Building products firm incurs exceptional losses of £32.4m in effort to return to profitability.
Heywood Williams has reported an operational profit after restructuring into three divisions.
The building products group posted a profit before tax of £5.3 million for the year ended 31 December 2004, turning round a loss in 2003 of £3.2 million.
Including exceptional items the company made a loss of £32.4m (2003: £71.8 million) reflecting non-cash accounting items relating to disposals and goodwill. Total group turnover was down from £499 million to £363 million as a result of disposals.
Heywood Williams said that 2004 had been a challenging year for the group. The PVC window fabrication business was affected by a decline in the UK door and conservatory market of 5% and PVC resin prices increased by over 33%. In November, Heywood’s largest customer Coldseal ceased trading.
Robert Barr, group chief executive, said: 'In 2004 the group was restructured, simplified into three market leading divisions, and the process of returning the Group to growth commenced against a challenging business environment.
The group’s three new building products divisions are LaSalle Bristol, Hardware and Plastic Systems.
