括我們為支持未來成長而進行的 2 項一次性資本投資，金額約為 1,000 萬美元。為了幫助建模，我們在附錄中包含了更詳細的指導幻燈片。

With that, let me hand back to Shyam on Slide 10 to wrap up.

說到這裡，讓我把幻燈片 10 交給 Shyam 來結束。

Thank you, Kevin. In conclusion, our teams are focused on executing our strategy, propelling us closer to our goal of becoming a premier industrial compounder. We exit 2023 with momentum as our innovative new products, ignite enthusiasm within our customers and our sales team.

謝謝你，凱文。總而言之，我們的團隊專注於執行我們的策略，推動我們更接近成為一流工業複合商的目標。我們的創新新產品點燃了客戶和銷售團隊的熱情，以強勁的動力迎接 2023 年。

We're putting a robust cash flow to good use, reducing debt and adding strategic bolt-on acquisitions. Our M&A pipeline is the strongest it's ever been, positioning us favorably to augment organic growth. We're taking EBX up a notch with the presence kaizen event occurring every quarter.

我們正在充分利用強勁的現金流、減少債務並增加策略性補強收購。我們的併購管道是有史以來最強大的，這使我們有利於促進有機成長。我們透過每季舉辦的現場改善活動將 EBX 提升了一個檔次。

We're off to a good start in 2024, and our focus is on delivering the year as we have guided and positioning ESAB to realize our 2028 objectives. We're just getting started and as I said at Investor Day, it's a great time to be an investor in ESAB. This team is poised to continue to deliver significant value for our customers, associates and shareholders.

我們在 2024 年有了一個良好的開端，我們的重點是交付這一年，因為我們指導和定位 ESAB 以實現我們的 2028 年目標。我們才剛開始，正如我在投資者日所說，現在是成為伊薩投資者的好時機。團隊準備繼續為我們的客戶、員工和股東創造巨大價值。

With that, operator, let's open the lines for questions.

那麼，接線員，讓我們開始提問吧。

(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from the line of Tami Zakaria from JPMorgan.

（操作員說明）您的第一個問題來自摩根大通的 Tami Zakaria。

Excellent margin performance in the quarter. So my first question is along that topic. The in-flight incremental EBITDA margin in your 2024 guide seems to be in the mid-30% and your 2028 target to get to the 22% EBITDA margin would imply -- would require you to have an implied incremental of about, call it, high 20%, meaning it seems like you're running ahead of that target.

本季利潤率表現優異。所以我的第一個問題是圍繞著這個主題的。您的 2024 年指南中的動態增量 EBITDA 利潤率似乎在 30% 左右，而您的 2028 年目標達到 22% 的 EBITDA 利潤率意味著——需要您有一個隱含的增量，稱之為，高20%，這意味著您似乎已經超額完成了該目標。

So should we think about the target as pretty conservative and easy to get to? Or was it originally adopted assuming that incremental margin over time later towards the 2028 timeline slows down and it was always going to be front-end loaded? So any thoughts on the incremental margin, please?

那麼我們是否應該將目標視為相當保守且容易達成的目標呢？或者它最初採用的假設是，隨著時間的推移，到 2028 年時間線，增量裕度會減慢，並且總是由前端加載？那麼關於增量保證金有什麼想法嗎？

Always good to hear from you, Tami. Well, first, thank you. I think we did have a great quarter, both on the growth side and on the margin side of the business, really proud of how the team has performed, thrilled that we finally saw us peak out the positive volume in North America and continue our momentum in the rest of the world.

很高興收到你的來信，塔米。嗯，首先謝謝你。我認為我們確實度過了一個出色的季度，無論是在業務增長方面還是在利潤方面，我們對團隊的表現感到非常自豪，很高興我們終於看到我們在北美的積極銷量達到頂峰並繼續我們的勢頭在世界其他地方。

To answer your question, we did really like our margin performance in the fourth quarter and how we finished out the year. As you know, as you look out your window, there's many things that can come at you, headwinds or tailwinds as we look at 2028. What we've always said is that our team is very confident in delivering the margin growth targets that we've set within the business and then focusing on augmenting our organic growth with inorganic opportunities and acquisitions.

為了回答你的問題，我們確實很喜歡第四季的利潤表現以及我們今年的業績。如你所知，當您向窗外望去時，您會發現許多事情可能會向您襲來，無論是逆風還是順風。我們一直說的是，我們的團隊對於實現我們設定的利潤增長目標非常有信心。我們已經確定了業務範圍，然後專注於透過無機機會和收購來增強我們的有機成長。

I mentioned earlier, we've got a really strong funnel. So we feel that both in 2024 and the rest of the time, we really have a chance to accelerate the growth line within organic opportunities. but continue to keep the pace on how we see our margin expansion continue. So bottom line, I think we're right where we need to be. And I think we're driving the ship forward with some momentum.

