News

Improved margins helped surface engineering technology company Hardide reduce losses at the interim stage.

The company, which is targeting an overall profit in the current financial year, has been focused on driving down costs and pointed to a mere 2% increase in the cost of sales in the six months to end-March, despite a 14% increase in sales, as evidence of its success in this aim.

In the UK, gross margins improved by 6 percentage points.

Loss before tax narrowed to £0.89m from £0.91m a year earlier on revenue that grew from £1.1m to £1.3m.

Revenue improved despite the slow-down in the US market and a short-term dip in demand from a major UK customer towards the end of the reporting period. Although the UK customer has resumed orderign from the company, it is probable that sales in the second half of the financial year will be lower than in the first, though by the end of the second half "the monthly rate of sales is expected to surpass that experienced during the first half."

The company also announced that Hardide Coatings Limited has entered into a three-year coatings approval test programme with Airbus. The company now has confident tests being performed at seven key aerospace industry manufacturers.

Hardide Coatings Inc., the US arm, has seen a slow-down in the number of customer trials as customers focus more on production in reaction to the environment of soaring oil prices and increased demand for oil services.

The US business is now focusing sales resources on "applications that build on proven successes, shorten customer design approval and testing time, and increase the customer conversion rate."