The packaging firm reduced its financial losses compared with last year

Packaging solution provider, Macfarlane Group, said its injection moulding business volumes were 26% lower in the first half of 2004, compared with the same period of 2003.

The Scottish firm reported a reduction in first half operating losses from Ј6.5m (E9.6m) in 2003 to Ј1.9m (E2.8m) in 2004. After property sales gains the first half pre-taxation profit was Ј1.3m (E1.9m) for 2004, the company said.

Major businesses were demonstrating “sales recovery and good performance improvements”, the company said. “Programmes to grow sales, enhance margins and reduce costs [are] all having a positive impact.”

Injection moulding business volumes were down because a customer had decided to dual-source to have certainty over supply, according to chief executive Peter Atkinson. He told PRW.com 11 redundancies had been made from the company’s Irish moulding factory. This takes the total number of redundancies from the factory to 20 since 2003.

In its interim result statement the company said planned new business gains should allow injection moulding sales volumes to recover by the year-end. Atkinson said: “If the new business gains come to fruition we will take [more] staff on board.”

Chairman Archie Hunter said the group was on target to be cash positive from its trading operations in 2004. He expected the group to return to profitable growth in 2005.