Nippon now has 20% of Pilkington

Having reported a 29% increase in first half profits, Pilkington Glass has now issued a warning which suggests that full year profits will be nearer £230m rather than the originally forecast £245m.

Pilkington has also confirmed that Nippon Sheet Glass Co Ltd. has completed the purchase of 130 million shares in Pilkington plc, bringing its total shareholding to 20.6% of Pilkington’s issued share capital.

However, a full scale bid was considered unlikely at this moment. Analyst Goldman Sachs pointed out that NSG’s balance sheet comprised about £1.1bn of equity and £400m of debt. With Pilkington currently valued at around £2.5bn, NSG would be unable to mount a bid. However, NSG is part of the Sumitomo Group, which has greater resources.

Chief exec Paolo Scaroni spoke at a city press conference, admitting that it was ‘difficult to determine the outlook given the current softening of market conditions’.

In reality, the news from Pilkington remains pretty good, with the glassmaker still standing to make 30% more profit than last year. Sales of the Self cleaning glass Activ – which is shortly to be the subject of a multi-million pound Europe-wide marketing campaign - and the low emissivity K-glass which meets forthcoming changes to the Building Regs (Part L) will help boost profits not just for Pilkington, but also for its customers.

Although no more job cuts were envisaged (Pilkington has lost 12,000 since 1998), Pilkington has just announced the closure of one of it three automotive glass production lines at its Eccleston plant in St Helens. Shift patterns on the two remaining lines, which make glass sidelights for cars and trucks, will also change, resulting in some job losses on those operations. The moves are designed to reduce capacity and improve the site’s manufacturing efficiency.

The decision to close the line follows a thorough review of Pilkington’s European automotive glass capacity against expected industry demand for automotive glass through to 2003 and beyond. Current capacity far exceeds demand, with further reductions in demand expected in the near future.

First Eagle SoGen Funds raises participation in Deceuninck to 5,14%
Deceuninck, designer and producer of PVC-U window systems and building profiles, has announced that the First Eagle SoGen Funds currently owes 5.14% of Deceuninck shares. The fund is a subsidiary of the American Arnhold & Bleichroeder Inc, an international banking firm.

‘It is a satisfaction to know that some important international investors still believe in Small Caps and especially in our strategy. The downfall of our share price in the past weeks does not reflect our growth and I am convinced that the price will keep up with our results on the term’ says Clement De Meersman, CEO of Deceuninck.

The shareholding structure of Deceuninck is as follows: First Eagle SoGen Funds: 5.14%, Dasco: 15.59% and Plastec International: 25.42%. The remaining 53.85% are divided between institutional investors, personnel and private investors. Deceuninck is number three in its sector world-wide and achieved consolidated sales of 339,6 million euro in 2000.

Rankins Buys TW Ides
Rankins Glass has purchased the glass processing division of TW Ide. The acquisition (effective 1st November 2001) includes all acid-etching, sand-blasting, silvering and specialist laminating works, which added to Rankins existing glass processing and toughening activities, now makes the company, according to sales director Terry Driscoll, ‘The most comprehensive in-house glass processor in the UK.’

There are no redundancies, as all 16 Ides employees will join Rankins although for the time being the division will remain at Glasshouse Fields pending a local authority application to redevelop the site.

£12m venture capital investment at John Fredericks
It’s business as usual at John Fredericks Plastics following a £12m venture capital investment by Baring English Growth Fund and Northern Venture Managers.

The move brings an enhanced management team headed up by new managing director Steve Jones. Steve has worked in the PVC industry for some 20 years and has held senior management positions with Heywood Williams, Caradon, British Petroleum and, most recently, HW Systems.

Steve commented: ‘John Fredericks is a real success story, having grown from a £3.4m business in 1991 to some £18m this year. We intend to buiold on this phenomenal growth and will continue to offer the installer market exclusive access to first class products and service. Our existing customers can rest assured that this very positive move will bring real benefits to them in the future.’

Also joining the existing management team of Mark Dicconson and Kevin Taylor are Derek Travers as group operations director and Jim Hodson as group finance director.

Griffin Windows joins Avocet
Griffin Windows, one of the most profitable window fabricators in the UK according to a recent Business Ratio Report, has joined Yorkshire based hardware company Avocet as part of the MASCO group, the US based manufacturer of bathroom fittings, cabinets, architectural coatings, locks and other home improvement and building products.

According to the report from The Prospect Shop, Griffin has one of the highest profit levels in the industry: with a pre-tax profit margin of 20.4% and compound sales growth of 28%.

Masco has an international portfolio of companies – including German roller shutter manufacturer SKS – and also has significant interest in the US window business, having just bought Milgard Manufacturing, the largest manufacturer of windows in the Western United States (based in Tacoma, Washington).

New £1m facility for Mustang Gutter

Following a record trading year for the company, Mustan Gutter Systems Ltd - manufacturer ofaluminium seamless guttering systems - has invested in a new £1 million facility in Braunstone, Leicestershire.

The 12,000 sq ft complex, which has been purchased outright by the company, will form the company's new headquarters, with staff offices and a new warehouse facility several times larger than the company's previous premises. Ten new jobs were created as a result of the move, bringing the company's employee total to 27.

The move was completed as a result of a surge in demand for the Mustan aluminium gutters, which have been proven to out-perform PVC-u and other alternatives. Approved by the BBA and offering a life expectancy of over 30 years, Mustang gutters provide clean, continuous lines, are very quick to install and are competitively priced in comparison with PVC-u.

Sales Manager Jon Lennox believes that the new facility will allow the company to fulfil its growth potential in the UK, while Mustang's Local Authority Manager Graham Knowles is also looking forward to further growth following the move:

'We are already working with local authorities and housing associations to provide them with best value solutions and we want to develop more opportunities for working partnerships in this area.