我之前提到過，我們有一個非常強大的漏斗。因此，我們認為，無論是在 2024 年還是其餘時間，我們確實有機會在有機機會內加速成長。但我們將繼續保持利潤率擴張的步伐。所以最重要的是，我認為我們正處於我們需要的位置。我認為我們正在以某種動力推動這艘船前進。

Got it. Great to hear. So my second question is, I just wanted to understand the full year outlook in terms of sales. It seems like the first half is expected to be modestly lower than the second half. And then the growth acceleration in the fourth quarter is much heavier than what's implied for the first quarter. So what's really driving this expectation of like of a slower start? And then what gives you visibility that growth is going to accelerate in the back half?

知道了。很高興聽到。所以我的第二個問題是，我只是想了解全年的銷售前景。預計上半年將略低於下半年。第四季的成長加速比第一季暗示的要大得多。那麼，到底是什麼推動了這種起步較慢的預期呢？那麼，是什麼讓您看到下半年成長將加速呢？

Yes. I think I mentioned we're off to a good start to the first quarter. But I think we did have weather in the Scandinavian region of Europe and also North America that was a bit severe, we've also had the Chinese New Year falls squarely in February, then we expect Easter to land completely in the first quarter of this year as well.

是的。我想我提到過我們第一季有一個好的開始。但我認為歐洲斯堪的納維亞地區和北美的天氣確實有點嚴重，我們也正好在二月份迎來了中國新年，然後我們預計復活節將在今年第一季完全登陸年也。

So there's a bit of, what I'd call, headwind that is just related things outside the control of the business this year versus last year. And so you're seeing some days adjusted plus holidays kind of kick into that first quarter number. And then the rest of the year kind of shapes out the way we see it today.

因此，與去年相比，今年存在一些我稱之為逆風的因素，這些因素超出了企業的控制範圍。因此，您會看到一些日子進行了調整，加上假期，這在第一季的數字中有所體現。然後今年剩下的時間就會像我們今天看到的那樣。

Now what it doesn't include is any acquisitions that we make in that period, and that would obviously be positive upside to both growth and our intent, obviously, is to acquire businesses that are accretive to margin. So in both ways, we expect to sort of continue that positive momentum.

現在它不包括我們在那段時期進行的任何收購，這顯然對成長有積極的好處，而且我們的意圖顯然是收購能夠增加利潤的業務。因此，從這兩個方面來看，我們預計將繼續保持這種積極的勢頭。

Wonderful. See you in a couple of weeks.

精彩的。幾週後見。

Thanks. Thanks, Tami.

謝謝。謝謝，塔米。

Your next question comes from the line of Mig Dobre from Baird.

您的下一個問題來自 Baird 的 Mig Dobre。

Yes. I also want to ask about margin, and I can appreciate the discussion on incrementals that are baked into the guide for '24. But performance in Q4 was quite strong, right, north of 19%, and that's frankly above the high end of where you're guiding margins for 2024. So I'm sort of wondering kind of how we should think about seasonality here? Why, for instance, should we see a step down in margin relative to Q4? Anything to know about that?

是的。我也想問一下關於保證金的問題，我很欣賞關於 24 世紀指南中關於增量的討論。但第四季的表現相當強勁，對吧，超過 19%，坦白說，這高於你們指導的 2024 年利潤率的上限。所以我有點想知道我們應該如何考慮這裡的季節性？例如，為什麼我們會看到利潤率相對於第四季有所下降？對此有什麼了解嗎？

Yes. First, we were also very happy with how both of our regions performed and really all across that Gas Control and across almost all regions, which sort of gives us great confidence as how people are inculcating EBX into their daily standard work and how our teams are sort of working towards what is our ultimate goal that we've set up for 2028.

是的。首先，我們對兩個區域以及整個氣體控制和幾乎所有區域的表現也非常滿意，這給了我們很大的信心，因為人們如何將 EBX 灌輸到他們的日常標準工作中，以及我們的團隊如何我們正在努力實現我們為2028 年設定的最終目標。

I did mention we had a few good guys come at us in the fourth quarter. I mentioned a little bit of favorability of a couple of million with FX and about $1 million in sort of marketing and some other activities that pushed out to the quarter. And then Kevin briefly mentioned, we're going to continue to invest as we drive equipment sales across all geographies of about $15 million of additional investment.

我確實提到我們在第四季有一些好人來找我們。我提到了幾百萬美元的外匯優惠以及大約 100 萬美元的營銷和其他一些活動，這些活動都推到了本季。然後 Kevin 簡短地提到，隨著我們推動所有地區的設備銷售，我們將繼續投資約 1500 萬美元的額外投資。

And so those are the factors that you should probably look at and then take a look at the guide as we go into next year. We absolutely believe that now as the flywheel is turning at ESAB, we can take some of that dollars and invest it back in the business with some of the activities that will fundamentally reshape us over the next 3 years, Mig.

