Bystronic is increasing its strategic focus on tube laser cutting and wants to position itself sustainably in a dynamically growing market segment. Christoph Rüttimann, Global VP Business Unit Tube & Bending, explains the underlying strategies. The company wants to significantly expand its market share by 2030 – and sees software, automation and end-to-end thinking as important levers here.
Bystronic is taking energetic steps in the tube laser cutting market and is aiming for above-average growth. Christoph Rüttimann, Global VP Business Unit Tube, explains how the Swiss precision engineering company is leveraging its global service network, advanced product portfolio and customer-centric approach to become a leading player in the tube laser market.
With two state-of-the-art tube laser systems already available and a third planned solution in the mid-range segment, the company is positioning itself as a comprehensive end-to-end solution provider ready to challenge other established players in this high-growth segment even more.
© Bystronic
From sheets to pipes and profiles: A strategic expansion
Bystronic’s increased focus on the tube and profile cutting business is a natural progression for a company that has developed extensive expertise in the laser cutting and bending of sheet metal in the industry. The decision to focus more on this segment is based on both technical synergies and identified market opportunities. Tube and profile materials offer manufacturers significant advantages in terms of flexibility and stability and enable optimized production processes in various industries, from transportation and construction to the furniture, sporting goods and automotive industries.
A key finding in this regard is that the market for tube and profile cutting is expected to grow faster than the market for conventional laser cutting of sheet metal, with the global market size expected to exceed one billion US dollars by 2030.
“You can save on various work steps that would not be possible when processing flat sheet metal,” explains Rüttimann, citing the manufacture of tractor cabs as an example, where tubular materials make several welding and bending processes superfluous.
The company acquired the Italian niche supplier TTM Laser in 2018 and has fundamentally changed its approach to the pipe market over the past year and a half. As a result, Bystronic is aiming for a significantly larger market share in the double-digit percentage range by 2030. Rüttimann describes this target as ambitious, but achievable in view of Bystronic’s strengths and market coverage.
Utilization of core competencies in a highly competitive environment
What is Bystronic’s confidence in such an aggressive growth strategy based on? According to Rüttimann, the company is building on the good reputation it has built up with customers and in the industry, as well as on its ability to further develop and improve technologies and processes. In addition, customer proximity is one of the Swiss company’s key priorities, which also manifests itself in practical terms in 30 sales and service branches worldwide. According to Rüttimann, Bystronic’s global service network and end-to-end solution expertise make the company stand out from the competition and set it apart from new market entrants from Asia in particular.
“The first machine is always sold by the salesperson, but the second and third machines are recommended by the customer on the basis of good service,” emphasizes Rüttimann, underlining the importance of strong customer service. Bystronic consistently pursues this strategy and concentrates on driving forward customer-oriented innovation and, in the process, building highly functional systems that fit perfectly into the customer’s planned production environment – with maximum availability. The Swiss system manufacturer also gives priority to intuitive operating software. Bystronic does not consider competing against low-cost suppliers solely on price to be an effective strategy.
© Bystronic
Two systems, one vision: covering the entire market spectrum
Bystronic has launched two different laser tube cutting systems to address different market segments:
ByTube Star 130 is aimed at high-volume manufacturers producing hundreds to thousands of parts per day. According to Bystronic, it is currently the fastest and most precise system on the market and is used in industries such as furniture, shelving, fitness equipment and automotive components.
ByTube Star 330, presented at an event in Italy in April 2025, is aimed at traditional Bystronic customers: Contract manufacturers who require maximum flexibility. This end-to-end solution processes tubes with a diameter of 19 mm to 324 mm in various wall thicknesses and small to medium batch sizes and has advanced features such as integrated tapping and countersinking functions. With around 140 different modular combination options, customers can configure tailor-made solutions from standardized building blocks – similar to Lego, as Rüttimann describes it.
“Fortunately, the market launch of the ByTube Star 330 in Italy resulted in immediate orders and very positive customer feedback, with beaming faces everywhere and strong follow-up interest from customers in Europe, North America and the Asia-Pacific region,” reports Rüttimann. “We are basically seeing very strong demand for this product all over the world.” In addition to the performance data of the in-house technology, he attributes the success to several successful customer workshops that were held during the development phase.
Closing the gap: New developments for the mid-price segment
In addition, Bystronic has identified a market opportunity in the mid-price segment and is currently developing a third laser tube cutting system for precisely this segment, which combines the high flexibility of the ByTube Star 330 with the speed advantages of the ByTube Star 130. According to Rüttimann, this system, whose field tests are planned for the end of 2027 and market launch for the beginning of 2028, will be aimed at the “largest market we can serve”, but will also face the toughest competition. Rüttimann explicitly emphasizes that customer feedback is a key driver of product development at Bystronic. Extensive market research and customer workshops are also intended to ensure that the system meets the actual market requirements and thus the customer’s wishes from the outset before the main development work begins. The Swiss machine manufacturer consistently follows this procedure for all new systems.
“In principle, we don’t want to transfer technology. We want to respond to the market, to what our customers really need,” emphasizes Rüttimann. “That’s why we involve customers as much as possible in the earliest phases of product development.”
Software important for customer perception
Although machine performance is of course very important, Rüttimann emphasizes that the software accounts for at least 50 percent of customer perception. This is understandable, as the software is the main interface between the user and the machine. Especially when it comes to training operators, intuitive, easy-to-understand software speeds up this process. Rüttimann assumes that operators with experience in the tube industry will have internalized the software logic of the company’s own products within a few weeks and will therefore be able to fully exploit the possibilities of a Bystronic system. Overall, experience shows that the less prior knowledge operators have, the more a well-coordinated, intuitive operating software can greatly promote the learning process – if, on the other hand, a software is too complex and contains nested operating structures, corresponding inhibitions and delays are literally pre-programmed.
Bystronic therefore invests a great deal of energy and effort in intuitive, user-friendly software that enables even less experienced operators to quickly achieve optimum cutting results. In addition, Bystronic’s end-to-end solutions offer further advanced functions that can make production easier. These include the compensation of curved or twisted profiles and pipes using laser scanning. There are also integrated marking functions that automatically label parts. The “Quick Cut” option is also very helpful, as it significantly increases both cutting speed and accuracy.
Integration into production environments through automation is standard for all systems, with bundle loaders or chain loaders available that can handle heavy pipes weighing several hundred kilograms. Intelligent sorting in the unloading area gives intralogistics a helping hand.
Regional focus and future prospects
Demand is currently strongest in North America, with strong interest from Southern Europe (particularly Spain and Italy), as well as the UK. Germany and Switzerland are showing promising local activity, while opportunities remain in France, the Benelux countries and Austria. Bystronic is also planning to expand its market presence in the APAC region, with an initial focus on the Korean market. In any case, one of the highlights in Europe will be participation in Tube Düsseldorf in April. “The focus is on sales implementation – we want to help our customers find the right end-to-end solutions while perfecting all the functions of the new systems. Innovation is the key. As a Swiss company, we have to focus on this. We need to keep improving our products and developing new features that are truly tailored to our customers,” summarizes Rüttimann, confident that continuous and dedicated technical development in all relevant areas will put Bystronic in a strong position for future success in the tube laser market.
Bystronic at Tube 2026: Hall 6, Booth C26
Web:
www.bystronic.com
