23 June 2010
Norman Hay plc
AGM Statement
Norman Hay plc ("Norman Hay" or "The Group"), the specialist chemicals and systems group, today announces the result of its sixty fourth Annual General Meeting.
Anthony Hay, who had retired by rotation and offered himself for re-election to the Board at today's annual general meeting, has now withdrawn that offer. He has decided to stand down from the Board and therefore he will not be standing for re-election.
Peter Hay, Chairman of Norman Hay, commented:
"I would like to pay a huge tribute to Anthony's many years of sterling service to Norman Hay. He joined the company as Sales & Marketing Director in 1963. From 1984 until 1993 he served as Chairman and since then he has been a Non-Executive Director and Chairman of the Audit and Remuneration committees. Norman Hay has benefited from his enthusiasm and wise counsel over many years and we are delighted that Anthony has agreed to act as a consultant to company after he steps down from the Board."
Update on current trading
Trading in 2010 has broadly improved, building upon the momentum that was gathering across the group during the second half of 2009.
Our automotive sealants business has in particular built upon the improvement seen in the second half of 2009, as global automotive manufacturing returns to pre-2009 levels. Demand from North America and the Asia-Pacific region has been particularly strong. However, we still remain cautious as to whether this upturn is sustainable in the longer term.
Our UK-based surface coatings operations have experienced mixed trading conditions in recent months. Those operations focused on oil and gas have continued to see declining revenues, although turnover at our zinc and alloy electroplating site based in Coventry has improved on 2009. The overseas surface coating operations have performed well, particularly Perth and ASTEC Dalian in China. The management restructure that we undertook last year in Perth has led to renewed focus and, consequently, substantially improved results.
The strong order book for our engineering business has meant a much improved result compared with the comparable period in 2009, as we continue to work on large overseas contracts. We have also gained new orders in 2010, and have received further enquiries this year for other major plant installations.
In April, we announced a partnership between TAM International, our construction chemicals division, and Normet, a global equipment manufacturer and distributor. Although these are still early days in our partnership, a strong working relationship has been developed in a very short space of time, creating opportunities both for TAM and Normet's complementary businesses. We are confident that this relationship will continue to go from strength to strength.
Diversification into international growth markets has served the Group well in recent months, although continued challenging economic conditions in Europe and more particularly the UK mean that we remain cautious in our outlook.
- ENDS -
Enquiries to:
Vic Bellanti and Nick Ogden
Norman Hay plc
Tel: +44 (0)24 7622 9373
David Haggie and Juliet Tilley
Haggie Financial
Tel: +44 (0)20 7417 8989
About Norman Hay plc
Norman Hay plc is a global chemicals, sealant, surface coatings and engineering specialist with over 60 years of trading history. It operates globally in five continents and is headquartered in Coventry, UK. The Group has four main subsidiaries: "Ultraseal" - automotive sealants; "Armourcote" - surface coatings; "TAM International" - construction chemicals; and "Norman Hay Engineering" - bespoke process plants. Norman Hay plc is listed on AIM under the ticker symbol HNN.
For more information see www.normanhay.com