因此，這些是您可能應該考慮的因素，然後在我們進入明年時查看指南。我們絕對相信，現在隨著 ESAB 飛輪的轉動，我們可以將其中的一部分資金重新投入到業務中，進行一些活動，這些活動將從根本上重塑我們在未來 3 年的業務，Mig。

Appreciate the color there. And I apologize, I don't know if I missed this, but when we're looking at your organic guidance to 2.5% to 4.5%, can you maybe put a finer point here on how we should -- how you're thinking about pricing versus volume? And do you foresee any differences between your 2 reported segments?

欣賞那裡的顏色。我很抱歉，我不知道我是否錯過了這一點，但是當我們查看您對 2.5% 至 4.5% 的有機指導時，您能否在這裡更詳細地說明我們應該如何——您是如何思考的關於定價與數量？您預見到您報告的兩個細分市場之間存在任何差異嗎？

Yes, do you want to take, Kevin?

是的，你想接受嗎，凱文？

Yes. So Mig, we're expecting positive volume through each quarter and low single-digit price. The price is pretty consistent year-over-year by each of the quarters, with volume positive in Q1, found improvement as we progress through the year.

是的。因此，Mig，我們預期每季都會有正面的銷售量和較低的個位數價格。每季的價格都與去年同期相當一致，第一季的銷售量呈正值，隨著全年的進展，情況有所改善。

And obviously, Mig, as you've seen from us in the past, we're going to continue to be pretty vigilant on price. We are going to have (inaudible) price all that in the first quarter. We'll continue to watch inflation and move as required. In terms of the segments, our expectation is that both -- we expect both segments to be positive on volumes with stronger price in the Americas segment versus EMEA and APAC.

顯然，米格，正如您過去從我們身上看到的那樣，我們將繼續對價格保持高度警惕。我們將在第一季度對所有這些（聽不清楚）定價。我們將繼續關注通膨並根據需要採取行動。就細分市場而言，我們的預期是，與歐洲、中東和非洲和亞太地區相比，美洲細分市場的銷售和價格都將保持樂觀。

Can I ask why stronger price in Americas? What's the factor driving that?

請問為什麼美洲的價格比較高？是什麼因素驅動的？

So we do have a portion of the business that's in South America. So there is an element of some additional price there. And our team continues coming out of the PLS activities that we did last year, continues in North America to maximize value, particularly on the new (inaudible) products, Mig, that we're bringing to the market, we see an opportunity to continue to drive price to a better place.

所以我們確實有一部分業務在南美洲。因此，其中存在一些額外價格的因素。我們的團隊繼續完成去年開展的 PLS 活動，繼續在北美實現價值最大化，特別是在我們推向市場的新（聽不清楚）產品 Mig 上，我們看到了繼續的機會將價格推向更好的地方。

Your next question comes from the line of David Raso from Evercore ISI.

您的下一個問題來自 Evercore ISI 的 David Raso。

Picking up on the price commentary, I thought the price in the fourth quarter was a pleasant surprise in the Americas. So can you give us a sense of, is there any incremental price you took in January or is the price you expect in Americas in '24 simply whatever you have as carryover? And then if you can (inaudible) also on the negative pricing in international, just so we kind of square up at where is that coming from? Is that largely a down Europe, but maybe some positive price in Middle East and India.

看了價格評論，我認為第四季的價格在美洲是一個驚喜。那麼您能否讓我們了解一下，您 1 月份是否採取了任何增量價格，或者您預期 24 年美洲的價格是否只是您結轉的價格？然後，如果你也可以（聽不清楚）國際上的負定價，那麼我們就可以弄清楚它是從哪裡來的？這主要是歐洲價格下跌，但中東和印度的價格可能會上漲。

Yes. So thanks, David. Great -- good to hear your voice, as always. So a couple of things. We did lap in Q4 some America pricing. But that being said, as Kevin mentioned, we've gone out with some additional pricing in the first quarter in both of our regions.

是的。謝謝，大衛。太棒了——一如既往地很高興聽到你的聲音。有幾件事。我們確實在第四季度取得了一些美國定價的成績。但話雖這麼說，正如凱文所提到的，我們在第一季在兩個地區都進行了一些額外的定價。

When we looked at Europe, we did see some -- we've talked about this before. We see steel prices moving very differently in different regions. And we did see some deflationary steel prices, especially in Europe that sort of allowed us to do something different in our pricing strategies in Europe for the fourth quarter, but we have done some additional pricing activities in the first quarter.

當我們觀察歐洲時，我們確實看到了一些東西——我們之前已經討論過這一點。我們發現不同地區的鋼材價格走勢差異很大。我們確實看到了一些通貨緊縮的鋼鐵價格，特別是在歐洲，這使我們能夠在第四季度歐洲的定價策略中採取一些不同的措施，但我們在第一季做了一些額外的定價活動。

But that being said, what we were really happy about in Europe was the expansion in margins about 200 basis points. And if you remember 1 thing that we have said is that ESAB is focused on a net price number. So when we see deflation and what we do with the marketplace, we want to be net positive on the price line as we move forward, and that was very evident in how we performed in the fourth quarter. I hope that answers the question.

