3M Healthcare: Revenue +12.3%
2020 revenue: $8,345,000,000
No change in headcount
3M’s revenue increase can be partially attributed to its N95 masks, which became one of the most essential personal protective equipment for healthcare workers early on in the pandemic.
In 2020, the company reported $8.3 billion in sales, a 12.3% increase from 2019 when it made $7.4 billion in sales. In comparison, the St. Paul, Minn.-based company had a 23.4% increase in sales between 2018 and 2019.
The company reported no new hires or firings during 2020. Its headcount was stagnant at 13,000 employees throughout 2019 and 2020. Despite 3M Healthcare’s headcount remaining the same in its annual report, 3M reportedly laid off 1,700 workers in August as part of its divested drug delivery business. It laid off another 2,900 in December in an ongoing restructuring that would cost the company up to $300 million.
“During the year, we strengthened our healthcare portfolio with the successful integration of Acelity and the completion of the divestiture of drug delivery,” CEO Mike Roman said during an earnings call transcribed by The Motley Fool. “Beginning last January, we immediately activated our surge capacity and doubled our production of respirators to help protect nurses, doctors and first responders.”
At the beginning of the pandemic, some hospitals in the U.S. were running short of 3M’s N95 masks. The company ramped up its face mask production at the end of March to boost N95 mask production by 30% over the next 12 months. At the time, the company reported manufacturing 1.1 billion N95 respirator masks annually with 400 million made in the U.S.
3M also partnered with Ford Motor Co. in March last year to increase the production of its powered air-purifying respirators. The partnership was forged to collaborate on specific means to rapidly combine the manufacturing capabilities of both companies to meet the first COVID-19 surge. 3M also partnered with diesel engine manufacturer Cummins to more than double the production of the PAPRs.
“We have since worked tirelessly to bring on more capacity, which includes additional investments from 3M and partnerships with governments at all levels. In total, last year, we produced and delivered 2 billion respirators globally, with approximately half in the United States,” Roman said. “Today, we are at an annual run rate of 2.5 billion respirators, a fourfold increase versus 2019. At the same time, we have worked closely with governments, law enforcement and retailers to fight fraud.”
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