Zotefoams revenue reaches record high after capacity investments

Cellular material technology company Zotefoams announced its unaudited preliminary results for the 12 months ended 31 December on Tuesday, reporting a 22% increase in group revenue to a record £70.15m.

The London-listed firm said of that, it saw 18% growth in its ‘AZOTE’ foams, with strong market mix improvements, along with increases of 32% in high-performance products and 56% in ‘MuCell’ extrusion.

It claimed a 17% increase in group revenue in constant currency.

Reported profit before tax and exceptional items rose 22% to a record £8.81m, with the group also posting an 8% increase in reported profit before tax to £7.55m.

On the strategic front, Zotefoams completed its major US capacity expansion investment during the year, which the board said was now producing high-quality foam.

It also entered into a strategic partnership with Nike, augmenting its growth prospects in high-performance products, and made “significant” investments to deliver capacity for expected future growth.

Those included the start of a £12m low-pressure capacity investment in the UK, as well as the approval of a further investment of $9m to double its high-pressure autoclave capacity in Kentucky.

“In 2017 Zotefoams delivered significant financial and strategic progress,” said Zotefoams group CEO David Stirling.

“Sales and profits grew strongly to record levels and key investments to support future growth progressed well.”

Stirling said the current year had also started positively, with first quarter order volumes 8% higher than 2017 and an increased proportion of higher-value high-performance products sales.

“Our investment in capacity in Kentucky has now been commissioned and we made the first sales in February 2018.

“We have also broken ground on our investment in Croydon, which increases low-pressure capacity for our high-performance products businesses by a factor of six,” Stirling explained.

“The board has now approved the commissioning of our second high-pressure autoclave in the USA, with a view to having this operational in late 2019.”

Stirling added that the board believed investment in product and market development over previous years, together with investment in capacity to meet expected future levels of demand, left the company well placed to support future growth.

“While being mindful of the risks posed by the macroeconomic environment and a strengthening in the value of sterling, the board remains confident about the future prospects for our business.”