但話雖這麼說，我們在歐洲真正感到高興的是利潤率擴大了約 200 個基點。如果你還記得我們說過的一件事，那就是 ESAB 專注於淨價數字。因此，當我們看到通貨緊縮以及我們對市場所做的事情時，我們希望隨著我們的前進，價格線會出現淨正值，這在我們第四季的表現中非常明顯。我希望這能回答這個問題。

That's fair. And not to drill down to the first quarter, but I heard positive price, positive volume. I'm just making sure, I mean, obviously, the currency is negative one for the year. It must be more front-end loaded. But just trying to square that up. Basically, you're looking for positive price, positive volume, offset by volume for a flattish first quarter. Is that that the...

這還算公平。並不是深入到第一季度，但我聽到了積極的價格和積極的數量。我只是想確保，我的意思是，顯然，今年的貨幣是負值。它必須有更多的前端加載。但只是想把它擺平。基本上，您正在尋找積極的價格和積極的銷量，並被第一季持平的銷售所抵消。難道是那個…

Yes. That's right. That's right. And I think the other piece that we -- the other piece we mentioned is that there's a bit of noise in the first quarter with weather, with where the holidays are landing. So you've got a days impact as well that comes at you for the first quarter, David.

是的。這是正確的。這是正確的。我認為我們提到的另一件事是，第一季天氣和假期的到來帶來了一些噪音。所以，大衛，第一季你也會受到一天的影響。

Okay. And lastly, you referenced an M&A pipeline, I'm not sure the word you used robust or full or whatever it may be. But can you explain what you meant by that? And maybe give us some framework on how you're thinking about M&A this year?

好的。最後，您提到了併購管道，我不確定您使用的詞是「穩健」、「完整」還是其他什麼。但你能解釋一下你的意思嗎？也許可以給我們一些關於您今年如何考慮併購的框架？

Yes. Very similar to our strategy in the past, bolt-on acquisitions, keeping our debt level in that 2% range, and driving businesses and acquiring businesses that are accretive, improve our geographic strategic positioning and filling out product line gaps. We've got a few that have a chance to get over the goal line. And so as a result, we're feeling quite good that none of our guidance does not include any acquisitions that could happen and that would be a pleasant upside to anything that we've guided to today.

是的。與我們過去的策略非常相似，補強收購，將我們的債務水準保持在 2% 的範圍內，推動業務和收購增值業務，改善我們的地理策略定位並填補產品線空白。我們有一些人有機會越過球門線。因此，我們感覺非常好，我們的指導沒有不包括任何可能發生的收購，這對於我們今天指導的任何事情來說都是一個令人愉快的好處。

And I guess (inaudible) was also hinting at size a little bit. I mean is this Ohio Medical size or is this more therapy size? I'm just trying to get a sense of magnitude.

我猜（聽不清楚）也稍微暗示了尺寸。我的意思是這是俄亥俄醫療尺寸還是更多治療尺寸？我只是想體會一下規模感。

Yes, what I'd say one in one kind of a scenario is that there's probably a couple in there size of therapy and a couple in there the size of Ohio.

是的，我想說的是，在一種情況下，可能有一對夫婦在那裡的治療規模和一對夫婦在那裡的俄亥俄州大小。

Your next question comes from the line of Nathan Jones from Stifel.

您的下一個問題來自 Stifel 的 Nathan Jones。

A couple of questions on some of the investments you're making in 2024. I mean you mentioned $50 million of additional incremental investment to support growth and Kevin mentioned a couple of CapEx expenditures to support growth. Maybe you could just give us some more color on what those are and how they will drive growth over the next few years?

關於您在 2024 年進行的一些投資的幾個問題。我的意思是您提到了 5000 萬美元的額外增量投資來支持增長，凱文提到了一些支持增長的資本支出。也許您可以給我們更多關於這些是什麼以及它們將如何推動未來幾年成長的資訊？

Yes. So let me take the question on marketing, and I'll hand it over to Kevin for the capital. So on the marketing side, as you know, we've launched several new products, and our intent is to continue to create marketing structures and advertising for these particular products around the globe as we begin to see these products into the marketplace. The other aspect of it is incentive plans for our sales teams as they begin to sell a different mix and encouraging them to learn and be able to sort of competently sell the product line that we have.

