China and Eastern Europe lead PVC window profile sales growth
PVC window profile group Profine, incorporating KBE, Kömmerling and Trocal (former HT Troplast) brands, has achieved 17% growth in turnover to €377.2m in the first half 2006 compared with the same period in 2005.
Its profits (EBITDA) were €19m, described as “well above budget”, despite a 25% increase in material and energy costs that have been largely determined by a “drastic increase” in the cost of PVC.
The management is confident that the growth will be maintained in the second half, forecasting 2006 year-end turnover to grow by at least 10% compared with 2005 and to exceed €800m.
China and Eastern Europe brought in respectively 60% and “well over” 50% increased sales, while there was more moderate 5% growth in the sales region of German, Benelux, Scandinavia and Switzerland. The rest of Western Europe grew only by 1%, but southeast Europe grew more strongly, up 9%, as did the region Australasia, Africa and America with 29%.
Hans Herpoel, the managing director of operations at Profine, said that the company is investing €48m in production capacity in 2006, two thirds of which in Germany, adding that at least this level of investment will have to be made each year just to keep up with growth. In Germany, investment has achieved the required increase of capacity by replacement of existing plant with higher performance equipment.
PVC compounding capacity at KBE in Berlin will increase in 2007 from the present 110,000 to 115,000-120,000 tonnes with plant to be installed on neighbouring land acquired by the company. While there are plans to set up an extrusion plant in the Ukraine, there will be a significant increase of capacity at the Russian extrusion plant in Woskresensk near Moscow, with a decision to be made in 2007 as to whether to establish a second Russian plant to the East.