是的。那麼，讓我來回答有關行銷的問題，我會將其交給凱文（Kevin）以獲取資金。因此，在行銷方面，如您所知，我們推出了幾種新產品，我們的目的是在我們開始看到這些產品進入市場時，繼續在全球範圍內為這些特定產品創建行銷結構和廣告。另一方面是針對我們的銷售團隊的激勵計劃，因為他們開始銷售不同的產品組合，並鼓勵他們學習並能夠有效地銷售我們擁有的產品線。

And last, but not least, we are looking at augmenting our marketing strategy a bit differently and nothing much to share now, but I hope by the third quarter, we can share with you how we'll begin to separate ourselves on that particular piece and really create something special for the long term at ESAB. And so that's the dollars that we're talking about there.

最後但並非最不重要的一點是，我們正在考慮以不同的方式增強我們的行銷策略，現在沒有什麼可分享的，但我希望到第三季度，我們可以與您分享我們將如何開始在這一特定領域中脫穎而出並真正為 ESAB 的長期發展創造一些特別的東西。這就是我們正在談論的美元。

Kevin, do you want to give a bit of color on capital?

凱文，你想給資本加點色彩嗎？

Yes. On the 2 capital investments, there's sort of 2 main areas in that we're focused on. The first is we're putting some investment into the emerging markets. Obviously, what you're seeing is continued good growth from some of our markets. And what we're doing is we're building some additional infrastructure just to allow us to support the growth that we're seeing.

是的。在這兩項資本投資中，我們將重點放在兩個主要領域。首先是我們正在對新興市場進行一些投資。顯然，您看到的是我們的一些市場持續良好的成長。我們正在做的是建立一些額外的基礎設施，只是為了支持我們所看到的成長。

And the second investment, you probably heard us talk on the script, around AI, both Shyam and me. So we are putting some additional investment into AI and also into some other IT investments just to support the growth that we're expecting in ESAB over the next number of years.

第二筆投資，你可能會聽到我們談論劇本，圍繞著人工智慧，包括我和夏姆。因此，我們正在對人工智慧和其他一些 IT 投資進行一些額外投資，以支持我們預期 ESAB 在未來幾年的成長。

Great. I guess the second one, I might ask about PLS that you guys undertook in 2023. I know that was somewhat of a headwind to volume in the Americas. Can you just give us an update on where you stand with at least the first run through PLS, whether or not that is any kind of headwind remaining in 2024 or whether that's behind us and how you think that's focusing the company on -- on growth?

偉大的。我想第二個問題，我可能會問你們在 2023 年進行的 PLS。我知道這對美洲的銷售來說有點不利。您能否向我們介紹一下您至少在 PLS 第一次運行中的最新情況，無論這是否是 2024 年仍然存在的任何逆風，或者是否已經過去，以及您認為這將如何讓公司專注於成長？

Yes. First, we're really happy with how PLS is being executed by our teams. We continue to see opportunity to refine our product line, our SKUs to serve our customers well. So that being said, a big chunk of the PLS, yes, is behind us, but we continue to expect to do PLS in some of our other regions, a little more focused in Europe and a bit more focus in the Asia region as well around PLS for us.

是的。首先，我們對團隊執行 PLS 的方式感到非常滿意。我們繼續尋找機會完善我們的產品線和 SKU，以便更好地為客戶服務。話雖這麼說，PLS 的很大一部分，是的，已經過去了，但我們仍然期望在其他一些地區進行 PLS，更關注歐洲，也更多關注亞洲地區圍繞我們的 PLS。

But that being said, I think we are at a point now that we can look at a net positive growth number coming out of PLS, where we've done some of the heavy lifts and now we're focused on growing as well as sort of refining our product line.

但話雖這麼說，我認為我們現在可以看到 PLS 帶來的淨正成長數字，我們已經完成了一些繁重的工作，現在我們專注於成長和排序來完善我們的產品線。

But I could tell you that PLS for us now is standard work. We're looking at it with the growth lens as well. And so as a result, our teams are focused on driving growth with some set of customers as well as making sure our product line continues to get refined.

但我可以告訴你，PLS 現在對我們來說是標準工作。我們也在用生長透鏡來觀察它。因此，我們的團隊專注於推動某些客戶的成長，並確保我們的產品線不斷改進。

Your next question comes from the line of Chris Dankert from Loop Capital.

您的下一個問題來自 Loop Capital 的 Chris Dankert。

I guess, first off, thinking about international and kind of what's baked into the guidance there. How are you thinking about just kind of the trends in Europe and probably China specifically? Are we kind of expecting to stabilize at this level? Or are we expecting kind of a continued slide in the first half and then stabilization, rebound? Just maybe some comments on those 2 regions in particular would be helpful.

我想，首先，要考慮國際化以及指導中包含的內容。您如何看待歐洲，尤其是中國的趨勢？我們是否期望穩定在這個水平？還是我們預計上半年會繼續下滑，然後再穩定、反彈？也許對這兩個地區的一些評論會有所幫助。

Yes. Yes, Chris, I think I may not have mentioned this. We sort of view our businesses by daily sales rate, and we also look at how things are performing across all of our regions. And what we've seen is that there is a stability in those rates. So nothing is sort of shifting downwards. That being said, sort of year-over-year comparables are getting a little tighter. And so the way to think about it is that for a fact, the Germanic region in Europe is seeing a lot of stress and has been seeing a lot of stress for a few quarters now.

是的。是的，克里斯，我想我可能沒有提到這一點。我們透過每日銷售率來查看我們的業務，我們也會查看所有地區的情況表現。我們看到這些利率是穩定的。所以沒有什麼是向下轉變的。話雖如此，同比可比性正變得更加嚴格。因此，思考這個問題的方式是，事實上，歐洲的日耳曼地區正承受著很大的壓力，而且幾個季度以來一直承受著很大的壓力。

The rest of Europe seems to be holding okay, and that's what we see and with a significant amount of, obviously, positive momentum in the Middle East and in India, in particular. And the U.K. has also sort of seen a bit of stress, but our position in the U.K. is quite strong, and we continue to gain share.

歐洲其他地區似乎表現良好，這就是我們所看到的，在中東和印度，尤其是印度，顯然存在大量積極勢頭。英國也承受了一些壓力，但我們在英國的地位相當強大，我們的份額繼續增加。

On China, we've sort of seen some investment come in from the government. And as a comment that I made earlier around energy transition that's happening and things, especially as people are sort of creating storage spaces for LNG and other aspects that have sort of seen as sort of performed better than what we've sort of heard the commentary out in the marketplace around China.

在中國，我們看到一些投資來自政府。正如我早些時候對正在發生的能源轉型和事情發表的評論，特別是當人們正在為液化天然氣和其他方面創建存儲空間時，這些空間的表現比我們聽到的評論要好銷往中國各地的市場。

I'd also tell you if you're from -- if I'm repeating myself, I apologize. But we play in the top tier of the Chinese market. And as a result, don't really feel the peaks and troughs that maybe the others are feeling in China. The space that we're in continues to be a space that China continues to invest in and we're benefiting from it.

我還要告訴你，如果你來自──如果我重複的話，我很抱歉。但我們在中國市場處於領先地位。結果，我並沒有真正感受到其他人在中國所感受到的高峰和低谷。我們所處的領域仍然是中國繼續投資的領域，我們也從中受益。

That's really great color. And then I guess to kind of follow up here. Any comment, any update on some of the manufacturing consolidation and any kind of plans on that front for the year?

這真是很棒的顏色。然後我想在這裡跟進一下。對今年的一些製造業整合有什麼評論、任何更新以及這方面的任何計劃嗎？

Yes. Kevin and I start the year with the set of projects that we have in our pocket. And depending on where the market goes, we accelerate or move them along on schedule. There are a few projects that we have planned. So absolutely, we have about $10 million in our guidance for some of that, and we may accelerate that if we see any issues in the market. But otherwise, that's our intent.

是的。凱文和我以我們口袋裡的一系列項目開始新的一年。根據市場走向，我們加速或推動它們按計劃進行。我們已經計劃了一些項目。所以絕對，我們有大約 1000 萬美元的指導來解決其中的一些問題，如果我們發現市場上出現任何問題，我們可能會加快這一速度。但除此之外，這就是我們的意圖。

Got it. Got more refining around the edges than anything particularly dramatic, so at least...

知道了。比任何特別戲劇性的事情都更加精緻，所以至少......

Yes. Yes, a lot of it depends also on acquisitions, bolt-on acquisitions, that we make that will then allow us to do some additional consolidation, that's the way to think about it.

是的。是的，這在很大程度上也取決於收購，補強收購，我們進行的收購將使我們能夠進行一些額外的整合，這就是思考的方式。

Your next question comes from the line of Rob Jamieson from UBS.

您的下一個問題來自瑞銀集團 (UBS) 的 Rob Jamieson。

Congrats on the results of today.

恭喜今天的結果。

Thanks. Thanks, Rob.

謝謝。謝謝，羅布。

Just wanted to talk a little bit about the Gas Control business. I mean it was up, low double digits. I mean, solid performance. Just wondering if you could talk a little bit more about what you saw in the end markets there? What was maybe a little bit better or maybe a little worse than you expected? But then also, like a reminder on what the split might be between equipment and consumables? And then I have a follow-up on that after.

只是想談談氣體控制業務。我的意思是它上漲了，低兩位數。我的意思是，穩定的表現。只是想知道您是否可以多談談您在終端市場中看到的情況？哪些事情可能比你預期的好一點或差一點？但另一方面，就像提醒一下設備和消耗品之間可能有什麼不同？然後我會對此進行跟進。

Yes. So on the Gas Control business, we -- you're absolutely right, we did see low double-digit growth. Where we saw a significant amount of growth was on the energy transition piece of the business. So energy markets, whether it be oil and gas or anything associated with energy, we saw a nice uptick in our Gas Control business on that particular front.

是的。因此，在氣體控制業務方面，我們——你絕對是對的，我們確實看到了兩位數的低成長。我們看到顯著成長的是該業務的能源轉型部分。因此，能源市場，無論是石油和天然氣還是與能源相關的任何產品，我們都看到我們的氣體控制業務在這一特定領域取得了良好的成長。

And then continued momentum on Specialty and Med gases with sort of investments happening across in terms of upgrades. So those were really the highlights there. Where we did see a bit of headwind was again in the market in Germany. Our Gas Control business in Europe actually has a significant amount of German exposure. And so that was a drag on that particular business. But the industrial spec and medical side, everywhere else saw some nice growth. And obviously, we have some nice growth opportunities also set up for 2024.

然後，特種氣體和醫用氣體繼續保持增長勢頭，在升級方面進行了一些投資。所以這些確實是那裡的亮點。我們確實看到了一些逆風，那就是德國市場。我們在歐洲的氣體控制業務實際上在德國有大量業務。因此，這對該特定業務造成了拖累。但工業規格和醫療方面，其他地方都看到了一些不錯的成長。顯然，我們也為 2024 年準備了一些不錯的成長機會。

That's helpful. And then how do you think about -- what's embedded in your guidance between maybe Gas Control and the core welding business?

這很有幫助。然後，您如何看待——您對氣體控制和核心焊接業務之間的指導包含哪些內容？

Yes. We've not sort of split out the 2 to talk about them separately in our guide. But what I'd say is that we're obviously coming off some really hot numbers on the Gas Control side. So I expect that to be a bit more muted in 2024. And then you can do the math to the averages as you look at our FABTECH business as well.

是的。我們並沒有在指南中將兩者分開來單獨討論。但我想說的是，我們顯然在氣體控制方面取得了一些非常熱門的數據。因此，我預計 2024 年這種情況會更加溫和。然後，當您查看我們的 FABTECH 業務時，您可以對平均值進行數學計算。

Sure. Perfect. And can I sneak 1 more in? Obviously, this is always my favorite subject with you all to talk about the AI initiatives and what you're doing with EBX, your free cash flow. And I know that's something where Kevin, you started with implementing this on working capital and some of the initiatives there. Just curious kind of would you be able to share any more with us on what specifically you might be targeting from the EBX side to help kind of support growth but also improve margin?

當然。完美的。我可以再偷偷帶 1 個進去嗎？顯然，這始終是我最喜歡與大家討論 AI 計劃以及您使用 EBX（自由現金流）所做的事情的主題。我知道凱文，你就是從這裡開始實施營運資金和一些措施的。只是好奇，您能否與我們分享更多關於 EBX 方面您的具體目標是什麼，以幫助支持成長並提高利潤率？

Yes. A couple of aspects. And I think we mentioned it before as well. We think that our material planning and production planning side of the business has some opportunity where AI could be a significant asset. And that's where we've been focused, both with our data mining tools that we've used in the past, along with now AI. We are sort of looking at some other projects, but nothing that's sort of baked enough to talk about. But we do expect to continue to lean in to these emerging technologies and trends that could fundamentally help reshape an enterprise. Kevin, did I miss something there?

是的。幾個方面。我想我們之前也提到過。我們認為，我們的材料規劃和生產規劃方面的業務有一些機會，人工智慧可以成為一項重要資產。這就是我們一直關注的領域，無論是我們過去使用的資料探勘工具，還是現在的人工智慧。我們正在考慮其他一些項目，但還沒有一個成熟到足以談論的程度。但我們確實希望繼續利用這些新興技術和趨勢，從根本上幫助重塑企業。凱文，我是不是錯過了什麼？

No. I think you got it. I mean there's a lot of momentum happening at the moment, Chris (sic) [Robert], and we're just making sure that we are poised to take advantage of it. The area that I'm probably more focused on is sort of back office support and how we can generate improved cash flow using AI technology. So we've got several kind of projects that are starting to gear up and it's going to be an exciting this year as we go on the learning curve because there is an element of learning curve with AI, but I think the decision that we have made is we want to be in it at the start, and we want to be a leader in this area.

不，我想你明白了。我的意思是，克里斯（原文如此）[羅伯特]，目前正在發生很大的勢頭，我們只是確保我們準備好利用它。我可能更關注的領域是後台支援以及我們如何使用人工智慧技術改善現金流。因此，我們有幾種類型的專案正在開始準備，隨著我們繼續學習曲線，今年將是令人興奮的，因為人工智慧有一個學習曲線的元素，但我認為我們的決定我們希望從一開始就參與其中，並希望成為該領域的領導者。

Your next question comes from the line of Mig Dobre from Baird.

您的下一個問題來自 Baird 的 Mig Dobre。

I have 2 of them. I guess the first one is on share gains. I'm wondering when you look at whatever industry data you might be using internally, is there a way to frame any progress that you might have made? I mean optically to me, it looks like your growth is better than your peers, which would imply some share gain. I'm wondering if my interpretation is indeed correct? And if there is something to be extrapolated here as we think about 2024?

我有 2 個。我想第一個是股票報酬。我想知道當您查看內部可能使用的任何行業數據時，是否有一種方法可以框架您可能取得的任何進展？我的意思是，從視覺上看，你的成長看起來比你的同行更好，這意味著一些份額的成長。我想知道我的解釋是否真的正確？當我們思考 2024 年時，是否有什麼可以推論的？

Yes. There's no industry data per se out there, Mig, that sort of clearly points to any of that. I think for us, it's been around execution the mix shift. I think one thing that we've obviously mentioned in the past is that ESAB has primarily been a consumables company. And in the last couple of years, we've really got our equipment line coming in. And then even on the gas equipment side, I think we've done a really nice job getting our industrial products back in front of our customers and focusing on growth segments.

是的。米格，本身沒有行業數據可以清楚地表明這一點。我認為對我們來說，重點是執行混合轉變。我認為我們過去明確提到的一件事是，伊薩主要是一家消耗品公司。在過去的幾年裡，我們的設備系列確實已經投入使用。即使在天然氣設備方面，我認為我們也做得非常好，讓我們的工業產品回到了客戶面前，並專注於關於成長領域。

So I think the best way for you to look at how ESAB thinks about it is that we're focused on end markets that are growing faster than others. We're focused on customers that have better growth opportunities than others, and we're focused on products that provide us with a better margin and then also solve some of our customers' biggest challenges.

因此，我認為您了解 ESAB 如何看待這個問題的最佳方式是，我們專注於成長速度快於其他市場的終端市場。我們專注於比其他客戶擁有更好成長機會的客戶，我們專注於為我們提供更好利潤並解決客戶面臨的一些最大挑戰的產品。

We think if we do all of those right, what you just mentioned about share gain just happens. So I think as a team, we're focused on the process, I think the results will begin to show themselves.

我們認為，如果我們把所有這些都做對，你剛才提到的關於份額增長的事情就會發生。所以我認為作為一個團隊，我們專注於過程，我認為結果將開始顯現。

Okay. Understood. And my final question on automation. Maybe remind us here the size of this business in 2023. You talked about Cobot growing a lot. How you think about this business in '24 and what might be embedded in the guidance?

好的。明白了。我關於自動化的最後一個問題。也許在這裡提醒我們 2023 年該業務的規模。您談到協作機器人成長了很多。您如何看待 24 年的這項業務以及指南中可能包含哪些內容？

Yes. We're obviously quite excited about the progress that we've made in automation. For us, as you know, the business is about 10% of our business and growing quite nicely. We expect the growth to continue next year. We think there's sort of a double-digit opportunity of growth in the automation space for ESAB. So it will be a larger share of our business.

是的。顯然，我們對自動化的進展感到非常興奮。如您所知，對我們來說，該業務約占我們業務的 10%，並且成長得相當不錯。我們預計明年將繼續成長。我們認為伊薩自動化領域存在兩位數的成長機會。因此，這將在我們的業務中佔據更大的份額。

But as I mentioned before, we're not looking for big chunks here. We're looking for process. We're looking for workflow that's a bit focused and less around material handling that sort of drives large volumes through ESAB. But I think the richness and the conversion on profit we really like.

但正如我之前提到的，我們並不是在這裡尋找大塊。我們正在尋找過程。我們正在尋找稍微集中一點的工作流程，而不是圍繞材料處理，透過 ESAB 推動大量生產。但我認為我們真正喜歡的是豐富性和利潤轉換。

The other piece around Cobots, we are seeing momentum. We saw another quarter of really strong growth, about close to 90% growth in that particular segment. At our leadership meeting, we had the automation team talk and present about the opportunities. What I can tell you is that there's obviously excitement within our team and also on the customer base, but the volumes are still low, but the opportunity exists and our solution set and the way our teams are going about selling it clearly has momentum.

關於協作機器人的另一件事，我們看到了勢頭。我們又看到了另一個季度的強勁成長，該特定細分市場的成長接近 90%。在我們的領導層會議上，我們讓自動化團隊討論並介紹了這些機會。我可以告訴你的是，我們的團隊和客戶群顯然都很興奮，但數量仍然很低，但機會存在，我們的解決方案集和我們的團隊銷售它的方式顯然有動力。

We have no further questions in our queue at this time. I will now turn the call back over to Mark Barbalato for closing remarks.

目前我們的隊列中沒有其他問題。現在，我將把電話轉回給馬克·巴巴拉托 (Mark Ba​​lbalato)，讓其致閉幕詞。

Thank you for joining us today, and we look forward to talking to you next quarter.

感謝您今天加入我們，我們期待下個季度與您交談。

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for your participation, and you may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與，您現在可以斷開連接。